From Quick Weeknight Dinners to Festive Dishes, These Are the Best Recipes to Make in December

The beauty of this appetizer is that guests assemble the toasts themselves—so it’s fuss-free for the host.

Pomegranates, hazelnut, and pears make this the perfect seasonal salad.

Keep most of the ingredients for this splurge-worthy appetizer on hand, then pick up fresh crab and bread, and put it together in 10 minutes.

These appetizer-size latkes can be topped with any number of creative combinations. We’ve suggested three toppings, each of which makes enough for 20 mini latkes.

Chanterelles from the woods at Big Table Farm winery in Oregon’s Willamette Valley accent vibrant, knee-high chard from owners Clare Carver and Brian Marcy’s garden.

Clare Carver of Big Table Farm winery in Oregon loads up garden potatoes with crisp sage leaves—but feel free to use less if you prefer a milder flavor.

A dialed-in version of a coastal classic. If you’ve never made your own barbecue sauce before, this is your chance to taste the profound difference between corn syrup supermarket stuff and the real deal, made with good spices and exacting technique.

By topping parmesan-flavored creamed spinach with a bread crumb topping, this gratin can be made up to a day ahead and needs just a few minutes under the broiler to be hot, crunchy and ready for the table.

Chanterelle mushrooms and cipollini onions are worth the splurge, but you can substitute halved cremini mushrooms and frozen pearl onions and the results will still be very tasty.

This fennel salad works equally well for both weeknight meal and a holiday gathering.

An intensely flavored mushroom-wine filling, a simple custard, and voilà—miniature, quiche-like puffs.

Slather the meat with an aromatic herb and garlic oil, then roast with lots more garlic to season the velvety pan gravy.

If your guests prefer something lighter than a roast, serve this fish dish for your holiday meal.

Creating a two-zone fire lets you sear the meat over direct heat and then finish cooking it over indirect to a beautiful medium-rare. Beginner’s tip: As you grill, keep the lid closed to maintain the temperature.

Leftover mashed potatoes make it easy to whip up shepherd’s pie on a weeknight. This vegetarian version is as hearty as the beefy original, thanks to meaty portabella mushrooms, but you could throw in any leftover cooked meat if you want.

Big, bold Southeast Asian flavors team up in a perfect balance of salty, sweet, hot, and aromatic.

Pomegranate molasses, a staple ingredient in the Eastern Mediterranean, gives this one-pot dish a delectable tang.

For an easy vegetarian version of this hearty main dish, omit the bacon and add a little more olive oil when you sauté the shallot mixture.

If any ocean creature can be said to have a cult following, it’s sea urchin (uni). Its roe, the edible part, has a briny, sweet taste. When mixed with hot pasta, the roe melts and creates a luscious sauce, as in this recipe based on one from San Diego sea-urchin diver Peter Halmay. California produces most of the American sea-urchin supply; look for the top grade, called California Gold, or B-grade California Premium, which has a slightly softer texture. The roe is extremely perishable, so use it as soon as possible.

Save time and oven space and use a slow-cooker for brisket that’s tender when pierced, with a rich, velvety sauce. Start in the morning and you’ll have brisket by dinnertime.

This gutsy North African dish of eggs poached in a super-flavorful tomato-based sauce gets even better with the addition of a mountain of greens. It makes a great brunch or dinner for a crowd of holiday guests.

Chef Curtis Stone usually makes these beautiful single-serving pies lattice-topped (as shown above), but for ease of making, this one skips that step.

This towering spice cake, garnished with chunks of coffee-flavored toffee, makes a luscious centerpiece for the holiday dessert table.

The quick dessert popularized in New Orleans in the 1950s features bananas warmed in a dark-brown-sugar caramel sauce.

Aquafaba, the beany liquid in canned chickpeas, is astonishing stuff; it whips up just like egg whites in recipes. Here, it’s paired with coconut cream to create a completely vegan version of pavlova, a crunchy meringue that typically uses egg whites and dairy cream. Don’t be afraid of the time—the aquafaba has to chill and the pavlovas have to bake in the oven. 

For this simple, gorgeous dessert, any good fresh cherry will do—just taste first and adjust the sugar accordingly. Pastry flour, available at well-stocked grocery stores, produces a delicate but still sturdy crust; however, all-purpose works too.