Roast Figs Sugar Snow | Mitchell Beazley, 2009 | Servings vary. How's your sweet tooth?

I first read about sugar on snow, a kind of toffee, in Laura Ingall’s Wilder’s book, Little House in the Big Woods. Driving around New England in the maple-tapping season, you still see signs for sugar-on-snow parties where you can eat it with the traditional accompaniments of apple cider and doughnuts and dill pickles (to cut the sweetness).

The russet color of maple syrup makes you think of it as the quintessential fall ingredient, but it’s actually made in February and March. Native Americans, who were the first to make it, used to watch for the “sugar moon,” the first sign that it was time to tap the trees.–Diana Henry

LC Sugar Moon Note: We’ve no idea what a “sugar moon” is, either. But we do find it unspeakably comforting to know that there’s such a thing watching over us.

Special Equipment: candy thermometer

Active time: 35 minutes | Total time: 45 minutes

Maple Syrup Snow Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it.

Christine Ferber | Mes Confitures | Michigan State University Press, 2002 | Makes about 12 cups

When I first opened Christine Ferber’s Mes Confitures nearly a decade ago, I was surprised–étonnée, one might say–to find the book filled with fussy measures and overly precise instructions. This was a cookbook written by a home cook from France, a country where an ability to summon something from nothing by playing fast and loose with pantry ingredients is considered a birthright and where summoning elegant menus without mindlessly mimicking recipes to the letter has long been lauded as art.

Yet this lovely book’s uncharacteristic exactness never fails to turn out preserves of the most pristine flavors imaginable. It took only a single batch for me to appreciate Ferber’s less-than-lyrical wording, her unerringly precise amounts, and her knack for selecting substance over style, all of which ensure that my kitchen epiphanies were as memorable as hers. The recipes I cherish most are those whose ingredients have an especially fleeting season, recipes which enable the reader to extend the ephemeral. Clearly, this is an author who knows her audience–perhaps better than they know themselves. —Renee Schettler Rossi

LC Delayed Gratification Note: This gem of a winter recipe necessitates patience–and not just in terms of waiting for blood orange season to come around again. It requires resting time on the part of the ingredients. It’s perhaps best undertaken on a weekend, when you have a spare moment to actually slow down and revel in what’s perhaps best described as the opposite of immediate gratification–in the best possible way.

Active time: 45 minutes | Total time: 1 hours, 30 minutes not including chilling and setting.

Blood Orange Marmalade Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it

David Thompson | Thai Street Food | Ten Speed, 2011 | Serves 4 to 6

This is a gentle and comforting congee that heals and salves the soul. All is forgiven or forgotten after eating this suave silken potage. It is eaten for supper, a dinner alone or occasionally for breakfast. It is especially kind to those who are feeling unwell.

The congee must simmer very, very gently, and it should not be too thick or dry–you may need to add more water as it cooks. Once done, it’s ready to use as a base for other, more complex congees. [Editor's Note: And by "complex congees," the author means those to which any number of things have been stirred in, whether scallion and cracked black pepper and a dash of soy sauce and a raw egg stirred in just before serving, as in the photo above, or shredded pork and and black pepper or shredded chicken and ginger or a sprinkling of peanuts or, well, just about anything, really.] Plain congee is really invalids’ food, but Thais and Chinese love its bland taste and easy-to-digest texture. Please note, many Chinese congee recipes use chicken stock in place of water.  You can do that if you please. I suggest watering it down slightly if it’s a rich broth–David Thompson

LC Breaking Down Broken Rice Note: We’re going to borrow author David Thompson’s definition of broken rice, which is, as he says, “simply the grains of rice that break and shatter during the milling process.” In the eyes of some, these broken kernels are damaged goods, separated from the whole grains, as it can no longer be used to make steamed rice. Thompson explains further, saying “the starch spills out of the broken grains as they cook, making a gluggy, gluey mass. Terrible for steamed rice, but wonderful for soup! Some Thai cooks prefer new season’s rice for congee, saying it makes a more supple soup, while others incline to old grains, saying it has more character and aroma. I plump for the latter. Broken rice is easily bought in Thailand, and is usually available in Chinese grocery shops. It is also very easy to make: just lightly grind or pound the required amount.” If you just don’t have it in you to trek to Chinatown or pound rice, you can still partake of congee. Just use regular whole-grain rice and simmer it a little longer.

Active time: 5 minutes | Total time: 2 hours, not including soaking.

Congee Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it.

