Recipes with vegetable shortening

Homemade English muffins from scratch: yeasted dough rolled and cut into discs, dusted with cornmeal, and griddle-baked low and slow until they develop those signature nooks and crannies.

Individual walnut brownies from a mix, flipped upside-down and coated in powdered sugar glaze with a walnut half and chocolate drizzle. Bakery-style presentation made easy.

Old-fashioned cake doughnuts made from scratch with nutmeg and vanilla, deep-fried and dusted with sugar. No yeast, no rising time, no fuss.

Tender veal cubes browned in bacon fat and simmered in tomato gravy with carrots and onions. A hearty Pennsylvania Dutch one-pot meal ready in under an hour.

Holiday appetizer quiche baked in a sheet pan with Swiss cheese, ham, scallions, and pimentos in a buttery cracker crust. Cut into 50 small squares for easy party finger food.

Old-fashioned Christmas fruit cake with boiled raisins, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. No eggs or butter needed, just cold water and shortening for a dense, spiced holiday cake.

No-bake chocolate fingers made with powdered milk, cocoa, powdered sugar, raisins, cherries, and candied peel. A fudgy, fruit-studded candy that firms up in the fridge.

Mocha cake with chocolate buttercream frosting. An airy sponge cake soaked in orange syrup, filled and frosted with a coffee-chocolate buttercream made from Italian meringue.

Concentration candy cookies: brown sugar-pecan cookies topped with matched pairs of colored candy-coated chocolates. A clever kids' memory-match game cookie for parties.

Homemade pancake batter from scratch with flour, egg, milk, and shortening. Double-sifted dry ingredients make thick, light pancakes every time.

Double peanut butter sandwich cookies with peanut butter in the dough and between two slices. A slice-and-bake cookie with freezable dough for make-ahead baking.

Cinnamon-spiced maple cookies rolled in crispy rice cereal with chopped nuts. A crunchy, unique drop cookie with a sweet maple flavor and cereal coating.

Poppy seed ravioli cookies filled with a blended almond-poppy seed-honey filling, folded like tiny ravioli, and brushed with honey after baking. A unique holiday cookie project.

Homemade graham crackers from-scratch with whole graham flour, brown sugar, and a long overnight chill. Crisp, lightly sweet wholewheat crackers ready for s'mores, pie crusts, or straight-up snacking.

Beaten biscuits, a historic Southern recipe made by beating dough with a rolling pin until it snaps. Crisp, tender, and shelf-stable for weeks. Makes about 100 small biscuits.

Cornmeal pie shell made with flour, cornmeal, and shortening. A sturdy, subtly sweet crust ideal for savory Southwest pies, quiches, or fruit tarts.