Almond

Unlike traditional fruitcakes, which are usually soaked in liquor and can be prepared weeks in advance, this version is best eaten within five days of baking.

Love a cookie with crunch? These thin, crisp butter cookies are for you—each one is topped with crumbled almond praline, and its flavor plays on the time-tested combination of caramel and salt.

Any combination of dried fruit and nuts will work here, so choose your favorites or just use what you have in your cupboard. For a sweeter treat, swap in semisweet chocolate chips in place of bittersweet.

Since sautéing orzo in butter gives it a nutty taste and toasting almonds makes them buttery, it should be no surprise that the two ingredients are perfectly complementary in this pilaf.

Use this classic Mexican mole sauce to marinate the Mole-Roasted Turkey with Masa Stuffing and Chile Gravy . You'll be left with plenty of extra, which can be served alongside the turkey or frozen for later use. (Try it on turkey sandwiches, roasted chicken, or as a sauce for turkey or chicken tamales.)

This is a fresh twist on green beans amandine. Marcona almonds, from Spain, are more tender than California almonds and are usually sold roasted and salted. Look for them at specialty foods stores and online at tienda.com.

Impress your guests with these individual flourless chocolate cakes. The lack of flour makes the cakes very moist—and causes them to sink a bit in the middle.

We've never seen a spin on the ubiquitous combination of beets, cheese, and nuts as original as Smith's—it's an amazing take on familiar flavors. The beets are nestled in a pool of almond butter and crowned with a glorious Gorgonzola bombolone (an Italian-style puff of fried dough).

Try this with the Moroccan-Style Roast Chicken .

The lamb needs to marinate overnight.

In this free-form tart, the filling is mounded in the center of the pastry and the edges are simply folded up around it.

Guests are always tickled by their own individual desserts, and after a light summer meal, these tartlets are just the thing. A flaky crust cradles plump crescents of fruit accented with almonds and Amaretto.

Top with ice cream, lightly sweetened créme fraîche, or whipped cream.

This creamy semifreddo captures the heady flavor of ripe summer peaches. It's also a gorgeous showpiece that's perfect for entertaining, since it can be made well in advance of a dinner party.

For this Spanish-inspired pasta, you break the dried noodles and cook them more like rice — the result is a silky mix speckled with crunchy almonds, smoky chorizo, and aromatic saffron.

This recipe was created by chef Dan Barber of Blue Hill restaurant in New York City and Blue Hill at Stone Barns in Pocantico Hills, New York. It's part of a special menu he created for Epicurious's Wine.Dine.Donate program.

If strawberry shortcake hailed from the Middle East, it might taste like this. Toasting the almonds lets their essence permeate the cake, making it a lovely partner for strawberries that have been macerated in lemon juice and just a hint of rose water. A dollop of freshly beaten cream melds the two beautifully.