2,089 desert recipes

Pecan shortbread cookies shaped into little ovals and rolled in powdered sugar. Only 4 ingredients, no eggs, mixed by hand, and they melt in your mouth. A Mexican wedding cookie cousin that makes 4 dozen.

French meringue strips with a buttery shortbread base topped with vanilla meringue, cinnamon sugar, and chopped almonds. Elegant bar cookies that yield 8 dozen.

Mandel-Halbmonde are German almond crescents: buttery shortbread cookies shaped like half-moons, baked pale, then rolled twice in powdered sugar. The kind of melt-in-your-mouth Christmas cookie every German bakery puts on the holiday plate.

Fresh apple cake with macerated apples that release their natural juices into the batter for an extra-moist crumb. Cinnamon, allspice, and chopped nuts in a simple loaf or tube pan. The fall apple cake worth pulling out the bushel.

Koala Kookies are buttery walnut shortbread balls dusted in powdered sugar. Five ingredients, no eggs, and a melt-in-your-mouth texture that puts these in the same family as Mexican wedding cookies, Russian tea cakes, and Greek kourabiedes.

Crisp rolled poppy seed cookies made with oil instead of butter, loaded with a third cup of soaked poppy seeds and a sugar-sparkle top. Simple dough, big crunch.

Date-nut pinwheel cookies with brown sugar dough rolled around a sweet date and chopped nut filling. The classic icebox cookie that slices into spirals before baking.

Maple walnut cookies made from boiled maple syrup, whipped egg whites, sherry, and chopped walnuts. Piped from a pastry tube and baked into crisp, meringue-style cookies.

Swedish ginger cookies (pepparkakor) made with dark corn syrup, cinnamon, cloves, and ginger. A spiced roll-and-cut dough that bakes thin and snappy for the holidays.

Double chocolate slice-and-bake refrigerator cookies with melted chocolate, mini chips, and a hint of cinnamon. Make-ahead dough freezes for 2 months.

Sweet spinach tart with wine-steamed spinach cooked in rosewater, sugar, and cinnamon, filled into a pie shell and topped with fresh sliced strawberries. A medieval-inspired dessert that's surprisingly beautiful.

It is an excellent choice for February parties or for any occasion where a deluxe cake is desired.

Rolled poppy seed cookies with fresh orange juice and zest in an oil-based dough. Thin, crisp, and nutty with a bright citrus flavor in every bite.

Apple pie baked inside a paper bag for an unbelievably tender filling and a crackly streusel top. Pat-in oil crust, no rolling pin required.

Almond rolls are buttery shortbread logs made with just four ingredients: butter, sugar, ground almonds, and flour. The kind of cookie tin staple that goes with afternoon tea or coffee.

Diner-style crumb top apple pie with six apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon zest, and a buttery streusel topping baked golden. Serve warm with cheddar or ice cream.