A couple of things to consider when making tamales, a staple at Christmas time in Mexican households and for special occasions. First, think of assembling tamales like making crepes: The first one or two never work, but they help you become comfortable with the process. Second, don’t be tempted to overfill the tamales; a couple of good tablespoons of filling will do it. If you use too much it will make it harder to seal neatly and the filling will likely seep out the top of the husk during cooking. —Suzanne Lenzer

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