One of my favorite meals to order in a restaurant is French fries and a salad (but only if the fries are really good and come with a delicious dipping sauce, like the duck-fat fries with brown butter béarnaise sauce at Orson, or the fries with harissa aioli at Nopa). But that is not really a meal in the spirit of the season of resolve. As we learn from the Buddha, the middle way is best.

And so I present, French fries and a salad, Buddha-style:

Take some sweet potatoes; cut them into wedges; toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper; and maybe some cayenne or chili powder. Spread them out on a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake at 425 for 30 minutes or so, turning occasionally.

The kale salad is another recipe from my friend K., via her father-in-law who had this salad at a restaurant in Aspen. From Aspen to Portland to San Francisco to you. Nothing could be easier. Take some kale (curly or dino, whichevs); separate it from its ribs; and chop it up very, very fine until you basically have a pile of kale confetti. Finely mince a shallot. Put it all in a salad bowl. Add a generous handful of parmigiano cut into a fine dice. Toss in a handful of currants and pine nuts. Squeeze a lemon over the whole thing and drizzle on some olive oil. Add some Maldon sea salt if you’re feeling fancy, or just plain kosher salt. Toss to coat.

Kale salad also goes well with a baguette and pate, but that might be a meal for another season, too.

Does arugula count as a dark leafy green? It is green and it is a leaf, so let’s say yes. This is a perfect main-dish salad invented by my friend K. It makes an ideal supper for a lady dining alone but it also likes company. Pomegranate seeds are like the high heels of salads. Throw them into the mix and you feel all dressed up.

You need about 2 cups of roasted pumpkin (or whatever winter squash you have on hand. I’ve used red kuri, buttercup, kabocha, pumpkin, and plain old butternut). 6 cups of arugula. Seeds from one pomegranate. Shavings of parmigiano. A handful of toasted pumpkin seeds (extra credit for toasting the seeds from the pumpkin you roasted).

Make a vinaigrette with 1 minced shallot; 1/4 cup olive oil; 3 tablespoons of the vinegar of your choice; 1 tablespoon each pomegranate molasses, lemon juice, and Dijon mustard; and salt and pepper to taste.

Toss it all together. Serve it to your guests or sit down with a glass of wine, kick off your high heels, and have a nice solitary supper.