Recipe Sifter

A quick microwave cherry sauce made with dark sweet cherries, cornstarch, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Spoon over ice cream or cake in under 10 minutes.

Two-ingredient cranberry apple sorbet made with Golden Delicious apples simmered in cranberry juice. No ice cream maker needed. Fat-free, dairy-free, and naturally refreshing.

Halloween horrific witches brew floats a frozen blood-red severed hand of raspberry-cranberry ice in fizzy ginger ale and sparkling cider, garnished with gummy snakes. A spooky non-alcoholic party punch.

This has always been a family favorite. It is also simple and easy to make.

Julekake is a traditional Norwegian Christmas bread with cardamom, candied fruits, and raisins, topped with confectioners icing, almonds, and candied cherries.

This Chinese invention is loved by Thais, who serve salty eggs as a contrast to the incendiary heat of a green curry or a bland dish. Kai kem is traditionally made with duck's eggs, which are cured for several weeks in a simple salt brine. Once cured, they keep for many months at room temperature, and are boiled when it's time to eat them.

No-bake orange cream candies made with powdered sugar, orange zest, and frozen orange juice concentrate. A three-ingredient confection that's rolled, cut, and chilled overnight.

Three-ingredient orange sherbet made with Orange Crush soda, sweetened condensed milk, and crushed pineapple. No cooking, just mix, chill, and churn.

Orange jelly made with frozen orange juice concentrate, lemon juice, and Certo liquid pectin. A quick no-cook jelly that sets in jars without any boiling water bath processing.

Ossi di Morti (Bones of the Dead) Italian cookies flavored with cinnamon and clove oil, baked hard and meant to be dunked in coffee or tea. A traditional Italian All Souls Day treat.

An old-fashioned vinegar-pickled cabbage with whole cloves, mace, and allspice. A simple, shelf-stable recipe straight out of a Victorian-era American cookbook, updated for modern jars.

Pickled watermelon rind in a spiced cider vinegar syrup with cinnamon, clove, and allspice. Old-Southern preserve that turns kitchen scraps into translucent, sweet-tart jewels.

Pineapple mint sorbet blends fresh pineapple, orange juice, lime, and mint into a smooth, tangy frozen dessert. A light palate cleanser or refreshing warm-weather finish, no ice cream maker required.

Old-fashioned sour cucumber pickles brined in vinegar, sugar, dry mustard, and alum with no cooking required. A three-month cold-cure refrigerator pickle.

Traditional Ukrainian fish in aspic (studynyna rybiacha): whole fish poached in aromatic stock, layered with carrot rounds, and set in shimmering gelatin. A stunning cold appetizer for holidays.

Thick-cut pork loin steaks marinated in soy sauce, molasses, sherry, ginger and garlic, then grilled or broiled in just 10 minutes. A rich, glossy teriyaki dinner for two.