Fruit

Meyer lemons, a cross between lemons and oranges, start to ripen in November. They add a deliciously fragrant sweet-and-sour note to this cocktail.

The only difficult thing about this scrumptious ice cream is planning ahead to allow for plenty of chilling time (at least 4 hours). Your efforts will be rewarded, though, with incredibly smooth and creamy ice cream jazzed up with apples and gingersnap cookies. Apple Notes: Here's the perfect recipe for using Fuji or Gala apples. They have just the right flavor and tenderness and are easy to find. Equipment: 3- to 4-quart saucepan; 8- to 10-inch skillet; ice cream maker

The trick to making great challah is to add just enough eggs and oil to the dough so that it tastes rich and moist without becoming heavy and sticky. My friend Kathy Cohen gets it exactly right—her bread, stuffed with apples, raisins, and cinnamon, is the highlight of her annual Jewish New Year feast. For years, I'd count the days between slices, until I finally decided to ask for the recipe. Apple Notes: There aren't a lot of apples in this bread, so you want a variety that really stands out. Therefore, green firm-tart apples, such as Granny Smith and Rhode Island Greening, are the perfect choice here. Equipment: 2 large baking sheets, rimmed or unrimmed

My editor, Maria Guarnaschelli, suggested this recipe, based on her memory of a savory pie served at a London pub. One half of the pie was filled with pork and the other with apples. As I later learned, that dish has its roots in an eighteenth-century workingman's lunch called the Bedfordshire Clanger—a hand-held pie filled with meat on one end and jam on the other. It was a compact way to serve lunch and dessert in one package. In adapting this idea to my own taste, I decided to layer apples on top of a spiced ground pork filling, rather than setting the two ingredients side by side. The flavors are fantastic together, and this dish has been the hit of many parties. It makes an especially good buffet option, as it can be served warm or at room temperature. Apple Notes: As with all pie recipes, you want firm fruit here. Some good examples: Granny Smith, Arkansas Black, and Northern Spy for tart apples; and Golden Delicious, Jazz, or Pink Lady for sweet ones. Equipment: 10- to 12-inch skillet; food processor; 9-inch deep-dish pie plate, preferably glass; parchment paper or wax paper

In the early 1900s, New York state had more than one thousand stills on local farms. Then Prohibition started in 1920, spelling the legal end for the country's distilleries, both large and small. It took eighty-three years for a New York distillery to pick up the torch, but finally, in 2003, Tuthilltown Spirits launched, becoming New York's first small-batch whiskey distiller since the "Noble Experiment" put everyone out of business. When New York City bartenders Jim Meehan and Karen Fu set out to craft a cocktail that honors their home state, which happens to be the second largest producer of apples in the country, they reached for Tuthilltown's Heart of the Hudson vodka, made from apple cider from local orchards. Muddled Granny Smith apple plus fresh mint and saké give the drink a deliciously fresh, green-apple crispness.

Raspberries are pureed and strained, then the mixture is partially frozen, and, finally, the slush is served in sugar-rimmed glasses. If you prepare the dessert ahead and freeze the mixture until hard, defrost it in the refrigerator for an hour or so before serving, to achieve the desired silky consistency. Individually quick frozen (IQF) berries, available year-round at most supermarkets, are generally of high quality and have been picked at the peak of ripeness and frozen without sugar. If fresh raspberries are in season, of course, you can use them.

This traditional Thai-style soup is my personal favorite. I love coconuts, and this soup is all about the coco. I like to use different ages of coconut meat to get varied textures. A more mature nut makes a chunky soup, while a younger one makes a creamy soup. I also like to use a variety of hot peppers: jalapeño, serrano, and even the super-spicy Thai chile, just to get a wide range of spiciness. Some peppers are hot as you eat them, others after you eat them; my favorites are hot only when you stop eating them.

Fresh figs are a wealth of life force, containing thousands of tiny seeds that make them a very virile and hormone-rich food. These delicate fruits are very popular in the cuisines of Europe and the Middle East, where they originated. Feel free to use any sprouted nut in the preparation of the nut kreme; pecans are my favorite.

Thailand has been heavily influenced by Indian culture. India's religion, music, and especially their food have all become part of Thailand's heritage. Curries are often thought of as an Indian thing, but Thai versions of curry are just divine. Serve this dish with Tom Yum , if desired.

These falafels can be prepared as crusts for use in the Middle Eastern Plate, or they can be made into more traditional falafel balls. To make these balls, just follow the instructions below but roll the mixture into 1-inch balls, then dehydrate them for only 8 to 10 hours.

This is an adaptation of a recipe created by our local berry farm.

The vanilla sapote is misnamed since it is actually not a member of the sapote family but a member of the citrus family. Vanilla sapotes, also called white sapotes, are green on the outside with pale ivory flesh. The green sapote (a true sapote) is green on the outside and orange on the inside. Look for vanilla sapotes at Latin markets and specialty produce stores.

Gravlax, typically made with salmon, gets an aromatic twist with grapefruit zest and crushed green peppercorns. Plan to make this at least 3 days ahead to let the fish cure.

To encourage the soufflé to climb up the sides of the dish, grease the dish with butter and sprinkle it with sugar. The sugar prevents the soufflé from sticking to the sides.

The combination of crisp Asian pear and toasted sesame oil gives this stalwart a modern twist.

An excellent cocktail all fall and winter long.

This Moroccan-style braise is deeply aromatic, meltingly tender, and exactly what you want on a chilly winter weekend.

We love the way the gin in this old-school sparkling cocktail pairs with the juniper berry-laced arctic char in our new-school citrus gravlax.

Inspired by a recipe from chef Kaori Endo of Nanashi in Paris, this smart, easy dessert shows how well matcha plays with creamy yogurt and fruit.

Classic baked Alaska is turned on its head with these individual desserts from Elizabeth Falkner of San Francisco's Citizen Cake. Coconut, pineapple, passion fruit, and a rum-soaked sorbet lend a tropical twist. To save time, use store-bought pineapple sorbet.