Walnut

Banana breads tend to be high in fat and sugar, but this wholesome loaf relies primarily on bananas to keep the bread moist and flavorful. Walnuts and a generous amount of ground flaxseed add texture and plenty of nutrients; substitute toasted pecans for the walnuts if you like, or omit the nuts altogether.

Everyone needs one reliable recipe for an old-fashioned drop cookie. This master recipe fills the bill. It’s simple (no machines necessary—the butter can be creamed by hand, though you can use a mixer for ease) and infinitely variable (modify the dough with any of the add-ins listed below, or split it into two or three batches so that you can make more than one type of cookie at the same time). And if you want, you can bake a portion of it, then form the remainder into balls (on baking sheets) and place in freezer until frozen. Store the frozen balls of dough in a resealable bag in the freezer until until you’re ready to bake; let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking, and bake a few minutes longer than the recommended time. These cookies are somewhat cakey; for a chewier texture, reduce the flour by 1/2 cup and the baking time by 2 minutes.

Little Gem lettuce, a smaller, sweeter, very crunchy variety of romaine, appeared recently in Los Angeles the way burrata did: one day nobody had heard of it and now it’s everywhere. Also like burrata, I love it so much that I have found multiple uses for it in my restaurants. The first time I saw Little Gem lettuce was at the Atelier of Joël Robuchon in Paris seven or eight years ago, when I took my daughter Vanessa there for her birthday. A large percentage of Robuchon’s perfectly simple, perfectly executed dishes came with a dressed quarter of this tiny oblong-shaped lettuce with a beautiful, pale green color; I fell in love with Little Gem at first bite.

It seems like just about every culture has a version of a crumbly, melt-in-your-mouth cookie made with ground nuts. In Mexico, they make Mexican wedding cookies. In the American South, they have pecan sandies. These cookies are based on a Greek version made with ground walnuts. We press a walnut half into each cookie, which looks very pretty. You will need a 1-inch round cookie cutter to make these.

Lighter than air, these sweet puffs of divinity will melt in your mouth.

I originally created this recipe for Bon Appétit magazine. With its deep undertones of coffee and chocolate, it is one of my favorites.

Maple and pecan are a fabulous flavor combination. Make sure to use pure maple syrup for this yummy fudge.

This is the old-fashioned fudge remembered from childhood. It is rich and creamy with lots of chocolate and walnuts. My husband says this tastes like the fudge his grandmother used to make.

Molasses adds a tantalizing depth and rich taste to this crunchy brittle.

For this confection you can use practically any combination of nuts or dried fruits and any type of chocolate. Making bark is a good way to use up valuable leftover chocolate.

We used apple juice to sweeten the bread, but this recipe is equally tasty made with orange juice or cranberry juice.

You can store the banana bread, wrapped well in plastic wrap, at room temperature up to 4 days.

To store, wrap the loaf tightly in plastic; refrigerate for up to 1 week, or freeze for up to 2 months.

Serve with yogurt, berries, and a drizzle of honey.

Sanding sugar is used to coat the biscotti because it won’t melt in the oven. We dipped half of the batch in melted chocolate. To dip them all, double the amount of bittersweet chocolate.