Almond

Pan-Grilled New York Strip Steaks with Green Olive Tapenade

Serve these with a creamy potato gratin. Market Tip: Avoid steaks with lots of cartilage — they will be tough and chewy.

Zested Carrot Zucchini Julienne

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Quince, Apple, and Almond Jalousie

The name for this flaky pastry comes from the French term for a Venetian blind, which-like the dessert-has slit openings through which one can peek.

Lebkuchen

Spice Cookies Rice paper is traditionally used in this recipe, but is not essential. You can bake these cookies on buttered baking sheets instead.

Cornish Game Hens with Dried Fruit and Honey

This poultry dish features many of the flavors of the classic Moroccan dish b'stilla but is much easier to make.

Red Snapper Baked in Salt with Romesco Sauce

The salt creates a seal around the fish, which preserves its moisture and pure flavors. Romesco is a classic sauce from the Catalonia region. For cooking the fish, use two 13x9x2-inch metal baking pans.

Prune Sherry Ice Cream with Burnt Sugar Sauce

Chocolate Cherries Jubilee

It's hard to believe that something so delectable can be made so quickly. For a showy presentation, add the Cognac to the sauce and heat gently without stirring it in. Ignite with a match and spoon the flaming sauce over the ice cream.

White Chocolate Cheesecake with Cinnamon and Lemon

Bake this at least a day before serving.

Nougat Noir

Raspberry and Peach Parfait Cake

Rhubarb Tart with Brown Butter Streusel

Country tart meets city topping; the streusel is revved up with nutty-tasting brown butter — a popular flavoring in this year's desserts.

Cordoban Gazpacho

Salmorejo Cordobés In Córdoba, gazpacho is reduced to its most basic elements, with no cucumbers or peppers, and is known as salmorejo. It takes on a saucelike consistency but is still considered a soup and is served in small portions. It is scattered with chopped hard-boiled egg and julienne strips of serrano ham, both indispensable to achieving salmorejo's fullest flavor. Salmorejo is sometimes used as a dip.

Malaga Almond Gazpacho

Ajo Blanco Malagueño This gazpacho from Málaga gets its pure white color and creamy consistency from blanched almonds. Sweet green grapes are the essential counterpoint to the tang of garlic and vinegar. The addition of shrimp comes from chef Bartolomé Rodrigo Lucena.

Scallops with Almonds

Cappe Sante con Mandorle Venice and nearby Trieste are two Italian cities that know how to use scallops well. After all, the shellfish is abundant in the northern part of the Adriatic. In this recipe, from Venice's Fiaschetteria Toscana, almonds add texture to an otherwise soft dish, and the brandy playing off the natural sweetness of the scallops gives the sauce a Sherry-like flavor.