Gruyère

"One evening my husband made fantastic asparagus roasted with olive oil," says Anne Graziano of New York, New York. "It prompted me to create this salad that features the asparagus, as well as Gruy
re cheese, apple and fresh greens."

Anthony Bourdain I will always associate the smell of this dish with my first imaginings of France — and with the imminent arrival of guests. When I smelled this dish cooking downstairs, I knew company was coming. My mother made it for special occasions only. I remember being terrifically impressed that she served it in scallop shells. I yearned for this dish — knowing it only by smells — and was delighted when I finally turned old enough to sit down to eat with the adults. This was the reward.

Hybrids can be substituted in this recipe.

"I never had a cookbook until I moved here in my twenties to do some graduate work at the University of Oregon," writes Fanny Carroll of Eugene, Oregon. "I fell head over heels for this guy (now my husband), and he gave me Pellaprat's Modern French Culinary Art for Christmas. Still, many of the everyday dishes I made when I was raising my daughters are recipes I learned from my mother while I was growing up in the suburbs of Paris. She was quite a cook, and with a husband and seven kids to feed, everything had to be fast." Called gougères in French, these cocktail snacks are irresistible.

A rich and elegant special-occasion dish.

A gratin is the golden, epicurean crust that forms on the surface of savory baked or broiled dishes. Pungent Gruyère makes a genial topping that acts as a protective layer, preventing the potatoes from drying out.

This is a very near replica of the small cheese quiches Madame Fromage sells each Saturday at the Louviers market.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Offer with crusty French bread and you have a satisfying summer supper. The creamy dressing is lower-fat version, using half yogurt and half mayonnaise.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Don't be nervous about making these rich and spicy soufflés — they're durable enough to be reheated. And it's normal for the puffy tops to fall when you remove the soufflés from the oven. Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 1 hr