This co-winner in the filled-cookie category from Gerry Cofta of Milwaukee has a great, rich flavor in the filling.
Soft orange poppy seed cookies made with cream cheese, fresh orange zest, and orange juice. Light, cakey, and bright with citrus in every bite.
Light orange sponge cake rolled with orange marmalade filling, dusted with confectioners sugar. No butter or oil, just eggs, cake flour, and orange zest.
Braided yeast bread wreath filled with dates, walnuts, bran flakes, and cinnamon, topped with vanilla confectioner's sugar frosting. A stunning holiday bread that's worth the rise time.
Peanut crispies with oats, corn flakes, brown sugar, and salted peanuts rolled into balls and baked until golden. Crunchy, nutty cookies with satisfying texture.
Chocolate chip squares made in the microwave with oats, brown sugar, and chopped nuts. Chewy, no-oven-needed bars ready in under 30 minutes.
Old-school lard pie crust with egg, vinegar, and a touch of brown sugar. One batch yields four disks for double-crust pies. The flakiest crust comes from cold lard worked into the size of tiny peas.
Three-layer red velvet cake with buttermilk, cocoa, and vinegar topped with a cooked flour white icing. Old-fashioned Southern style with an ermine frosting that's not too sweet.
Nut refrigerator cookies (icebox cookies) with brown sugar, butter, vanilla, and chopped nuts. Slice-and-bake dough that chills overnight and yields crisp, buttery cookies with caramel notes.
A flexible basic vanilla cake template using cake flour, sugar, baking powder, eggs, and your choice of mix-ins. The starting point for chocolate chip, fruit, or layer cakes.
Jalapeno chocolate cream cake with semi-sweet chocolate, Kahlua, ground almonds, and cinnamon. A rich, fudgy, intentionally underbaked cake with a slow jalapeno heat finish.
Giant double chocolate chip cookies with melted chocolate in the dough plus whole chips folded in, sour cream for fudgy centers, and chopped walnuts. Bakery-sized at 3 inches.
Santa Claus cookies are soft drop cookies with bright lemon zest, baked then frosted and decorated into jolly Santa faces. A Christmas cookie tray classic for kids.
Pumpkin cheesecake with graham cracker crust, spiced pumpkin custard filling, and a tangy sour cream topping. Holiday dessert with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg, garnished with pecan halves on each slice.
Marbled brownies with a vanilla butter batter swirled with melted chocolate chips. Just 6 ingredients for a two-toned treat that's fudgy, buttery, and beautiful.
London strips: layered cookie bars with a buttery shortbread base, strawberry jam filling, and a bourbon-walnut meringue topping dusted with powdered sugar.