Kimberley Hasselbrink

Orange-flower water can give even a simple fruit salad a faraway lilt, but adding too much of it leaves a dish tasting like old-fashioned soap. Use this ingredient with serious discretion—start with ⅛ tsp.

Pulling mussels from the shell is a delightfully hands-on way to get your lean protein. The little black shellfish are easy to cook; the only trick is to sort them carefully beforehand. Toss out any cracked shelled mussels, as well as any open ones that don’t close up tight when you squeeze them. The beards are the tough little fibers that help mussels cling to rocks; to remove them, just pinch the hairy fibers with a clean kitchen towel and pull. Don’t do this much before cooking, though, becau.…

This chunky grain dish is freshened up with a delicious combination of dill, parsley, and mint. If you don’t have all three, use a handful of whatever tender herbs you’ve got. If you substitute regular lemon for the Meyer lemon, use less zest and juice: Regular lemons are more aggressive.

This dish calls for a fish with a fairly firm structure: Line-caught albacore, lingcod, and mahi-mahi are all good options. Or paint a wild salmon fillet with the marinade and proceed. If you have not made The Greenest Tahini Sauce, you could use a spoonful of straight tahini mixed with olive oil as a marinade; try incorporating a bit of lemon zest as well.

A trick we like: Peel all overripe bananas and put in the freezer, then use to make supercreamy smoothies.

If you have time to marinate the chicken the night before, it will deliver extra flavor. If not, just be sure to marinate it before preparing the rest of your dinner.