Recipe Sifter

No-egg chocolate cake made with cocoa powder, sour milk, and boiling water for a rich, moist crumb. One-bowl mixing, no eggs needed, baked in a tube pan.

Classic Italian pizzelle cookies made with butter, eggs, vanilla, and a shot of whiskey for depth. Crisp, thin waffle cookies pressed on a pizzelle iron. Makes 16 dozen.

Fresh apple and pecan cake packed with 4 cups of sliced apples and a full cup of nuts. Cinnamon-spiced, oil-based for a moist crumb that stays tender for days. Bakes in a 9x13 pan.

Fresh apple bundt cake packed with three cups of chopped apples and pecans in a thick, oil-based batter. More fruit than cake, with a dense, moist crumb that stays soft for days.

Holiday fruit cake bakes candied pineapple, red and green cherries, golden and dark raisins, pecans, and oats into a nutmeg-mace spiced loaf. Wraps and keeps for weeks.

Finikia are Greek torpedo-shaped semolina cookies scented with orange and cinnamon, baked golden then dipped in a honey-cinnamon syrup and rolled in sesame or walnuts. Traditional Christmas melomakarona.

Lemon semolina cookies with fresh zest, fresh juice, and a sandy crunch from durum flour. Italian-style slice-and-bake cookies with a chewy center and crystalline sugar top.

Moist cinnamon apple quick bread loaded with fresh chopped apples and nuts. Makes 2 loaves in just over an hour.

Classic Italian biscotti studded with toasted walnuts and star anise, double-baked until crisp for perfect dunking in coffee or wine.

A fruit-packed quick bread loaded with dates, raisins, candied cherries, and walnuts, moistened with applesauce and oats for bakery-style loaves.

A two-layer banana cake made with honey-soaked oats, mashed bananas, and butter, frosted with a smooth cream cheese icing. Hearty, moist, and naturally sweetened with a full cup of honey.

A heritage brownie recipe that swaps in cornmeal for a gritty, slightly crunchy texture you won't find in any box mix. Unsweetened chocolate, butter, chopped nuts, and vanilla in every fudgy square. Best served warm.

Bohemian beef stew seasoned with paprika, caraway seeds, and dill, simmered until fork-tender and finished with sour cream. Served over warm sauerkraut for a hearty Czech-inspired dinner.

Soft, cinnamon-spiced buttermilk raisin bread studded with plump raisins and chopped nuts. A from-scratch yeast bread that makes two gorgeous loaves.

When I go to potlucks, family gatherings or on hunting and fishing trips with my husband and son, this cake is one of my favorite desserts to bring. The flavorful cake stays moist as long as it lasts, which isn't long!

Chewy sheet pan cookie bars loaded with chocolate chips, brown sugar, cinnamon, and a full cup of black coffee. Spread, bake, slice, done. 30 minutes start to finish.