The holidays, no matter how joyful, always bring a bit of stress - standing in store lines, searching for parking spaces, watching the diminishing bank account and mounting credit-card debt.

But gifts made in the kitchen are worth more than the cost of their ingredients. Homemade breads, chutneys, candies, cakes and cookies convey a warmth and care no store-bought present can.

And, often they come with stories and memories more sweet than the sugar that flavors them.

That was true with many of the recipes that readers sent us when we asked for their favorite food gifts. Some had been passed down through the years from friend to friend, sister to sister. Some had been in family recipe boxes for decades, a couple for more than 40 years.

Faith A. Harland-White, dean of community education at Anne Arundel Community College, sent a recipe for Donna May's English Toffee, the candy her friend used to bring to cookie exchanges years ago when they were young mothers.

Her friend died about 10 years ago, but Harland-White continues to make the toffee for friends and relatives. "It's a small way to remember Donna," Harland-White said. "This is one of the all-time favorites."

Lillian Wright's easy Sugar-and-Spice Pecans recipe comes with a lost-and-found story. Wright acquired the recipe when she was in a gourmet club in New York in the 1950s but lost it some years later.

Then in 2000, Wright was in Nashville, Tenn., for the funeral of her sister-in-law, a good cook who had made pecan candies the family loved. Wright looked through her sister-in-law's recipe box and found the secret behind those admired candies -- written in Wright's own hand. It was the recipe she had lost.

Susan Sartory, a librarian at McDonogh School, sent us a recipe for Flowerpot Bread that a student gave her 20 years ago. The cheddar bread is baked in a clay flowerpot, which Sartory usually wraps in calico cloth before giving. She says the bread is a great gift for teachers who can be inundated with trinkets from their students, and she has made it for her own children's teachers.

A couple of the recipes we selected were created or modified by the cooks who gave them to us. Caroline Bucci has been making her Black-Walnut Cake for about 15 years. She uses a cup of walnuts and a cup of sour cream to create a dense cake that her friends and relatives love. But she cautions bakers to be careful that it doesn't over-bake. "You can very easily dry it out," she said.

Liz Barclay, an Annapolis mother who works full time and still makes cakes, candies and preserves to give to friends, sent us several recipes, including Candy-Bar Biscotti. She adapted the recipe from one her sister in Boston gave her a few years ago. She added toffee bits to make it "more kid-pleasing," she said.

The biscotti will be one of the many treats Barclay will cook and bake this holiday season. "It's one of my favorite things to do," she said. "It's so much more personal."

We chose nine recipes from the more than 50 that readers sent to us, and included one more, from food stylist Julie Rothman, as our gift to you.

Happy holidays.

Candy-Bar Biscotti

Makes 32 biscotti or 10 to 12 servings

2 cups old-fashioned oats

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 eggs

1 cup mini chocolate chips

1 cup almond toffee bits

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line large baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with shortening. Combine first 5 ingredients and set aside. Using electric mixer, cream sugar and butter until smooth and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Add eggs one at a time and mix well. Mix in reserved dry ingredients. Stir in mini chips and toffee bits.

Spoon dough into 2 log-shaped pieces on prepared baking sheet. Using oiled hands, shape into strips that are 11 1/2 inches long and 3 inches wide. Space them on baking sheet 3 inches apart. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.

Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Turn oven down to 325 degrees. Remove parchment paper and place strips on cutting surface. Using serrated knife, cut ends of each strip on a diagonal to create an even edge. Then continue to cut each strip diagonally into 1/2 -inch slices. Place slices back onto baking sheet cut sides up. Bake at 325 degrees for 15 more minutes, until crisp. Remove from oven and cool completely. Store in airtight container.

- Liz Barclay, Annapolis

Flowerpot Bread

Makes 2 clay flowerpots (5 1/2 inches by 5 1/2 inches)

2 new clay flowerpots

1 cup milk

1 cup water

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

5 to 5 1/2 cups flour

2 packages ( 1/4 ounce each) active dry yeast

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon salt

1 1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 egg

2 tablespoons minced parsley

1 teaspoon caraway seeds

3/4 teaspoon dried tarragon leaves

Wash flowerpots; bake in preheated 375-degree oven for 15 minutes. Cool. Line pots with aluminum foil and grease generously.

Heat milk, water and butter in saucepan to boiling. Cool slightly. Mix 2 cups flour, the yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Blend in milk mixture; beat 2 minutes.

Mix in cheese, egg, parsley, caraway seeds and tarragon. Beat 2 minutes. Stir in enough flour to make a stiff batter (batter will leave sides of bowl).

Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Stir down batter. Spoon batter into flowerpots. Bake in preheated 375-degree oven until golden, about 50 minutes to 55 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Bread can be made 3 days in advance; store wrapped in aluminum foil at room temperature.

Bread can be frozen up to 2 months. Remove from pots and wrap in aluminum foil.

- Susan Sartory, West Friendship

Sugar-and-Spice Pecans

Makes 4 cups

1 egg white

1 tablespoon water or orange juice

1 cup sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 pound pecan halves

Beat egg white and water until frothy (not stiff). Stir in sugar, salt and cinnamon. Stir in pecans until they are completely coated.

Spread nuts on large cookie sheet. Bake at 200 degrees for 45 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes. Remove from oven when dry and toasty. When cool, store in airtight container.

