In Season: Most supermarkets carry them year-round, but peak growing season in North America is July to December.

What to Look For: Grapes should be plump, with smooth unbroken skins, and be firmly attached to the stems. The green ones are at their sweetest when they have a pale-yellow hue. Often, grapes are covered with a whitish "bloom," which is a natural protection against loss of moisture and spoilage.

How to Store: Discard damaged grapes, place bunch in a plastic bag, and refrigerate up to three days. To avoid destroying the bloom, rinse just before using.

Richly aromatic Concord grapes make a unique, brilliant-purple filling for this pie. The grape cut-outs on the top crust make for an impressive presentation, and they are surprisingly easy to make.

This pilaf of wild rice and fresh rosemary and parsley gets a boost from juicy red grapes. This can be a make-ahead side dish -- simply add grapes and parsley after reheating.

Fresh blueberries and red grapes are seasoned with ginger, rosemary, and red-wine vinegar. Spread this relish on toasts topped with goat cheese or chicken, stir into yogurt or cottage cheese, spoon over roast chicken or pork, or layer on turkey sandwiches.

Apples and grapes, which shine in the fall, take center stage in this mayo-free reinterpretation of Waldorf salad. Toasted pecans offer some crunch.

This homemade sorbet gets its intense purple hue from Concord grapes. The longer you process it in the ice cream maker, the lighter and fluffier your final product will be.

This simple but delicious compote has only three ingredients: Concord grapes, apple cider, and dried cranberries. Spoon it on roast meats or use it as a sauce for ice cream and other desserts.

In this unique slaw, three varieties of grapes -- Concord, red, and green -- mingle with tart Granny Smith apples and crunchy walnuts. Serve this colorful side dish with any festive fall menu.

Seedless red grapes, sour cream, and brown sugar combine to make an elegant and easy dessert that's ready in minutes. We used red grapes, but green grapes can be substituted or used in addition.

Brown rice is dressed up with red grapes and cashews, and seasoned with curry powder, mint, and lime juice. This healthy, flavorful salad is great for lunch or as a dinner side dish.

Kiwis, green grapes, and Granny Smith apples make a refreshing sweet-tart green juice. Start the day off right with this vitamin-packed beverage.

Making these fresh grape gelatin desserts from scratch is easy and takes only minutes. This is a fun treat that kids and grown-ups will love.

A hearty, lightly sweetened oat crust supports rich vanilla pastry cream and fresh red and green grapes in this unique fall dessert. Create a pattern on top of the tart with the different colors of grapes.

A fresh take on cranberry sauce, this easy compote is made from fresh cranberries and red grapes. You can prepare this compote up to two weeks ahead and store in the refrigerator.

Green grapes, Fuji apples, Belgian endive, and toasted pecans are tossed with a creamy buttermilk-sour cream dressing. Serve this crisp autumn salad with roast chicken or alongside a sandwich.

Cornish game hens roasted with red and green grapes, shallots, and thyme make an easy, impressive main course. If you like, you can easily substitute four bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts (ten to twelve ounces each) for the Cornish hens in this recipe.

A French dessert wine and red grapes add sophistication to this simple granita. No ice cream maker required!