If you ever crave falafel in the morning, these waffles are for you! Made with chickpea flour, fresh herbs, and spices, they’re hearty, flavorful, and filled with plant-based protein. They’re best when they’re very crisp, so be sure not to undercook them— I typically give them a minute or two longer than regular waffles.

This gorgeously hued hydrator is a Lake & Oak community favorite, for good reason. Not only is it radically refreshing, but it’s packed with antioxidants and nutrients that bolster immunity and protect your summer skin. Any hibiscus tea blend will work great here, but you’ll find the hibiscus-rosehip combination available at most grocers and health-food stores. The collagen is optional but boosts the glow benefits and produces a pretty frothy effect when everything is shaken together.

These macaroon-like almond cookies—loosely based on ricciarelli, a cookie native to Siena, Italy—are crispy on the outside and chewy in the middle, a textural combination I prize. And because macaroons of all varieties also trend sweet, this cookie is flavored with raspberry jam, which is added to the dough and spooned into the thumbprint centers, as well as pulverized freeze-dried raspberries, to add some fruity acidity. I love the crinkled look the cookies develop while baking, and I especially love that they remind me, both in flavor and in texture, of much more elaborate French macarons while requiring a fraction of the time, effort, and technical skill to make.

I love this basic, elegant, classy tart. It’s reserved and restrained, it’s prim and proper, it’s creamy and delicious. It’s also one of the more ­flexible desserts in this book, and if you’re the type of baker who loves to arrange your fruit like a gorgeous mosaic, well, this recipe is for you. Three distinct components, comprising an easy shortbread-like press-in crust, silky vanilla custard, and whatever fruit strikes you as most lovely when it comes time to makes this tart. Since the crust and custard already give you something so fantastic, whatever you choose to top it with is truly a cherry on top, no pun intended (unless you’re using cherries, then definitely pun intended).

This is one of the most basic items you can get at a raan kao gaeng, a type of restaurant in Thailand where an array of ready-to-eat dishes are laid out on big trays and in pots, and you choose a couple of things to go on top of your rice. Chicken (or pork) is marinated in the ultimate Thai trinity of umami sauces: oyster, soy, and fish. It’s stir-fried in garlic oil, with enough pepper to give it a little heat without it being spicy, then topped with golden, crispy fried garlic. It’s super kid-friendly as well, not having any pesky vegetables to pick out and whatnot. You’ll want to have a side of veggies or a soup to go with it, for a complete meal.

These falafel bowls are as delicious as they are satisfying. This recipe calls for soaking dried chickpeas overnight, so make sure you plan ahead. As much as I love to encourage substitutions, in this recipe using dried chickpeas is a MUST. Canned chickpeas will introduce too much moisture and make the falafel mushy. As you pulse the mixture, it might be tempting to throw in extra binders, but trust me, it doesn’t need it. Use a light hand when shaping and don’t compact the falafel too much—you don’t want them to be dense. These homemade falafel balls are baked rather than deep-fried. If you have an air-fryer, use it for an even crispier exterior

Squash is often overlooked in the summer months, even though it grows terrifically well alongside the tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini most people associate with a summer garden. I like this dish because it shows how bright and versatile squash is, but also because you can put it together in a lazy summer way where you roast the squash and then let it hang out for a bit while you get the other ingredients ready, water the aforementioned tomatoes, peppers, and zucchini, or enjoy a quiet glass of piquette. Serving the squash at room temperature may be surprising, but once you dig in to it with the burrata, lemon, and herbs, it will all make sense and you will want to do it again and again.