“Seasonality in food is important, of course,” he says, “so I incorporate more of the winter flavors. For example, of sage. One of my favorites is the pineapple sage. Kinome has a unique flavor, too, and since the leaf resembles the pine tree, it fits into our mountainous setting and landscape.”

For those of you who haven’t yet tried pineapple sage in your dishes, it has a strong, sharp but pleasant flavor – a bit lemony, a camphor-like taste. Kinome? Think a mildly pepper-like flavor, layered with mint-lime – and an intriguing citrusy scent. Kinome is actually a Japanese herb from the Prickly Ash/Szechuan Peppercorn tree.

Other flavors that Chef Miller likes to use during the holidays are the spicier greens with big flavors, such as watercress. “People,” he explains, “want comfort foods in the winter, and yet they like to try new foods at holiday times, something they’ve never tasted before. A wonderful solution is watercress blooms, something they’ll never find in a grocery store.”

His pastry chefs absolutely love adding a touch of begonias to their creations, he says, and he appreciates the hint of citrus in The Chef’s Garden’s offerings. That makes it an excellent pairing, he shares, with in-season fruits such as apples.

Another leaf of interest: the sweet potato leaf. “I love the unique look of these leaves from The Chef’s Garden,” he says. “Their yellow and purple colorings are so cool and almost resemble fall and the Aspen tree as it still holds onto its last leaves. You can wrap fish in these leaves and steam them or use them in simple salads. The sweet potato itself works well with fish, so hearty and nutritious.”

When it comes to incorporating the visual sense, he does use some red and green coloring, but doesn’t want to overdo it, recognizing that this is a season of many different holiday traditions, not just Christmas. So, he might use bright greens along with naturally red foods such as beets. “On New Year’s,” he adds, “we make sure to use the Egyptian star flower on our menu as stars represent celebration.” (And, we might add, this edible flower has a delicious grassy-honey flavor!) Chef Miller also uses gold saffron, the beet blush and more to add bright gold coloring to his dishes.

Chef Matt DelRegno from Levy Restaurants, Cleveland Medical Mart, shares a different perspective, as they provide customized catered meals for customers. Some of his tried-and-true favorites also include the sweet potato and he often gets requests for cinnamon-glazed carrots. A dish that adds a bright red holiday touch is his candied cranberry beets, and he likes the purple cauliflower for a surprising burst of color.

“Red ribbon sorrel is a perfect look for a fall or winter salad,” he says, “with a bright, clean look. I also use edible flowers as often as possible for bright color. For garnishes, I use the blue borage star on seafood dishes and more. It resembles the Christmas star with bursts of cucumber flavor. I also use floral garnishes for dessert, such as with egg nog, gingerbread cheesecake and other seasonally appropriate dishes.” Overall, he uses plenty of carrots, beets, turnips, cauliflower (perhaps his single top favorite), ice spinach and a variety of greens. “Then there is bok choy,” he says. “I’ve fallen in love with bok choy.”