Sherry Sugars

Wonderful for the holidays and made to be decorated, these cookies are delicately sweet and are a perfect backdrop for a little sugar glaze. In my sugar glaze recipe, I've used a few unusual techniques for getting some color since I don't like using traditional food colorings. Yields about 60 cookies.

Eggnog Cookies

These cookies are absolutely wonderful and are a must-bake. The nutmeg in these imparts a slightly egg-noggy flavor. These are fantastic for the holidays and anytime you are jonesing for some 'nog.

Penne Alla Vodka

This delicious pasta dish has subtle creamy flavor and richness. In the original recipe by Lidia Bastianich, she uses whole cream, however, a marvelous substitute for cream in sauces such as this is to blend nonfat cottage cheese and a little milk (depending on how thick you want your "cream") in a food processor. When you add the blended cottage cheese to the hot pan, it will separate a bit, but with heat, the cottage cheese should melt into the sauce. This dish is wonderful on its own, but if you wish to make this a complete meal, grill some garlic chicken (recipe to follow) and serve with a side salad.