Honestly, the system you run for new players should depend on who those players are, their preferences, and comfort levels with related things you can use to judge their preferences. A group of hardcore eurogame boardgamers are going to be a lot more comfortable learning a complex rule system than my in-laws.
A long time ago I did spend a few months experimenting with ratios to make my own cookie recipe, it makes really good chocolate chip cookies. Not very christmassy though.