2 c. cucumber, peeled and finely chopped

    2 c. thick yogurt (preferably Fage, a Greek yogurt available at specialty food stores; if you can't find thick yogurt, drain regular yogurt in a strainer lined with cheesecloth for several hours)

    5 large cloves garlic, pressed or chopped

    3 T. ARIA extra-virgin olive oil

    5 T. fresh mint or dill, chopped

    1 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice

    Sprinkle cucumber with salt and let stand for 15 minutes. Press dry. Combine all ingredients and refrigerate for two hours. Serve as a dip with crudites or as a condiment with fish.

    1 7-oz. jar tarama (fish roe)

    3 c. extra-virgin olive oil

    5 slices of dried white bread, crusts removed and chopped in small cubes

    Pita bread, sliced in wedges

    Put tarama and 1 c. olive oil in food processor and blend until smooth. Add remaining oil, chopped bread and lemon juice and blend until smooth.

    1 or 2 crown roasts, depending on number of guests. (Assume 2 ribs per person; a double roast has 14.)

     c. balsamic vinegar

    To prepare the roast: Purchase lamb the day before dinner. Peel garlic and pass through a garlic press. Make balsamic vinaigrette by mixing olive oil, balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste in a small bowl. Apply vinaigrette, pressed garlic, salt and pepper to both surfaces of the roast with a basting brush. Cover lamb with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

    Remove from refrigerator approximately 6 hours before cooking time. Apply more vinaigrette, re-cover with plastic wrap, and let stand.

    To cook the roast: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Set roast in shallow baking pan and apply more vinaigrette to both surfaces, then sprinkle with generous amounts of oregano. Wrap smoked bacon slices around outer and inner surfaces, taking care to wedge bacon between ribs.

    Place pan in center of preheated oven, and reduce temperature to 325 degrees. Cook for about 1 hour, or until internal temperature registers about 170 degrees on a meat thermometer. Baste surfaces with vinaigrette a few times during cooking. Remove from oven immediately upon reaching desired meat temperature. Let cool while serving first course.

    To serve: Slice one rib at a time, remove bacon, and dip each rib in pan drippings before plating.

GIANT LIMA BEANS

    1 lb. dry, large white lima beans

     c. extra-virgin olive oil

    2 c. onion, finely chopped

    5 cloves garlic, pressed

    1 medium red pepper, cored and finely chopped

     c. Greek or Italian tomato paste

    1 T. green peppercorns

    Salt and pepper to taste

    Place beans in large bowl and cover with boiling water; let sit on counter for entire day (long soaking is critical to producing tender beans).

    Drain beans and place in large, heavy covered casserole. Heat olive oil in frying pan and add chopped onions, garlic and red pepper. Saute vegetables until soft. Transfer vegetable mixture to casserole. Add tomato paste, sugar, peppercorns, oregano and salt to taste; cover all with boiling water. Cover casserole and simmer at low temperature for 8 hours, stirring frequently and adding additional boiling water as needed. Let sauce thicken during the last hour of cooking. Fully cooked beans should be soft, and sauce should be thick.

    (This dish can be prepared a day or two in advance of serving.)

    1 large or 2 medium eggplants

    3 thinly sliced onions

    5 cloves garlic, pressed

    2 c. canned Italian chopped tomatoes, drained

     c. Italian tomato sauce

    4 T. drained capers

    16 pitted, coarsely chopped kalamata black olives

     c. red wine vinegar

    Peel and dice eggplant into -inch cubes. Soak in salted water in large bowl for at least 1 hour (this process will remove bitter juice from the eggplant's seeds), then drain.

    While eggplant is soaking, clean and chop vegetables and pan-roast pine nuts in small amount of olive oil.

    Heat c. extra-virgin olive oil in large frying pan. Saute drained eggplant cubes until softened and brown on all sides. Remove eggplant to a saucepan. Reuse frying pan to saute onions, garlic, and celery in c. olive oil until soft, about 15 minutes. Add chopped tomatoes, tomato sauce, peppercorns, capers and chopped olives and saute another 5 minutes.

    Mix vegetable mixture with cooked eggplant and roasted pine nuts. Dissolve sugar in red wine vinegar and add t. of salt and a good dash of pepper. Add sugar/vinegar mixture to vegetable mixture; cover pan and simmer on very low heat for about 10 minutes. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.

     c. extra-virgin olive oil

    1 c. fresh blueberries

     c. extra-virgin olive oil

    Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat the surface of a 9-inch round pan with extra-virgin olive oil, then dust with flour and tap out the excess.

    Beat olive oil with sugar and egg until well mixed. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Stir into olive oil mixture, alternating with the milk. Fold in blueberries and banana.

    Mix topping ingredients in a small bowl. Pour cake batter into prepared pan and sprinkle topping over surface. Bake about 30 minutes; place on rack to cool. Serve warm