Ruth Reichl

Ruth Reichl is a James Beard award-winning food writer and editor. She previously served as the editor in chief of Gourmet magazine (RIP!), executive producer of Gourmet’s Diary of a Foodie on PBS, and the restaurant critic for The New York Times. Reichl is the author of a dozen books, including her most recent title, My Kitchen Year. She lectures frequently on food and culture. @ruth.reichl

Viennese Crescent Cookies

A holiday cookie if we ever saw one! So buttery, so nutty, so delicate, so mind-bendingly charming, these traditional Viennese cookies rival the city's fancier pastries as our fave.

4 hrs

Madeleines

Buttery, cake-y, crisp at the edges, and with a slight lilt of lemon, this cookie launched a thousand memories—and a literary masterpiece—for Marcel Proust.

1 hr