Lemon

Like little cakes with a citrus perfume, these shell-shape treats are equally delightful as a light dessert with fresh fruit or as an accompaniment to a cup of tea. Madeleines are most often associated with the French author Marcel Proust, who immortalized them in the opening scene of the novel Remembrance of Things Past.

Lebkuchen are traditional German Christmas cookies, spiced with the flavors of gingerbread, studded with candied citrus peel, and topped with a sweet sugar-and-milk glaze. To toast nuts, spread them in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake in a 350°F oven for about ten minutes.

These Swiss cookies, sometimes spelled Bräzeli or Bratzeli, are made with a specialty tool much like a waffle iron, but the results are thinner. You can also use a pizzelle iron.

These delicate cookies are made with lots of juice and zest for a delightful tang; poppy seeds add crunch. (Poppy seeds can turn rancid quickly, so purchase them from a store with a high turnover and keep them in the freezer.)

Pucker up: This version of the bake-sale favorite is the most intensely lemony one we’ve tried. A generous crown of powdered sugar not only adds to the flavor of these sweet squares, but also makes them easier to stack for storage.

These bite-size cookies resemble little lemon pies, with a sweet, short crust and a tart cheesecake filling.

If you like to wow your friends with your backyard cooking prowess, this is one showboatin’ dish you’ll want to try out. I like what happens when you marinate lamb in yogurt. The enzyme action in the yogurt does something special to the meat, tenderizing it and giving it an exotic allure.

Cooter, our chef in Rochester, concocted this tongue-tinglin’ booster sauce. Its flavor dances all around in your mouth with every tender bite of the sweetly smoked salmon.

This dish perfectly combines the bright, bold flavors of Asian spices, fresh lemon, and BBQ sauce. All you’ve gotta do is fry up some chicken thighs and dress them in a tart, clingy sauce. The result is some powerfully provocative flavors. This sauce also works well with grilled chicken.

My first encounter with this dish was in a Nicaraguan steak house in Miami. The citrus-marinated steak with its beautiful green sauce just blew me away. Making the Chimichurri Sauce—a Latin version of pesto—takes no time, so you could easily fit this into your after-work grilling repertoire.

My nephew Kyle requests this cake every year on his birthday. You know that if this is a twelve-year-old boy’s favorite cake, it’s gotta be good!

Every summer, my sister Beth fills her freezer with blueberries her family has picked. They eat as many as they can while the berries are in season, share some with friends and family, and then freeze the rest. This quick bread is good made with fresh or frozen blueberries, and Beth uses lemons from her own lemon tree, right in her backyard! (I’m jealous!)

This is part of the recipe Chicken Wings Five Ways.

Sardines are small and abundant and have a short life cycle, making them one of the most sustainable fish out there. They’re low in mercury and other toxins that build up in larger fish. Plus, the method used to fish them produces very little bycatch and has minimal environmental impact. Best of all, they are quick-cooking, versatile, and tasty! They can hold up to the bold flavors of the accompanying sauce. This is finger food at its best, perfect for outdoor cooking—and eating. If you have any seasoned fruit wood or grapevines, add to the coals or use to build the fire—the flavor will take you directly to the Mediterranean. If it’s not grilling season, you can make this indoors in a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet instead.

When summer is in full swing and melons are fat and juicy, treat yourself to this delightful, kid-friendly beverage. You can use cantaloupe, honeydew, or a mixture of different melons. Watermelon works best on its own, though—its consistency doesn’t jive with other kinds of melons. For a more adult beverage, try spiking this with tequila or vodka!

Before we were married, my wife, Anne, used to court me with this tart. She was a pastry chef at San Francisco’s now-razed 42 Degrees restaurant, and they sourced cheese from the same distributor as we did at the Market. Whenever the restaurant got their cheese shipment, Anne would give the delivery guy this tart, and he in turn would deliver it to me on his next stop. I guess the way to my heart truly is through my stomach! Whether you’re being wooed or not, this is a fabulous, timeless tart featuring an easy-to-mix shortbread crust and a tart, rich filling. Top it with whatever fruit is pretty and in season. If you are lucky enough to have access to Meyer lemons, you can replace up to two-thirds of the regular lemon juice with Meyer lemon juice.

If you’ve been looking for an excuse to stop buying bottled salad dressing, this is it. Delicate and well balanced, this dressing complements just about any veggie or grain you choose—in fact, it is the backbone of some of our most popular deli salads. One batch is enough for many salads, so make this, keep it in the fridge, and don’t look back. You can use different vinegars with equally successful results, but you might need to adjust the quantity of vinegar depending on its acidity. Use good-quality extra-virgin olive oil—the flavor will be well worth it on your beautiful greens.

A staple of the Moroccan kitchen, preserved lemons have a tangy, fermented taste. For most recipes, the pulpy flesh is cut away and only the thick peel is used. Brian uses preserved lemons in a flavored butter for Grilled Mahimahi with Preserved Lemon Butter (page 113) and in Manila Clams, Arugula, and White Beans with Preserved Lemon Vinaigrette (page 54).

With their tart flavor and sunny color, these lemon bars are sure to become a favorite year-round treat. Use a serrated knife to cut into bars, wiping the blade with a damp towel after each slice.

This cheesecake-like tart has a crust made from ground vanilla wafers rather than the standard graham crackers. The top of the tart might brown irregularly; conceal any spots by dusting the surface lightly with confectioners’ sugar (use a fine-mesh sieve).