Dried Fruit

This recipe is an accompaniment for Pear Charlottes with Chamomile Crème Anglaise .

Filled with raisins and brown sugar and baked in Marsala and cider, these apples make a warming ending to the meal. Accompany them with vanilla ice cream and some purchased almond biscotti.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. Makes use of the microwave oven.

Active time: 45 min Start to finish: 3 1/4 hr

What to drink: A big red with lots of fruit, such as a California Zinfandel; an off-dry white with rich fruit, such as an Alsatian Pinot Gris; or pale ale.

This fruit keeps for several days in the refrigerator and is delicious for breakfast, too. Any dried fruit works well.

The following recipe comes from my mother's home economics class in Louisiana back in the 1940's. I hope your readers enjoy the muffins as much as I do.

This is an updated version of the chremslach passed down in my own family. I have never had a seder without it. A heavier version stuffed with cranberries appeared in many early American Jewish cookbooks as Kentucky grimslech.

Fresh herbs and pancetta (Italian cured bacon) blanket the pork before it goes into the oven. Ask the butcher to tie the two loins to hold their shape. Begin marinating the meat one day before serving. What to drink: Open a few bottles of spicy Zinfandel or hearty Bordeaux to place on the buffet table.

"My husband isn't usually a bread pudding fan," writes Priscilla Moynihan of Vancouver, Washington, "but he loved the dried-cherry version I had at the Southpark Seafood Grill in Portland, Oregon. In fact, after he helped me finish it, we ordered another one." The restaurant prepares this dessert with house-made brioche. We simplified the recipe by using purchased challah.