Dried Apricot

Here's a sweet-tart addition to your menu.

These caramel-dipped fruits look like jewels and add another layer of elegance to the gingerbread roulade.

This dressing is best cooked in a dish of its own, which also allows the top layer of bread to brown to an appealing crisp.

Dried Fruit and Nut Paste The Passover meal typically includes haroseth, which symbolizes the mortar used by Israelite slaves in Egypt. Recipes can vary greatly, depending on the country of origin. Haroseth is used as a condiment — almost like a chutney — and would be good with many kinds of roasted meat or poultry. This spicy version is based on a recipe from Yemen. Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 20 min

Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 2 hr

Pumpkin and apricot are a winning combination in this cake; it's topped with a spiced cream cheese frosting. For decoration, place several dried apricots between sheets of plastic wrap, and using a rolling pin, roll to flatten. With scissors, cut out leaf shapes from the apricots, and arrange them on top of the cake.

At '21' wild Scottish pheasant is served in season (November through January). The rest of the year, free-range farm-raised pheasant is offered.

Here's a colorful and creative pie: Apricots, which flourish in California, Hawaiian pineapple and Oregon cranberries come together in a filling that offers a terrific balance of the exotic and the traditional. It's good with vanilla ice cream.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

A trifle with a few twists: a white chocolate pudding and layers of dark chocolate cream and apricot puree.

Begin this at least one day ahead. Serve with Potato-Leek Matzo Balls and steamed asparagus. What to drink: A full-bodied red with robust fruit, such as Zinfandel or Australian Shiraz.

A light-textured baked apricot meringue.

Refreshing in looks and taste, these light fruit sorbets served in a colorful raspberry sauce are perfect after a filling seder meal. There will be leftovers of each sorbet to enjoy later.

Ellen Schwab, Bethesda, Md.
"I created this cookie, which combines my two favorite flavors — hazelnut and chocolate — just for this contest."

This "stuffing" has a soft, custard-like texture and should not be baked inside a bird.

In this beautiful main course, served at Le Bec-Fin in Philadelphia, a mixture of dried apricots, raisins, mushrooms, tomatoes and spinach is the surprise filling.

This Italian version of fruitcake is dense, chewy and candy-like. Wrap it in brightly colored cellophane for giving.