Frozen Dessert

China is the original home of the peach (a favorite fruit of its emperors), and pine nuts are grown in China and are used to garnish sweet fruit soups. The ginger-spiced peach sauce for this dessert can be prepared one day before serving.

Gins that emphasize fruit botanicals, such as Tanqueray No. Ten, work best with this recipe. Active time: 25 minutes Start to finish: 1 day

Kir royale, the French aperitif of Champagne with a splash of cassis, becomes a sophisticated sorbet or granita. If you have them, Champagne coupes or martini glasses make elegant servers.

Depending on the capacity of your ice-cream maker, you may have to freeze the custard in 2 batches. This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Here's a lemon-based treat that is so good it will knock you over. It's accented with blue curaçao for a striking color. For something fun, serve the sorbet in scallop shells, which are sold at cookware stores.

(GELATO AL CAFFE) This gelato is an all-time favorite.

Begin preparing this delicious dessert at least one day ahead.

Nougat is an egg white, honey and nut confection traditional in the city of Montélimar, in the Rhône Valley. It is one of the 13 sweets offered to churchgoers on Christmas Eve. Start making this impressive dessert at least one day before you plan to serve it, although it can be prepared up to one week ahead.

Purchased pineapple-coconut ice cream and mango and boysenberry sorbets make this dessert easy. The terrine needs to freeze overnight before serving.

Coffee ice cream, a chocolate-cookie crust and chocolate-covered coffee beans add up to a terrific party dessert. Begin making the cake one day before serving.

(GELATO DI FRAGOLLA)

This is an elegant dessert, light but filled with berry flavor — and it's much easier to make than it looks. The generous crust is made from store-bought shortbread, so rich in butter there's no need to add more. We used Walkers, a pure-butter shortbread from Scotland that's widely available in supermarkets.