Pad Thai is one of my favorite dishes and I have to say, the combo of the lime, sugar, and fish sauce is key to the dish, so I can't understand any recipe for Pad Thai that doesn't include lime juice! It would be like leaving the basil out and still trying to call it pesto!! The recipe listed under "Cindy Mac" looks the closest to the traditional recipe to me. Altho most traditional recipes also call for dried shrimp, but I never use it. I usually make mine with shrimp and tofu or chicken and tofu. I don't know why, but I don't consider it Pad Thai without the tofu altho some don't use it. And I've never come across a Pad Thai recipe with Tamarind. I guess everyone has their own version! Don't be daunted by the length of the recipes - 90% of them is getting everything ready, then the actual cooking only takes like 10 minutes. It's just one of those dishes that has lots of components and to me, all of them are important. So I strongly agree - make sure you have everything cut, chopped, mixed and ready to go and it'll be a breeze!! And also, don't be turned off by the smell of the fish sauce lol!! You only need a small amount and it does really "make" the taste, along with the lime and sugar. It's not "fishy" at all once it's combined in the dish - unless you go overboard with it! A little goes a long way. Enjoy! Lisa

I found two real winners in March. I've already made the salmon/bread salad twice! This recipe is by Robin Davis, the food editor of The Columbus Dispatch, to feature one pot meals that aren't casseroles. She suggested adding some baby spinach leaves, and that was GREAT (pretty, too). She adapted it from one in Food & Wine magazine, so I looked that up the second time I made it. That one called for putting the dressing and parsley in during the cooking, not after, and added capers. I put capers in the second time. It's good, but not necessary. WARM PAN-ROASTED SALMON BREAD SALAD Makes 4 servings Salad: 4 cups large bread cubes (preferably from artisan or peasant bread loaf) 2 garlic cloves, smashed 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 2 pints grape or cherry tomatoes, halved Some baby spinach leaves and/or drained capers, optional Salt and pepper 1 pound skinless salmon fillet, cut into 2-inch chunks Juice of 1 lemon 1/4 cup chopped parsley Vinaigrette: 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil Salt and pepper To make salad: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Toss bread and garlic with 2 tablespoons oil. Roast 5 minutes until bread is lightly toasted. In a large bowl, toss the tomatoes with 1 teaspoon oil. Season with salt and pepper. Add to bread. Roast 10 to 12 minutes, just until the tomatoes begin to break down. Toss the salmon with the remaining 2 teaspoons oil and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Nestle the salmon into the bread-and-tomato mixture. Roast until the salmon is just cooked through, about 6 minutes, adding spinach and/or capers a couple of minutes before done. To make vinaigrette: Transfer garlic to a small bowl and mash. Whisk in vinegar, mustard and thyme in a small bowl. Gradually whisk in oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Drizzle vinaigrette over salad. Add parsley. Toss to combine (or put in with tomatoes). Serve immediately. PER SERVING: 612 calories; 28 g protein; 30 g carbohydrates; 3 g fiber; 42 g fat (7 g saturated); 63 mg cholesterol; 340 mg sodium Here's the other one. FABULOUS! It's from Mark Bittman in the NYT in late February. Uh oh, maybe it was still February when I made it ... We don't eat pork, so I used a TJ vegetarian chorizo. Next time I will use a kosher merguez or other spicy real sausage. But even with the fake stuff, this was dynamite. Fried Chickpeas With Chorizo and Spinach 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for drizzling 2 cups cooked or canned chickpeas, as dry as possible Salt and black pepper 4 ounces chorizo, diced 1/2 pound spinach, roughly chopped 1/4 cup sherry 1 to 2 cups bread crumbs. 1. Heat the broiler. 2. Put three tablespoons of the oil in a skillet large enough to hold chickpeas in one layer over medium-high heat. When its hot, add chickpeas and sprinkle with salt and pepper. 3. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook, shaking the pan occasionally, until chickpeas begin to brown, about 10 minutes, then add chorizo. Continue cooking for another 5 to 8 minutes or until chickpeas are crisp; use a slotted spoon to remove chickpeas and chorizo from pan and set aside. 4. Add the remainder of the 1/4 cup of oil to the pan; when its hot, add spinach and sherry, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook spinach over medium-low heat until very soft and the liquid has evaporated. Add chickpeas and chorizo back to the pan and toss quickly to combine; top with bread crumbs, drizzle with a bit more oil and run pan under the broiler to lightly brown the top. Serve hot or at room temperature. Yield: 4 servings. Mmm, I can't wait to make these again.

Glenda, I'd be pouring that over ice cream! Well, maybe anyhow. All the recipes sound great. This is the best chili I've ever made or eaten. Al Roker's recipe, from People magazine. 1 T olive oil 2 lbs. chuck steak, cubed 1 lb. crumbled hot Italian sausage (I used mild) 2 large onions, diced 12 cloves garlic, diced 1 T cumin 1 T paprika 1 T chili powder 1 28-oz. can crushed tomatoes 1/2 c. water 1 15 oz. can pinto beans 1 15 oz. can Northern beans 1 15 oz. can dark kidney beans Heat oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown steak and sausage for 8 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Reserve 2 T of fat from meat, discard the rest. Saute the onions and garlic in the reserved fat until translucent, 8 minutes. Add cumin, paprika, and chili powder and cook for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, water, sausage/beef, stir and simmer for 90 minutes. Rinse and drain beans, add to chili. Simmer for another 30 minutes. Dish into bowls, garnish with cheese, green onions, sour cream or whatever you like.

Linguini with Shrimp and Oven Roasted Tomato INGREDIENTS 1 head of garlic, about 1/2 inch cut off the top 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, all red or a mix of red and orange 1 large clove garlic 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus additional 1/4 cup Buddy's Breadcrumbs (see recipe) 1/4 cup + 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided 2 Tablespoons butter 1 pound large shrimp (16-20), peeled and deveined 1/2 cup Martini dry white wine 1 lemon 1âÂÂ2 cups baby spinach 1/2 cup rough-chopped Italian parsley PREPARATION: 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 2. On a small piece of foil, place the garlic head and drizzle a little oil on it. Wrap the garlic tightly in the foil and place in the oven. Roast for about 30 to 40 minutes, until nice and soft and golden. 3. In a small baking dish or baking sheet put the tomatoes in one layer. Add the garlic, 1/4 cup olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and stir to coat. Roast 10 minutes in the same oven as the garlic. Remove pan and shake -- tomatoes should just be bursting. Roast another 5 minutes, shake and add the breadcrumbs. Roast another 5 minutes. 4. While the tomatoes roast, set a large pot of salted water to boiling. When the water boils, drop in some salt and the pasta. 5. Heat a large saut� pan. Add the two tablespoons oil and 1 tablespoon butter. When butter foams, add the shrimp in one layer, lightly salt. When one side is pink and cooked, turn and salt other side. 6. Your pasta should be close to al dente. When the shrimp is almost finished cooking, add the wine and allow to bubble. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze some juice into the pan. Let the sauce cook for another minute. Swirl in the remaining 1 tablespoon butter. 7. Remove the pasta from the cooking water and add it to the pan, cooking and turning with tongs so the pasta finishes cooking in the wine and shrimpy juices (add cooking water if you need more liquid). When the juices are absorbed, turn off the heat and scrape in contents from the roasted tomato pan. Open the roasted garlic and squeeze the garlic cloves into the pan. Add the baby spinach and chopped parsley. Turn all to coat well in the sauce. Serve immediately.