When the sun sets earlier and earlier every day and the temperatures begin to drop, it can mean only one thing: The holidays are nearing. And no matter which ones you observe, they’ll call for something to feed a crowd, a nice drink to imbibe or a lovely treat to share. The New York Times Food staff has plenty of recipes that we turn to time and again this time of year, whether favorite cookies, holiday table centerpieces, festive dinners or can’t-put-them-down snacks. Give them a try and see exactly why we love these recipes so much.
After watching Zainab Shah’s video demonstration for her vegetable biryani, I had to have it immediately. I think I made the recipe that night. I’m looking forward to trying it again for the holidays, when pomegranates are in season and I’m back home in Atlanta with more mouths to feed. I kept imagining how much my rice-loving family would appreciate all of the colors, textures and flavors. It’s one of the most thoughtful recipes I’ve ever made. ERIC KIM
I’m taking it easy on holiday shopping this year, so I’m going to make many batches of these Italian rainbow cookies to give away as gifts. I adapted the recipe from Nicole Carpino Frasco, whose grandmother, Mary Carpino, made them for years. I’ve been slowly stocking up on almond paste over the last few months because it’s a little pricey, and the stores sold out last year! The cookies look fussy, but they just take a little time, and the results are festive and so, so fun. MARGAUX LASKEY
Recipe: Italian Rainbow Cookies
I am such a huge fan of Genevieve Ko’s maple-baked salmon. It is a stunning centerpiece — I served it one New Year’s Eve to rave reviews — and it truly takes minimal effort. The genius sauce — mayo, maple syrup, whole-grain Dijon mustard and thinly sliced cilantro stems — is a delightful blend of flavors and textures that play so nicely off the tenderness of the salmon. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. KASIA PILAT
Recipe: Maple-Baked Salmon
Here’s a secret: My family isn’t big on sweets! But, this year, I’m hoping I can get them on board with this guava cake. It’s just the right amount of sweetness for an immigrant family who’s used to picking guavas off the trees, and it comes together in under an hour. GINA FERNANDEZ
Every year, for my long-running annual New Year’s Eve party, I’d prepare a quadruple batch of Gabrielle Hamilton’s cheese crackers and stash the unbaked logs in the freezer to slice and bake the week before. The party is on indefinite hold, but I still look forward to enjoying these crispy savory crackers with a glass of wine in hand, in the company of family and friends. CATHY LO
Recipe: Cheese Crackers
On the first night of Hanukkah, I plan to steal a page from Melissa Clark’s book: I’ll fry a few batches of her latkes and set out a spread of crème fraîche, smoked salmon, fish roe, dill, chives and apple sauce for my family to assemble their perfect bites. And, with all due respect to Manischewitz, I’ll make a batch of Lambrusco spritzes to celebrate my hard work. BECKY HUGHES
Recipes: Classic Potato Latkes | Lambrusco Spritz
Though I’ve aspired to be that person who bakes ornate holiday cookie trays for friends and families for years, it took a pandemic for me to actually find the time to do so. I’ve discovered many recipes to love, but these toasty sandwich cookies from Yewande Komolafe are indisputably the best I’ve ever baked. No future cookie platter will be complete without them! ALEXA WEIBEL
I bookmarked this tart from Clare DeBoer for the holidays because it contains several Rao family crowd-pleasing components. Buttery short crust! Roasted hazelnut frangipane! Ripe pears! I just have to make it. Nadiya Hussain’s samosa pie, made with a hot water crust, is also on my list — I can’t resist a Tall Pie. TEJAL RAO
Recipes: Hazelnut, Pear and Cardamom Tart | Samosa Pie
This is the only recipe that matters to me on our holiday table. (Well, not the only one, but it is pretty high up there.) Sweet, tangy, spicy, savory — it’s everything! PRIYA KRISHNA
Will I finally cook this Melissa Clark recipe for Christmas? I’ve made plans so many times, researching butchers and farms, measuring my oven. But I haven’t taken the plunge. Perhaps this is the year for garlic- and herb-scented pork encased in perfectly rendered cracklings. We’ll see. MARK JOSEPHSON
Recipe: Porchetta Pork Roast
These double-chocolate cookies from Samantha Seneviratne deserve a cult following. Let’s make it happen. EMILY WEINSTEIN
I am psyched to make Alexa Weibel’s mushroom Wellington, a dish I think about all year round. (And probably should make outside the holidays.) It’s so deeply flavored, warm and crisp-tender. Back in 2019, when she was testing it, she brought loads into the office, and I ate it, joyfully, by the office microwave, reveling in its deliciousness. I made it the next year for a close-knit pandemic Thanksgiving, a soul-warmer in the darkest of times. KRYSTEN CHAMBROT
Recipe: Vegetarian Mushroom Wellington
It may be shameful to admit this in the newspaper of record, but I am one of those people who starts playing Christmas music on Nov. 1. Nothing marks the beginning of the season quite like a little Nat King Cole — except for maybe Vaughn Vreeland’s eggnog snickerdoodles, which are a fairly new but beloved addition to my holiday traditions. I go hard on the nutmeg, increasing it by at least another teaspoon for a super-spiced cookie. Those, and a coupe of Rebekah Peppler’s mulled, chilled wine? Bliss. TANYA SICHYNSKY
Recipes: Eggnog Snickerdoodles | Mulled Wine, but Chilled
Melissa Clark pulls a Darth Vader move with this dish, encasing aggressively seasoned shrimp in butter like Han Solo in carbonite. Melissa cooks the shrimp with warm spices like mace, along with garlic, anchovies and celery seed before chilling them in ramekins of clarified butter. You can use one large soufflé dish instead, if you plan to bring them to a party. SARA BONISTEEL
Recipe: Spiced Potted Shrimp
For New Year’s Eve, dessert is baked alaska, which comes with the fanfare built in. I’ve varied it, using several layers of tropical fruit-flavored sorbet like mango, passion fruit, pineapple or coconut — bought, not homemade — in place of the semifreddo. FLORENCE FABRICANT
Recipe: Baked Alaska
I love bringing homemade food gifts to my friends, family and co-workers during the holidays. One year, it was cookies delivered in takeout containers. The next I made bottles of Toby Cecchini’s very scalable recipe for ginger beer. A few tips: It’s hard work, but grating the ginger fresh is absolutely essential, and you can find Champagne yeast at your local beer brewing shop or online. Moscow mule, anyone? NIKITA RICHARDSON
Recipe: Homemade Ginger Beer
This simple recipe is probably not the best gingerbread cookie ever (this one with bacon fat is hard to beat). But these are the cookies my mother made for decades at Christmas. I made them with her. My kids and my nieces and nephews all made them with her. I hope one day they make them for their kids. Christmas demands tradition with a side of deep, unapologetic family nostalgia. KIM SEVERSON
Recipes: Anne Severson’s Gingersnaps | Bacon Fat Gingersnaps
