The Best Chicken Piccata

We love this recipe because the chicken breasts, which can often be dry and tasteless, come out so moist and tender. What’s our secret? Seasoning the chicken with salt and pepper 1 hour before cooking ensures that they stay juicy. First the salt draws some moisture from the meat, but then the meat re-absorbs the salty liquid, leading to perfectly seasoned cutlets. And that bright lemony butter sauce? There is enough to serve with the chicken plus a side of pasta or crusty bread.

Holiday Monster Cookies

These giant, saucer-sized cookies are packed with festive candies, peppermint chunks, salty pretzels and white chocolate chips, so they really live up to their name. Serve them as part of a cookie swap, for dessert on Christmas Day or as the special treat left for Santa — with a really big glass of milk!

Pumpkin-Shaped Pumpkin Bread

This yeasted bread, made with pumpkin puree, brown sugar and a hint of cinnamon, is sure to become a fall favorite. Thanks to a few cleverly-placed pieces of kitchen twine that shape the dough as it rises, the resulting loaf looks just like a pumpkin—complete with a fragrant cinnamon-stick stem. Serve it with maple-spiced pumpkin butter.