All Ingredients

Vanilla is used to flavor everything from baked goods to ice cream. Most recipes call for vanilla extract, but some argue that vanilla beans lend a more potent flavor. Select beans that are shiny, moist, and pliable--dried out beans aren't nearly as potent. If a recipe calls for just for the seeds, split the bean open and scrape the seeds out, and save the outer pod to flavor sugar or hot drinks.

This has two meanings. In Britain, vanilla essence is the same as America's imitation vanilla extract. Elsewhere, vanilla essence may mean a highly concentrated and pricey form of pure vanilla extract.

Vanilla extract is made from vanilla beans that have been steeped in alcohol. It's widely used throughout the world to flavor desserts, like baked goods, ice cream, beverages, and custards, but some chefs use it as a secret ingredient in savory dishes as well. Pure extracts made with vanilla from the Bourbon Islands, which include Madagascar, is especially well-regarded. Mexican vanilla extract is also excellent, and even more potent, but it's sometimes adulterated with a dangerous food additive that's banned by the FDA. Look for vanilla extract among the baking supplies in your supermarket.

This inexpensive substitute for pure vanilla extract is made with synthetic vanillin and other flavorings. Many brands are quite good, since chemists know how to produce an exact copy of natural vanillin, the dominant flavor in vanilla. The problem is that vanillin isn't the only flavor component in vanilla, so even the best imitation vanilla extracts aren't quite as full-flavored and complex as the real deal. Food gurus are always saying that cooks should never, ever use imitation vanilla extract, but at least one taste test has shown that many people prefer a high quality imitation vanilla extract to pure extract. Avoid imitation vanilla from Mexico--it may contain a toxic food additive.

This alcohol-free powder is made from vanilla beans that have been dried and pulverized. Unlike vanilla extract, it doesn't evaporate when heated, so it's well suited to making custards and other cooked desserts. It's also good for making dry mixes and for sprinkling onto drinks and dishes. Some brands have sweeteners added. Look for it in larger supermarkets and specialty shops.

These vanilla cookies can be eaten as they are, but cooks often pound them into crumbs and use them to make pie crusts.

These are often used to make pie crusts. To make them, place vanilla wafers in a heavy plastic bag, seal, then crush the wafers with a rolling pin.

Examples include spiced rum, Tuaca, Licor 43, and crème de vanille.

Indians use these ultra-thin sheets of gold leaf to decorate dishes. Look for it in Indian groceries and cake decorating stores.

These are egg noodles used in Jewish dishes like kugel.

This hard cow's milk cheese has a strong flavor and is popular in Sweden.

This includes the arm bone and some of the ribs. A steak cut from the arm roast is called a veal arm steak. The roast is often braised, roasted, or used a pot roast.

The veal arm steak looks a lot like a veal round steak cut from the back leg in that both cuts contain round bones, but the arm steak isn't as tender.

This cut includes the shoulder blade bone and a fair amount of connective tissue, so it's cheaper than other veal roasts. Once boned, it has a nice large opening that can be stuffed before roasting. A steak cut from a blade roast is called a veal blade steak.

This is cut from a veal blade roast.

The breast includes the lower end of the ribs, along with some fairly lean meat.

You can get this either with or without bones. A common way to serve this is to cut open a pocket between the ribs and the meat and stuff it before roasting.

This is a relatively tough cut of meat that the butcher tenderizes by turning it almost into hamburger.

These are very lean and thin boneless slices taken from different muscles in the leg. Better butchers cut them to order, since they dry out quickly in the display case, and then they sometimes pound them to make them even thinner. They're most commonly used to make scaloppini, schnitzels, and escalopes.

Veal heart is tender and delicate enough to be grilled or sautéed, though it becomes tough if overcooked. You can also cook it slowly using moist heat.

This chop is assembled from a veal loin chop and part of a veal kidney that's surrounded by fat. The tail of the loin chop is wrapped around the kidney to form a tight package. It makes a very tasty steak.

Veal kidneys are the most highly prized of all kidneys. Like lamb kidneys, they're tender enough to be cooked using dry heat, say by grilling or sautéing them. Don't overcook them, though, or they'll quickly become very tough. Before cooking them, peel off the outer membrane. Due to their mild flavor, they don't need to be soaked.

The choice meat in the leg is often sliced into thin cutlets to be used for veal scaloppini, schnitzels, and escalopes. You can also buy larger cuts for roasting or braising.

This is similar to a rump roast, only it has just one round leg bone. A steak cut from this roast is called a veal round steak.

This is the veal counterpart to a Porterhouse or T-bone steak. It's cut from a veal loin roast. Loin chops are usually braised or pan-fried.

The most buttery cuts of all come from the loin, but you'll pay dearly for them.

This is a magnificent roast, but it's very expensive. If you get it boned, rolled, and tied, it's called a rolled loin roast of veal.

This is cut from a rib roast, and comes either bone-in or boneless.

The ribs are usually cut into chops, but you can also roast the entire rack of veal, or tie two or three racks together to form a crown roast of veal.

A rib roast is often cut into tender rib chops, but some people roast it intact or tie two or three rib roasts together to form a crown roast of veal. A hotel rack includes the connected rib racks from both sides of the animal. Be careful not to overcook veal; since it isn't very fatty it tends to dry out easily. Rib roasts are sold either with or without bones.

These are similar to beef short ribs. They're usually braised or used in stews.

Steaks can be braised or, if they're cut thin, pan-fried.

The bone-in or standing rump roast is a tasty roast, but it contains a lot of bone and it's tricky to carve. Butchers will bone, roll, and tie a rump roast into a rolled veal rump roast = veal roast boneless = rump of veal boneless = veal rump roast boneless. Rump roasts can be braised or roasted.

Portions of both the fore shank and the hind shank are sold as shank bones. They're rich in gelatinous substances, so they're excellent for making stocks, soups, and osso buco.

This is the lower portion of the leg, minus the hind shank and hock. It has more waste than a rump roast or center cut, but it's very flavorful.

The cuts here are more economical, since the meat is tougher and often interlaced with bone and connective tissue. Butchers usually bone, roll, and tie the shoulder to make a rolled roast, but they sometimes also cut the shoulder into smaller roasts and steaks.

This is a lean steak cut from a sirloin roast.