The guests are hungry, and dinner's not yet on the table. You could set out a tray of cheese and crackers. But if surprise and delight drive your menu choices (keeping an eye, all the while, on simplicity...
Author: Florence Fabricant
Author: Mark Bittman
Author: David Tanis
For hot days, you can't beat this take on cucumber soup, which blows away the "classic" dairy-based version.