This pumpkin cookies recipe starts by blotting canned pumpkin until it packs like paste, then mixing it with brown sugar and egg yolks so the cookies bake chewy instead of puffing into muffin tops. I leave the whites out on purpose – that extra water is what turns the dough into cake. If you already made a pan of pumpkin muffins, these use the rest of the can, and a loaf of chocolate chip pumpkin bread uses the same puree if you’d rather slice than scoop.

Ingredients

• ½ cup (122 g) canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling
• ½ cup (1 stick / 113 g) unsalted butter, softened
• ¾ cup (165 g) packed light brown sugar
• 2 large egg yolks
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1¾ cups (220 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
• 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon fine salt
• 3 tablespoons (38 g) granulated sugar, for rolling
• ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, for rolling

Instructions

1. Blot the pumpkin: Spread the ½ cup puree on a plate in a thin layer. Press a paper towel onto it, lift, and repeat with fresh towels until a dry towel comes away with almost no orange stain and the puree looks like thick tomato paste. You should have about ¼ cup (60 g) left. If you skip this, the dough bakes up puffy and pale, more like a mini muffin than a cookie.
2. Heat the oven and mix dry: Heat the oven to 350°F (177°C) with a rack in the center and line two baking sheets with parchment. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, 2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until the spice looks even. Spoon the flour into the cup and level it off, because a packed cup is the fastest way to a dry, sandy cookie.
3. Cream butter, sugar, and yolks: Beat the softened butter and brown sugar with a hand mixer on medium-high until the mixture looks lighter and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the yolks and vanilla and beat 1 minute more, until it looks pale. Beat in the blotted pumpkin on low just until combined. The mixture may look slightly curdled from the pumpkin hitting the fat, and it smooths out when the flour goes in.
4. Scoop and roll: Add the dry mix and mix on low just until the last streak of flour disappears. The dough should hold a scoop, not slump like batter. If it slumps, chill it 10 minutes. Scoop 2-tablespoon balls, roll them in the granulated sugar mixed with the remaining ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice, and set them 2 inches apart on the sheets.
5. Bake until puffy, then cool: Bake one sheet at a time for 12 to 13 minutes, until the edges look set and the centers are still puffy and pale. Cool on the sheet 5 minutes, then move to a rack. As they cool, the centers fall and the tops wrinkle, which is the chewy texture setting, not a collapse.

Chocolate chips, pecans, and a plain top

• Fold ¾ cup (130 g) semisweet chocolate chips in after the flour and skip the spice-sugar roll so the chips stay put instead of sliding off in the oven.
• Use ½ cup (60 g) chopped toasted pecans the same way. Start with already-toasted nuts, or they taste raw in the center of a 12-minute bake.
• Leave the sugar roll off if you want a plainer top to frost later. Frost only after they are fully cool or the frosting slides.

Keep the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Let them cool completely before you lid the container or the tops turn sticky. Freeze cooled cookies for up to 2 months and thaw on the counter.

This pot roast recipe is a Dutch oven braise, not a stew. I sear a chuck roast until the crust is deep brown, keep the liquid only halfway up so the meat doesn’t boil gray, and add the potatoes and carrots for the last 90 minutes so they hold their shape. I put golden garlic bread on the table for the pan juices, and if I want ranch and pepperoncini instead of this gravy I make Mississippi-style pot roast.

Ingredients

• 3½ pounds (1.6 kg) boneless beef chuck roast
• 1½ teaspoons kosher salt, plus a pinch for the onions
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large yellow onion, cut into 8 wedges
• 4 garlic cloves, smashed
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 cup (240 ml) dry red wine, or extra beef broth
• 2 cups (480 ml) low-sodium beef broth
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1½ pounds (680 g) baby potatoes or Yukon Gold, halved if larger than 2 inches
• 4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces
• 3 ribs celery, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, for gravy if needed
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, for gravy if needed
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

