Apple

More pastry chefs are using spices typically associated with savories in their sweets. Here, Chinese five-spice powder, a blend of warm spices and aromatic flavorings, adds allure to a fruit filling.

Filled with raisins and brown sugar and baked in Marsala and cider, these apples make a warming ending to the meal. Accompany them with vanilla ice cream and some purchased almond biscotti.

Great with the blintzes or ice cream. This recipe originally accompanied Cheese Blintzes with Carmelized Apples.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

The thing Hom likes most about this dessert is the contrast of the warm, sweet fruit and the cold, tangy crème fraîche. Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 20 min

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 30 min

One for the nut-lover. A refreshing apple compote is topped with an almond (or hazelnut) sponge. Simple and delicious, it's an ideal Passover dessert.

A favorite of Nancy's son.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 1 hr

The lavish efforts involved — the vegetables are braised, then marinated, and finally sautéed — result in a succulent savory casserole that's spicy with pepper and juniper berries and sweet and sour with cherry nectar and vinegar; each vegetable gives the sweet and sour a slightly different twist. The chestnuts, cooked with salt pork, are particularly wonderful, salty and satisfying. Begin preparations at least 7 hours ahead of serving, since the vegetables must marinate for 6 hours.

This dessert, long favored by the British at holiday time, originally contained minced meat along with the fruits and spices. This version, more suited to the nineties table, is meatless and brimming with apples, dried fruit and lots of spices.

Cranberries originally grew wild in Wisconsin; now they are the state's leading commercial fruit crop. They're also a must on the Thanksgiving table. In this take on a holiday staple, the mincemeat filling is packed with dried cranberries, which lend a tart balance to the sweetness of the raisins.

It is said that bourbon was first distilled in 1789 by a Virginia minister, and by the nineteenth century it had become an important regional industry. It makes a great cocktail, of course, but we also like it in this rich sauce.