Habanero tomato guacamole: ripe avocados blended smooth with a whole habanero, fresh garlic, cilantro, and cumin, then folded with diced tomato and red onion. A fiery Mexican party dip.
Carrot cake cheesecake on a cinnamon graham cracker crust with shredded carrots, raisins, nutmeg, and ginger. Topped with an orange cream cheese glaze.
Jerk chicken wings marinated in scotch bonnet peppers, allspice, thyme, ginger, and soy sauce then baked until crispy. Fiery Caribbean-spiced wings with serious heat and warm spice.
Classic snickerdoodle cookies: tender soft cookies rolled in cinnamon sugar, with the signature cream of tartar tang. Yields five dozen for the cookie tin.
Semolina pastries stuffed with pistachios, cinnamon, and sugar, then dipped in orange flower water and rolled in powdered sugar. A Middle Eastern-style cookie.
Chicken tandoori marinated in yogurt, lemon, garam masala, coriander, and cumin, then grilled hot and dry to mimic a real tandoor oven. Serve with naan, rice, and cool cucumber.
Apple cinnamon chop bread made with frozen sweet dough, sliced Golden Delicious apples, and cinnamon sugar. Chopped and mounded into a rustic pull-apart loaf with just four ingredients.
Black bean chili with oranges, an unexpected Yucatan-style pairing. Whole spices, cardamom, allspice, and coriander simmer with dried beans. Topped with fresh orange slices, zest, and sour cream.
Fresh tuna and red potato salad dressed with low-fat yogurt, red wine vinegar, and cumin instead of mayo. Grilled yellowfin tuna, celery, and parsley make this a lighter, protein-packed main dish salad.
Fat-free pumpkin pie with a bread crumb crust, egg whites, and skim evaporated milk. All the warm Thanksgiving spice flavor with none of the butter or yolks.
Vegan chili with kidney beans, bulgur wheat, fresh tomatoes, and a heavy hand of mild and hot ground chilies. A hearty meatless chili where bulgur replaces ground meat for satisfying texture.
Cappuccino pound cake with cocoa, instant coffee, Kahlua, creme de cacao, and warm spices, topped with a coffee Kahlua cream glaze. A rich, boozy chocolate-coffee cake.
Crispy phyllo triangles stuffed with spiced lamb, raisins, pine nuts, and warm cinnamon-cumin-allspice. A Middle Eastern-inspired appetizer that bakes lighter than fried, perfect for parties.
Serve with vanilla icecream or a dollop of best available double cream
Fish fillets with tomatoes, capers, and olives is the Veracruz-style Mexican classic: lime-marinated red snapper or halibut simmered in tomato-olive-caper sauce spiked with pickled jalapeños and warm spices.
Mexican-style spicy beef stew braises chuck cubes in a tomato, garlic, and roasted green chile sauce until fork-tender. Served with warm flour tortillas to scoop up the rich, brick-red gravy.
Mexican pinto bean stew with a homemade cumin-chili spice mix, zucchini, carrots, and tomato sauce. A vegan, pantry-friendly one-pot stew with a bonus spice blend recipe.
Texas-style chocolate sheet cake bakes a thin, fudgy buttermilk-cocoa cake in 25 minutes, then gets crowned with warm pecan-laced fudge icing poured straight onto the still-warm surface. Sixteen squares from one 9x13 pan.
Sliced tomatoes with raw salsa: ripe tomato slices over a bed of alfalfa sprouts, topped with a chilled fresh salsa of green pepper, scallions, cilantro, cumin, and apple cider vinegar.
Just enough spiciness without over powering my palate, and the soup was very tasty.
No-bake chocolate pudding pies in single-serve graham cracker crusts with cinnamon, whipped topping, and chocolate curls. Ready in 10 minutes flat.
Apple filling cake baked in a tube pan with layers of grated cinnamon apples swirled through a moist oil-based batter. Dense, fruity, and warmly spiced.
Roast pheasant stuffed with toasted rice, mushrooms, and herbs, draped in bacon and basted with a currant jelly and port wine sauce. A classic wild game dinner.
Panforte is the dense, chewy Sienese Christmas cake packed with toasted hazelnuts and almonds, dates, cherries, cocoa, and warm spices, bound by hot honey caramel. A traditional Italian holiday confection.
