Holidays recipes

Pumpkin-shaped sandwich cookies filled with raisins, walnuts, and orange juice concentrate. A festive Halloween cookie project with pumpkin pie spice dough.

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.

Nothing is more Halloween than some delicious and sweet candies apples.

Spider-shaped chocolate Halloween cookies with red-hot candy eyes. A simple shaped cookie kids can sculpt themselves: oval body, round head, eight skinny legs.

Blue and cheddar cheese ball blends sharp port wine cheddar, pungent blue cheese, cream cheese, and Worcestershire into a make-ahead party appetizer rolled in toasted walnuts. The classic holiday cheese ball.

Israeli orange chicken roasted whole with a fresh orange stuffed inside, glazed with honey and ginger, and basted with wine. A fragrant, golden roast for holidays and gatherings.

Microwave fudge with chocolate chips, marshmallow cream, and unsweetened baking chocolate. A foolproof candy recipe that skips the candy thermometer and takes just 10 minutes to cook.

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.

Pickled red eggs steeped in beet juice, apple cider vinegar, cloves, allspice, peppercorns, and fresh ginger. Vibrant magenta with tangy, spiced flavor.

Homemade cranberry orange sauce studded with dried apricots and raisins. This fruity, jewel-toned holiday condiment can be made up to 4 days ahead and thickens beautifully as it chills.

Layered chocolate pound cake soaked in kirsch, topped with sour cherries, rich homemade chocolate custard, and clouds of whipped cream. A showpiece trifle for 18.

Halloween fig spooks cupcakes built from cake mix studded with chopped figs, topped with a whole dried fig and draped in white buttercream icing for little ghost-shaped treats.

Spicy salt and pepper shrimp makes an excellent appetizer or main course.

Chocolate cookies with powdered sugar coating. Very chocolaty, yum!

Brussels sprouts glazed with red wine, honey, and soy sauce. Simmered until tender then finished with a glossy cornstarch glaze. A savory-sweet holiday side dish.

Chocolate pumpkin layer cake with a warm brown-sugar frosting that sets to a fudgy crust. Cocoa and pumpkin pie spice make this two-layer cake rich, moist, and irresistible for fall baking.