Prosciutto

Getting the consistency of the creamy mushroom sauce right is key for this pasta recipe—you want to reduce it just until it clings to the pasta.

There is no better beach or picnic sandwich: It feeds a crowd, gets better as it sits, and is a hearty meal built inside a loaf of bread. About that bread: Unless you live in New Orleans and can get the real thing, opt for a ciabatta or other loaf with a sturdy but not too crusty exterior.

This is a simple recipe that tends to impress. These elegant roulades are surprisingly easy to make and will get you a standing ovation at the dinner table. Take a bow, as you're giving everyone a nice dose of brain protection thanks to the vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin K, fiber, and phytonutrients found in the watercress and collards. If you can’'t locate fresh figs, swap in two thinly sliced ripe pears, and feel free to swap out the collards for kale.

Luscious, cheesy eggs baked inside prosciutto "baskets" make a craveable finger-friendly brunch main.

The slight bitterness of kale practically cries for sweetness to balance it out—persimmons are perfect and play well with the lime juice, prosciutto, and feta. Crisping the prosciutto adds a textural contrast.

Fair warning: spicy honey is about to become your all-time favorite pizza topping.

Even if you're not a huge fan of bitter greens, don't substitute regular lettuce here; the slightly sweet dressing will taste cloying without some sharp contrast.

This entire Italian-inspired dinner is cooked on two baking sheets, making clean-up a breeze.

These make-ahead packs are perfect for camping trips as well as quick and easy breakfasts on the go.

The crisped prosciutto adds salty and savory notes, not unlike what Parmesan brings to a Caesar dressing.

The pickled hard-boiled eggs are a great snack on their own—they're sold individually at Shed.

Mmm. Fried dough. On a trip to Rimini, a resort town on Italy's Adriatic coast, I had a memorable fried pizza topped with cheese and ham. To re-create it, I came up with this shallow-fry method in which you fry the dough, then flip it, top it with mozzarella, and cover it with a lid to melt the cheese. In honor of Rimini, I've topped this one with the region's famous squacquerone cheese, which is as deliciously soft and runny as it is difficult to pronounce. If you can't find it, you can use crescenza (also known as stracchino). It goes on after frying and quickly melts on the hot crust. I also add thin slices of the cooked ham sold in Italian delis as prosciutto cotto. Not to be confused with prosciutto, which is cured but not cooked, this is what we know as ham, but it's a bit paler, less smoky, and more delicate than typical American deli ham. For this method, it's really helpful to roll your dough out as close to the stove top as possible and to have everything set up before you start cooking: your skillet on the stove top, a lid within easy reach, your cheeses and toppings measured out, and a plate lined with paper towels right next to the stove. Keep a close eye on the heat as you fry and adjust it as needed so the dough cooks all the way through without burning on the outside.

In 2006, I packed up my gear and traveled to the Mall of America for the Food Network Pizza Champions Challenge. Over the course of a very grueling day, we competed for three Guinness World Records in front of a big audience and a panel of famous judges. I won two of the world-record rounds: Biggest Pizza Continuously Spinning for Two Minutes, and Most Consecutive Rolls Across the Shoulders in 30 Seconds. By comparison, round three, the cooking challenge, felt as easy as pie. Four of us gathered at our stations to get our marching orders: create a gourmet pizza in ten minutes using none of the top ten toppings—no pepperoni, no sausage, you get the idea. So, my instinct was to combine two of my favorite pizza worlds, California and Italy. I grabbed five totally traditional Italian ingredients: prosciutto, fig jam, Gorgonzola, Asiago, and balsamic vinegar. They're classic, but the thing is, you'd never find them on a pizza in Italy, at least not all together. But to us "why not?" Californians, the combination makes perfect sense as a pizza topping, and it made sense to the judges, too.

The keys to achieving razor-edged triangles: Let the sandwiches cool slightly, then slice with a serrated knife.

We're now obsessed with this snail-shaped pasta (which is made from scratch at Tosca).

Choose portobello caps with dry, firm gills—damp and soft ones mean the mushrooms are old.

Love a ham sandwich with mustard on rye? Those familiar flavors are reimagined in this easily achievable dish.