My very first soufflé, a broccoli soufflé , turned out heavy, like a feather-flattened pillow. Tonight's soufflés -- yippee! -- were the airy pillows that should be soufflés. And I suspect that with soufflé success under my belt, I'm hooked. With a simple salad and a simple dessert, it made for an extraordinarily satisfying meal. This recipe is especially simple because no hot water bath is called for -- just throw it in the oven. NUTRITION NOTES This is great supper option for vegetarians and those following a low-carb diet -- only 7 net carbs! NEXT TIME Soufflé directions always direct, "Serve immediately." But it was about 30 minutes before this was ready to serve. Before then, it was too hot and the only flavor was 'hot'. After 30 minutes, the cheese, the eggs, the peppers were at perfect temperature for really enjoying. I'll use a cheese more subtle, more complex, than the obvious cheddar. I might make a few extra for these reheated beautiful

Such beautiful color, yes?! The bright green of beans plus the pretty pink of radishes makes for a colorful summer salad, one sure to brighten up your palate and your plate. Real Food, Fresh & Inventive. Just Five Ingredients! Weeknight Easy, Weekend Special. Beautiful Color. Weight Watchers Friendly. Vegetarian & Easily Shifted to Vegan. Naturally Gluten Free.

It's another Quick Supper featured in this week's Kitchen Parade column, a fast and easy oven-baked (or of course ... grilled) pork tenderloin that packs a bit of heat, a bit of sweet. Just delicious! It pairs beautifully with a citrusy summer salad and is perfect for a weeknight supper or a leisurely weekend meal. Or ... ... on the side, think about a low-carb and low-carb eggplant ratatouille (a word worthy of last night's National Spelling Bea, I mean, Bee) or patties of grated beet roesti . (c) Copyright 2006 Kitchen Parade

When A Veggie Venture reached Day 365 back in April, I took a break for a couple of weeks. But it was harder than expected -- or wanted to admit, let alone let on -- to NOT cook a new vegetable every day. In my stack of cookbooks and burgeoning bookmarks and mailbox-fresh food magazines, oh-so-thousands of recipes called out, "Make me! Make ME!". In the supermarket and then the spring-start farmers markets, oh-so-intriguing new vegetables seemed to shout, 'Try me! Try ME!' The only consolation was the sudden availability of time. And so I started to cook from the Recipe Box, remaking the vegetables that appealed a second time. And quite soon, I came to understand that the second impressions might tell the better story: revealing an every-day real-ness -- or specialness -- that transforms just-another-recipe into a household favorite. So here they are, the second time around. From A Veggie Venture's Recipe Box Swedish Beets ... a summer-time staple, jus

Hey, fellow vegetable lovers! Today I've got a really easy vegetable appetizer recipe for you. It's just radishes, a little green onion and cream cheese. The combination is a great mix of heat and creaminess, easy to spread on crackers or sandwiches, toss with steamed vegetables or even gobble by the spoonful! Fresh & Simple. Budget Friendly. Just Three Ingredients! Great for Meal Prep. Weight Watchers Friendly. Low Carb. Naturally Gluten Free.

Just last night I read in Laurie Colwin's Home Cooking : "Some potato salads are sublime, some are miraculous and some are merely ordinary ..." Confetti Potato Salad borders on the sublime. It's an unadorned mix of potato and sweet potato and has no mayonnaise so is safe for picnics and outdoor celebrations -- and is featured in this week's Kitchen Parade column . (And if you've ever cooked with bad knives, you'll appreciate the it-happened-to-me anecdote that starts the column.) It makes a bunch. But don't worry for as Laurie Colwin says, "It is always wise to make too much potato salad." FOR THE RECORD ... this is my contribution to the worldwide picnic happening at Hooked on Heat . Wait til you see the spread! (c) Copyright 2006 Kitchen Parade

The comments on Epicurious raved about this recipe. I thought it was good enough but wouldn't make it again. The difference may well have been the sun-dried tomatoes. Mostly, sun-dried tomatoes are either packed in oil or dessicated discs. A local supermarket (for St. Louisans, Dierbergs) has no-oil sun-dried tomatoes in the produce section, still fat and plump and full of flavor. At $8 a pound, they're pricey but addictively delicious. So this dish might be worth a good rave if oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes were used. It's worth a try! NUTRITION NOTES I've learned to allow 2 ounces of dried pasta a serving. It's plenty, especially when a serving includes lots of vegetables and flavor and so is both filling and satisfying. Nearly all other sources -- an exception is Eating Well -- presume a 4 ounce serving. What do other cooks allow? I'm curious! I'm very sad that my local supermarket has stopped stocking Dreamfields low-carb, low-glycemic pasta w