Recipe Sifter

Moist pineapple raisin muffins sweetened with brown sugar and pineapple juice instead of milk, with a cup of plump raisins and a hit of orange zest. Half whole-wheat flour gives them a hearty, breakfast-worthy crumb.

Honey oatmeal chocolate chip cookies lightened with applesauce and egg whites instead of butter and yolks. Quick oats give hearty chew while melty chocolate chips finish every bite.

Traditional yeasted hamantaschen for Purim, a sweet egg-rich yeast dough folded into the iconic three-cornered hat shape around poppy seed or fruit filling. The Old World version, not cookie dough.

Mom's cranberry orange scones with tart frozen cranberries, bright orange zest, and a buttermilk-tender crumb. An overnight flour-and-fruit rest soaks up excess moisture for the perfect texture.

Norwegian sandbakkels rolled-out sugar cookies with a buttery, sandy crumb. A traditional Scandinavian holiday cookie that bakes up crisp and tender.

A few healthy twists make these peanut butter chocolate chip cookies still taste heavenly delicious, but much better for you.

This Christmas pudding has plenty of delicious fruit and nuts, but it's really simple to make - just plan ahead and then make the warm vanilla-bean custard on the day.

Oat bran muffin bread machine loaf bakes whole wheat flour, rolled oats, bran flakes, peaches, banana, and raisins into a hearty, high-fiber breakfast bread. Set and forget.

Cereal crunch coffee cake with crushed wheat flakes baked into the batter and a cinnamon-cereal crumble on top. A lighter brunch cake with raisins, brown sugar, and a hint of nutmeg.

Almond Cookies: tender Italian-style cookies built on real almond paste, butter, and almond extract. Pressed flat with a sugared glass for crackled, sparkling tops. Makes 5 dozen.

Danish pastry dough is the classic laminated yeast dough behind bakery wienerbrod: enriched with eggs and milk, folded with a full pound of butter to create dozens of shatteringly flaky layers.

Potato, sausage, and leek gratin layered with smoked sausage, green onions, and milk, topped with buttered breadcrumbs and baked golden. A hearty, cheeseless one-dish dinner gratin.

Apple raisin walnut quick bread: diced apples, plump raisins and toasted walnuts in a buttermilk batter, topped with cinnamon sugar streusel. Makes two loaves perfect for fall gifting.

Homestead salad with mixed vegetables and kidney beans in a cooked sweet vinegar dressing with mustard. Make a day ahead for the best flavor.

Irish potato bread made easy in the bread machine. Mashed potato and potato water give this soft, moist loaf a tender crumb that stays fresh for days. A simple, comforting everyday bread.

Jan's 1940s apple pie heaped with McIntosh and Cortland apples, finished with a quick water-rinse trick on the top crust that produces an exceptionally flaky finish.