Baked goods recipes

Fave dolci, Italian almond cookies shaped like fava beans with ground almonds, orange flower water, lemon zest, and cinnamon. A traditional Southern Italian sweet.

Crisp rolled molasses cookies with a full tablespoon each of cinnamon and ginger, dark molasses, lemon extract, and a splash of vinegar for tang. Thin and snappy.

Chewy molasses oatmeal cookies with pecans, raisins, cinnamon, and cloves, drizzled with melted chocolate. Three cups of oats give these a hearty, old-fashioned chew.

A wholesome quick bread made with whole wheat flour, oat bran, molasses, buttermilk, chopped dates, and walnuts. No yeast needed. Makes 5 mini loaves that freeze beautifully.

Spicy applesauce cookies with cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves, rolled thin, cut out, and topped with a glossy homemade gelatin icing and colored sugar.

Fruit and nut muffins with whole wheat flour, applesauce, raisins, dates, and walnuts. A lower-fat big-batch recipe using egg whites and skim milk for lighter baking.

A two-layer pie with spiced butternut squash custard on the bottom and a gooey pecan pie filling on top, sweetened with maple syrup and dark brown sugar. A Midwest Thanksgiving stunner.

Braided yeast bread wreath filled with dates, walnuts, bran flakes, and cinnamon, topped with vanilla confectioner's sugar frosting. A stunning holiday bread that's worth the rise time.

Crunchy microwave snack mix loaded with honey-cinnamon cereal, peanuts, banana chips, popcorn, coconut, and raisins. Sweet, salty, and ready in minutes.

Almond cinnamon-raisin biscotti with brandy and vanilla, twice-baked in the classic Italian style. Crisp, lightly spiced cookies for dipping in coffee, tea, or a glass of vin santo.

Hearty apple cookies made with whole wheat flour, chopped fresh apples, raisins, and nuts, topped with a crunchy oat-brown sugar-cinnamon streusel. A wholesome drop cookie with real fruit baked right in.

Spiced buttermilk pound cake with cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and chopped pecans baked in a Bundt or tube pan. A dense, warmly spiced Southern-style cake that needs no frosting.

Old-fashioned spiced cake buns with cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and raisins. Drop-style buttermilk buns with a sugar-crackled top, baked from a single mixing bowl in 35 minutes.

Classic New York cheesecake with graham cracker crust. Cream cheese beaten for 30 minutes until impossibly smooth, with folded egg whites for airy texture.

Kouloures is a traditional Greek Easter bread, sweet yeast loaves brushed with egg yolk, scattered with sesame seeds, and crowned with red-dyed eggs symbolizing the resurrection.

No-butter orange oatmeal cookies sweetened with banana, honey, and orange juice concentrate. Soft, fruity, and loaded with walnuts and golden raisins.