Food

42˚ Catering’s Frederick De Pue is offering a seared Maine sea scallop with gingerbread caramel and savoy cabbage rillettes this fall. The hors d’oeuvre is served in a white ceramic bowl atop a rectangular ceramic plate that is brushed with the gingerbread caramel sauce and accented with a julienne of raw scallion.

For the fall, Eat & Smile Catering is offering baby B.L.T.s comprised of house-cured bacon that the caterer purchases fresh from Cedarbrook Organic Farm in West Virigina, cures in honey (and other secret ingredients) for seven to 10 days, and then smokes in apple and cherry woods for 12 hours. Other ingredients include lettuce from Endless Summer Harvest, sungold cherry tomatoes from the Farm at Sunnyside, and bread from Miss Valentine Bakery.

A La Carte Catering & Event Design’s fall lineup includes a lemongrass and ginger poached chicken hors d’oeuvre dressed in a house-made basil yogurt coulis. The bites are served on black sesame seed tuiles with micro greens.

The Catering Company of Washington owner and founder Elizabeth Petty opened a new restaurant and catering company last year, dubbed Elizabeth’s Gone Raw. Serving only raw and vegan menus, the fall lineup includes a chocolate mocha mousse cake. The dish consists of all raw ingredients, including dates, coconut oil, almond milk, cacao powder, cashew flour, and agave nectar. A dehydrated cookie made of cashews, almonds, and chocolate tops the sweet treat.

Evoke designed a doughnut wall that Design Cuisine executed for a client in April and will continue to offer the concept this fall. The wall was constructed out of pegboard, with 1,200 wooden golf tees showcasing the chocolate-glazed chocolate doughnuts (forming a “J” for the guest of honor’s name) and the outlining cinnamon sugar and powdered white donuts. In coming months, a server with a step stool will be on hand to pull doughnuts off the wall for guests, who can carry the take-home treats away in brown paper bags with to-go cups of hot apple cider.

Occasions Caterers’ playful take on the seafood pan-fried noodle this fall is its crispy lobster nests with yuzu garlic sauce. The hors d’oeuvre comprises crispy kataif nests filled with butter-poached lobster, which is drizzled with a yuzu emulsion.

In response to clients looking to move away from a traditional entrée plate of a protein, starch, and vegetable, Susan Gage Caterers’ Spanish sous chef Paco Cozar has helped perfect a traditional seafood and chicken paella this fall. The dish includes ingredients like saffron, red peppers, calamari, octopus, shrimp, and chicken and can be served either family-style in a pan or plated.

Windows Catering Company is now offering peppermint marshmallow lollipops with a chocolate ganache center, topped with a candied mint leaf.

Spilled Milk Catering is serving a savory take on the lollipop this fall with its five-cheese mac-and-cheese lollipops. Composed of elbow macaroni and Gruyère, pecorino, Parmesan, white cheddar, and fontina cheeses, the hors d’oeuvre is coated in panko and served alongside a tangy mustard sauce.

Ridgewells Catering's fall menu is featuring a take on deconstructed sushi. The dish includes a yellowfin tuna parfait, seaweed romaine salad, and seasoned sushi rice.

Well Dunn Catering is now offering its farm-stand tomato trio sampler through October. Featuring tomatoes grown from the caterer’s garden in Rappahannock County, Virginia, the sampler’s dishes include a chilled lemon boy yellow tomato bisque with a chervil oil; grilled bread with house-made ricotta and sweet tomato jam; and a toy box tomato salad with micro arugula and prosciutto crisps drizzled with an avocado cream.

Chocolate sorbet popsicles on a bed of crushed peppermints from Limelight Catering in Chicago

Goat cheese lollipop truffles rolled in crushed pistachios, sun-dried tomatoes, and other toppings from Windows Catering Company in Washington

Prosciutto purses filled with Mascarpone cheese, drizzled with truffle oil and tied with a chive ribbon from Windows Catering

Basil-breaded smoked turkey "fingers" with honey orange marmalade and pomegranate seeds from Great Performances in New York

Roasted fig caviar with wild rice blinis and creme fraiche mousse from Great Performances

Cranberry maple salmon with pink peppercorn sauce in toast cups from Good Gracious! Events in Los Angeles

Tourtière strudel with mustard pickle from Jamie Kennedy Event Catering in Toronto

Vegetable-filled tamales served with green mole sauce and cilantro, by Naturally Delicious Caterers & Events in Brooklyn

Sweet potato souffle with roasted Brussels sprouts, maple syrup, and wild rice latkes, by FIG Catering in Chicago

Red and yellow tomato tartare with avocado, white gazpacho, and cucumber geleé by Occasions Caterers in Washington

Rustic potato pancakes with homemade apple chutney and pickled red cabbage fennel slaw, by Naturally Delicious Caterers & Events in Brooklyn

Roasted corn, poblano, and garlic sopes served with salsa verde, by FIG Catering in Chicago

Mini lentil-and-bulgur burgers served on sesame-seed buns with curry ketchup and McClure’s pickles, by Naturally Delicious Caterers & Events in Brooklyn

