Dried Fruit

To the traditional orange-cranberry combination, we’ve added Mediterranean touches: dates for their honeylike sweetness and a splash of balsamic vinegar to balance the flavors.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from Crescent Dragonwagon's book Passionate Vegetarian. Dragonwagon also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page. This is my favorite Thanksgiving stuffing — in fact, this is my only Thanksgiving stuffing. I've made it for at least twenty-five years, and it's always pleased me, friends, family, and inn guests. To my taste, it wouldn't be right with margarine or oil, just butter. But probably it wouldn't be bad with less fat or a different one. I make the vegetarian version with vegetable stock, for use in a pumpkin; when I cooked at the inn, where the majority of the guests were meat eaters, I also did a batch with turkey stock. I dedicate this recipe to the memory of Sondra Krecker, a friend from my earliest years in Eureka Springs. Every Thanksgiving as I make it I hear her telling me again, earnestly, "You have to toast it dry, bone dry, hard dry." You'll need to do a lot of tossing and tasting to get the seasonings just right. Stuffing can be made ahead of time, but don't stuff it into the pumpkin until you're ready to bake it.

A light variation that’s a nice counterpoint to the many rich dishes on the Thanksgiving table.

Carena brings an almost Moroccan sensibility to this delicious play of sweet and savory, from the crisp-tender fennel to the orange essences and underlying traces of saffron and raisins.

True to its name, this rustic salad calls for a flavorful mix of sweet and savory ingredients, such as fresh and dried fruit, cured meat, and assorted greens. Serve this colorful salad as a side to a savory main course, or have it for lunch.

A globe's worth of influences go into this tender quail, but the result is a very subtle dish with a classic French balance.

To make this fresh salad, you'll need the following on hand: olive oil, apple cider vinegar, walnuts, a Gala apple, tart cherries, minced shallots, honey, and frisée.

Cherries, a good source of cancer-fighting antioxidants, add a surprising fruity flavor to this chunky classic from Conlan. Bonus: Walnuts provide healthy fats.

This quickly braised lamb brings a bit of French country straight into your kitchen.

Using a fresh bay leaf brings the perfume of the herb garden to agrodolce onions that beg to be popped in the mouth whole.

They look like sticky buns, but these sweet, gooey treats are actually made from biscuit batter. They're great with brunch.

Dried dates, cranberries, and figs become an almost-effortless filling for this elegant tart.

This well-balanced stew is intense yet mellow. The prunes soak up the fragrant spices, and long, slow cooking turns the lamb fork-tender.

Ingredients of Sephardic cooking—dates, cardamom, and orange zest—bring a mosaic of Mediterranean scents and textures to the Passover table. The cake has a coarse crumb yet is incredibly moist and chewy, thanks to the dates. A sprinkle of our Passover version of powdered sugar dresses up the torte for a special occasion.

Wine and dried fruit bring a sweet richness to this humble cut of meat.

Merguez, the spicy lamb sausages of North Africa, are popular throughout France. These nearly labor-free patties are a quick way to re-create them in your kitchen. The sweetness of the raisin couscous contrasts nicely with the meat's deep spice.

We like to use California apricots (sometimes labeled "Pacific") in this dessert. They tend to be a deeper orange, and they have a tang that's occasionally lacking in the Turkish or Mediterranean varieties.