Ladle - 1. To move portions of a food using a ladle. 2. A utensil with a cup-like bowl and a long hooked or pierced handle used to pour sauces and liquids.

Lait - (French) Milk.

Lamb, Yearling - The meat of a sheep slaughtered when less than 1 year old.

Larding or Larder - To insert strips of fat into pieces of meat, so that the cooked meat stays moist and juicy.

Lasagna - 1. Wide, flat Italian pasta sheets with ruffled or smooth edges. 2. An Italian dish made with boiled lasagna layered with ricotta and mozzarella cheese, meats and/or vegetables and topped with a tomato or meat sauce and baked.

Lavender - This aromatic relative of the mint plant is often used to make herb tea.

Lean - The FDA approved food labeling term used to describe meat, poultry, game, fish or shellfish that contains less than 10 grams of fat, less than 4 grams of saturated fat, and 95 mg of cholesterol per serving or per 100 grams.

Leaven - To insert gas into a dough or batter by adding an ingredient, such as yeast, baking powder or baking soda, causing it to expand, or rise, lightening the texture of the baked product.

Lebkuchen - A thick, cake-like German cookie made with honey, spices, citron and ground almonds. The dough is often cut into shapes or baked in decorative molds, then topped with a hard confectioner's sugar glaze.

Leek - Has a thick, cylindrical white stalk with a slightly bulbous root end and dark green leaves. The tender, white stalk has a flavor that is sweeter and stronger than a scallion but milder than an onion.

Legumes - Plant species that have seed pods that split along both sides when ripe. Some edible legumes are beans, lentils, peas, etc.

Liaison - A mixture of cream and egg yolks used to thicken and enrich soups and sauces.

Light - FDA term used to define food that has 33 percent fewer calories, 50 percent less fat, or 50 percent less sodium than the regularly used food.

Liguria Olive - An Italian salt-brine-cured black olive with a strong flavor; sometimes packed with stems.

Lima Beans - There are two common varieties of lima beans: the Fordhook and the baby (also called sieva). The pale green bodies of both varieties have a slight kidney-shaped curve. The Fordhook is larger and plumper than the baby lima. Limas can be used as a side dish, in soups and in the traditional dish succotash.

Limburger Cheese - An extremely strong-smelling, semihard, fermented cheese first made in Limburg, Belgium, but now more commonly produced in Germany. Limburger has a yellow to reddish-brown rind, a yellow interior and a paste-like consistency.

Lime - A small ovoid citrus fruit with a thin, pitted, green skin. Limes have juicy, pale green pulp and a very tart flavor.

Linguine - Long, narrow, moderately thick strands of pasta.

Liqueur - A sweet, aromatic alcoholic drink typically served after a meal. Liqueurs are often used as flavorings in baked desserts and dessert sauces.

Litchi, Lychee - A small fruit from China and the West Indies, with a hard shell and sweet, juicy flesh. The flesh is white with a gelatinous texture and a musky, perfumed flavour.

Loaf Pan - A deep rectangular baking pan available in various sizes; used for baking breads, cakes and meatloaf.

Lobster - Any of several varieties of saltwater crustaceans; with a long jointed body, large tail and front claws, and legs surrounded by a reddish-brown or blue-black shell which turns bright red when cooked. The firm white meat has a rich, sweet flavor.

Loganberries - Possibly a raspberry-blackberry hybrid, this berry is juicy, sweet and tart. Plump, purple-red loganberries can be used to make jams and preserves.

Lo Mein - 1. A dish consisting meat and poultry with water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, green onions, mushrooms and Chinese egg noodles. 2. Fresh Chinese egg noodles.

Loquat - A small pear-shaped fruit native to China, though also known as a Japanese medlar or Japanese plum; has yellowish-orange skin and juicy flesh.

Lovage - A large, celery-like herb with a thick stalk and a lemony, musky, celery-like flavor.

Low Calorie - A food containing 40 calories or less per serving.

Low Cholesterol - A food containing 20 milligrams or less of saturated fat and 2 grams or less of saturated fat per serving.

Low Fat, Low-fat - A food containing 3 grams of fat or less per serving.

Low Saturated Fat - A food containing 1 gram of fat or less per serving and not more than 15 percent of its calories from saturated fatty acids.

Low Sodium - A food containing 140 milligrams or less per serving.

Lox - Very thinly sliced brine-cured, cold-smoked salmon; slightly saltier than other forms of smoked salmon.

Lugano Olive - Italian black olive, sometimes packed with olive leaves; usually very salty.

Lumache - Italian term for snails; describes large pasta shells designed for stuffing.

Lyonnaise Potatoes - A French side dish of sliced potatoes sautéed with onions.