Raisin

These candy bars are loaded with the best that California has to offer. Toasted almonds, candied orange peel, and raisins are combined to make a delicious chunky candy bar.

Top-quality Scotch whisky, like Glenfiddich, is smooth and very tasty. When it’s combined with raisins and dark chocolate, the result is flavor heaven.

These spice-laden cookies originated in colonial New England; the candied ginger is our own addition. As the name implies, the bars are best after being hidden away for a day or two, so the flavors have a chance to deepen.

The buckwheat flour adds a deep, assertive flavor to this dessert; the flour is also highly nutritious.

For individual bread puddings, divide the mixture among eight buttered 6-ounce ramekins; reduce the cooking time to 40 minutes.

If you prefer to omit the bourbon, simply double the amount of hot water.

Brussels sprouts are members of the cabbage family. They are in season from late August through March.

Serve this stewlike chicken dish over couscous or mashed potatoes, or with a crusty baguette to soak up the flavorful broth. We used Cerignola olives from southern Italy; they are large and firm enough to hold up to slow cooking methods like braising.

When you look at recipes for European holiday breads like panettone, stollen, tsoureki, and christopsomo, it seems as if they are all related, often sharing similar ingredients and proportions of fat and sugar. Often, the main difference is in the shaping and in the history and symbolism of each bread. But heaven help any of us if we propose that thought to someone who grew up with any of those breads. I once made stollen, panettone, and kulich (Russian Easter bread) from a recipe for multipurpose holiday bread for a group of chefs and explained my theory of their similarities. Later, one of the American chefs told me I had offended some of the Germans who grew up on stollen and who were adamant that stollen is nothing like panettone. So I will resist the temptation to call this formula a multipurpose holiday bread (though I have made many types of bread from it) and instead limit it to its application as Dresden stollen. Dresden is considered the spiritual home of this traditional Christmas bread. The bread symbolizes the blanket of the baby Jesus, and the colored fruits represent the gifts of the Magi. As in nearly every festival bread, the story aspect of this loaf is culturally important, for it is a way parents teach their children about their heritage. When such a story is accompanied by the flavor memory of a particular food, you have a tool much more powerful than didactic or pedagogical teaching. I’m convinced this must be the reason I offended those Germans that day when I implied that a stollen was like a panettone. Perhaps in taste and ingredients, yes, but never in association.

In Brother Juniper’s Bread Book, I included a recipe for a variation of this bread, but I believe this version is even better, encompassing all the qualities one wants from a raisin bread. It is light, flavorful, loaded with raisins, and it has a wonderful finish, filling your mouth with the satisfying aftertaste of roasted walnuts. If you prefer not to use nuts, eliminate them from the formula without any further changes (you may also substitute other nuts, such as pecans or hazelnuts).

In less than 30 minutes from starting to prep the ingredients to serving, you can make this exotic fish dish and the accompanying fruit relish. Another time, make only the fruit relish and serve it with roasted pork or chicken.

This tart with a lattice top is a real showstopper. Your guests’ eyes will light up when it’s brought to the table. Known as a torta rustica in Italy, versions are served around Easter in celebration of the season. The filling is traditionally spinach, though I’ve incorporated other greens for more contrast in flavors. Other versions can have sausage, eggplant, and peppers as the filling.