Almond

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This pâté is neither easy nor inexpensive, but when you are looking for a tour de force, it is a gorgeous thing. If you feel the urge to simplify, omit the topping, but frankly, the pâté won't be quite as impressive without it, and you also won't have the exquisite contrast of the parsley and the crunchy almonds.

Bake some of these for the holidays, too.

New York City's classic dessert gets a luxurious lift from chestnuts.

Chocolate ganache and hazelnut cream are encased in a tender nut cake.

Crumbles are traditional family desserts that can be prepared with almost any fruit. This sophisticated rendition includes toasted almonds in the topping for extra crunch.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Brown sugar, almonds and oats combine for a crunchy topping in this lovely dessert. A touch of kirsch, a clear cherry brandy, enhances the fruit.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Here's a great-tasting, visually stunning treat that can be made up to a week ahead.

Pass a pitcher of cold low-fat or nonfat milk to drizzle over this cereal.

Antalya is known for its oranges. Wherever they are grown in abundance, the blossoms are distilled into orange flower water. This fragrant liquid flavors the syrup that is drizzled over these nut-filled spiral phyllo pastries. The name comes from their shape and the notion that some people's idea of heaven is listening to nightingales. Serve them with strawberries and whipped cream for an elegant presentation. Orange flower water is a flavoring extract which is available at liquor stores and in the liquor or specialty foods sections of some supermarkets nationwide.

Prepare this a day in advance to give the flavors time to blend and the cake a chance to become firm and properly chilled.

Pasta chi Civa is traditionally served during Carnilivari (Mardi Gras) in Polizzi Generosa to fortify the revelers.

(Panforte Di Siena) "Panforte" translates as "strong bread," reflecting the cake's dense, chewy texture.