As I have noted here before, Lisa's Kitchen never contains any pre-made salad dressings. There is simply no comparison between fresh made dressing from home and the store-bought, preservative-filled variety. This easy to prepare creamy Italian dressing has a wonderful fresh and vibrant flavor, and goes well with any combination of greens or vegetables.

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Asparagus is one of the first tastes of spring in Ontario, and the season for fresh local asparagus is right around the corner. But I can never properly wait for the local growings to arrive — as soon as the weather warms up, I'm reminded of this sweet, tender full-flavored delicacy. Fortunately a nearby store has top quality and astoundingly fresh imported produce all year round — it may be cheating a bit, but who's going to be upset about that?

This simple-to-prepare wild rice and asparagus salad is something that I make every year. The earthy flavors of the wild rice, lentils and mushrooms are accented perfectly by the sweet and crisp asparagus and the tart warmth of a balsamic vinegar dressing. For the vegans in the audience, simply leave out the Parmesan cheese.

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One of my favorite Indian creations is mattar paneer, the classic paneer cheese and pea curry. I never fail to order the dish when dining out at Indian restaurants because I am fascinated by the multitude of variations and can rarely resist pleasurable mouthfuls of tender paneer and peas, cooked in an aromatically spiced tomato sauce. The following version of mattar paneer is adapted from Yamuna Devi's wonderful Lord Krishna's Cuisine.

The addition of fresh mint makes this an especially unique and appetizing version, and I highly recommend using fresh herbs instead of dried. But the best part of this recipe is frying cubes of paneer cheese until a golden brown chewy crust surrounds the creamy milky inside. Yum! Do take to cook the peas just to the point where they will pop in your mouth with every delectable bite.

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Biscuits are a simple solution for filling out a meal. These biscuits have a delicately crusted exterior surrounding a melt-in-your mouth fluffy interior of Cheddar cheese, accented by parsley and Dijon mustard. They taste especially good when made with a sharp aged Cheddar.

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