Recipe Sifter

Lizzies are bourbon-soaked fruitcake cookies with golden raisins, candied cherries, citron, and pecans. A classic Southern holiday cookie that freezes beautifully.

London strips: layered cookie bars with a buttery shortbread base, strawberry jam filling, and a bourbon-walnut meringue topping dusted with powdered sugar.

Macadamia rum mousse pie folds dark rum, gelatin-set zabaglione, and toasted macadamia nuts into airy whipped cream over a buttery cinnamon-macadamia crumb crust. A dinner-party showpiece.

Greek makaronia: spaghetti tossed with browned butter, mizithra cheese, and shaved kalamata olives. Four-ingredient Greek pasta classic ready in 20 minutes.

Melomakarona: traditional Greek Christmas cookies made with olive oil, orange zest, and semolina, soaked in honey syrup and topped with walnuts. Fragrant, syrup-drenched holiday staple.

Great and simple gift-idea! And the result tastes great as well.

Mudslide brownies spiked with Kahlua, Irish cream, and vodka, made with real unsweetened chocolate and walnuts. Finished with a Kahlua powdered sugar glaze.

Cream of mushroom soup with nearly two pounds of fresh mushrooms, dry sherry, thyme, milk, and heavy cream. Rich, chunky, and homemade in 40 minutes.

Semolina pastries stuffed with pistachios, cinnamon, and sugar, then dipped in orange flower water and rolled in powdered sugar. A Middle Eastern-style cookie.

Orange biscotti with fresh orange zest, rum, and olive oil, rolled thin, cut into scalloped strips, and baked twice with a butter-sugar glaze. Crispy Italian cookies for dipping in coffee or dessert wine.

Orange hollandaise sauce reduces fresh orange juice to a thick syrup then blends it with unsalted butter for a citrusy, buttery finish on eggs Benedict or asparagus.

Stuffed oranges filled with wild rice, chickpeas, and raisins bound in an orange-tahini sauce. A vegetarian Middle Eastern-inspired dish served in the orange shell itself.

I enjoyed this pan fried catfish with the whole family, they all love it so much!

Crispy pan-fried catfish with a silky fermented black bean cream sauce made with sherry, ginger, and garlic. A refined fusion dish that bridges Southern fried fish and Chinese flavors.

Paska: the traditional Russian Easter cheese dessert pyramid, loaded with raisins, candied fruit, almonds, and real vanilla bean. A centerpiece served with kulich bread.

Pasta Fontina is a five-ingredient Italian linguine dish tossed with grated Fontina and Asiago, browned butter, and fresh parsley. Nutty, rich, and on the table in under half an hour.