Dishes

Like millions of her fellow Americans, Rosy Lawrence is planning a cookout for the Fourth of July. As she has for the past 29 years, the soft-spoken Edgewood resident will join a group of close friends and family to relax, celebrate America's independence and eat good food. It's part of how she expresses her patriotism for her country. "We do practically the same menu as everyone else," the diminutive, dark-haired woman says cheerfully. "Macaroni and potato salads, and watermelon and barbecued chicken."

Tomato lovers, rejoice, for it's the most wonderful time of the year. Gone are the mealy, bland tomatoes of winter, replaced by an abundance of fresh-from-the-vine varieties. Ronni Lundy's In Praise of Tomatoes (Lark Books, 2004, $19.95) is a celebration of the crop, with about four dozen recipes by chef John Stehling of Early Girl Eatery in Asheville, N.C. They range from an easy, refreshing gazpacho to several stuffed-tomato dishes and desserts such as green-tomato pie. The book also includes a history of the tomato and its evolution from a misunderstood plant to one of the most popular food ingredients in cooking.

Like many a foodie, Lynn Alley first warmed to the slow cooker out of necessity. Researching a biography, Alley found herself staying for months in a place with a questionable oven, few kitchen implements and a slow cooker. Putting beans in the cooker in the morning and finishing them with salt and fresh herbs from the garden in the evening became the simplest and best way to eat. When she returned to her San Diego home, Alley began experimenting with her slow cooker, making more elaborate dishes from countries from Mexico to Greece.

Americans have always been ambivalent about tea. Colonists angered by British taxes dumped 342 chests of it into Boston Harbor on Dec. 16, 1773, - and tea has gotten mixed reviews in this country ever since, trailing coffee and colas in popularity. But that may be about to change. Not only are Americans drinking more of it in chais, lattes and other exotic drinks, tea also has become a hot new seasoning in preparing dishes from meats to mousse. "Over the last 10 years, tea has been coming into its own in this country," said Joseph Simrany, president of the National Tea Council, a New York-based trade group that tracks tea sales and trends.

TRIESTE, Italy - It's difficult to pinpoint where in the world you are when walking the streets of Trieste. Turn a corner and it looks like Vienna. Another, and suddenly you're in Prague. Still another, and you are in Paris. Even the language is distinctive. It sounds like Italian - and we are, indeed, in Italy - but the vowels are thicker and the vocabulary flecked with the multiconsonant tones of Eastern Europe. The same is true at the table, where classic Italian dishes are transformed by a confluence of Latin, Germanic and Slavic influences.

BEIJING -- China is joining the global TV village.Small, cheap satellite TV dishes are increasingly being used all over the nation and in defiance of a government ban on watching foreign-generated broadcasts.The largely uncontrolled proliferation of the dishes represents a technological and information revolution with potentially profound consequences for China, where the government remains obsessed with limiting foreign political influences.Satellite TV's advent here follows the rapid spread over the last decade of videotape recorders, international phone lines, fax machines and computer modems -- developments that already have greatly diminished the ability of the ruling Communist Party to control the flow of information into the country.

Cazabe is a new Dominican restaurant. Other restaurants have occupied this roadside building - recently, the Pit Stop and an Italian restaurant named Avanti - which sits on a lonely stretch of U.S. 1. What should have been a 20-minute ride from downtown Baltimore took us about 2 1/2 hours because of a major accident. Headed back, we were so thoroughly satisfied, that I can truly say it was worth the trip. Cazabe is charming. For years, Eduardo Island, the owner of Cazabe, and his family operated a very popular Dominican restaurant in Hyattsville named Julito's, which they eventually handed over to others to run for them.

The hunt for high-quality Chinese carryout continues. At Mr. Chan Szechuan Restaurant in the heart of Pikesville, we discovered nothing spectacular but found several solid dishes and an admirable sampling of vegetarian fare. Mr. Chan occupies a corner space on Reisterstown Road, its facade illuminated with yards of neon, including one sign depicting a jumping fish. Inside is a cozy space with green carpet, bamboo plants and mirrors on both ends to give the room more depth. Posters explaining the various types of sushi hang on two walls.

The concept is admirable: a restaurant that demonstrates how delicious Asian food can be without the fat and calories. From the moment it opened, Olive & Sesame was a hit. Owner John Luen, originally from Hong Kong, promised to use only healthful olive and sesame oils in his cooking. He would steam, grill and stir-fry his fresh seafood, white meat chicken and vegetables. He would use light soy sauce; and, of course, MSG would never make an appearance in his kitchen. The contemporary, angular interior of the restaurant had a look more Mediterranean than Chinese or Japanese, with a large painting of a Greek island dominating the room.

La Scala in Little Italy was having a grand night when we visited on a recent Wednesday. Upstairs, the dining rooms were full of diners who looked to be evenly divided between business and family groups, first-timers and regulars. Downstairs, the bar was overflowing, and a woman reading a novel offered to make room for us. But the weather was so nice, it was even nicer to take a cocktail out to La Scala's small front porch. La Scala looks and feels better since it was expanded two years ago — the added indoor bocce court works maybe only as a conversation starter, but the natural light and the illusion at least of more elbow room are definite assets.