Fennel, olives, rosemary, and orange zest are four Provençal ingredients with punch in this Tomato Soup with Fennel. They may be used alone or combined, frequently with tomatoes.

From Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Fast Revised Edition: A Quick & Easy Cookbook

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for garnish
1 large onion
2 cloves garlic
Salt and pepper
2 medium fennel bulbs (1 pound)
2/3 cup any olives
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 orange
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 large (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
4 cups vegetable or chicken stock or water

INSTRUCTIONS
Put 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot over low heat.

Trim, peel, and chop the onion; add to the pot.

Peel and mince 2 cloves garlic; add to the pot. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

When the onion and garlic start to sizzle, raise the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften and color, 5 to 10 minutes.

Trim and chop the fennel bulbs, saving a few of the fronds for garnish.

Add the fennel to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally until the fennel begins to soften, 3 to 5 minutes.

Pit 2/3 cup olives if necessary; chop them up a bit.

Strip the leaves from 2 rosemary sprigs, and chop.

Grate 1 tablespoon zest from the orange; squeeze the juice into a small bowl through a strainer or your fingers to capture the seeds; then add the zest.

Add 1 tablespoon tomato paste to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally until it darkens slightly, a minute or two.

Add the olives, rosemary, and orange juice and zest and cook, stirring until fragrant, less than a minute.

Add the tomatoes and their juice and scrape any browned bits off the bottom of the pot. Add 4 cups stock or water and raise the heat to high.

When the soup comes to a boil, adjust the heat so it bubbles gently but steadily and cook, stirring once in a while until the tomatoes break down, 5 to 10 minutes.

Chop the reserved fennel fronds.

Taste and adjust the seasoning. To serve, drizzle with more olive oil and garnish with the fennel fronds.

Chickpea and Carrot Salad with Warm Cumin Oil is an uncommon warm salad you can easily customize: Grating the vegetables in a food processor, rather than chopping them as in the recipe, makes the salad more like a slaw. Bittman likes the teeny surprise of cumin seeds, but if you prefer a smooth dressing, pour the oil through a strainer into the bowl before serving.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup olive oil
1 clove garlic
1 lemon
2 tablespoons cumin seeds
5 to 7 medium carrots (1 pound)
3 ½ cups cooked or canned chickpeas (two 15-ounce cans)
1 bunch fresh mint
Salt and pepper

INSTRUCTIONS
Put 1/2 cup olive oil in a small saucepan over low heat.

Crush and peel 1 clove garlic; add it to the oil.

Zest the lemon directly into the oil. Refrigerate the fruit for another use.

Stir 2 tablespoons cumin seeds into the oil. Let the oil warm up slowly undisturbed until it starts to bubble steadily, 5 to 10 minutes.

Trim and peel the carrots; slice them into thin coins or half-moons. Put them in a large bowl.

If you’re using canned chickpeas, rinse and drain them. Add the chickpeas to the bowl.

Chop 1/2 cup mint leaves; add to the bowl.

When the oil is warm and slightly bubbling, discard the garlic and pour the oil over the chickpeas and carrots; stir to coat well. Sprinkle the mixture with salt and pepper and toss. Taste and adjust the seasoning, and serve.

Aya Brackett Everyone needs a little attention now and then, but risotto isn’t as high maintenance as its reputation. When you make this, go for heartiness and satisfaction and choose the whole-grain barley, even though it takes longer to cook.

Serves 4

markbittman.com

INGREDIENTS
1 ½ cups whole-grain (“hulled”) barley
½ cup chopped walnuts
4 to 5 cups vegetable stock or water
4 tablespoons olive oil, or more as needed
1 onion, chopped
Salt and pepper
½ cup dry white wine or water
12 ounces beets, peeled and grated
2 cups arugula, or chopped beet greens if they came with the beets

INSTRUCTIONS
Put the barley in a large dry skillet over medium heat. Cook, shaking the pan often, until the barley is golden and fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Put the walnuts in the skillet and repeat the process to toast them the same way. Warm the stock or water in a medium saucepan.

Put the olive oil in the skillet over medium heat. When it’s hot, add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the barley and cook, stirring often, until it is glossy and coated with oil, 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then add the white wine. Cook, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, until the liquid bubbles away.

Use a ladle to add the warm stock, 1 cup or so at a time, stirring after each addition. When the stock has just about evaporated, add another ladleful. The mixture should be neither soupy nor dry. Adjust the heat so the mixture bubbles and stir frequently.

After 20 minutes, add the beets. Continue cooking the same way, tasting the grains regularly—you want it to be tender but still with a tiny bit of crunch—it could take as long as 40 minutes to reach this stage, depending on the barley. When the barley is as tender as you’d like, add the arugula or beet greens a handful at a time, stirring until each addition is wilted. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Garnish with the walnuts, and serve hot.