Alice Medrich | Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-In-Your-Mouth Cookies | Artisan, 2010 | Makes fifteen 5-inch cookies

A theatrical departure from mainstream chocolate chip cookies, these ultra-thin cookies are large and decidedly flat. They shatter dramatically when you bite them, releasing loads of caramel brown sugar goodness and bursts of bittersweet chocolate.– Alice Medrich

LC Fancy Pants but Not Fussy Cookies Note: Those of you who like your chocolate chip cookies cakey and chewy, you may as well stop reading now…unless you doubt your devotion. Crispy cookie junkies, once you experience these brittle, caramelized ultra-thin cookies that seem heaven sent, you may find yourself falling to your knees in reverence. The only trick to these fancy-pants but not fussy cookies? Squashing the dough flat, but not too flat, before baking and keep careful watch over the cookies so the sugars caramelize but not scorch. What can we say, practice makes perfect. And oh, what palatable practice!

Active time: 20 minutes | Total time: 45 minutes (not including time for the dough to rest).

Ultra-Thin Chocolate Chunk Cookies Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it.

Christie Matheson | Cake Simple | Chronicle, 2011 | Makes about 2 cups

For some people, Nutella—a smooth chocolate-hazelnut spread found in the peanut butter aisle in most supermarkets—is a nostalgic childhood treat. But I didn’t taste it until college, when a friend who’d been living in Europe introduced me to it, so I may always think of it as a more sophisticated sweet. The stuff from the jar is pretty darn good, although the fabulous pastry chef Gale Gand taught me how to make it from scratch, and that’s now my favorite version. You can really taste the hazelnuts and feel some of their texture. I’ve been known to eat it with a spoon, as anyone else who’s honest will admit to doing.–Christie Matheson

LC Deliver Me From Temptation… Note: No longer can you consider yourself safe from temptation just by mustering the wherewithal to pass the Nutella aisle at the grocery store. With this made-from-scratch recipe, temptation lurks in your very own pantry every second of the day. Should you succumb to the craving and find yourself standing at the counter, spoon in hand, not quite certain how to stop spooning it up, author Christie Matheson has a novel way to put the rest of it to use: the most lust-inducing frosting that cake has ever known. Just grab your stand mixer and beat 1/2 cup of homemade Nutella, 3 tablespoons room-temperature butter, and 3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar until creamy. Jack up the speed to medium-high and slowly, slowly drizzle in 2 tablespoons heavy cream, beating just until smooth and fluffy and irresistible. Then slather it all over the cake you baked for your new neighbors and get it out of the house as soon as humanly possible. There. Delivered from temptation.

Active time: 20 minutes | Total time: 30 minutes (not including time for cooling).

Homemade Nutella Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it.

Anjum Andand | Eat Right for Your Body Type | Da Capo Lifelong Books, 2011 | Serves 1 generously

Quinoa is very light, so it’s great if your system is feeling sluggish. It’s also a complete protein, so it makes a wonderful breakfast. It doesn’t have quite the creamy flavor of oats, so add other ingredients as you wish–there are no rules, you can change the flavorings as you like.

This quinoa recipe works really well with soy milk, but the quinoa should be cooked in water for the first 20 minutes and the soy milk added only during the last 10 minutes.–Anjum Andand

LC There Are No Breakfast Porridge Rules Note: You heard Anjum. There are no rules. So have some whimsy when you concoct your breakfast, would ya? Try your old reliable oatmeal toppings, if you like, whatever they may be.  We’re partial to a drizzle of honey and some dates and walnuts, dried cherries and pumpkin seeds, golden raisins and almonds, or bananas and cashews. But that’s just us. Certainly you can fill in a few more companionable stir-ins. Care to share?

Active time: 10 minutes | Total time: 40 minutes.

Breakfast Quinoa Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it.

Melissa Clark | Cook This Now | Hyperion, 2011 | Serves 6

Like most little kids, my daughter Dahlia loves macaroni and cheese, and I‘ve made it for her in many guises, running the gamut of techniques. My aim is always the same — to make the dish quickly with a minimum of fuss, and to use a maximum of vegetables that she will tolerate and not pick out.

This is one of both our favorites. It’s comforting, crusty topped, soft centered, and very cheesy – but not at all sophisticated. Just simple, kid-friendly, homemade food with the added grown-up appeal of lots of healthful carrots tossed into the mix. I got the idea from a chef’s recipe in a glossy food magazine. I decided to come up with my own simplified and ultra-Cheddary version. It was a huge hit with the under-three crowd and their parents, too. It’s a straightforward recipe that comes together without much fuss, other than having to grate some carrots. But to make up for that, I’ve eliminated the need to make a cheese sauce on the top of the stove. Instead, I toss the hot pasta with grated cheddar, butter, sour cream for creaminess, and eggs to hold it all together. The grated carrots get boiled along with the pasta, so cooking them isn’t an extra step. And the tiny orange shreds look so much like the cheddar that your kids might not even notice they are there. Dahlia certainly hasn’t, and while I’ve never lied to her about their inclusion, I might have left out the word carrot in the dish description — accidentally, of course.–Melissa Clark

LC Getting By With A Little Help From Your Friends Note: There’s not always room in a recipe for all the tricks and tactics that a cookbook author has come to learn in making a recipe over and over and over again. Fortunately, cookbook author and recipe conjurer Melissa Clark  also considers herself a friend to readers, so she has has these additional tricks, tactics, and tips to share:

–This is one of those macaroni and cheeses with an eggy custard base that puffs as it cooks and is cut into squares, like a casserole, as opposed to that gooey, creamy, stove-top béchamel sauce version. I know some people have strong opinions about what constitutes a proper mac and cheese–I’m an equal opportunist myself, but thought I’d let you know what you’re getting yourself into before starting the recipe.

