Recipes with black pepper

Malfatti (Italian spinach and ricotta dumplings) with Parmesan, nutmeg, and melted butter. Lighter than gnocchi and ready in 30 minutes. The key is squeezing every drop of water from the spinach.

Microwave fish fillets layered with a homemade stuffing of mushrooms, carrots, onion, breadcrumbs, and lemon juice. A quick weeknight fish dinner in under 45 minutes.

Best homemade tourtiere, the French-Canadian meat pie: spiced ground pork bound with mashed potato, onion and garlic under a flaky double crust. Sage and nutmeg give this Quebec holiday classic its warm, cozy flavor.

Homemade falafel made from cooked chickpeas mashed with tahini, garlic, cumin, turmeric and cayenne, then deep-fried into golden balls. Stuff into pita with cucumber, tomato, sprouts and your favourite sauce.

Bacon and Swiss cheese breakfast strata with layered bread, crumbled bacon, onions, and a custardy egg-milk mixture. Make it the night before and bake in the morning.

Napa cabbage and sheep cheese salad with sautéed onions, fresh thyme, and white wine vinegar. Tossed and rested for an hour so the flavors meld. Simple and satisfying.

Kokoretsi recipe with lamb sweetbreads, heart, and kidneys marinated in lemon-oregano, skewered, wrapped in sausage casing, and grilled over charcoal.

Roast pork loin marinated overnight in ground red chiles, lime juice, cumin, oregano, and orange juice concentrate. Served with a sour cream and white wine pan sauce.

Grilled chicken sandwiches piled high with a sweet-savory peach and caramelized onion relish spiked with sherry vinegar and crushed peppercorns. Summer cookout fare with a grown-up punch.

Instead of leaving turkey for Thanksgiving, try this succulent dish that will have you gobbling up every bit of it!

Bold herring salad, marinated herring tossed with apple, Spanish onion, potato, and beets in a creamy dill dressing. A sweet-tart, savory Northern European salad with a rosy hue, served chilled.

Slow cooker tamale pie with a cornmeal crust lining the crock and a filling of sausage, stew beef, sundried tomatoes, green chile, corn, and olives. A set-it-and-forget-it Tex-Mex one-pot dinner.

Try something different this summer with this dish that is sure to make everyone forget about the barbecue.

Ground beef and potato stir-fry seasoned with cinnamon, cumin, and paprika in a Moroccan-inspired spice blend. A fast 30-minute one-wok weeknight dinner.

A bright Italian-style vegetable sauce with three sweet bell peppers, zucchini, tomatoes, and garlic, simmered in stock and tossed with pasta. Vegetarian, low-fat, ready in about 30 minutes.

The pesto sauce is good on any steamed, baked, broiled, or grilled firm-fleshed fish fillet.