Sweet and Savory

Throwing a dinner party? Here's an easy way to kill two birds with one stone: make enough pizza dough the day before for both your appetizer and your dessert. Pizzas are great for sharing and are also super versatile — you can basically throw whatever you want on them. (If you want to make it really easy, you can get premade dough from a local pizzeria!)

For an app that's sure to be gone in minutes, try this savory grilled version with caramelized onions, and gorgonzola, and for a sweet ending, this chocolate and hazelnut dessert is a "pizza pie" to make!

Keep reading for the two tasty recipes.

If you're hosting a crowd and can't decide whether your guests would rather eat sweet or savory brunch, here's an idea: make it easy to serve both! Take an unconventional approach by serving Dutch baby pancakes — the famously puffy hotcakes baked in the pan — with toppings both sweet and savory.

Those looking for a sugar high will always appreciate the original, enjoyed with little more than sugar, butter, and a squeeze of lemon. For a heftier option, dot the eggy batter with slices of sautéed onion and crumbles of soft goat cheese, along with a balsamic vinegar reduction for drizzling. Very grown-up, indeed. For the breakfast dish that offers something for everyone, read more.

There's no better time than a massive heat wave to embrace salsa. It's a no-cook appetizer that's ideal for last-minute Summer entertaining, and makes use of the cornucopia of farm-fresh seasonal ingredients at your disposal. Eschew classic tomato salsa for a Mediterranean riff that incorporates cured green olives, oregano, and hot pepper relish — a topping that would taste great not only on pita chips, but also white meat or grilled fish. But salsa doesn't have to be salty: Take it for a sweet spin by incorporating mango and kiwi with a hint of brown sugar and ginger. Try either, or both, when you read more.

If you're a fan of cold soups like I am, I'm sure you'll agree they're the perfect midday refreshment during one of Summer's heat waves.

Although gazpacho takes a lot of credit for its cooling properties, don't discount other traditional warm-weather favorites, like the chilled version of the Eastern European soup known as borscht. The soup's beets, aside from having a nice depth of flavor, also provide a powerful flash of fuchsia color.

Not to be overlooked are the season's ripe fruits for sweet soups as well. If you're already serving borscht, why not create an ultra-playful menu by also serving a blush-hued soup for dessert? Offer another Eastern European favorite, Meggyleves, made from sour morello cherries. For both recipes, keep reading.

Over a thoroughly enjoyable bite of blackberry fool, I couldn't help but dream about a crumbly, larden shortbread round to dust off with it. So tonight, while I've still got some blackberry dessert in the icebox, I think I'm going to bake up a batch of shortbread coins to go along with.

A traditional shortbread is truly spare of ingredients, calling only for butter, flour, and sugar. In fact, it's so simple that I plan to experiment with other add-ins just for fun, like the addition of garlic, pepper, and Parmesan cheese to form savory, bite-sized shortbread coins that can be served with any manner of cheese or charcuterie. Want to follow suit with the same idea? Then get both recipes when you read on.

Just because it's Summer doesn't mean you have to cut out your favorite cheesecake dessert; after all, today is National Cheesecake Day! My suggestion? Take a note from the Italians, who sub out cream cheese in favor of ricotta cheese for a lighter, more seasonally-appropriate cheesecake that isn't quite so rich. Go the traditional dessert route, dressing the top with a glamorous mixture of navel oranges and caramel. Or, if you're feeling daring, impress a crowd by composing a savory parmesan, basil, and ricotta "cheesecake" to spread atop an assortment of crackers. Take a slice out of either warm-weather favorite when you read more.

It doesn't matter on which corner your farmers market or grocery store is found; regardless of where you live, right now is hands-down the best time to enjoy the broadest breadth of fruits and vegetables. Salads are the most straightforward way to appreciate warm-weather produce, but for something more substantial, why not opt to impress with a flaky tart?

Use Summer's berry and stone fruit bounty to fashion an elegant dessert pastry. In the meantime, free-form a savory tart, too: pick from heirloom tomatoes, zucchini, squash, or eggplant, add your choice of cheese, plus some chopped herbs for extra flavor. The end result is a glimpse of the Summer sun in your mouth. For a couple of recipes to get you started, keep reading.

This month, some dear friends from college will be visiting me in San Francisco. Whenever I have out-of-towners, my favorite way to welcome them is with a small savory or sweet treat — always homemade, for a little personal touch. This time, I'll be making scones. After all, what puts one at ease better than a warm pile of just-baked breakfast breads?

Since one of them has a sweet tooth, and the other is a total cheesehead, I'll be making two different types. The first, a traditional scone, will be slightly saccharine and studded with raisins; the second, cheesy-chivey goodness, topped off with a sprinkling of sesame seeds. Both will be spectacularly crumbly, and insanely scrumptious with imported Irish butter. Interested in the recipes? Get them here.

Aside from berries, one of my favorite fruits to enjoy during the Summer are mangoes; I love their sunny, peachy-sweet flavor. But it wasn't until recently that I started cooking with unripe mangoes. Green mangoes, as they're also called, are popular in Thai cooking. They have a crisp texture, and a tart, rather than saccharine, quality that's optimal for savory applications.

Purchase green mangoes while still firm, and use them before they ripen. Enjoy them julienned and lightly dressed in a salad with a salty and spicy sauce, served alongside protein such as grilled pork, chicken, or tofu. Just for comparison purposes, why not serve a fruit salad with sweet mango for dessert? Enjoy both mango preparations when you keep reading.

Nothing is more perfect on a picnic-friendly day than a giant bowl of panzanella, or Italian bread salad. Traditionally, the resourceful Tuscans stretched day-old bread by using torn pieces to soak up the liquid in a tomato, cucumber, onion, and basil salad dressed with olive oil and vinegar.

But Italian chef Chris Cosentino takes panzanella in a different direction by putting a dessert spin on it with Summer stone fruits and a luscious zabaglione flavored by Moscato d'Asti. The result is a lighter, fresher version of bread pudding. Can't decide between a sweet and savory bread salad? Then make both. For the recipes, read more.