Halloween dead bones cookies are pillowy almond meringue-style cookies spiced with ground cloves, dusted in powdered sugar to look like ancient ghostly bones. A spooky kid-friendly Halloween treat from old European tradition.
Clove Cranberry Sauce with Apple and Orange juice recipe
Grandma's Ohio farm chili made with ground beef, hot Italian sausage, kidney beans, and condensed tomato soup. Served the Midwest way: ladled over mashed potatoes in a big bowl.
Homemade pumpkin spice latte made with real pumpkin puree, warm spice, and bold coffee. Skip the coffee-shop syrup and the line, ready in about 10 minutes, with a dairy-free option.
Indian eggplant curry with peas and cilantro: a vegan dry-fry baingan masala built on tempered mustard and cumin seeds, turmeric, and cayenne. Soft, almost buttery eggplant served over rice, topped with bright green peas.
Belgian spice crisps are paper-thin, shatteringly crisp cookies scented with cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, ginger, lemon, and rum. A European Christmas classic rolled ultra-thin for maximum crunch.
Timen Ajami spiced meat skillet with ground beef or lamb, allspice, Madras curry powder, rosewater, dried currants, and chopped almonds. A fragrant Middle Eastern one-pan dish ready in 45 minutes.
Chicken tequila pasta with lime, cumin, and a smoky tomato sauce simmered with real tequila. Tender poached chicken tossed with noodles for a bold Southwestern-inspired dinner.
Sweet and sour green beans with bay leaf, cloves, and vinegar. Diabetic-friendly vegetarian side dish ready in 13 minutes with sugar substitute.
Zucchini pie that tastes like apple pie. A classic garden-glut mock apple pie with peeled zucchini, cinnamon, brown sugar, and a buttery streusel top, perfect for end-of-summer harvests.
Chicken picadillo with bone-in thighs braised in a tomato sauce with golden raisins, green chilies, cinnamon, and cumin. A sweet-savory Latin American skillet dinner topped with almonds.
Maple coconut rice pudding baked with skim milk, cinnamon, eggs, and shredded coconut for a creamy, custard-style dessert. A lighter take on rice pudding sweetened with real maple syrup.
Crispy flour-dredged soft-shell crabs served on a pool of creamy tomato sauce with creme fraiche, cumin seeds, celery seeds, garlic, and shallots. A restaurant-worthy crab dish with a make-ahead sauce.
Chocolate cinnamon cake with almond cream layers a tender whipped-egg-white cake spiced with cinnamon and unsweetened chocolate, topped with a tangy almond-scented sour cream and whipped cream finish.
Old-time beef stew simmers floured chunks of stew meat with carrots, potatoes, and a secret splash of lemon juice and a pinch of allspice. Stovetop in 3 hours or crockpot all day.
Italian pumpkin pie from the Po Valley with pasta frolla crust, fresh pumpkin filling, ground almonds, cornmeal, and candied orange peel. A rustic Northern Italian autumn dessert.
Jam cake with caramel icing, a three-layer Southern spice cake built around blackberry jam, cinnamon, and allspice, blanketed with soft-ball-stage caramel icing made from brown sugar, butter, and cream.
Applesauce cake waffles spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Fluffy from folded egg whites, these taste like fall in every crispy bite.
Tuscan-style duck ragu for pappardelle with boneless duck, pancetta, chicken livers, porcini mushrooms, rosemary, and white wine. A rich, slow-simmered Italian meat sauce.
Spicy cranberry pork chops with whole-berry cranberry sauce, raisins, brown sugar, orange juice, and cinnamon. A sweet-tart microwave pork chop dinner.
Hearty venison chili using both cubed and ground deer meat for texture, simmered with crushed tomatoes, chili powder, cumin, and kidney beans. Masa harina thickens it to a rich, spoon-coating finish.
Old English yeasted Christmas cake spiced with cinnamon, coriander, nutmeg, and caraway seeds. A buttery yeast-risen holiday loaf, closer to brioche than to fruitcake.
West Indian shrimp sauteed with Angostura bitters, saffron, and Caribbean herbs, then broiled under Parmesan until golden. A bold island-inspired seafood dish ready in 30 minutes.
Basmati rice studded with five dried fruits, sliced mushrooms, slivered almonds, and cinnamon. A fragrant side dish that pairs beautifully with veal or poultry.