Here are a couple of recipes from Patricia Wells at Home in Provence (Scribner). The flavors and aromas are a little friendly package from Provence.

Four to six servings.

3 tbsp unsalted butter (room temperature), 3 tbsp Roquefort cheese (room temperature), 3 tbsp sea salt, 1 lb fresh or dried fettucine. Reserve about 1 cup pasta cooking water, freshly grated nutmeg to taste, zest of 1 lemon, grated 1 tbsp minced fresh rosemary, freshly ground black pepper to taste.

1. Preheat the oven at the lowest possible setting, about 200 F. Place a large heat proof bowl in the oven to warm.

2. In a small bowl, mash the butter and Roquefort with a fork until soft and well blended. Set aside.

3. In a large pot, bring 6 quarts of water to a rolling boil. Add the salt and the pasta, stirring to prevent the pasta from sticking. Cook until tender, 1 to 2 minutes. Carefully drain the pasta, leaving a few drops of water clinging to the pasta so that the sauce will adhere. Reserve 1 cup of cooking water.

4. Place the pasta in the warmed bowl and add the butter/Roquefort mixture. Toss the pasta slowly and gently until the pasta absorbs all of the mixture. Slowly add the cooking water, tablespoon by tablespoon, until the pasta is evenly coated with sauce. (Rather than thinning out the sauce, the starchy water will actually work to thicken it.) Season generously with nutmeg and toss with lemon zest and rosemary. Taste, then season generously with pepper. Toss once more. Transfer to warmed shallow soup bowls and serve.

Eight to twelve servings.

Butter and flour for preparing the cake pan, 2 large eggs (room temperature), 2/3 cup sugar, 4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 1/3/ cup whole milk, 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract, 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, 3/4 tsp baking powder, a pich of sea salt, zest of 1 lemon, grated zest of 1 orange, 10 ounces small, fresh purple grapes.

*for the fresh crunch of seeded grapes, try: Zinfandel, Corinth, Cabernet. For seedless, try: Red Flame

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2. Generously butter and flour a 9" springform pan, tapping out excess flour. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk, beat the eggs and sugar until thick and lemon-colored, about 3 minutes. Add butter, oil, milk and vanilla extract, and mix until blended.

4. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a large bowl. Add lemon zest and orange zest, and toss to coat the zest with flour. Spoon mixture into the bowl of batter and stir with a wooden spoon until thoroughly blended. Scrape down sides of bowl and mix once more. Set aside for 10 minutes to allow the flour to absorb the liquids.

5. Stir in about 3/4 of the grapes into the batter. Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth out the top with a spatula.

6. Place the pan in the center of the oven. Bake for 15 minutes, then sprinkle the top of the cake with the remaining grapes. Bake until the top is a deep golden brown and the cake feels quite firm when pressed with a fingertip, about 40 minutes more, for a total baking time of 55 minutes. Remove to a rack to cool.

After 10 minutes, run a knife along the sides of the pan. Release and remove the side of the springform pan, leaving the cake on the pan base. Serve at room temperature, cut into thin wedges.