Cutlet

You can substitute skinless boneless chicken breasts for the veal cutlets. Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 35 min

Serve couscous and buttered carrots with this main course. Purchase fresh rhubarb tartlets for a seasonal finale.

With the pork, serve sautéed spinach and some steamed baby red-skinned potatoes with butter and chopped fresh dill. Warm apple tartlets from your favorite bakery complete this elegant meal.

In this entrée, balsamic vinegar gives tartness to a cream sauce that balances nicely with the pork and figs. Sautéed spinach or chard would go well with the dish.

Creamed spinach and baked sweet potatoes drizzled with maple syrup make good partners for these crispy cutlets. Top vanilla frozen yogurt with fudge sauce and a few raspberries for dessert.

This simplified version of a classic party dish will add some welcome heat to a winter night.

Active time: 15 min
Start to finish: 15 min

Active time: 25 min Start to finish: 35 min

Chuletas de Pollo al Limón I first tasted this light but winning dish at La Troje restaurant in Orizaba. As you doubtless know by now, soy and Maggi sauce are as Mexican as chutney is English. Serve with pilaf-style white rice.

Noël McAlpine of Dallas, Texas, writes: "When I was in Florence for a business conference, I had the pleasure of dining at Trattoria Garga. I really enjoyed the scaloppine al carciofi (veal cutlets with artichokes) and would like to add the recipe to my collection."

Serve this with white rice to soak up the delicious sauce.

Using sun-dried tomatoes that are not packed in oil cuts down on fat. You can find them at some supermarkets, specialty foods stores and Italian markets.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

The sauce is a variation of a classic one from the Normandy region of France, where it's made with apples and Calvados.

"Pané" comes from the French verb "paner," meaning to coat with bread crumbs.

A spicy arugula and tomato salad accompaniment makes this a perfect light summer entrée that could easily serve as a one-dish meal, or a piatto unico as they are known in Italy. The trick is to cook the chops slowly over even, meduim heat, so that they cook through without burning the bread-crumb crust.

Serve with: Warmed tortillas and steamed, buttered summer squash. Dessert: Key lime pie from the bakery.