1. Season and sear: Heat the oven to 325°F (163°C) with a rack in the lower third. Pat the chuck dry and season it on all sides with the salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a 5 to 6 quart Dutch oven over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then lay in the roast and leave it 4 to 5 minutes per side, until the crust is deep brown and it releases on its own. Transfer the roast to a plate so the onions can take the fat and browned bits. If you flip it early or the pot isn’t hot, you steam the meat and the gravy later tastes pale.
2. Build the braising liquid: Lower the heat to medium, add the onion wedges and a pinch of salt, and cook 5 to 6 minutes, until the edges brown and they pick up the stuck bits from the pot. Stir in the tomato paste and garlic and cook 1 to 2 minutes, until the paste turns brick-red and smells sweet, not raw and tinny. Pour in the wine (or 1 cup of the broth) and scrape the bottom clean, then let it bubble 1 to 2 minutes until the sharp alcohol smell is gone.
3. Braise halfway up: Return the roast and any plate juices. Pour in the remaining broth, Worcestershire, bay leaves, and thyme. The liquid should come about halfway up the sides of the meat, not cover it. If it sits higher, ladle some out; a full bath boils the roast and you lose the crust you just built. Bring just to a simmer on the stove, cover, and put the pot in the oven for 2 hours.
4. Add the vegetables: Nest the potatoes, carrots, and celery around the roast so they sit in the liquid. Cover and cook 75 to 90 minutes more, until a fork twisted in the thickest part of the meat meets almost no resistance and the potatoes are tender but still hold a cube. If the meat is still tight at 3 hours total oven time, cover and keep going in 20-minute stretches. Adding time is the fix, not more liquid.
5. Rest and finish the gravy: Move the roast to a board and tent it loosely for 10 minutes. Discard the bay leaves and thyme stems. If the juices already coat a spoon, you’re done. If they’re thin, set the pot over medium heat, mash the butter with the flour, whisk it in, and simmer 2 to 3 minutes until the gravy looks glossy and a spoon dragged through it leaves a trail. Slice or pull the meat into large pieces, return it to the pot, scatter the parsley, and serve.

Slow cooker, wine swaps, and other cuts

• For a slow cooker, sear and build the liquid on the stove, then cook on low 8 to 10 hours. Add the potatoes and carrots for the last 2 hours, and drop the broth to 1½ cups so the meat braises instead of boiling.
• Skip the wine and use 3 cups broth total. The tomato paste and Worcestershire still give the gravy a backbone.
• Brisket works the same way, fat cap up. Bottom round dries out in this amount of liquid, so I don’t use it here.
• Leave the potatoes out of the pot and serve creamy mashed potatoes if you want a softer side. Cubed chuck in gravy is a different dish: make beef stew instead of forcing this roast into cubes.

Storage

Cool leftovers and refrigerate in an airtight container within 2 hours. They keep 3 to 4 days. Reheat a portion in a covered skillet over low heat with a spoon of the gravy until the beef is hot, 165°F (74°C) in the center. Freeze portions with gravy for up to 3 months and thaw overnight in the fridge. USDA leftovers and food safety covers the 2-hour cooling window and that reheat temperature.

This chicken marsala recipe starts with cutlets pounded to ¼ inch so they sear gold before the middle dries out, then I reduce dry Marsala on its own until it smells nutty instead of like raw alcohol. Cream stays out of the pan; the flour on the chicken and that reduction are what thicken the sauce so it tastes like wine and mushrooms, not a cream gravy. I spoon it over creamy mashed potatoes, and when I want lemon and capers from the same pounded-cutlet start I make chicken piccata.

