The Bon Appétit Test Kitchen

The fried olives used to garnish this colorful salad just might become your new favorite. Try scattered over crostini or salads.

This heady mulled wine recipe is perfect for the holiday season—or any time you’re looking for something fragrant and cozy.

Browned edges mean great flavor for this side. If the squash hasn't browned, roast it a little longer.

Unlike your traditional holiday ham, fresh ham is uncured and unsmoked. We pack it in an herb cure for several days for incredible flavor and juiciness. When roasted, the skin transforms into addictive, crispy-sweet cracklings that may cause fighting among guests.

Rich, chocolaty cocoa is poured over a scoop of peppermint ice cream for a kid-friendly twist on the Italian espresso- ice cream dessert.

Greek yogurt gets transformed into a bright fresh cheese in this Middle Eastern-style dish. Spread it onto toast with jam for breakfast, or serve as part of a cheese platter.

The best—and easiest—brownies you'll ever make. This recipe belongs in your repertoire.

Vinegar is the key ingredient in the tart, refreshing beverages known as shrubs.

Roast these sweet, tangy carrots—a perfect foil for the deliciously fatty rib roast—while the beef rests.

These buttery, heart-shaped French cookies are great for dunking into hot cocoa—or serving with coffee.

Roasting the carrots intensifies their sweetness.

Holiday spiced nuts meet the candied street-cart variety. Send any extra home as gifts for your guests.

Want super-crisp chicken without having to add much fat? Start with a room-temperature pan: As the skillet becomes hot, the chicken skin will gradually render its fat, becoming browned and crackling.

Mix up the fillings by substituting your favorite cheeses, thinly sliced meats, and herbs.

Frascatelli, a semolina dumpling, is the one homemade pasta suited for weeknight dinners. Just sprinkle water over a tray of semolina flour; the dumplings cook up in about a minute.

Serve these little spinach pies with a main course as your vegetable side and dinner roll in one, or eat a couple for a vegetarian dinner—they're that good.

Serve at brunch, or for dessert with a scoop of lemon gelato.

A simple shrimp salad is served in small dinner rolls in this fun (and easy) twist on the traditional New England lobster roll.

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

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