Recipes with vanilla bean

Chocolate syrup cake bakes up moist and rich with a thin batter that turns into a fudgy 9x13 sheet cake. A vintage one-bowl dessert built around a full bottle of chocolate syrup.

Giant double chocolate chip cookies with melted chocolate in the dough plus whole chips folded in, sour cream for fudgy centers, and chopped walnuts. Bakery-sized at 3 inches.

Sesame seed cookies are an Italian-American holiday classic with a tender shortbread-like dough rolled in toasted sesame seeds before baking. Massive batch (240 cookies) for cookie tins.

Chocolate leaf pie with a flaky shortening crust and a smooth chocolate filling made from heavy cream, real vanilla bean and melted chocolate. The top crust is cut into vein-etched leaves for a showpiece finish.

Peanut crispies with oats, corn flakes, brown sugar, and salted peanuts rolled into balls and baked until golden. Crunchy, nutty cookies with satisfying texture.

Chocolate chip walnut pie with a gooey corn syrup and egg filling loaded with semi-sweet chocolate and walnuts. Like pecan pie's chocolate-studded cousin, baked low and slow.

Marbled brownies with a vanilla butter batter swirled with melted chocolate chips. Just 6 ingredients for a two-toned treat that's fudgy, buttery, and beautiful.

Chocolate chip squares made in the microwave with oats, brown sugar, and chopped nuts. Chewy, no-oven-needed bars ready in under 30 minutes.

Soft iced pumpkin cookies with cinnamon, nutmeg, walnuts, and raisins topped with a vanilla cream icing. Cake-like fall cookies that smell like autumn in every bite.

Chocolate chip cherry drop cookies with cream cheese in the dough, maraschino cherries, and a half-cherry crown on each cookie. Holiday-bright bite-sized treats.

London strips: layered cookie bars with a buttery shortbread base, strawberry jam filling, and a bourbon-walnut meringue topping dusted with powdered sugar.

Espresso cake is a coffee-infused angel food cake: 12 whipped egg whites, cake flour, and espresso baked in a tube pan, then finished with a coffee-cocoa icing. Feather-light and caffeinated.

This co-winner in the filled-cookie category from Gerry Cofta of Milwaukee has a great, rich flavor in the filling.

Macadamia pie swaps pecans for buttery Hawaiian macadamia nuts in a classic corn syrup and brown sugar custard. Crisp salted nuts on top, gooey caramel below in a single-crust shell.

Robb's caramel pecan pie: a deeper, richer take on classic pecan pie with a cooked caramel base of brown sugar, butter, and cream poured over toasted pecans. Silky, buttery, and unforgettable.

Maple-frosted golden cake layers a tender butter-yellow sponge under a fluffy boiled maple frosting made with pure maple syrup and beaten egg whites. Old-fashioned bakery style.

Jalapeno chocolate cream cake with semi-sweet chocolate, Kahlua, ground almonds, and cinnamon. A rich, fudgy, intentionally underbaked cake with a slow jalapeno heat finish.

Braided yeast bread wreath filled with dates, walnuts, bran flakes, and cinnamon, topped with vanilla confectioner's sugar frosting. A stunning holiday bread that's worth the rise time.

Rich devil's food layer cake: a deeply dark, old-fashioned two-layer chocolate cake made with melted unsweetened chocolate, brown sugar, and buttermilk-style milk. The birthday cake blueprint.

Kiss cookies tuck a whole chocolate kiss inside a buttery walnut shortbread, baked until just set and rolled in powdered sugar. Crack one open and the melty chocolate middle is the payoff. An easy holiday cookie that keeps for days.

Sugar and spice apple nut cake, a one-bowl single-layer cake loaded with chopped fresh apples, warm cinnamon and nutmeg, and crunchy nuts, baked in a square pan.

White chocolate cream filling stabilized with gelatin for cakes, pastries, and holiday desserts. Grated white chocolate baking bar melted into whipped cream with vanilla for a rich, pipeable filling.

Crispy vanilla rosettes fried on a decorative iron, then dipped in vanilla icing. Scandinavian holiday cookies that look like edible snowflakes. Yields 12 cookies.

