Vegetables steal the spotlight

While traditional borscht recipes call for boiling the roots, try roasting them instead for a deeper, richer flavor. This recipe comes with built-in lessons on what pairs well with beets, including potatoes and sour cream to balance their sweetness, and fresh herbs to bring out their bright notes.

• 2 pounds red beets, scrubbed, peeled and cut into a medium dice
• 1 pound russet potatoes, peeled and cut into a medium dice
• 2 shallots, coarsely chopped
• 3 to 5 thyme sprigs
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 5 cups low-sodium chicken broth or water
• 1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar
• Sour cream, thinly sliced scallion greens and chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for serving

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. In a roasting pan or on a rimmed baking sheet, toss together beets, potatoes, shallots, thyme and oil; season with salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer and roast until beets and potatoes are tender, about 45 minutes.

2. Discard thyme. Transfer vegetables to a pot along with broth. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and cook to heat through. With a potato masher or the back of a wooden spoon, mash some vegetables until soup is thick and chunky. Stir in vinegar and season with salt and pepper. Divide among bowls; top with sour cream, scallion greens and parsley.

Pro tip: When peeling beets, it’s a good idea to wear gloves to avoid staining your hands.

Nutritional analysis per serving: 256 calories, 10 grams fat, 38 grams carbohydrates, 19 grams protein, no cholesterol, 176 milligrams sodium, 6 grams dietary fiber, 29 percent of calories from fat.

For this pasta dish, broccoli rabe and orecchiette are cooked together in one pan. You could stop there and simply finish with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and some finely grated pecorino Romano, but it’s exceptionally good tossed with an all-star Italian sauce of anchovies, garlic, capers and tomatoes, and topped with toasted breadcrumbs.

• 7 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 1  1/2 cups plain fresh breadcrumbs
• Kosher salt
• 4 anchovy fillets, rinsed and patted dry
• 6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons capers, preferably salt-packed, rinsed, drained and chopped
• 1 pound cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
• 1 pound orecchiette
• 1 pound broccoli rabe, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces

1. In a large saute pan, heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium. Add breadcrumbs and season with salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until crisp and golden, about 5 minutes. Transfer breadcrumbs to a plate.

2. Add 2 tablespoons oil to pan; heat over medium. Add anchovies and stir until they dissolve into oil, about 1 minute. Add garlic and capers; cook, stirring until garlic is golden, 2 to 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, red-pepper flakes and remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Increase heat to medium-high; cook, stirring occasionally, until tomatoes begin to break down, about 5 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water according to package instructions until al dente, adding broccoli rabe 2 minutes before end of cooking time. Drain pasta and broccoli rabe, reserving  1/4 cup pasta water.

4. Add pasta, broccoli rabe and reserved pasta water to tomato mixture in pan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring gently, until liquid has thickened slightly, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a serving dish, top with breadcrumbs and serve immediately.

Pro tip: Make your own fresh breadcrumbs by pulsing white sandwich bread or rustic bread in a food processor to the desired consistency. They can be frozen in a resealable plastic bag for up to 2 months.

Nutritional analysis per serving: 488 calories, 18 grams fat, 69 grams carbohydrates, 13 grams protein, 2 milligrams cholesterol, 209 milligrams sodium, 4 grams dietary fiber, 33 percent of calories from fat.

Many of the seafood stews of the world — bouillabaisse, cioppino and caldeirada de peixe (from Portugal), among others — share a common ingredient: fennel, which lends an aniselike taste. Essentially a creamy stew, the shellfish pan roast is most famously made with oysters, but clams are also traditional and often appear in combination with sausage; we include two types, sweet Italian and kielbasa. Pernod and tarragon add more anise flavor.

• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
•  1/4 pound kielbasa, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 12 small red potatoes, halved
• 3 small fennel bulbs, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch slices
• 1 small leek, cut into 1/4-inch rounds and rinsed well
• 1/4 cup Pernod or other anise-flavored liqueur
• 1 1/2 cups bottled unsalted clam juice
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 1/2 pounds littleneck clams, scrubbed
• 2 large tomatoes, each cut into 8 wedges
• 1/4 cup fresh tarragon leaves

1. Cook garlic and Italian sausage in a deep straight-sided skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat, stirring and breaking up meat with a spoon, until sausage is no longer pink, about 5 minutes; transfer to a bowl with a slotted spoon. Drain all but 1 tablespoon fat from skillet. Cook kielbasa, stirring occasionally, until crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Add to bowl.

2. Arrange potatoes in skillet, cut side down; cook until golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Flip potatoes; cook until just tender, about 5 minutes more. Scatter fennel over potatoes. Cook, stirring frequently, until fennel is tender, about 10 minutes. Add leek, Pernod and clam juice. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until leek is tender, about 5 minutes.

3. Return sausage mixture to pan; stir to combine. Add clams, cover and cook 5 minutes. Add tomatoes; cook, covered, until clams open, about 8 minutes.

4. Discard any unopened clams and remove pan from heat. Stir in tarragon and serve.

Pro tip: To clean leeks, slice, then soak them in a bowl of water, swishing to remove as much grit as possible. Discard the water, then repeat until no grit remains.

Nutritional analysis per serving: 685 calories, 31 grams fat, 52 grams carbohydrates, 43 grams protein, 134 milligrams cholesterol, 946 milligrams sodium, 7 grams dietary fiber, 42 percent of calories from fat.