I was raving just last week about my new-found love of citrus . Last week it was lemons, this week it’s limes.

Specifically, lime juice and jalapenos made into a dressing for this awesome salad. It’s sharp and spicy and piquant enough to cut through the winter malaise from which I, for one, am definitely suffering.

So I thought I understood the difference between yams and sweet potatoes. Evidently I did not. After some research, here is what I am pretty certain is the case:

Yams are a starchy tuber eaten in many different cultures in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Oceania. They are difficult to find in the United States and chances are that vegetables you encounter called yams are actually a variety of sweet potato.

Sweet potatoes are a starchy tuber as well. They come in a huge number of varieties that can be orange or white. Color cannot be used to distinguish sweet potatoes from yams. In the US, the softer orange sweet potatoes have been called yams to distinguish them from starchier white varieties, but they are all sweet potatoes.

I share this information with you, because I was totally confounded when I bought vegetables labeled “sweet potatoes” and found they had white flesh once I peeled them. But I forged ahead, and I can now tell you that the white sweet potatoes are just as delicious as the orange ones. Yams be damned.

I was serving a crowd, so I doubled the recipe. I also made one small and one huge change. First, I skipped the cilantro, because while I am a cilantro lover I ate a lot of it with my CSA and also because it has this funny tendency to make everything you add it to taste primarily like cilantro.

Second, I cut the amount of olive oil WAY down. The recipe as written calls for 2 tablespoons for roasting and another six (!) for the dressing. When doubling the recipe, I probably used 3-4 tablespoons for roasting, but only about two in the dressing instead of the recommended twelve (!?!?!), which I think would have made this more of a soup.

Roasted Sweet Potato and Black Bean Salad with Chili-Lime Dressing
from the New York Times

4 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 large onion, preferably red, chopped
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil (ed. – more likely, less)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 to 2 tablespoons minced fresh hot chili, like jalapeño
1 clove garlic, peeled
Juice of 2 limes
2 cups cooked black beans, drained (canned are fine)
1 red or yellow bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
1 cup chopped fresh cilantro.

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees. Put sweet potatoes and onions on a large baking sheet, drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil, toss to coat and spread out in a single layer. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast, turning occasionally, until potatoes begin to brown on corners and are just tender inside, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven; keep on pan until ready to mix with dressing.

2. Put chilies in a blender or mini food processor along with garlic, lime juice, remaining olive oil (ed. – probably less) and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Process until blended.

3. Put warm vegetables in a large bowl with beans and bell pepper; toss with dressing and cilantro. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve warm or at room temperature, or refrigerate for up to a day.

Yield: 4 servings.

When scheming what to cook, I used to feel like I too often fall back on pasta or pasta-like dishes, but I realized at some point that this is my favorite kind of food. So variety be damned. I love pasta.

But I do at least like to switch up my pasta styles as often as I can, which recently led me to orzo, a pasta I’d never cooked with before. My original idea was a sort of orzo pasta salad with roasted red peppers and a vinaigrette. I still want to make this at some point, but in searching for ideas, I stumbled across this warm orzo dish with goat cheese and was sold right away.

It’s hearty enough for a main course and simple enough to be a trouble-free side. Sure, it’s just another pasta dish, but there’s always room for more at my pasta party.

Did I really just type the phrase “pasta party?” God help me.

Orzo is a rice-shaped Italian pasta, not a grain of its own. You might also find it – as I did – labeled as riso or risetto or the like. Just make sure you’re buying pasta and not rice. You could also use other small pasta shapes like Israeli couscous.

I’ve given the recipe verbatim below, but you can just use it as a guideline. I used a full box of orzo, only red peppers, and more onion than was called for, and I think it turned out great. Just adjust according to your preferences.

One note of caution: If you’re using salt-cured olives, I’d recommend rinsing them before adding them in this dish and always. I learned this lesson in making a pasta puttanesca that came out much too briny for my liking. Even after rinsing, be sure to taste the orzo before adding additional salt, as between olives and the goat cheese, there’s a good amount of salt happening already.

But you always taste before adding salt anyway, right? Right?

Good. You get a gold star.

Orzo with Roasted Peppers, Olives, and Goat Cheese
from Wolfgang Puck

2 red bell peppers
2 yellow bell peppers
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for garnish
1/2 medium yellow onion, finely diced
12 ounces orzo
1/4 cup chopped kalamata olives in oil, drained, plus more for garnish
3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves, for garnish

Roast the peppers over the flame of a gas burner, on a hot grill, or under the broiler, until the skin is black and charred. Remove from the heat and place in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit until cool enough to handle, about 15 to 20 minutes. With clean paper towels, wipe off the skin. Remove the stems and seeds and discard. If necessary, briefly rinse under cold water to remove any remaining charred skin. Dice the roasted peppers and set aside.

In a large pot, bring salted water to a boil. Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the onion and cook just until translucent, but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add the reserved peppers and saute for 3 minutes.

Blanch the orzo in the boiling water for 4 to 5 minutes, or until beginning to cook, but still very al dente. Drain the orzo, reserving the pasta water, and add to the pepper mixture. Add 1 cup of the reserved pasta water and cook, stirring, until creamy and the pasta is cooked tender. Finish with another 1/4 cup pasta water if the mixture is too thick. Stir in the olives and goat cheese and mix until the goat cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Thin with pasta water if the mixture is too thick.

Garnish with parsley, olives, and a drizzle of olive oil.