Regional Cuisine recipe collection

Jamaican chocolate cake soaked in cinnamon rum syrup, coated in melted semi-sweet chocolate, and studded with almonds. A spiced, boozy Caribbean dessert worth the wait.

Ukrainian potato-cheese filling for varenyky made with mashed potatoes, cheddar, bryndzia, and butter-fried onions. A traditional pierogi filling with real depth.

Cream cheese kolache dough made with butter, flour, egg yolk, and sugar. This no-yeast pastry dough chills overnight and rolls out flaky for filled cookies with prune, poppy seed, or apricot.

Medianyk is a traditional Ukrainian honey cake spiced with cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves. Whipped egg whites give it a light, airy crumb despite all that honey.

Meersburger cherry dessert with kirsch-soaked tart cherries layered over ladyfingers, topped with an almond cream cheese mousse and chopped pistachios.

Chicken thighs stir-fried with broccoli and scallions in peanut oil, then finished with grated parmesan and whole wheat croutons. A quick East-meets-West dinner ready in 30 minutes.

Aepfelkratzet: Bavarian-style torn apple pancake from the Allgaeu region, scrambled in butter until golden and dusted with powdered sugar. The rustic German breakfast cousin to Kaiserschmarrn.

If you omit the raw egg, you still get a nice sauce. According to an ancient proverb, "Garlic is as good as 10 mothers." If the latest flu bug has hit your house--and whose has escaped--you may be ready to test claims for garlic's medicinal powers.

This recipe is for a Cuban stew/soup that I used to enjoy con mucho gusto. This version of Ajiaco was prepared by Senora Garcia in her little store front restaurant on Collins Ave. in Miami Beach. Although this is not her exact recipe, it's the closest I could get to it. Ajico del Restaurant Garcia

Serve as an appetizer spread on thick slices of country-style white bread, or flat pita bread, or use as a side dish to accompany grilled or roasted meats.

Homemade gyro meat made from ground lamb and beef, twice-ground for that signature fine, sliceable texture and seasoned with oregano, cumin, cinnamon, and paprika. Baked in a loaf pan, then sliced thin for pita gyros.

Polish-style fried onion seasoning: finely chopped onions browned with flour in oil, finished with a knob of butter. The make-ahead golden flavor base for Polish soups, dumplings, and gravies.

Austrian chocolate cup is a Viennese-style hot chocolate spiced with cinnamon and grated orange zest, melted into hot milk and crowned with whipped cream. Each mug gets a cinnamon-stick stirrer for fragrant Old World charm.

A soup this hearty makes a wonderful morning meal by itself or served with whole grain bread.

Basbousa bil loz (Egyptian almond basbousa) cooks toasted semolina and almonds with butter, then thickens with lemon-scented sugar syrup. A stovetop Middle Eastern dessert.

Santa Maria runner bean stew with garlic, tomatoes, basil, and a splash of olive oil. A simple Mediterranean-style vegetable stew that holds up hot or cold.