17 custardy recipes

Pennsylvania Dutch cake-and-custard pie: a soft cake batter and a spiced applesauce-molasses custard poured into one crust bake into two distinct layers, finished with a coffee glaze. A clever heritage dessert.

Eggplant custard gratin with fried eggplant, tomato sauce, basil, and a ricotta-parmesan custard. French-Italian baked side or vegetarian main.

Three layers of fall flavor: a press-in oat crust, sour cream custard filling loaded with cinnamon apples, and a buttery brown sugar crumble on top. No pie dough skills required.

Grandma Cottington's pumpkin pie is a heritage Thanksgiving classic: flaky butter-and-lard double crust, custardy pumpkin filling with cream, molasses, cinnamon, and allspice. Yields 2 pies.

A puffy baked pancake rises dramatically in the oven, then gets filled with warm pineapple-coconut sauce. The edges turn golden and crisp while the center stays custardy and soft.

Fish Market apple pie layers tender McIntosh apples in a creamy sour cream custard, all baked in a cinnamon-spiced crust under a buttery cinnamon-walnut streusel. A custardy twist on classic apple pie.

Peaches and cream dessert casserole with rolled oats, diced peaches, skim milk, and vanilla baked into a custardy, oat pudding. A simple 6-ingredient baked oatmeal dessert.

Sweet egg noodle kugel loaded with cinnamon apples and raisins. This Jewish comfort classic bakes up golden and custardy, perfect for holidays or Sunday brunch.

Sour cream apple pie with a cinnamon-spiced shortbread crust and a buttery walnut streusel top. McIntosh apples bake into a custardy filling that sets up creamy under the crunchy walnut topping.

Hazelnut cherry tart with a ground hazelnut pastry crust, vanilla custard filling set with gelatin, and canned cherries glazed in a rum-spiked cherry syrup topping.

Eggplant gratin layers pan-fried eggplant, fresh tomato sauce, basil and Gruyere under a saffron-tinted ricotta and Parmesan custard. A Provencal-inspired baked vegetable centerpiece worth the effort.

Raisin pecan bread pudding loaded with fruit cocktail and a vanilla-butternut custard. A nostalgic Southern bread pudding that uses up stale bread in 90 minutes.

Pineapple-coconut chess pie with crushed pineapple and flaked coconut bound in a sweet cornmeal-thickened custard. A Southern classic with tropical flair and a slightly chewy texture.

Layered apple cake with a buttery crust, tangy cream cheese filling, sliced apples, and silky custard topping crowned with pecans. A showstopper baked in a springform pan.

French apple cake with poached apples topped in a light, flourless almond batter with lemon zest and whipped egg whites. Served lukewarm with custard or cream.

Bolognese sponge cake layered with vanilla custard and rum, frosted in coffee zabaglione buttercream, then crowned with chocolate-dipped almonds and walnut sides. From Il Cantoncino restaurant in Bologna.