Almond

All over Switzerland, tiny macaroons in every color and flavor fill the bakery windows, like rows and rows of candy dots. Almond is one of the classic flavors of these sandwich cookies — and it's particularly nice with the poached apricots and zabaglione.

This vegetarian showstopper will bowl you over with its layers of flavor — one bite is enough to understand why it's often called one of the world's great dishes. Barley couscous, lighter and more aromatic than the well-known semolina version, serves as a nutty, fluffy base; tender-firm vegetables and a fragrant, golden broth are ladled over; and crunchy fried almonds and sweet onion confit add even more texture and flavor to the beguiling complexity.

These ice cream sandwiches are made with baked puff pastry squares instead of cookies. Make them at least an hour ahead so the ice cream has time to firm up.

These tasty little tea cakes are a perfect match for the Lime and Lemon Posset.

Serve this cake with a dollop of Greek yogurt and quince paste.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Fonda San Miguel: Thirty Years of Food and Art, by Tom Gilliland, Miguel Ravago, and Virginia B. Wood. Flan is one of the most traditional desserts in the entire Hispanic-influenced world — from Spain and Portugal to Cuba and Puerto Rico, all the way to Mexico and Central and South America. It comes in a variety of flavors and textures, depending on the local tastes and agricultural products of each different region. When Fonda San Miguel opened in 1975, few, if any, Mexican restaurants in Texas offered flan as a dessert option. In the early days of the restaurant, a loyal customer named Ana María generously shared her family's heirloom recipe from the Mexican state of Guanajuato, and it has been a customer favorite ever since. It's very dense and creamy, balanced by a crunchy almond crust on the bottom.

If there is one dish that could be considered Mexican haute cuisine, then Mole Poblano is surely it. Legend has it that the voluptuous sauce — a blend of chiles, spices, and chocolate — was created by the European Catholic nuns of Puebla to honor a visiting bishop. There are no shortcuts to making a true Mole Poblano: It takes time and patience to develop the layers of flavor that make this sauce fit for royalty. Miguel adapted the restaurant's recipe from one he learned from Diana Kennedy. At Fonda San Miguel, this mole is served with chicken and rice and as a sauce for enchiladas. It is also wonderful on roast turkey and pork.

Instead of the usual approach of topping dandelion greens with hot bacon dressing, here we tame the greens' bitter bite with a Spanish-inspired dressing flavored with almonds, raisins, and Sherry.

In this dish, inspired by Cuban cooking, hints of clove and cinnamon whisk a standby cowboy steak to the Caribbean.

These little gems stirred up our childhood memories of coconut-filled candy bars. We baked them in extra-large muffin cups to make them more like little individual cakes. If you choose to use regular-sized muffin cups, the recipe will yield 24 cupcakes and the cooking time will be shorter.

Semolina flour gives extra texture to the crust.

Haroseth, a fruit and nut condiment, is one of the six elements on the seder plate at Passover. It is traditionally eaten on matzo and symbolizes the mortar that was used to build the pyramids.

An homage to Denmark's sublime almond pastries, these delicate little cakes provide a nice hit of almond to complement the licorice pudding ; they're also a lovely nibble on their own with a cup of tea.

This big-deal cake can be made a day ahead.

These cookies, a twist on traditional snowballs, are just the thing to enjoy with a spot of tea.

Piquillos are sweet Spanish peppers with a rich, full flavor.

At Caffè Sicilia, this granita is served for breakfast along with a brioche and a shot of espresso—a wonderful way to start the day. Unlike most other granitas, it has an almost creamy texture. (The Caffè Sicilia almond paste, though pricey, is worth it: Incredibly moist and possessing a delicate floral quality, it tastes so pure that we actually eat it by the spoonful.)