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Blue Ribbon Deep Dish Apple Pie

When it comes to apple pie, the more fruit the merrier. Only, the more apples you pile into the dish, the more likely you are to end up with a big gap between the crust, which sets early in the baking, and the filling, which softens and shrinks by the time the pie is done. The answer, in a technique I adapted from Cook’s Illustrated magazine, is to pre-cook the apples just a bit to “set” their shape. The result is a pie that’s good enough for a bake-off: tall, beautifully domed, and filled to the very top with juicy apples.

Tuscan Turkey Roulade

Why do we eat turkey only on Thanksgiving?? If it’s prepared properly, turkey can be delicious and easy for any dinner party. This turkey roulade is actually better if you assemble it in advance because the flavors—prosciutto, fennel seeds, garlic, fresh sage, and rosemary—all permeate the turkey. This is classic comfort food with the volume turned up.

Apple-Fennel Salad with Candied Pecans

This robust salad is modeled on one from Alon Shaya’s cookbook, “Shaya.” We prefer to make our own candied pecans because they taste better than store-bought; they can be made a day to two in advance and stored in an airtight container at room temperature. If you don’t have or can’t find Aleppo pepper, substitute ½ teaspoon sweet paprika mixed with ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper for the spiced nuts, then sprinkle the finished salad with an additional pinch or two of sweet paprika. To season the dressing, Shaya uses pink peppercorns, which have a subtle pepperiness and sweet, floral flavor that complement the other ingredients. If you can’t them, we found that 1 tablespoon fennel seed, lightly crushed, works nicely instead.

Pumpkin Seed Rolls

These rolls are best served the day they are baked. For ease they can be made in the morning, then reheated in 350°F oven for 10 minutes just before serving. The seed-butter mixture can be prepared up to three days ahead and refrigerated. Just be sure to pull it out an hour before using to bring it to room temperature.