Horseradish

Baked yams and steamed spinach make colorful accompaniments. Ice cream alongside hot apple turnovers tops off the meal.

This brunch dish makes delicious use of leftover cooked salmon or potatoes.

Offer a hearty Cabernet Sauvignon with this impressive prime rib.

I've learned that garnishing soup can turn an everyday first course into something elegant. This cream goes particularly well with lentil soup and puréed carrot soup. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

At breakfast time, the hash is topped with poached eggs; on the bistro menu, it is served with crème fraîche.

There's horseradish in the cream sauce and, for good measure, some more in the buttery crumb crust.

Active time: 35 min Start to finish: 45 min

Mashed potatoes are always a crowd-pleaser at holiday meals. But if you want to mix things up a bit this year, try one of our delicious variations, below.

You can grill any cooked sausage you like for this sandwich, but we recommend kielbasa or kosher salami (not dried beef). Active time: 25 min Start to finish: 30 min

For this recipe you will need three mini-muffin pans, each containing twelve 1 3/4-by-1 inch cups.