Buffalo mozzarella, watercress, grapes, pistachios and lavender honey-lime vinaigrette by Occasions Caterers in Washington

Golden citrus beets served with lemon verbena, mascarpone and honey powder by Occasions Caterers in Washington

Rosemary-infused waffles served with buttermilk-battered smoked cauliflower, horseradish, pickled cabbage, and wild arugula salsa verde by Daniel et Daniel in Toronto

Mediterranean salad with roasted-pepper hummus, by Abigail Kirsch in New York

Roasted pork tenderloin rolled with fennel and Badian spice confit served with acorn squash, squash risotto, sautéed baby bok choy, and shallots, from Saphire Event Group (781.784.2400, saphireeventgroup.com) in the Boston area

Short rib tacos with shredded cabbage, tomato, and chipotle crema served on a slab of pink salt, from Michael Stuart (347.689.9822, mscnyc.com) in New York

Caramelized vanilla napoleon with red beet confit, from Windows Catering Company (703.519.3500, catering.com) in Alexandria, Virginia

Bacon- and date-stuffed jalapeno poppers served with garlic and lime aioli, from Fig Catering (310.899.8595, figsantamonica.com) in Santa Monica, California

Sangria, watermelon, and mango Campari spheres served in spoons, from Windows Catering Company

Buttermilk chocolate chip pancakes with maple syrup, jumbo blueberries, strawberry fragments, and powdered sugar, from Esprit Events Kosher Catering (212.207.3888, espritevents.com) in New York

Banh mi sandwiches made with five-spice pork belly, from Blue Plate Catering (312.421.6666, blueplatechicago.com) in Chicago

Pinch Food Design offers a different spin on babyback ribs, serving the barbecue classic on a spoon-shaped skewer with creamed corn and jalapeños.

As a late-night snack, Marcey Brownstein Catering & Events serves mini pretzel bites alongside whole grain mustard and shots of Hefeweizen.

SD26 Events' eggplant terrine features sauteed eggplant that is layered with fresh tomatoes and herbs then baked in the oven. The dish is served with a dab of basil pesto and garnished with a parmigiano reggiano-flavored milk foam.

Great Performances can set up a dessert station featuring hanging pastry bags filled with flavored custards that guests can pipe into mini-beignets and profiteroles. Custard flavors include tangerine, mint, three-berry, earl grey, and vanilla bean.

This cucumber feta salad with roasted pepper hummus by Abigail Kirsch makes for an interesting alternative to the standard mixed green salad.

Created by Hell's Kitchen contestant and chef Guy Vaknin, Beyond Sushi is a new store serving vegetarian sushi. Offering catering for private events, the organic menu features unrefined fruits and vegetables wrapped in six-grain and black Chinese forbidden rice, topped with tofu and veggie puree sauces in flavors like jalapeno-wasabi, toasted-cayenne, carrot-ginger, shitake-teriyaki, mango-chili, and white-miso.

Thomas Preti Events to Savor will be serving their s'mores cheesecake as part of their dessert lineup this fall.

Caterers report that pies filled with seasonal fruit are becoming a popular dessert item at events. These latticed fruit pies are by Tip of the Tongue Caterers.

Feast & Fêtes' new "Aioli Presentation" is a spread featuring dishes like poached wild Alaskan salmon, cod confit, and jumbo Carolina shrimp.

Sant Ambroeus is offering an appetizer called "salmone fresco," consisting of smoked salmon topped with chives and a light balsamic reduction.

Brown butter plum cake with almond praline and caramel, by 10tation Event Catering in Toronto

Ontario quail legs filled with Berkshire sausage and wrapped with Niagara prosciutto, by 10tation Event Catering in Toronto

Turkey lollipops stuffed with homemade stuffing and dried cranberries, drizzled with cranberry reduction, by Riviera Caterers in New York

Chestnut-encrusted filet mignon topped with pumpkin mousse displayed on an indoor barbecue with dry ice, by Riviera Caterers in New York

Eggnog shots with mini gingerbread cookies, by Schaffer’s Genuine Foods in Los Angeles

Turkey rillettes with cranberry Grand Marnier gelée on sage brown butter croutons, by Schaffer’s Genuine Foods in Los Angeles

Gold-dusted risotto served in butternut squash cups, by Boutique Bites Catering and Events in Chicago

Mini turkey sandwiches with cranberry jam, by Boutique Bites Catering and Events in Chicago

Crimson agave-scented beet soup sippers with sage gremolata, by Tables of Content in Boston

Cucumber cups filled with red quinoa salad and golden beet chutney, by Tables of Content in Boston

At Restaurant R'Evolution in New Orleans, chefs Rick Tamonto and John Folse have a very different style of caviar service. Their whitefish roe, salmon roe, wasabi tobiko, and black caviar are served with traditional accompaniments on a small glass staircase.

At the Chicago restaurant Baume & Brix, octopus is grilled and served "Fun Dip-style." This means that it's laid out in a small bowl with a strip of olive oil on the side. Guests are instructed to dip the octopus into the oil, then dunk it into Peruvian yellow chili powder, coconut powder, or smoked-paprika-tomato powder.