Holidays recipes

Boozy orange cake made with cake mix, instant vanilla pudding, vodka, Galliano liqueur, and fresh orange juice. A one-bowl party cake with serious kick.

Fudge nougats are no-thermometer chocolate fudge squares with walnuts and graham cracker crumbs for body, wrapped individually for holiday gifting. Quick, easy, and giftable.

Triple onion walnut pate blends sweet caramelized red and yellow onions with scallions, walnuts, hard-cooked eggs, and asparagus into a rustic vegetarian spread for crackers or bread.

Bread machine Christmas bread: a sweet cardamom-scented yeast loaf with cinnamon, sugar, and chopped nuts. Scandinavian holiday baking made hands-off.

New Year's pork roast slow-cooked overnight on a bed of sauerkraut with beer. A traditional good luck meal that feeds the family all day long.

Whole roasted turkey stuffed with wild rice, brandy-soaked apricots, and rosemary, basted in garlic-herb butter. A stunning holiday centerpiece that feeds 10.

Buttermilk pecan fruitcake made with dried pears and toasted pecans instead of the usual neon candied fruit. Buttermilk keeps the crumb tender, beaten egg whites give it lift. A gift-worthy Christmas loaf.

Homemade cream liqueurs blended with sweetened condensed milk, whipping cream, and your choice of whiskey, amaretto, or rum. Stores in the fridge for up to a month.

Linzer Augen are Austria's almond shortbread sandwich cookies: two tender, nutty rounds glued with apricot jam, the top cut with a little window that frames the glistening preserves under a snowfall of powdered sugar. A Christmas cookie tin classic.

Moroccan-style charoset balls made with dates, raisins, walnuts, and sweet Passover wine. Bite-sized, naturally sweet fruit and nut confections for the Seder table.

Chocolate butter cookie dough adds melted unsweetened and semi-sweet chocolate to a master holiday butter cookie recipe. Roll, cut, and shape it into pinwheels, classic cut-outs, Linzer sandwiches, or sugar-coated crescents.

Orange poppy seed cheesecake with a ginger graham cracker crust, sour cream filling, and real orange extract. A creamy, citrusy baked cheesecake for holidays.

Santa's white fudge made with sour cream, corn syrup, and sugar cooked to soft-ball stage, then loaded with candied cherries and pecans. Creamy holiday candy in an 8x8 pan.

Old-fashioned Christmas fruit cake with boiled raisins, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. No eggs or butter needed, just cold water and shortening for a dense, spiced holiday cake.

Eggnog bread pudding baked in a water bath with cinnamon-raisin bread, brandy, nutmeg, and half-and-half, served with a cranberry-maple bourbon sauce. A festive holiday dessert.

No-bake chocolate truffles shaped like tiny mice with almond ears, dragee eyes, and licorice tails. A fun holiday treat kids love to make and eat. Makes 2 dozen.