Ingredients

• 1½ pounds (680 g) boneless skinless chicken breasts (2 large)
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• ⅓ cup (40 g) all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil
• 3 tablespoons (42 g) unsalted butter, divided
• 8 ounces (225 g) cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 medium shallot, minced (about 3 tablespoons)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• ¾ cup (180 ml) dry Marsala wine (secco, not cooking wine)
• ¾ cup (180 ml) low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Instructions

• Prepare the chicken: Pat the chicken dry. Slice each breast in half horizontally to make 4 cutlets. Place them between sheets of plastic wrap and pound to an even ¼-inch (6 mm) thickness.
• Season and dredge: Mix the flour with ½ teaspoon salt and the black pepper on a shallow plate. Lightly coat each cutlet in the flour, shaking off the excess. Set aside in a single layer.
• Brown the chicken: Heat the olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken in a single layer, working in batches if needed. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes on the first side and 2 to 3 minutes on the second, until golden. Transfer to a plate; it will finish cooking in the sauce.
• Cook the mushrooms: Reduce the heat to medium and add the remaining tablespoon of butter. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until their moisture has cooked off and the edges are browned. Add the shallot, garlic, thyme, and remaining ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook for 1 minute.
• Make the Marsala sauce: Pour in the Marsala and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the skillet. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, until reduced by about half. Add the chicken broth and simmer for another 4 to 5 minutes, until the sauce has slightly thickened.
• Finish the chicken: Return the chicken and any juices from the plate to the skillet. Spoon some sauce and mushrooms over the top and simmer gently for about 2 minutes, or until the chicken reaches 165°F (74°C). Sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately with golden garlic bread for the extra sauce.

Cream, veal, and mushroom swaps

• If you want a cream version, stir in 3 tablespoons of heavy cream off the heat after the sauce already coats a spoon. A full ⅔ cup of cream mutes the Marsala and you get mushroom Alfredo, which is a different dish.
• Veal cutlets, pounded to the same ¼ inch, swap in 1-for-1 for the chicken. They cook faster, about 2 minutes per side, so pull them sooner or they dry out in the reduction.
• Turkey cutlets work the same way. Don’t use thick turkey breast steaks; they dry out before the sauce is ready.
• Cremini mushrooms are the default here. A handful of shiitake mixed in adds more chew without turning the pan into a steam bath, as long as you still don’t crowd them.
• Bone-in chicken is the wrong cut here. The reduction is short, and the meat won’t cook through before the Marsala is done.
• If you want a breaded, saucy cutlet instead of a wine reduction, make chicken parmesan from the same split-and-pound start.

Storage

Cool leftovers and refrigerate in an airtight container within 2 hours. They keep 3 to 4 days. Reheat a portion in a skillet over low heat with a spoon of broth until the chicken is hot, not boiling, so the cutlets don’t tighten. I wouldn’t freeze this; the mushrooms go rubbery and the sauce splits on thaw. USDA leftovers and food safety covers the 2-hour cooling window and the 165°F (74°C) leftover reheat target.

FAQ

Can you make chicken marsala without cream?

Yes, and this version is written that way on purpose. Traditional chicken marsala is a Marsala-and-stock reduction thickened by the flour on the cutlets, not a cream sauce. If you want it silkier, add 3 tablespoons of heavy cream off the heat at the end, after the sauce already coats a spoon. More cream than that covers the wine.

What is the difference between dry Marsala, sweet Marsala, and cooking wine?

Buy a bottle labeled dry or secco Marsala (Florio and Pellegrino are the common ones). Sweet, or dolce, Marsala is for desserts and makes the pan sauce cloying against the mushrooms. The cheap ‘Marsala cooking wine’ on the vinegar aisle is salted and preserved; it never reduces clean and the sauce tastes metallic. If you can’t find dry Marsala, dry Madeira is the closest swap. Don’t use red wine or white wine and expect the same nutty finish.

What can I use instead of Marsala wine?

Dry Madeira is the substitute that still tastes like a fortified-wine pan sauce. Dry sherry is next, though it’s a little sharper. Skip grape juice plus vinegar hacks; they reduce to candy. If you need a no-alcohol pan, use the same amount of chicken broth plus 1 teaspoon of sherry vinegar at the end, and know it won’t taste like Marsala. Call it chicken with mushrooms and don’t pretend otherwise.