Vienna crescents are flaky yeast-leavened butter cookies filled with sweet pecan meringue and shaped into delicate crescents. A traditional Christmas cookie from Austrian and Hungarian baking.

Oatmeal cookies with orange zest, walnuts, and yogurt for a lighter, citrusy twist. Chewy, nutty cookies with brown sugar and a hint of orange in every bite.

Grandma's red velvet cake: a true vintage Southern recipe with cocoa, buttermilk, and vinegar reacting with baking soda to give the cake its tender, tangy crumb. Two 9-inch layers, ready in 45 minutes.

Light, airy cheesecake with whipped egg whites folded into the cream cheese filling, baked on a graham cracker crust and topped with sweetened sour cream, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

Painted sugar cookies decorated with vibrant egg-yolk paint before baking, set on a no-leavening rolled cookie that holds its shape and color. A craft-and-bake project for kids and holidays.

Hidden Jewels are brown sugar bar cookies studded with colorful gumdrops and walnuts, lightened with folded egg whites. A retro candy-filled treat kids love.

Old-fashioned white drop cookies with nutmeg and vanilla. A big-batch recipe using shortening for soft, cakey cookies that stay tender for days.

Puffed apple pancake: a dramatic oven-baked Dutch baby studded with cinnamon-caramelized apples. Pours flat, emerges with golden billowing edges and a custardy center. Breakfast theater in one skillet.

Pumpkin cheesecake with graham cracker crust, spiced pumpkin custard filling, and a tangy sour cream topping. Holiday dessert with cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg, garnished with pecan halves on each slice.

Nut refrigerator cookies (icebox cookies) with brown sugar, butter, vanilla, and chopped nuts. Slice-and-bake dough that chills overnight and yields crisp, buttery cookies with caramel notes.

Vegan tofu French toast: silky soft tofu blended into a creamy egg-free custard for soaking whole-wheat bread. Dairy-free, plant-based brunch protein.

Rich chocolate sauce made from unsweetened chocolate, heavy cream, and dry sherry, boiled to a thick, glossy pour. An elegant ice cream topping that stores in the fridge.

Toasted coconut cookies with oats, walnuts, and flaked coconut baked until golden brown. A chewy drop cookie with nutty, tropical flavor from toasted coconut and toasted walnuts in every bite.

Old-fashioned Southern teacakes with shortening, vanilla, and simple pantry staples. Soft, lightly sweet, and rolled out just like Grandma made them.

Hazelnut chocolate toffee layers crunchy buttery brown-sugar candy with toasted hazelnuts and a melted-on chocolate chip topping. Holiday gift candy that breaks into rough shards.

Mint chocolate candy cheesecake: chocolate wafer crust topped with a silky cream cheese filling swirled with semi-sweet chocolate and creme de menthe. Andes-candy cheesecake vibes.

Pineapple breakfast shake blended with banana, skim milk, pineapple juice, and vanilla. A creamy, tropical smoothie with no added sugar, ready in minutes.

An elegant French toast with a touch of lemon, for a company brunch.

Classic homemade chocolate cake with deep cocoa flavor baked in layers or a sheet pan. This tender, from-scratch cake is perfect for birthdays and celebrations.

Three-layer red velvet cake with buttermilk, cocoa, and vinegar topped with a cooked flour white icing. Old-fashioned Southern style with an ermine frosting that's not too sweet.

Chocolate cake ala Florence made with unsweetened chocolate melted in hot water, cake flour, buttermilk, and butter. A one-bowl, dump-and-beat method with rich, dark crumb.

Peachy pinwheels swirl a soft butter cookie dough around a nutmeg-spiced dried peach filling, then slice and bake into spiral cookies. A pretty pinwheel cookie for the holiday tin.

Chocolate-tipped butter cookies shaped into sticks, fork-pressed, and dipped in melted chocolate chips then rolled in chopped pecans or almonds. Elegant and melt-in-your-mouth tender.

Gluten-free pear breakfast cake made with rice flour and cornstarch, topped with a crackly sugar bloom. Light, simple, and naturally gluten-free with tender fruit in every bite.

Pecan squares with a buttery shortbread crust and a gooey pecan pie filling baked on a sheet pan. All the flavor of pecan pie in a portable, shareable bar cookie format.