- Lillian Wright, Catonsville

Mocha Creams

Makes 30 confections

1/2 cup butter, softened

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup powdered sugar

2 pasteurized egg yolks

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted, cooled

1 tablespoon instant espresso coffee powder dissolved in 1 tablespoon very hot water

30 miniature chocolate cups available from specialty kitchen or candy stores

30 coffee-bean candies

In a small mixer bowl, beat butter, cream cheese and powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add chocolate and coffee liquid; beat until smooth. If mixture is very soft, refrigerate 30 minutes until firm enough to pipe.

Using a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 -inch plain round tip or a large star tip (or plastic storage bag with a 1/2 -inch slit cut in one lower corner), pipe cream-cheese mixture into chocolate cups. Place a coffee bean candy on top of each cup, pressing down slightly to anchor. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. May be tightly covered and frozen up to 2 months.

- Faith A. Harland-White, Annapolis

Donna May's English Toffee

Makes 18 servings

1/2 pound butter (no substitute)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

ground walnuts to dust top (optional)

Melt butter, add sugar, turn burner to medium heat and stir constantly. Do not leave pan unattended. Pour in almonds and continue stirring. Stir until mixture becomes thick, medium-brown and glassy in color.

Have a parchment-paper-lined jellyroll pan ready. Pour immediately into lined pan and spread out with a wooden spoon. The toffee will not fully cover the paper or fill the pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top and let melt. Spread chocolate over top of mixture with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle top with ground walnuts, if desired.

Place into refrigerator. When thoroughly cool (approximately 2 hours), remove toffee from pan, peel parchment paper from the back and break into serving-size pieces. Store in tightly covered container.

- Faith A. Harland-White, Annapolis

Holiday Jam

Makes 2 quarts

2 cups cranberries

1 medium orange

1 lemon

1/2 cup water

3 cups sugar

one 10-ounce package frozen strawberries, crushed

3 ounces liquid pectin

Finely chop cranberries; cut orange and lemon in quarters, remove seeds and grind in a food processor.

Combine ground fruit, water, sugar and crushed strawberries in large kettle. Stir to blend. Cook over low heat 2 minutes, stirring constantly; bring to a rolling boil. Boil hard for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat; stir in pectin. Boil again for 2 minutes. Stir 4 to 5 minutes. Pour into jars and seal.

- Sara Frances Shay, Linthicum Heights

Cranberry-Orange Torte

Makes 10-inch tube pan or 2 loaf pans

CAKE:

2 1/4 cups flour (sifted)

1 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

1 cup diced dates

1 cup fresh cranberries

grated rind of 2 oranges

2 eggs, well-beaten

1 cup buttermilk (or combine 1 tablespoon vinegar to 1 cup regular milk)

3/4 cup vegetable oil

GLAZE:

1 cup orange juice

1 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift all dry ingredients into large bowl. Stir in nuts, fruit and orange rind. In a small bowl combine eggs, buttermilk and oil and add to flour mixture, stirring until well blended. Pour into greased pan and bake for 1 hour. Let cake stand until warm (not cool). Remove cake to dish with steep sides or shaped aluminum foil.

Cook sugar and orange juice. Then pour over cake, gradually, continuing to baste until juice is consumed. Wrap in heavy foil for 24 hours before serving.

Cake can be refrigerated for 2 weeks. Suggested toppings: more glaze, whipped cream or lemon sauce.

- Dian Hafler, Laurel

Black-Walnut Cake

Makes 1 tube pan or 2 loaf pans

1 1/2 sticks margarine

2 cups sugar

4 eggs

3 cups flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup sour cream

1/3 cup milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon black walnut extract

1 cup black walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix margarine and sugar and add eggs, 1 at a time; mix. Fold in flour, baking powder and salt, alternating with sour cream, milk and extracts.

Mix well. Add black walnuts and mix. Pour into 2 greased and lined loaf pans or 1 tube pan. Bake for about an hour. Cake is done when toothpick comes out clean.

-- Caroline Bucci, Catonsville

Apple Chutney

Makes 7 1/2 pints

8 cups peeled and chopped tart apples

4 1/2 cups sugar

2 cups seedless golden raisins

1 cup coarsely chopped toasted pecans or walnuts

1/2 cup vinegar

peel of 2 oranges, finely chopped

1/3 teaspoon cloves

Combine all ingredients in large kettle or Dutch oven. Place over high heat and bring to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to simmer and cook slowly until apples are tender and syrup is very thick, almost caramelized.

Ladle into hot sterilized jars, seal and store in cool dark place. Keep refrigerated after opening. Can be frozen. Use as a complement to curries, pork, poultry or toast.

- Caroline Clawson, Baltimore

Holiday Vinegar

Before you begin making any homemade vinegar, be sure your bottles are sterilized.

Makes two 16-ounce bottles

1 quart white wine or champagne vinegar

1 cup fresh cranberries, washed (set some aside for decoration)

18 whole cloves (divided use)

3 cinnamon sticks (divided use)

rind of 1 medium orange, including 1 long piece per bottle

1/2 cup honey

Bring vinegar with cranberries, 6 cloves, 1 cinnamon stick and rind from 1 orange to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 2 minutes. Stir in honey and remove from heat. Strain liquid through fine sieve without pressing berries; discard strained berries.

Allow to cool. Add approximately 12 fresh cranberries, 6 whole cloves, 1 cinnamon stick and long piece of orange rind to each decorative bottle. Add cooled vinegar to fill. Allow to mellow at least 1 week.

- Julie Rothman, Baltimore