Recipes with butter, unsalted

Buttery pecan shortbread balls rolled in snowy powdered sugar for these melt-in-your-mouth Mexican wedding cookies. A holiday favorite that's actually simple enough for weeknight baking.

Whole brook trout poached in a white wine court bouillon with five fresh herbs, lemon zest, and spices. Served with herb butter made from the poaching liquid.

Savory Italian cheese cookies loaded with freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, butter, and a hint of nutmeg, each topped with a whole almond and baked golden. Rich, crumbly, and utterly addictive.

Sour cream coffee cake with streusel topping bakes tender and moist with a buttery brown-sugar crumble on top. Classic brunch cake ready in about 45 minutes.

Fettuccine alla panna with just three ingredients: butter, cream, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. The original Italian cream pasta, simpler and purer than Alfredo.

Osso buco braises veal shanks low and slow in white wine, soffritto and tomato until the meat slips off the bone. A bright lemon-parsley gremolata cuts the richness, served over the reduced pan juices.

Baked Parmesan chicken strips coated in a homemade bread crumb, parsley, and Parmigiano-Reggiano crust. Buttery, golden chicken basted in pan drippings until tender.

Blanquette of veal is a classic French white stew with tender veal, cauliflower, and a silky sour cream and lemon sauce. Bistro comfort served over rice or noodles.

Georgia pecan biscotti with toasted pecans and orange zest, twice-baked until shatteringly crisp. A Southern twist on the Italian classic, perfect for dunking.

Banana walnut upside-down cake with a brown sugar-maple syrup caramel, sliced bananas in concentric circles, and a cinnamon butter cake. Served warm with whipped cream.

Creamy garlic mushroom pasta with assorted mushrooms, shallots, and a splash of sherry finished in heavy cream. A restaurant-style vegetarian pasta that comes together in one skillet.

Egg and watercress finger sandwiches layer creamy egg salad with peppery watercress on buttered whole-wheat bread, sliced into elegant fingers for tea, brunch, or bridal showers.

Rich chocolate Bundt cake made with Dutch process cocoa, espresso, buttermilk, and five eggs, topped with a glossy bittersweet chocolate glaze. A deeply chocolatey, bakery-quality cake.

Classic French trout amandine with whole trout pan-fried in butter, topped with golden sauteed almonds, fresh lemon, and parsley. Bistro elegance from a simple technique.

French-style almond macaroons piped from almond paste, filled with rum-spiked chocolate ganache, and dipped in a semisweet chocolate glaze. An elegant three-part cookie.

Creamy cabbage soup: shredded cabbage simmered low in butter and whole milk until silky, finished with hot smoked sausage. A rib-sticking Eastern European-style soup with just six ingredients.