Prune

These pastries are best when freshly baked, so if you plan on giving them to someone who may not be able to serve them within a day or two, you should deliver them frozen, along with the baking instructions.

This bread and butter pudding gets its Italian flavor from panettone, a Milanese egg bread studded with raisins and candied fruit. Long a Christmastime specialty, panettone is becoming increasingly available throughout the year not only in Italy but also in the United States. Note: Panettone can be found in some Italian markets and specialty foods shops.

Marisol likes to serve the Candied Butternut Squash atop the couscous.

This Colombian-style one-dish meal is perfect for a cool winter evening.

A natural with pork, the compote is also a sweet topping for ice cream.

The secret to the light and flaky crust is cream cheese. For an extra-special presentation, cut out decorative shapes from the dough scraps, and arrange them on the pie after glazing it; brush cutouts with glaze and bake.

Pitted prunes replace the more customary mushrooms in this delicious variation.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Grating the carrots in a processor makes this one-dish meal really easy to assemble.

Haman's pockets, or Hamantaschen, were brought to this country by Jews from the eastern part of Germany and Eastern Europe. Hamantaschen are so popular here that at many academic institutions there is an annual Hamantaschen versus latke debate. The filling for the following Hamantaschen recipe comes from the Taste of History: Recipes Old and New put out by Philadelphia's Historic Spanish and Portuguese Congregation, Kahal Kadosh Midveh Israel, founded in 1740. With the filling I used my own butter cookie dough, which everyone in my family loves. Although adults like fruit or poppy-seed fillings, my children do not, and they fill the dough with chocolate chips and even make a Hamantaschen with chocolate chips and peanut butter. I'll stick to this prune filling and leave the chocolate-chip Hamantaschen to them. Regional Variation: A similar and equally delicious Hamantaschen filling comes from Natchez, Mississippi. Naturally, it includes pecans rather than walnuts.

Turkey Stuffed with Chestnuts and Prunes This is definitely my favorite way to do turkey because it never comes out dry. My wife, Susi, is always upset when she sees me prepare this abstract-looking sausage of a gobbler, but she's happy when she eats the tender and succulent meat and stuffing, all encased in a crisp and well-seasoned skin. The advantages of this method are twofold: it's in the oven only for an hour, freeing up cooking space for other dishes; and carving is simplicity itself — just cut straight through, like a regular roast.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional sitting time.