RECIPES

This may be the only recipe in which you get to use an electric beater in a pan you've just taken off the burner. "I kept thinking 'This is weird, this can't work,' but it does, and it is not difficult," Hope Barron assures cooks. Indeed, it's simply a question of spreading a "crust" layer with your hands, smoothing a "rising" layer over it, baking and then frosting it. "It is so yummy," Hope adds -- and she's right again.

So simple -- and so tasty! In a season of rich desserts and exotic ingredients, these cookies are a refreshment for both guests and bakers.

Three ingredients is probably the minimum we've ever seen submitted as a recipe, but this is certainly the trifecta for "delicious." Serve as an elegant addition to a dessert buffet or have the grandchildren help roll the cheese-and-cookie balls -- either way, guests will be back for more!

There! No rolling cabbage leaves, no toothpicks, just the classic taste of cabbage rolls in an easy-to-make, easy-to-serve soup. "Lots have asked for this again," notes Pamela Seivert, who also contributed our first-place recipe.

This dessert looks like a plain yellow cake -- but it doesn't taste like one. Contributor Marie Houle writes: "My niece is spending two years in Johannesburg, South Africa with her husband and four children. Her favorite new holiday dessert is Malva Pudding. It’s a baked dessert available in all South African restaurants during the winter season.

They'll be clustered around this red, green and white appetizer any time of the year. Make a few batches, put them in pretty jars and present as gifts, packaged with bread or crackers. 

The tomatoes and the broccoli look pretty and the taste is perfect in this easy-to-make dish.

"Our Thanksgiving and Christmas celebrations would not be complete without this," Joanna McKenzie writes. "This gourmet side dish is super easy to make and the aroma is heavenly."

Easy enough for kids to make and so fast to put together you can whip up appetizers while unexpected guests are still taking their coats off.