Recipe Sifter

Cajun crab in a rich Swiss cheese and cream sauce with mushrooms, scallions, and dry vermouth, spiked with cayenne. Serve in patty shells or scooped up with crusty French bread.

Sugar-free fruit nut muffins sweetened only with dates, raisins, and prunes boiled into a thick fruit base. Diabetic-friendly mini muffins with no added sugar.

Soft honey walnut drop cookies with sour cream, flaked coconut, and vanilla. Chewy, cakey, and lightly sweet with a walnut half pressed on top of each one.

Creamy peanut butter soup made with chicken broth, heavy cream, and a splash of Madeira wine. A rich, velvety Southern classic that's savory, nutty, and surprisingly elegant.

Chocolate-filled cake roll with a light sponge cake and chocolate pudding filling, dusted with cocoa. A lighter jelly roll dessert made with reduced sugar and skim milk.

Old-fashioned ginger snaps with molasses, butter, and ground ginger. A crispy, spicy cookie recipe that makes six dozen thin, snappy cookies.

Cinnamon sugar cookies with a tender shortening-based dough, brushed with egg white and topped with a cinnamon sugar sparkle. Crisp edges, soft centers.

Chicken in white wine: floured breasts pan-seared, then simmered in a bright white wine sauce with garlic, bay, and lemon zest, finished with scallions and butter. An elegant, fast 30-minute skillet dinner.

Whacky cakes are the Depression-era chocolate classic reworked for a pizzelle iron: no eggs, no butter, no milk. Vinegar and baking soda do the lift. Vegan, fast, kid-friendly.

Quick chicken curry with brandy, mango chutney, and a creamy sauce made in one skillet. A 30-minute weeknight dinner with bold, complex flavor.

German bacon rouladen: paper-thin round steak smeared with Dijon, rolled around bacon and onion, browned in flour, then braised in its own pan gravy. A classic Bavarian comfort-food roll.

Wespennester (wasp nests), a rare traditional German fried pastry from the Oberallgau region. Batter layers are built on wooden spoon handles and filled with honey.

Homemade Funnel Cake Mix combines flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon - just add egg and milk, pour through a funnel into hot oil, and fry golden. County fair at home in 20 minutes.

Oysters warmed in a buttery sherry and steak sauce with lemon juice, lightly thickened and served from a chafing dish. A retro cocktail party appetizer ready in 25 minutes.

New Mexico green chile cheeseburgers stack spice-rubbed sirloin patties with melted cheddar and a roasted Anaheim and poblano chile sauce. The Southwestern burger that puts ketchup to shame.

Blue corn muffins studded with cranberries and sweetened with honey. Finely ground blue cornmeal gives these a striking purple-gray color and earthy, nutty flavor.