Every cook has them: the meals we turn to when we are busy, sad, stressed, or just too damn lazy to cook a real dinner. But what is a real dinner anyway? In the midst of a bustling week, sometimes there is nothing more dependable, more real, than sitting down and eating a simple, satisfying meal that you managed to pull together in under 15 minutes. Here are my five favorite ways to feed myself well with almost no work.

Earlier today I showed you my vegetarian dinner party, where for the main course I served a creamy watercress soup with lemony-goat cheese dumplings. If you're looking for other festive vegetarian main dishes to serve at a party, here are a few ideas. From corn and black bean tostadas to asparagus risotto, you can get as fancy or laid-back as you want.

It's been unbelievably sunny and warm in Seattle, and last week we were invited over to a friend's for a backyard barbecue. These friends were house-sitting for a couple that owned a fancy grill and we made great burgers, grilled asparagus and a simple salad. It was almost enough to make us want to buy our own barbecue this summer — but not quite.

May is usually the month when your local CSA starts gearing up for the soon-to-come avalanche of summer bounty.  Whether you live in warmer climes and are in the throes of strawberries, peas, asparagus from your year-round box or you're just starting up again after having the winter off, it's an exciting time for fresh, local produce.  But it can be a challenging time, too, especially when unfamiliar or overly abundant vegetables show up.  Read on for a roundup of tips to help you manage your CSA experience.

Don't get me wrong, I love a good green salad. But there is a whole world of quick, easy vegetable side dishes that don't involve lettuce. With recipes like sesame roasted snap peas, baked chili-spiked sweet potato chips and grilled cabbage with spicy lime dressing, you now have no excuse. Get out of that salad rut tonight!

Earlier today Dana offered some thoughts on organizing your cookbook collection. She admits that how you choose to organize your cookbooks is all about personal preference, but if you need some visual inspiration, where better to look than our Kitchen Tour archives? Here's a quick peek at how 15 different cooks find ways to store their beloved cookbooks in the kitchen.

A reader recently expressed her frustration with the available selection of ugly, plastic cake keepers. She wanted something pretty she could display on her countertop, but also something with a lid to keep things fresh. Well, there are plenty of options that marry those two functions! Here are 10 lovely places to start:

A green salad may sound too light to serve as a main dinner dish, but it can become quite substantial and filling when rounded out with other ingredients like avocado, cheese, a little meat, or some grilled vegetables. These 10 salads all make satisfying dinners, particularly if you want to keep things light and easy. Another tip? Bring your salad outside and enjoy the warm weather with a glass of rosé or white wine!

Bok choy was not even on my radar before it started showing up in my first-ever CSA a few years back. At first I was baffled. What was this crunchy bulb-bottomed vegetable with its tender greens? But then me and bok choy? We hit our stride. Oh, boy, did we.

Rice often gets relegated into the "side dish" category, which is the food equivalent of always playing wingman while flashier, more winsome ingredients get to chat up the cook. Today, we're showing a little love for this humble grain. Here are ten of our favorite dinners where rice gets to be the star.