Make Ahead

Bon Appétit Test Kitchen director Mary-Frances Heck learned this quick braise from her host mother while studying in Spain.

This potent punch is dangerously crowd-pleasing.

Salting and pressing vegetables draws out moisture and makes them snappy. Sake and seasoned rice vinegar infuse these pickles with mild, cocktail-friendly flavors.

Makrut lime leaves give this spiced nut mix its citrusy, floral notes. Can't find any? Just double the lime zest.

Roasting the onions and shallots takes this dip way out of the box.

This recipe can easily be doubled to feed a larger group—and makes for great leftovers. For a lighter soup, omit the cream; or for a little decadence, add more cream or swirl in a little crème fraîche.

These little showstoppers will incite a fried food frenzy–even though they're baked on party night.

This cake is perfect for beginners—it's moist, forgiving, and easy. Jif creamy peanut butter is our favorite for the decadent frosting.

In this creamy, risotto-like side, arborio rice is replaced with healthier whole-grain farro.

If you prefer a smooth sauce, purée it in a blender. Serve with roasted potatoes and sautéed greens.

Forget the boxed version you grew up with. This yellow cake gets a rich dark-chocolate frosting with a touch of tang thanks to sour cream. For the best presentation, it's important to cut the cake layers evenly.

This big, fun cake features layers of sponge cake and mint chocolate chip ice cream blanketed with pale-green whipped cream. It's perfect for a kid's birthday party. We like Baskin-Robbins Mint Chip for its thin chocolate shavings. Make sure to clear space in your freezer.

This uncooked soup is quick to prepare but delivers deep, bright flavor. A range of toppings makes it even more visually appealing.

After we make a batch of this romesco sauce, we put it on things like eggs, grilled cheese, and turkey sandwiches. We find any excuse we can think of to dunk and cover stuff in the incredibly versatile and tasty romesco.

Here is a recipe I adapted from the cooking of Kurt Gardner, a New York theater man of great culinary passions who has been contributing the dish to our home for years, usually in proportions large enough to feed boroughs. Rare is the month where there is not a frozen bag of this stuff in our freezer, ready to be deployed.

Grilled meatballs, grilled bread, and a peppery arugula-walnut pesto make this sandwich one to remember.

Editor's note: This recipe is part of a special Thanksgiving menu created by chefs Allison Vines-Rushing and Slade Rushing of MiLa restaurant in New Orleans. Pecan pralines are one of the most celebrated candies of the South. They are made with pecans, sugar, and cream, which results in a unique crystallized and cloudy caramel that melts in your mouth. The European praline, however, is made simply with sugar and nuts, which results in a shiny hard-crack bitter-and-sweet candy. This Italian-style semifreddo (half frozen) uses the latter, which holds up well when frozen. However, we still use cream, but in a soft, fluffy base that cradles the crispy praline.

Rae: What I love about our updated version of this peasant soup is that it's based on an actual beet broth—not beef stock, as in a lot of Russian borschts, and not even vegetable stock to which beets have been added. This is a really beet-y, and surprisingly hearty, borscht. And it's completely vegetarian.

The pan-fried pizza move comes in handy during the summer when you don't want to turn the oven to 500°F.