Dried Currant

A nice accompaniment to roasted pork, venison, game birds or turkey.

Puff pastry as strudel dough is even faster and more convenient than phyllo dough. A scoop of vanilla ice cream or frozen vanilla yogurt is great alongside.

Scones are the classic tea and coffee partner. Tiny and elegant for a silver-service tea or as large as a fist, they're everyone's favorite served warm, split and spread with butter or whipped cream and jam.

This uses the same ingredients found in boudin blanc, the classic French white sausage. Start two days before serving.

A perennial favorite on both sides of the Atlantic, this raisiny bread makes fine, fragrant toast.

This quick-to-make Sicilian side dish can accompany chicken, fish or meats.

This zesty soup is based on a chicken and curry stew popular in the South. The origin of its name is unclear, but according to one account, it was brought to Savannah in the early 1800s by a sea captain who traveled the spice route from India.

This moist Christmas cake takes its cues from the flavors and spices found in the classic Lebkuchen cookie. It's brushed with an orange-scented honey syrup, frosted with a creamy white chocolate icing and then surrounded by sliced almonds.

The oatmeal and nut mixture in this dessert is usually baked on fruit; here, it is cooked on its own, then layered with currants and a pudding made with Baileys Original Irish Cream.

Toasted nuts keep well in the freezer. If you make extra and save them, it'll take you just 10 minutes to prepare this salad the next time you make it.

Multi-grain breads can vary widely in density. As a result, the 10 cups diced bread called for below may weigh a little more or less than 1 pound. We preferred a light-textured seven-grain bread for this stuffing.

Zabaglione, the Italian custard made of egg yolks, Marsala and sugar, is used as a frozen filling for a crunchy macaroon crust.