It’s a common pickle –– eight friends for dinner, eight food intolerances to contend with. Marjorie is gluten and dairy intolerant, Camilla doesn’t eat meat, fish, eggs or night shade vegetables and her husband, Diego is on a strict Alkaline diet.  What’s a girl to cook? “It sort of sucks the joy out of cooking,” I said to my friend Stephanie, who’s struggling to devise a menu that will suit a laundry list of intolerances (no onions, garlic, lentils, wheat, dairy, meat and leaks) that one of her guests emailed over in advance of an upcoming dinner party. Diets, intolerances and allergies can be such a bother for a cook, but knowing Steph, she’ll turn this into a creative challenge. I, of course, suggested she ask her friend to bring her own dinner. I was kidding, sort of. But cooking sans onions is no fun at all. As a picky eater myself, I’d rather bring my own food than stop seven others from gorging on garganelli and salsiccia.

My friend Alison is hosting her annual cookie exchange in a few weeks. Last year, there was a coconut crise in my kitchen just hours before the tea party, with every snowball burnt to a blackened mess. I still went, with delicious butter biscuits in a charming tin in hand, but I was embarrassed to be the only guest with a shop-bought offering. This year,  I am determined to bring something made-from-scratch and delicious. These pretzel caramel bars look easy enough, even for me.

What I love about Middle Eastern food is that it’s as simple as it is decadent — simple ingredients like yogurt, honey and figs combined with something special like rose and orange water to make a luxurious dessert. On the weekend we feasted on a jeweled rice of carrot, saffron, barberries and almonds, branzino wrapped in vine leaf and labneh with fennel, honey and olive oil. I grew up on Greek food, and the two cuisines have a lot in common. But where Greek food is rustic, Persian, Turkish or Lebanese food, feels regal.

We woke up this morning to a thin layer of powdery snow on the ground. I’ve seen snow all my life, but the first snowfall of the season never seizes to amaze. It reminds me of the delicate powdered sugar we sprinkle on sponge cakes, pizzelle and Turkish Delight. I’m no baker, but this weather makes me want to put on a pinny and fry up some fancies for afternoon tea.