4,469 four four recipes

Freezer-friendly molasses ginger cookie dough with warm spices. Slice and bake straight from frozen whenever cookie cravings hit.

These rich chocolate-toffee bars from Mary Lueke of Menasha were our top pick in the bar category.

Apple cranberry pie with a buttery oat crumble topping replaces the top crust. Tart Granny Smiths and fresh cranberries baked low and slow under brown sugar streusel for a fall dessert with bite.

Peach and blueberry casserole with fresh fruit topped with a buttery, cinnamon-sugar crumble baked golden. A rustic summer cobbler-style dessert using peak-season peaches and berries.

Five cup fruit salad with mandarin oranges, pineapple chunks, sour cream, mini marshmallows, and flaked coconut. A creamy, no-cook retro side dish that chills overnight.

Quick asparagus or spinach lasagne with ham, mozzarella, and a garlic-thyme white sauce, finished in the microwave. A versatile weeknight pasta bake ready in 35 minutes.

Southern boiled custard eggnog made from scratch with 8 egg yolks, cream, vanilla, and nutmeg. Spiked with whiskey or served virgin, this silky holiday drink serves 12.

Veal cutlets pan-fried until golden, then simmered in a tangy apple-lemon pan sauce with mushrooms and a velvety apple puree. A French-Norman style weeknight veal dinner.

Buttery shortbread cookie bars packed with chopped walnuts and a thick layer of strawberry jam baked between two golden crusts. Rich, sweet, and utterly impossible to eat just one.

Maple walnut cream pie with a custard filling cooked in a double boiler using real maple syrup and egg yolks. Topped with whipped cream and crunchy walnuts.

Spice-dusted chicken breasts slow-cooked on a bed of sweet potatoes in a creamy orange and mushroom sauce. A hands-off Crock-Pot dinner that fills the house with warmth.

Mock shortbread cookies made without butter or sugar, using oil and a sugar substitute for a lighter, diet-friendly take on a tender, golden-edged classic. Simple roll-and-cut rounds in under an hour.

Tender cream cheese cookies studded with coconut and apricot preserves for jewel-like drops that bake up golden and soft.

Broiled orange roughy topped with bright citrus sauce made from orange juice, lemon, and nutmeg. This quick weeknight fish dinner takes 40 minutes from start to finish.

Bomma's heirloom date nut cookies made with beaten egg whites, chopped dates, and pecans. No butter needed! Light, chewy, and naturally sweet. Makes 60 cookies.

Yeasty sourdough starter is the shortcut version: unbleached flour, a packet of dry yeast, and water mixed into a thick batter and left warm for a day. A fast track to bread baking when you don't want to wait two weeks for a wild starter.