Fruit

Fruit goes formal with a dressy sugar accessory while still staying true to its healthy roots by supplying vitamin C.

With 35 percent fewer calories than sugar cookies, these sweets belong in your holiday cookie jar.

The juicy pears in this elegant tart provide a dose of filling fiber. Each slice also serves up a helping of satiating healthy fat and phytonutrients, which come from the almonds.

Editor's note: This recipe is from Erika Lenkert's book, The Last-Minute Party Girl: Fashionable, Fearless, and Foolishly Simple Entertaining For Lenkert's tips on throwing a last-minute New Year's Eve party, click here. A luscious combination of salty and sweet, these pop-in-your-mouth morsels look especially pretty when arranged on a platter and sprinkled with chopped parsley.

Pamplemousse is the French word for grapefruit, which is one of the main ingredients in this vodka drink.

A perfect balance of sweet, savory, soft, and crunchy.

Doughnuts meet bananas Foster in this playful dessert.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Christopher Trotter's book The Scottish Kitchen As Trotter mentions, black bun is enjoyed at Hogmanay, which is the name for New Year's in Scotland.. This is a very traditional Scottish sweetmeat and is usually associated by most Scots with Hogmanay when it is eaten with a nip or two of whisky! It differs from most fruit cakes in that it is baked in a pastry case. It should be kept for several weeks to mature.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Aglaia Kremezi's book, The Foods of the Greek Islands. As Kremezi explains, this special cake is enjoyed on New Year's Eve or New Year's Day and has the potential to be lucky. Vassilopita On New Year's Eve or after the family lunch on the first day of the New Year, the father of the family cuts into this rich and aromatic cake, which has the year written in almonds on top and a lucky coin secreted inside. A piece is distributed to each family member, starting with the older ones, and whoever gets the symbolic coin is rewarded with a gift of money and starts the year with an advantage. The basic recipe always contains orange juice, eggs, butter (a luxury in the old days) or margarine and brandy. Like our family, most islanders bake this fragrant cake just once a year. This is my mother's recipe. Serve it on its own for breakfast or as a snack with coffee, tea or a glass of orange juice.

Quinces take the place of apples, tarting up the classic dessert.

This easy dessert has it all: chocolate cookie crust; rich, creamy filling; and a glistening tumble of berries on top.

Tender cake, creamy filling, crunchy nuts, and tangy–sweet kumquats add up to one glam holiday dessert.

You'll find mincemeat in the canned fruit section of some supermarkets. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

Serve with roast pork or cottage cheese.