Mandoline reign

Expensive French mandolines are nice and shiny, but also heavy and cumbersome -- not the tool of choice for thinly slicing carrots and daikon radish for Korean style pickles, potatoes for fries, and apples for tarts. The Kyocera slicer ($29.95), an inexpensive, lightweight, hand-held mandoline with a ceramic blade, is a breeze to use. The edge will retain its sharpness 10 times longer than steel. Ceramic is non-corrosive and will not affect the taste or smell of fruit or vegetables. Adjust a dial on the back for four different thicknesses. The Japanese-made slicer comes in red or black. Trish Gray, marketing manager at Kyocera, uses the mandoline to cut vegetables for an 18-pound South African Leopard Tortoise named Huey that's in her backyard. Tortoises don't have teeth so Gray thinly slices zucchini, squash, and cucumbers to make them easier to chew. You could do the same for your tortoise. Available at Kitchen Arts, 161 Newbury St., 617-266-8701; Stoddard's, 50 Temple Place, 617-426-4187; Sur La Table, The Mall at Chestnut Hill, 199 Boylston St., Chestnut Hill, 617-244-0213. -- JONATHAN LEVITT

South American sweets

Cookies that are so good they make your eyes roll in delight don't come along every day. So when they do, it's no wonder everyone wants to take credit for them. Both Peruvians and Argentines lay claim to alfajores as a traditional treat. A layer of creamy caramel that the Peruvians call manjar blanco and the Argentines call dulce de leche is sandwiched between two dense, buttery shortbread wafers that are dusted with confectioners' sugar. The Peruvian contingent scores points by providing the luscious, impossible-to-resist alfajores at a couple of locations in East Boston in packages of a dozen ($4). Reason enough to get in the car and discover a new neighborhood. Available at Rosas' Services, 407 Chelsea St., East Boston, 617-567-9797, and Victor's Peruvian Restaurant, 82 Bennington St., East Boston, 617-568-1900. -- ANN CORTISSOZ

A light taste of summer

We are months away from native farm tomatoes or even a big pot of the red beauties on the deck. While hot house tomatoes are splendid for salads, canned tomatoes are best for sauces, stews, and soups. Among the many brands and varieties is Rienzi's Italian Cherry Tomatoes (99 cents for a 14-ounce can). These are whole cherry tomatoes in their natural juices, imported from Italy. The flavor is pure tomato and the little cherries make a fresh and light - tasting sauce. Saute some garlic and onions in olive oil, add a can of the cherry tomatoes, simmer for 10 minutes, and finish with a handful of chopped fresh basil. Then toss with hot pasta. It's not summertime, but you'd never know. Available at some Stop & Shop stores including locations at 36 Bedford St., Lexington, 781-861-0456; 337 Great Road, Bedford, 781-271-9400; 1100 Massachusetts Ave., 617-541-4700. -- DEBRA SAMUELS

Game hen kebabs at Moby Dick

Moki Bakhtiari says that at her Persian restaurant, Moby Dick of Boston, "Everything is from the scratch homemade." Bakhtiari moved from her native Iran 22 years ago and ran a Steve's Ice Cream franchise in Harvard Square soon after arriving. She switched locations and cuisines 16 years ago and has since cultivated a following of customers drawn from employees of and visitors to nearby Symphony and Jordan halls. They come for the food that Bakhtiari learned to cook from her mother and grandmother, like the game hen kebabs ($14.95) marinated in homemade yogurt. But they also come to visit with the owner, who is warm and funny, even at the end of a 12-hour work day. "My customers are like my family," she says. Her loyal, well-fed family, that is. Moby Dick of Boston, 269 Huntington Ave., 617-236-5511. -- LEIGH BELANGER