Porcini Mushroom

Pasta with butter and mushrooms is appealing all by itself, but the cheesy, garlicky bread crumbs make this dish a showstopper.

This is perfect with mashed potatoes. What to drink: Terra dei Re 2003 "Vultur" Aglianico del Vulture from Italy ($20), with aromas of spice, as well as plummy flavors, juicy acidity, and smooth tannins.

Standing rib roast is a special event; it's also surprisingly easy to make. This version gets a spice rub and a rich, earthy sauce that can be largely made ahead.

After the porcini mushrooms add their flavor to the broth, you can use them in an omelet or a sauté.

Barley replaces arborio in this "risotto."

This bolognese lacks one traditional main ingredient—meat. However, with hearty vegetables, you'll hardly know it's missing.

Delicious when served hot, this pasta dish is made for the culinarily creative—feel free to use your favorite mushrooms for a recipe all your own.

This delicate salad, combining crisp celery and tender fresh porcini, grew out of the memories of two food editors — Zanne Stewart and Alexis Touchet — of similar ones they had enjoyed at restaurants in Italy. (Surprisingly, they were in different regions and traveling 20 years apart.)

Lauren Farber of Wellesley, Massachusetts, writes: "I have eaten twice at Lumière in West Newton, Massachusetts, and each time I have enjoyed the mushroom soup. Can you help me get the recipe?" A combination of white and porcini mushrooms makes for a full-flavored stock — the key to a soup that's simple and smooth.

Think of a strata as a savory bread pudding; here, leftover stuffing serves as the bread.

A fresh take on green bean casserole#151;lighter and simpler, yet full of flavor.

Unlike many stuffings, which are cooked inside the turkey and/or include chicken broth, this wild mushroom version is completely vegetarian. Packed with the robust essence of dried porcini, it will win the approval of everyone at the table.

Jonathan Waxman makes his polenta using stone-ground grits because he prefers their coarser texture. You will, too.

In adding translucent pearls of tapioca to the mushroom broth in this recipe, we've borrowed one of chef Daniel Boulud's methods for giving body to a light sauce.

This recipe serves 4 as a main course after you set aside 3 cups to make the mushroom and mozzarella arancini or the mushroom risotto cakes. Otherwise, it serves 6.

Editor's note: This recipe is excerpted from Maguy Le Coze and Eric Ripert's book the Le Bernardin Cookbook. To read more about Ripert, click here. Eric: My friend Albert Core gave me the idea to combine port and sherry vinegar, and after some experimenting, I found a way to do it. The result was this snapper, my first signature dish at Le Bernardin. Everyone loved it immediately, except for Maguy, who didn't even want to put it on the menu. Now, of course, she loves it, too. Maguy: I didn't want this dish going on the menu, and Gilbert said he didn't care, he loved it. It was the first time we disagreed. So I invited some friends for dinner and asked them what they thought. They all said it was great. I was furious! Now I love it, so much so that the kitchen knows to send extra sauce on the side.