Fall

Betty Caldwell was Gourmet's production director for many years. She has an avid interest in cooking and gave us this recipe, which became an instant holiday classic.

Not your typical corn bread dressing, this one from Michael McLaughlin features smoky ham and sautéed fennel.

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

This classic uncooked relish gets an aromatic edge from cinnamon, cloves, and ginger.

Pecan pie dresses up for the holiday. Chocoholics, take note: In addition to the bits of chocolate in the filling, there's cocoa powder in the delicious crust.

Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr Mashed potatoes are the ideal accompaniment to this dish.

Buttery, slightly sweet pumpkin is the perfect mate for the briny flavor of oysters, scallops, or other crustaceans. This soup is made with shrimp, whose shells are turned into an aromatic stock that serves as the soup's liquid. Classic shellfish bisques are thickened with rice, but here pumpkin provides body for the soup. Sage's earthy flavor complements both pumpkin and shrimp and steers the focus of flavor from sweet to savory. This is a satisfying soup to prepare throughout the fall. If you serve it as a first course for Thanksgiving dinner, you might start a tradition in your family.

This rich red nectar may be eaten hot or cold. I serve it in a demitasse or other small cup. Scrub the beets well before cooking. Taste as you prepare the soup, because getting the right balance of sweet and sour is important.

Peyton Hughes of Iowa City, Iowa, writes: "My extended family met for a reunion in Boston a few months ago. For our last night together, we decided it would be appropriate to have dinner at Finale. I'll never forget the unusual grilled portobello salad." Farro, or spelt, is a cereal grain that's been eaten in southern Europe for ages.

Omelette Pomme Colette Jan Case of Cornelius, Oregon, writes: "A jar of confiture de lait, a caramel-like sauce made from whole milk and sugar, along with some fallen apples found on a morning walk after my return home from France, where I spent three perfectly glorious months, inspired this omelet." We substituted dulce de leche for the confiture de lait because it is more readily available in the U.S.

In order to create a realistic top for our "pumpkin," we used a church key can opener to make the indentations, but a vegetable peeler or knife would also work.

When a dark chilly afternoon in October portends a killing frost, gather the last of the garden's bounty and make a steaming pot of soup for dinner. This recipe makes a generous amount that will feed a family for more than one satisfying meal.

This turkey is basted with Port, a wine exported to the colonies by English merchants in Portugal; for a time it was boycotted by the revolutionaries. Here, the Port gives the turkey and the gravy a rich flavor. Watch how to prepare and carve your bird with our streaming video demonstration.