(MONEY Magazine) – Anyone who has been a longtime reader of this magazine knows the case for patient, conservative growth investing. And anyone who has followed this column over the past few months knows why I think the stock market is beginning a major upturn--the recent interest-rate drop by itself is enough to jump-start an economy that's not in especially bad shape. But those generalizations don't answer the practical questions of investing. The challenge is figuring out how to apply them in putting together a portfolio.

There are three ways you can try to outpace the market over the long term. You can select stocks with earnings growth that averages more than 12% annually, which is the historical return of the S&P 500. You can favor companies that pay dividends high enough to boost their total return over the 12% mark. Or you can buy stocks so undervalued that a natural recovery in their price/earnings ratios would get them to 12%.

You can't execute these strategies, however, without taking current economic conditions and market trends into account. That's always true, of course, but it's especially pertinent now, because in the past year the normal business cycle has been enormously complicated by the bursting of the technology bubble. Even so, it's not hard to identify key areas of opportunity. A well-balanced stock portfolio would reflect all these trends, while still topping the 12% mark. Here are six stocks that represent different ways to take advantage of today's market. Together they constitute a nice little growth portfolio.

Tech-wreck victim. The Nasdaq collapse has crushed the shares of many companies that have unshakable franchises with high growth rates. Even the best-established tech stocks fell as much as 60% in the past year. But companies that dominate rapidly growing industries should be the first to rebound. A great example would be Applied Materials, the world's leading maker of semiconductor manufacturing equipment. The company's quarterly results reported in May were down 52% from year-earlier levels. Yet long-term demand for new chipmaking equipment remains strong. And Applied Materials' earnings are projected to grow at a 25% compound annual rate over the next five years.

STEADY GROWER. Some health-care stocks escaped the crash unscathed. Despite the economic slowdown, Johnson & Johnson has increased its earnings by nearly 14% over the past 12 months. In addition to making Band-Aid bandages, Tylenol and baby shampoo, the company has a booming pharmaceuticals business, as well as major biotech and medical-equipment divisions. In April, J&J announced that it would raise its dividend for the 39th consecutive year--this time by 12.5%--and split its shares two for one.

CONSUMER-SPENDING PLAY. Eventually, the economy will pick up; when it does, retailers will benefit enormously. And Tiffany is still a stellar seller, although its earnings were flat in the first quarter and domestic sales were off 6%. Tiffany is expecting strong results in the second half--and 15%-plus growth over the next five years.

DEFENSIVE BUT STILL DEPRESSED. Consumer-products companies, generally considered good stocks to own in tough times, are selling at relatively low valuations right now. Adding to its superb collection of brands--Tide, Ivory and Charmin among them--Procter & Gamble just agreed to purchase Clairol from Bristol-Myers, a deal that would make P&G No. 1 in hair care. P&G is still in the midst of a major restructuring that could take a year to complete. But it should emerge as a focused collection of businesses able to provide a total return of more than 12% a year.

INTEREST-RATE PLAY. The Federal Reserve has cut rates five times this year--great news for financial stocks. Citigroup has been expanding aggressively, particularly in emerging markets. In May the company agreed to acquire Banacci, a leading Mexican bank. As the industry consolidates, Citigroup figures to become an even more important player growing at least 15% a year.

ENERGY HEDGE. Surging energy prices could hurt many sectors by fueling inflation, but they'll help oil and gas companies. Since merging with Coastal, El Paso has become one of the premier energy stocks, with extensive natural gas pipelines as well as oil and gas production. Earnings soared 41% in the first quarter. The only negative is that energy-short California is investigating El Paso for price gouging, which could trip up the stock at some point. Thanks to the promising merger, though, profits should be able to grow more than 15% a year over the longer term.

Michael Sivy can be reached at sivy_on_stocks@moneymail.com.