With winter break right around the corner, it’s the perfect time for beginners and experienced chefs alike to get back in the kitchen and cook up some holiday cheer. Below you will find three festive recipes featuring seasonal flavors perfect for Christmas, Hanukkah, and New Years. 

Matzo Chocolate Toffee

Level: Easy

Perfect for Hanukkah, this play on Christmas toffee uses matzos in place of the traditional saltines for a treat that is both kosher and delicious. Decorated with gelt, the chocolate coins gifted to children for each night of Hanukkah, this fun snack is sure to bring a smile to everyone’s face.

Ingredients:

4 salted matzo sheets (such as Manischewitz thin lightly salted)

2 sticks butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 12 ounce bag chocolate chips (semi sweet or dark chocolate)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract 

15-20 pieces of gelt

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, making sure it goes up the sides and over the edges of the pan 

Step 2: Place the matzos on the bottom of the pan, breaking them up if necessary 

Step 3: Combine butter and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat and stir constantly until it comes to a boil

Step 4: Cook for an additional three minutes, stirring constantly 

Step 5: Whisk in vanilla and immediately pour over the matzos 

Step 6: Put the pan in the oven and bake for 10 minutes 

Step 7: Remove from oven and immediately pour chocolate chips over the top

Step 8: Wait 5 minutes for them to soften then use a spatula to spread them in an even layer

Step 9: Top the matzo with gelt to decorate 

Step 10: Let set until hardened, then cut into pieces and enjoy!

Eve’s Cottage Pie

Level: Intermediate 

As Christmas dinner comes to an end, there is inevitably a hunk of meat leftover from the day’s roast. Every year, my grandma combats this dilemma by making a delicious cottage pie using up all the extra. Although it’s called a pie, this British classic is more of what Americans would consider to be a casserole, as it consists of a layer of savory filling topped with fluffy mashed potatoes. In our family, we typically use roast beef, but you can use roast turkey, ground beef, or even lamb to make a shepherd’s pie. The idea of the dish is to use any leftover bits and turn it into something delicious, and as a vegetarian of seven years, I personally enjoy using impossible meat in place of the real deal. Whatever meat you choose, the pie is sure to be a tasty comfort food the whole family will love.

Ingredients: 

1 lb. cold cooked meat or 1 lb. cooked ground meat

2 sticks and 2 tablespoons butter , cut into cubes 

2 medium onions, diced

1 small can beef gravy (such as Swanson’s) 

3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce 

1 lb russet potatoes, peeled and chopped

½ cup half and half 

Steamed peas, to serve 

Step 1: Add potatoes to a large pot of salted water and bring to a boil 

Step 2: Melt one stick of butter in a saucepan over medium heat and add the onions 

Step 3: Once onions are cooked, stir in the gravy and Worcestershire sauce and cook until thickened 

Step 4: Add in the meat and season to taste with salt and pepper 

Step 5: Transfer the mixture to a baking dish and preheat the oven to 400 

Step 6: By this point your potatoes should be done cooking, so check if they are fork tender and then remove them from the water 

Step 7: Add the second stick of butter to the potatoes and vigorously mash them until fully smooth 

Step 8: Stir in the half and half and season generously with salt 

Step 9: Spread the potatoes over the meat and top with the additional butter 

Step 10: Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until top is browned and serve with peas 

Amaretto Cookies

Level: Easy

Easy to make and full of holiday flavor, these Italian treats are the perfect addition to any Christmas cookie platter. A step away from your traditional butter and sugar based cookies, these beauties are similar to marzipan with a melt in your mouth texture that keeps for days. Since discovering this recipe, I make multiple batches every holiday season and they always bring a smile to everyone’s face. 

Ingredients: 

5 egg whites

4 ½ cups almond flour

2 cups granulated sugar 

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract 

2 teaspoons almond extract 

¼ cup amaretto liquor 

½ cup powdered sugar

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 325 and line two baking sheets with foil

Step 2: Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat until stiff peaks form

Step 3: Combine the almond flour with 1 ½ cups of the sugar and fold the mixture into the egg whites using a spatula in three batches 

Step 4: Fold in the amaretto and the extracts 

Step 5: Stir together the remaining granulated sugar with the powdered sugar in a small bowl

Step 6: Using your hands, roll the dough into tablespoon sized balls and dip in the sugar mixture, making sure to fully coat

Step 7: Arrange the cookies on the baking sheets and bake for 20-25 minutes 

Step 8: Let cool completely then enjoy!