Recipe Sifter

If you run out of preserved lemons, or decide on just a few day's notice to cook a chicken, lamb, or fish dish with lemons and olives and need preserved lemons in a hurry, you can use this quick five-day method taught to me by a Moroccan diplomat's wife. Lemons preserved this way will not keep, but are perfectly acceptable in an emergency.

Homemade dried orange or lemon peel air-dried at room temperature and ground into powder. A single-ingredient pantry staple that replaces citrus extract in baking, flavors teas, and punches up sauces.

Tender baked acorn squash halves filled with seasoned spinach, sautéed onions, and breadcrumbs. This vegetarian stuffed squash makes a gorgeous fall dinner that's naturally light and full of earthy flavor.

Small-batch walnut brownies baked in a loaf pan with cocoa powder, one egg, and vegetable shortening. Dense, fudgy, and scaled for two to four people instead of a crowd.

Food processor salsa made with roasted green chiles, canned tomatoes, green onions, garlic, dried red chili, and cilantro. No cooking required, just pulse and serve with chips.

Summer pudding-style fruit cake lined with sponge cake and packed with kirsch-soaked strawberries, blackberries, cherries, and currants. Chilled overnight and unmolded.

Baked peppery shrimp marinated in lime juice, soy sauce, garlic, and red pepper flakes, finished with a drizzle of sesame oil. A spicy, citrusy shrimp dish with bold Asian-inspired flavor.

Thai-inspired shrimp and chicken soup built on a homemade bone broth with coriander, chili, soy sauce, and mushrooms. Served over rice with fresh cilantro and scallions.

Pan-fried trout draped in a silky cream sauce with honey, lemon, and toasted almonds. A rustic European-style fish supper that feels indulgent but comes together quickly.

Smoky roasted eggplant dip with fresh tomatoes, garlic and lemon. A simple Mediterranean appetizer ready in under an hour.

Nothing beats a spicy stew except when it can be slow cooked all day to create a strong tantalizing flavor.

Huachinango: grilled red snapper marinated overnight in achiote (annatto) paste with garlic, orange juice, and oregano. The Yucatecan fish classic with deep red color and citrus-spice depth.

Spicy and tasty way to have potatoes. You can use any type of Thai curry. I use a taste of Thai Panang Curry Paste.

Old-fashioned homemade chili sauce simmered for hours from fresh tomatoes, bell peppers, brown sugar, and warm spices including cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. A classic American canned condiment recipe.

Homemade sambar powder (sambar podi) with toasted channa dal, coriander seeds, red chilies, fenugreek, and asafetida. An essential South Indian spice blend.

Texas-style venison chili simmered in beer and beef stock with chili powder, cumin, coriander, and masa harina. No beans, no tomatoes, just bold meat-and-spice flavor that deepens overnight.