Bon Appétit

To give this salad more crunch, add blanched soybeans (edamame) or fried wonton strips.

This is a complete meal—with a main course and two sides. Also called "American bison," buffalo tastes slightly sweeter than beef. It also has significantly less fat and cholesterol. You can find buffalo at specialty foods stores (such as Whole Foods), some farmers' markets, and online at dartagnan.com. If you can't find buffalo, use lean grass-fed beef.

Vanilla ice cream with malted milk, chocolate, caramel sauce, and crushed malt balls make for a candy bar–inspired treat.

These little cakes from Will Goldfarb have lots of fall flavor thanks to kabocha, a round Japanese winter squash. Make the cream a day ahead.

Pichet Ong adds pineapple to this Italian dessert for a Southeast Asian feel. The tiramisù needs to chill overnight.

These tartlets from Sam Mason are great with or without the Edamame Ice Cream. Any extra marmalade is delicious on toast.

This dessert honors two good friends of the tomato—basil and cheese. Garnishes of candied cherry tomatoes and fried basil make it extra-special.

Any plum-type tomato would work here. WHAT TO DRINK: A smooth red with good acidity, like the Marcarini 2004 "Ciabot Camerano" Barbera d'Alba, Italy ($18).

If Oxhearts aren't available, try Pineapple tomatoes; instead of Cherokees, use Rose de Berne. Go for color contrast.

A playful twist on the Bloody Mary, served frozen as a granita with a little vodka poured over. The Tolstoi is a full-flavored red hybrid tomato. If you can't find it, the Brandywine would also be delicious.

The chicken gets great flavor from a six hour brine, so begin early or a day ahead.

The butcher can bone the lamb for you.

The beans and the chiles need to soak overnight, so start this the day before.

The intensity of hot mustard varies. Start with 1 teaspoon, then add more by 1/2 teaspoonfuls to taste. Hot English mustard is a good stand-in if Chinese is unavailable.

The restaurant uses house-made pasta, but wonton wrappers also work well (they're in the refrigerated deli section of most supermarkets).

The figs for the sauce need to marinate overnight, so start one day ahead.