Apricot Sugar Plum Cookies

No-bake cookies that store for a few weeks are like gold during the entertaining season. Treat these pretty sugar-rolled cookies like truffles and serve them in place of dessert with after-dinner coffee or tea.

Cardamom Candy Canes

Mostaccioli: Italian cookie recipe

In Roman times, these cookies were sweetened with the must, or mosto (as the name indicates), left over from wine production. Give this Italian cookie recipe a try for a change.

Stracciatella Soup with Noodles

In Italian, stracci means rags, which the eggs form in the soup. Instead of the egg noodles, you can use any type of small or broken pasta, such as spaghetti, stellini, tubetti, ditali or pastina.

Xmas Explosion Cookie Bark

Loaded with chocolate candies, white chocolate and festive sprinkles, these crispy bark-like cookies are bursting with holiday cheer. Put the sprinkles in small bowls and let the kids decorate!

Decadent Sacher Torte Bites

The Sacher torte, a moist chocolate cake enrobed in apricot jam and chocolate ganache, is Vienna's most popular confection. These cookies, with their sticky jam filling and chocolate dip, pay homage to the iconic dessert.

Exotic Mushroom Soup

This dark broth, full of mushrooms and vegetables, is an enticing change from the usual creamed mushroom soup. You can use shiitake or oyster mushrooms as well — just remove the tough stems. If no exotic mushrooms are available, substitute white button mushrooms.

Vanilla Almond Crescents

These delicately flavoured and textured cookies are fast and simple to make. Be sure not to overprocess the dough.

Balsamic Roasted Vegetables

Not so spooky but definitely colourful, this makes an attractive autumn side dish.

Grilled Eggplant and Fresh Mozzarella Pizza

Look for fresh mozzarella and bocconcini cheeses in sealed bags or tubs of water at deli counters. For a delicious splurge, use buffalo mozzarella, a flavourful fresh mozzarella made from water-buffalo milk.