Europe recipe collection

Creamy German cucumber salad (Gurkensalat) tossed in a tangy sour cream dressing with mustard and fresh dill. Salting the cucumbers first keeps every slice crisp and the dressing thick, never watery.

Polipi Veraci all'Aglio is Italian braised octopus with crushed garlic, cumin, bay leaf, and olive oil, slow-cooked in a sealed earthenware dish until tender. Finished with rosemary, parsley, and green pepper.

Old-fashioned veal stew is the French classic blanquette de veau: blanched veal gently simmered with pearl onions, mushrooms, and chicken stock, finished with a velvety egg-yolk and cream velouté sauce.

This focaccia turns out crusty outside and fluffy inside. Eating it plain is absolutely tasty and it can be made into a delicious sandwich!

Orecchiette dell'ortolano: Italian gardener's-style pasta with broiled eggplant, fire-roasted peppers, asparagus, and fresh fava beans tossed with olive oil and garlic.

Simple Italian bread for the bread machine with just five ingredients: bread flour, water, yeast, salt, and sugar. A lean, crusty loaf with a chewy crumb and no fat added.

Pasta and peas tosses ditalini macaroni with sweet peas, sauteed mushrooms, and a quick tomato juice sauce. Melted fontina cheese pulls it all together for a 30-minute Italian weeknight dinner for two.

Pasta per pizza is an authentic Italian pizza dough with just five ingredients: flour, water, yeast, olive oil, and salt. Kneaded until soft and velvety, it makes two thin-crust pizzas.

Penne with marinara sauce, crispy bacon, and whipped ricotta on the side. Red pepper flakes add heat to the sauce while creamy Parmesan-ricotta rounds out every bite.

Pasta with smoked salmon and golden caviar: thin spaghetti in a silky butter cream sauce, ribboned with smoked salmon and crowned with a spoonful of golden whitefish caviar. Elegant in 30 minutes.

Pasta with tomatoes, white beans, and pepperoni in a quick Italian sauce with basil, oregano, and red pepper flakes. A hearty, protein-packed weeknight pasta for two.

This is from Paul, who used to run an old BBS (remember those?) with a cooking "echo". You can use all beef or all turkey. Also good with some shredded Parmesan cheese sprinkled over the marinara before serving.

Penne puttanesca with anchovies, capers, and briny olives in a bold marinara. A classic Italian pasta with big flavor built in one pan, weeknight-fast.

Tender eggplant meets the salty bite of ricotta salata in this rustic Italian pasta that brings together roasted garlic, fresh rosemary, and sweet cherry tomatoes for a weeknight dinner with soul.

Pesce spada in salmoriglio: Sicilian grilled swordfish bathed in a bright olive oil, lemon, oregano, and garlic sauce. Five-ingredient authentic, table-ready fast, straight from the Mediterranean.

Pizza by the Foot: a whole loaf of bread split lengthwise and loaded with pizza sauce, Italian sausage, onion, mozzarella, and provolone. Baked until the cheese bubbles and browns.