Recipes with butter

Fresh spinach slow-cooked with ghee, soaked almonds, shredded coconut, caramelized brown sugar, mustard seeds, cumin, fenugreek, ginger, green chilies, and nutmeg. A rich Bengali-style spinach side dish.

Favourite lemon sponge pie is a heritage 8-ingredient dessert that bakes into two layers from a single filling. Tangy custard at the bottom, fluffy lemon sponge on top, all from one whole lemon.

French chocolate decadence cake with over a pound of dark chocolate and just one tablespoon each of sugar and flour. Served with whipped cream and raspberry-liqueur sauce.

Charcoal-grilled T-bone steaks topped with wild mushrooms sautéed in butter, thyme, garlic, and red wine. Finished with grilled tomatoes and red onion for a steakhouse dinner at home.

Polenta pasticciata layers firm cooled polenta squares with porcini-spiked beef ragù, plum tomatoes, and grated pecorino into a rustic Northern Italian bake. Lasagne, but with cornmeal instead of pasta.

Restaurant-style crab cakes bound in a light herbed batter instead of breadcrumbs, fried golden in clarified butter and plated over silky beurre blanc with julienned peppers and capers. An elegant starter or main.

Italian meat sauce built on a proper soffritto of onion, carrot, and celery with ground beef, mushrooms, red wine, and beef stock. A slow-simmered Bolognese-style ragù.

Lamb phyllo rolls stuffed with cinnamon-spiced ground lamb, myzithra, and feta, wrapped in flaky pastry and dusted with powdered sugar. A Greek savory-sweet showstopper.

Layered pudding cake with a nutty oat crust, cream cheese layer, vanilla and chocolate pudding, and whipped cream topping. A no-bake icebox dessert.

Intensely moist chocolate layer cake with boiling water in the batter, topped with a rich cocoa buttercream frosting flavored with brandy and vanilla.

Breakfast muffins are not always sweet, give these savory and delicious muffins a try, also use up your leftover ham or turkey from the big holiday.

Oven-baked monkfish in a ginger cream sauce made with white wine, fish stock, and heavy cream. Includes a from-scratch fish stock recipe. Restaurant-quality seafood entree.

Warmly spiced chocolate cake with mayonnaise, sour cream, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice, topped with a cocoa cream cheese frosting. A cozy, old-fashioned charmer.

Layered phyllo pastry stacks filled with crab, dill-dressed cucumber, and mango chutney, drizzled with a creamy Dijon mustard sauce. A stunning plated appetizer for special occasions.

Creamy puréed broad bean soup with sage, savory, and a swirl of thick cream. Silky smooth with whole beans stirred in and topped with golden homemade croutons.

Herb-seasoned beef meatballs baked in a red wine and tomato sauce with potatoes, carrots, mushrooms, and whole onions. A cozy one-pot stew that's great for make-ahead meals.