Ginger

While I was growing up, my mother was very good about cooking food she knew I liked (I was such a picky eater). That's why I found it inexplicable that she kept making baked acorn squash, which I considered, at best, repulsive. Once she wouldn't let me leave the table until it was all gone. No surprisingly, we sat there all night!

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

At fenix restaurant in The Argyle hotel in Los Angeles, chef Ken Frank layers the ice cream with spice cake, then tops it with the rum-spiked bananas.

Creamy fresh cheese meets spinach in this Indian classic.

Assemble these four hours ahead, and rewarm them 20 minutes before serving.

Complement the entrée—and the Chinese theme—with rice, stir-fried snow peas, then pineapple sherbet topped with coconut.

Fresh pumpkin or squash puree is always delicious but not nearly as handy as canned pumpkin.

Offer either brown or white rice and Asian beer, like Tsingtao. The chicken is especially tender because of the egg white and cornstarch coating.

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 20 min

The vitamin C used in this recipe prevents the apple juice from browning.

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 2 hr

Active time: 15 min Start to finish: 25 min

In Indian cooking, tikka refers to chunks of meat cooked on skewers.

This lively salad is from Jorge Navarro, the chef-owner of Café Navarro, a cozy, Caribbean-style spot in Eugene, Oregon.

From the Williamsburg Inn's Regency Room.