All fancied up for the holidays, these boast all the perfectly-crisp-on-the-outside-tender-on-the-inside awesomeness of traditional potato latkes as well as a few surprises.

This gingerbread cheesecake tastes like the classic Christmas spices of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and clove in each and every bite of this simple yet stunning dessert.

A startlingly spectacular made-from-scratch cheese Danish that is going to forever change your notion of what a cheese Danish ought to be.

Just like what your grandma would put on the table for Sunday night dinner. (Don’t you love how food instantly transports you through time?!)

No need to get up hours ahead to produce a cinnamon-y sweet coffee cake, still warm from the oven. Mix it all ahead and pop it in the oven when you wake up. It’s that easy, ya’ll!

These red chile pork tamales are the real authentic Mexican deal and taste like they were carefully crafted by the loveliest abuela imaginable. Here’s how to make them.

These butter and cream cheese pastries are filled with cinnamon-sugared nuts, a slick of jam, currants, and a handful of chopped chocolate.

Warmly spiced, roasted cauliflower gets drizzled with a tangy-sweet dressing, making it an irresistible, healthy (and vegan) side dish. Who loves you?

A traditional Azorean dish that boasts meltingly tender oven-braised beef, potatoes, chouriço, and onions. It’s a rustic, homey, Sunday supper sorta dish from David’s VERY Portuguese mom.

These chewy hermit bars are a revelation. They’re wonderfully spicy, plumped with raisins, and amazingly chewy–even fudge-like.

Essentially a slightly tipsy cheesecake, this bourbon-enhanced eggnog pie is something we’re classifying as “holiday desserts for parties where people like to party.”

In Nahuatl, pozole means “make a big batch of this on the weekend and reheat during the week after soccer practice.” (Not really.)

The secret to this intensely flavored risotto? Using chicken stock mingled with the liquid from rehydrating dried porcini mushrooms.

These sweet and spicy nuts are addictive, so serve with care. The sweet comes from sugar, the spicy is the result of red pepper flakes. Use any kind of nut.

When you want the taste of cinnamon rolls but don’t have the time (or yeast!), enter these shortcut lovelies laced with spice and lavished with cream cheese icing.

Apple cranberry sauce. Not quite as American as apple pie. Not until you taste this version, that is. Sweetly tart and superbly lovely with turkey and pork and so, so much more.

This iconic roast turkey is, we sorta have to admit, perfect to behold. And it ought to be after being brined, stuffed with chestnut stuffing, and all but smothered in a ridiculously rich, real-deal gravy.

We used to get our gratins and scalloped potatoes confused. But then we tried this gratin. Guess which one is now our favorite?!

An elegant yet easy approach to roast pork that draws on iconic autumn flavors. And it’s as affordable as it is impressive.

A cool, creamy version of our favorite pie. Pumpkin ice cream with chunks of crunchy crust and, get this, swirls of marshmallowy meringue.