Recipes with vegetable shortening

A classic pound cake made without salt or leavening, relying on nine eggs and thorough creaming for its tender, dense crumb. Brightened with fresh lemon juice and vanilla, this low-sodium recipe bakes into a tall, golden beauty in a tube pan.

Italian cream cake stacks three buttermilk-tender layers loaded with toasted pecans and shredded coconut, then crowns it all with cream cheese frosting. A Southern bakery showpiece.

Louisiana banana cake with mashed bananas in a buttermilk batter, topped with sliced fresh bananas and a broiled coconut-brown sugar topping. A Southern sheet cake served warm.

Old-fashioned persimmon cake made with ripe persimmon pulp, shortening, eggs, and a simple flour-and-leavening base. A vintage autumn bake from the Hoosier and Appalachian traditions.

Soft orange juice cookies with fresh OJ in the batter and a tangy orange-glazed top. A vintage church-supper drop cookie with bright citrus flavor in every bite.

Soft pineapple cookies with crushed pineapple and chopped nuts or coconut in a tender, cake-like drop cookie. A tropical twist on the classic cookie jar favorite.

Flaky homemade chicken pasties stuffed with seasoned chicken, potatoes, carrots, and onion, baked until golden. A hearty hand pie that's comfort food you can hold.

Kuchen, a traditional German yeast coffee cake with raisins and cinnamon, made from a rich egg dough that rises twice. A heritage recipe that makes two golden loaves.

Pinto bean bread, a soft yeast loaf made with mashed pinto beans for extra protein, fiber, and a dense, tender crumb. Rustic and surprisingly good for sandwiches.

Baked empanadas with a flaky cornmeal pastry crust stuffed with spiced ground beef, raisins, and spaghetti sauce. A Mexican-inspired hand pie with sweet and savory picadillo-style filling.

Texas-style chocolate sheet cake with buttermilk, cocoa, and a hot fudge icing poured over the warm cake. A 30-minute one-bowl chocolate sheet cake that feeds a crowd at potlucks and church suppers.

These easy to make and delicious cookies taste amazing with a cup of tea or milk.

This makes a cake like cookie just exploding with orange flavor.

Brown-eyed Susan cake, a chocolate and orange marble cake: one batter split and flavored two ways, then dropped together so every slice swirls dark chocolate through bright orange. A charming retro layer cake.

Raspberry nut cake: a tender buttermilk-cinnamon layer cake studded with fresh raspberries and chopped nuts, finished with pink raspberry-puree frosting. The most photogenic layer cake on the table.

Raisin crumb pie layers plump raisins under a cakey batter and a buttery crumb topping in a flaky crust. A heritage Pennsylvania Dutch-style dessert that makes two pies at once.