Bell Pepper

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Makes use of the microwave oven.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Start the meal with gazpacho, then offer crusty bread, marinated green and black olives, and sangria with the salad. End with raspberries atop vanilla custards.

Red peppers provide color and almonds provide crunch in this easy-to-make recipe.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Couscous, the basis of many North African dishes, is shaped like a grain but is actually a pasta made of semolina wheat. In fact couscous was incorporated into Italian cuisine when Arabs occupied Sicily six centuries ago. And so to flavor the following couscous we've used classic ingredients common to Sicily rather than North Africa-olives, peppers, capers, currants, and pine nuts.

The spicy North African condiment called harissa is often mixed with olives or served with salads, couscous, or tagines — meat or poultry stews.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Serve this with white rice for a dinnertime side dish or alongside ham and eggs for a satisfying breakfast.

Nowhere are vegetables as important as they are in Sicily, and few vegetables are as popular-or have as long a history-as the eggplant. There are said to be hundreds of ways to prepare it. Peppers and artichokes are almost as well loved and common. A country cook often gets produce from a small kitchen garden called an "urtu".

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Jason Gareffa of Los Angeles, California, writes: "Pursuing a career in acting keeps me tremendously busy. Between my improv comedy classes, performances, auditions for film and television roles, and gigs as a DJ for weddings, I don't have a lot of extra time on my hands. But good food is important to me, especially since I need a lot of energy to stay on the go. So over the years, I've started experimenting in the kitchen. Now the other members of my improv group even like to come to my 'wrap parties' to taste my creations."