Recipe Sifter

A lattice-topped mincemeat tart for Christmas: spiced fruit mincemeat baked in a crisp butter-and-lard shortcrust under a delicate woven lattice, dusted with icing sugar. One big tart instead of fiddly individual pies.

Nantucket donuts: classic New England cake donuts with cinnamon and nutmeg in the batter, fried golden and tumbled in a bag of cinnamon sugar. Old-fashioned donut shop nostalgia.

Linguine with garlic shrimp in a Marsala wine and chicken broth sauce thickened with a light roux. Italian parsley, three cloves of garlic, and a pound of shrimp make this a weeknight favorite.

British-style Christmas tree biscuits made with golden syrup, mixed spice, and brown sugar, baked with a hole at the top so they can be threaded with gold string and hung as edible ornaments. A traditional Christmas cookie.

Old-fashioned peach gingerbread upside-down cake: molasses-spiced gingerbread baked over fresh sliced peaches, then topped with butter-glazed peaches and a preserves brush. Late-summer dessert perfection.

Pan-fried cod or snapper coated in grated Parmesan cheese with a lemon-Worcestershire kick, finished in the oven. A crispy, golden fish dinner ready in 35 minutes.

Turtle cookies shaped around hidden caramel centers and nestled on pecan halves, then dipped in chocolate glaze. The Christmas cookbook classic that mimics the candy in cookie form.

Layered pumpkin walnut pie hides a buttery brown-sugar walnut praline beneath a creamy, cream-cheese-rich pumpkin custard in a shortbread crust, crowned with baked pastry leaves. A Thanksgiving showpiece.

Jim's sourdough biscuits start with a bubbly starter sponge, then get dipped in bacon grease and crowded into the pan so they bake up tall, soft-sided, and pull-apart tender with real sourdough tang.

Jello sugar cookies made with gelatin mix for colorful, flavored drop cookies ready in 25 minutes. A retro classic that yields 2 dozen soft, buttery cookies kids absolutely go wild for.

Three-layer cookie bars with a buttery shortbread crust, gooey brown sugar pecan filling, and melted chocolate chips on top. Irresistibly rich and totally addictive.

Fa-la-la-la's are festive spritz-style cookies pressed into holiday shapes from a buttery shortening dough flavored with vanilla and almond extract. Christmas cookie classic.

Orange blossom muffins: tender bakery-style muffins with sour cream, fresh orange juice, zest, and a splash of Grand Marnier. Brown sugar tops for a caramelized crackle finish.

Crustless squash quiche with yellow summer squash, onion, eggs, and cheese. No heavy cream, no pie crust, just a light and satisfying low-calorie quiche baked in a pie pan.

Old-fashioned walnut pound cake started in a cold oven for a tall, even crumb. Buttery vanilla base studded with finely chopped walnuts, baked in a tube pan.

Cherry-pistachio biscotti studded with tart dried cherries and bright green pistachios, brightened with lime zest and twice-baked to that classic dunkable crunch. Holiday cookie tin material.