Gourmet

This delicious and slightly exotic Indian-influenced candy incorporates a blend of cashews, pistachios, and almonds in a golden brittle sweetened with honey and lightly spiced with cardamom.

Surprise your party host with a jar of this ruby-red jelly — its sweet heat flavors pair beautifully with soft cheeses.

These savory biscotti are ideal for a soiree. Their crisp texture is accented by the richness of parmesan and the bite of black pepper — perfect for nibbling in between sips of wine.

Who doesn't love Rice Krispies treats? By adding dark chocolate ganache with a tiny jolt of coffee flavor, we've turned the classic into a sophisticated and whimsical bite-size dessert. We found that combining bittersweet chocolate of different cacao levels results in a ganache that has just the right intensity without being overpowering.

A balance of savory and sweet, this wonderful combination can also be presented more casually; the pork tastes just as good when the slices are simply served on a platter with the sauce on the side.

Rest assured that your guests won't leave your party feeling hungry — these omeletlike hors d'oeuvres, not to be confused with Mexican flour tortillas, are as hearty as they are delicious.

Creamy Italian Fontina, earthy mushrooms, and a dash of truffle oil transform a childhood favorite into elegant little sandwiches.

This vegetarian pâté, satisfyingly rich with a silky texture, will entice even the most die-hard carnivores. If you're not worried about keeping it vegetarian, you can substitute an equal amount of unflavored gelatin for the agar flakes.

Festive and beautiful, this creation of editor Nichol Nelson is packed with real cranberry flavor. Forcing some of the berries through a sieve into the syrup intensifies the drink's fruitiness.

Buttery and crunchy, with a rich, oozy center, these little sandwiches (a cross between panini and chocolate croissants) provide a sweet ending that can be prepared in just minutes.

Fennel dressing, bright with lemon juice, coats pleasantly bitter greens with an intriguing hint of licorice.

A savory take on noodle kugel, this beautiful dish is creamy on the inside with a golden-crisp crust. Using thin egg fettuccine rather than traditional short, wide egg noodles adds elegance.

Egg whites give these quick, cheesy nibbles their exceptionally light texture. Bite-size portions make them the perfect mouth-popping accompaniment to an aperitif.

You'll want to mix up a pitcher of this bubbly drink for its gorgeous ruby hue alone. It's a refreshing prelude to any holiday meal, and it goes so well with the parmesan puffs .

It takes only a few powerful ingredients like these to pull off amazingly full flavor. This rich, sophisticated pasta is guaranteed to keep the winter doldrums at bay.

Coconut milk adds a silky richness to this South Indian–style vegetarian meal.

Caramelized by high-heat roasting, all that these parsnips needed was a hint of sage to make fans of us all.

This bay-leaf- and garlic-infused pilaf is versatile, going well with both the Cajun shrimp stew and the coconut red-lentil curry.

This satisfying stew just may be the essence of Cajun cooking: shrimp with onion, celery, and green pepper, all given depth by brown roux and livened up with cayenne.

Sweet caramelized onions and a tart Granny Smith apple are a perfect balancing act, especially when combined with rich smoked sausage.