–If grating the Cheddar cheese in a food processor, you don’t need to clean it before grating the carrots–or vice versa.

–You can vary the cheese to give this rather plain (if tasty) dish more personality. Gruyère, aged Cheddar, pecorino, and aged Gouda will all add a sophisticated allure that will raise it above mere kids’ food.

–Feed this dish to the kids as is; grown-ups should indulge with a squirt of fiery Sriracha or other hot sauce all over the top.

Active time: 20 minutes | Total time: 1 hour.

Mac and Cheese with Carrots Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it.

Michel Richard | Happy in the Kitchen | Artisan, 2006 | Makes 2 to 4 servings

Serve these as you would potato chips, as a nibble with cocktails, alongside a sandwich, or as a side to a main course such as roast chicken.–Michel Richard

LC These Ruffles Don’t Have Ridges–Nor Do They Need Them Note: Okay. Let’s call a spade a spade. Or, as the situation would demand, a potato chip a potato chip. These ruffles are, essentially, potato chips. And yet they’re more than that. They’re fancy schmancy, shatteringly crisp, conversation-stopping potato chips. And unlike the brand-name chip by the same name that once had an entire country trilling its little ditty, they bear no ridges–nor do they need them. They’re sufficiently, satiatingly crisp just as they are. Our one quibble? Clearly frying up a single potato, as the recipe below suggests, is only going to get you so far. Fortunately, the recipe can easily be doubled, tripled, quadrupled, or otherwise multiplied exponentially. Given how quickly our greasy little fingers kept reaching for the ruffles, it’s best to allow one large potato per person.

Seeing as they require a turning vegetable slicer, they perhaps hold most appeal, fittingly, for those casual couch potatoes who like to stay up late at night and, as such, are privvy to infomercials. That said, an old-fashioned apple peeler will work in its place, provided you make just a few adjustments. (See the comment from Dan Kraan beneath the recipe.) A Y-shaped vegetable peeler? Not so much.

Special equipment: turning vegetable slicer

Active time: 40 minutes | Total time: 40 minutes.

Potato Ruffles Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it.

Sam Mogannam | Bi-Rite Market’s Eat Good Food | Ten Speed Press, 2011 | Serves 10

This rich chocolate sour cream Bundt cake is one of the all-time best-sellers from the Creamery. We use this recipe to make cakes of all different shapes and sizes, from cupcakes to tea cakes to ice cream cake bases. The cocoa powder gives the caek a more intense chocolatey flavor. Be sure to use a high-quality cocoa powder; it makes a huge difference in the final product.

This bullet-proof recipe translates easily to the home kichen. Unlike many cakes, this one is mixed entirely by hand. No electric mixer needed. And the cake stays most for days.–Sam Mogannam and Dabney Gough

LC Moan of Unabashed Glee Note: Easy. Failproof. Decadent. That’s all we’ve got time to share. We gotta go get us another slice of this cake–and moan in unabashed glee–before it’s gone.

Special Equipment: 10- or 12-cup Bundt pan

Active time: 25 minutes | Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes, not including cooling.

Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it.

Williams-Sonoma Foods of the World: New Orleans | Oxmoor, 2005 | Makes 12

No trip to New Orleans is complete without hot beignets, pillow-shaped crullers dusted with confectioners’ sugar. They were originally served as a dawn meal for dockworkers and merchants at the old French Market. The eggy yeast dough is rolled into very thin pieces and tossed into hot fat before it rises, so it balloons in the pan, yielding a crisp brown crust and airy center. Serve the beignets at once, preferably with steaming cups of café au lait. To make café au lait, the traditional accompaniment, brew strong chicory coffee and heat milk in a pan, then pour equal measures of both into a large cup.–Constance Snow

LC Don’t Wear Black Note: If anyone as been to Cafe du Monde in New Orleans, home to these famed slightly sweet blobs of fried dough buried in a flurry of confectioners’ sugar, you know well the warning not to wear black while tucking into a plateful of beignets. We suggest you heed the same advice when at home.

Active time: 45 minutes | Total time: 45 minutes

Beignets Recipe

Directions

Want it? Click it.