Sage

A little bit of honey finishes off this juicy braised pork tenderloin from Bordeaux blogger Mimi Thorisson.

The grilled cheese sandwich grows up in our sophisticated version that starts with nutty, smooth-melting fontina cheese and adds a layer of sage-accented sautéed mushrooms.

Tossing cashews with fried sage and garlic elevates this classic snack.

"The great thing about doing a whole rib roast is that you don't have to concentrate," Michael Mina says. "Season it right with salt and pepper, put it in the oven and then you can focus on all the dishes that go along with it."

Barbara Lynch isn't choosy about which squash to include in this deeply flavored dish, which gets finished with a sage-infused cream sauce—she goes with whichever varieties look best at the farmers' market—but butternut and delicata are among her favorites.

mkgallery's Marcia Kiesel coasts trout fillets with cornmeal before frying them to create a crunchy crust with a pleasant sweetness. Crispy sage leaves and a buttery grapefruit sauce elevate this otherwise simple dish.

Wisconsin produces very good versions of Asiago, the hard cheese with a slightly sharper flavor than Parmesan. Sanford D'Amato recommends the Stella brand.

Leaves of fresh sage sautéed in golden-brown butter form a classic Italian pasta sauce. Our version uses ground sage, and so you can make it any time of the year. We've added a generous amount of garlic, too. Slowly cooking it in the butter mellows its pungency, but you can also use fewer cloves if you prefer.

"Wonton wrappers are terrific for making ravioli when you don't have time to make homemade pasta," says Jill Donenfeld. The wontons here, filled with mashed butternut squash and roasted garlic, get nicely crispy when sautéed in a touch of oil, but they're also delicious simply steamed.

"In 1994, when I enrolled at the Culinary Institute oh America in Hyde Park, I had to catch up on so much—it was like I had a virgin palate for food and wine," says Rajat Parr. "For instance, I'd never had a scallop before; I didn't even know what they were. I had never seen a chestnut before, either. So cooking school was an eye-opening experience."