Last year I discovered that roasting lemons brings out their natural goodness – and it makes the rind edible. So, the other morning when I woke up craving juice (and then sadly realized that we didn't have any in the apartment) I decided to make a breakfast tabbouleh with roasted lemons. It was incredible. It was so good that I finished it in two mornings. And that was a boon for me, because it's a simple meal to make and the bright lemony flavor is perfect for a quick morning pick-me-up.

Roasted pears on a bed of cool greens with a lemon vinaigrette creates a salad that's worthy of a champagne toast.

For a long time pears were my least favorite fruit. But, over the past month I've played with them twice and now I've fallen in love with pears. The trick is that I've been cooking with them. For Thanksgiving I braised some in Riesling, and then last week I decided to roast some, because I was curious to taste them once they had been caramelized. They were sweet, but not excessively so. And then when they were paired with the lemon dressing, almonds and goat cheese, the pears were transformed into the perfect headliner in this sweet and savory salad.

When I think of the holidays I think of colors. The green tree, the silver and gold decorations, the bright lights lining the storefronts. Colors make the holidays. So, while working on the “pre-game” recipes for Christmas, I thought roasted beets on bright green arugula would be beautiful.

And the lemon vinaigrette makes the salad taste as bright as it looks.

Sometimes you set out to cook one thing and then wind up with another. Sometimes this is frustrating. Sometimes it's delicious. I got lucky this week - the southwestern chicken served with tomatillo dressing on a green salad fell into the latter category.