Dessert Recipes

Crispy, chewy, loaded cookies packed with oats, crushed cornflakes, shredded coconut, and chopped pecans. Flatten with a sugar-dipped glass for crackly edges. Makes 4 dozen in just 30 minutes.

I got this recipe out of a magazine a few years back and I have made it a lot. The person who submitted it said it won her a blue ribbon, she also said she was a six-time Pillsbury Bake-Off finalist. I had no way to confirm this but the recipe sounded good and when I tried it I loved it.

Lemon bisque is a vintage no-bake dessert: whipped evaporated milk and lemon Jello layered between sweet graham cracker crumbs for a tangy, fluffy refrigerator cake.

Tangy rhubarb and sweet strawberries baked under crunchy oat topping spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg. Classic spring dessert ready in 50 minutes with minimal prep.

Freezer-friendly molasses ginger cookie dough with warm spices. Slice and bake straight from frozen whenever cookie cravings hit.

Sweet potato pecan pie: a layer of spiced sweet potato custard topped with classic pecan filling, served with a bourbon-spiked vanilla cream sauce. The ultimate Southern Thanksgiving pie.

Old-fashioned oatmeal raisin cookies with walnuts, warm cinnamon and clove, and sour milk for tenderness. Crisp golden edges, soft chewy centers, and the kind of nostalgic flavor that beats any bakery version.

Low-fat apple oat crisp with applesauce in the filling and a whole wheat oat topping with just a tablespoon of margarine. Only 85 calories per serving.

The famous $250 cookie loaded with chocolate chips, grated chocolate bars, oatmeal ground to powder, and chopped nuts. A legendary urban legend cookie recipe that actually delivers.

Low-fat applesauce oatmeal muffins with rolled oats soaked in skim milk, whole wheat flour, and egg whites. No butter, no oil, and just 95 calories each.

Slice-and-bake molasses cookies with brown sugar, ginger, and a deep rich molasses flavor. Chill the dough, slice thin, and bake until the edges crisp up beautifully.

Buttery white chocolate chip cookies with a hint of orange zest. Soft, golden-edged drop cookies loaded with white chocolate morsels and a subtle citrus fragrance.

Cherry pineapple upside-down cake with brown sugar glaze, pineapple rings, maraschino cherries, and a coconut-vanilla scented cake. A retro lower-fat take on the classic.

Garlic chocolate chip cookies with blanched garlic cloves soaked in maple syrup, mixed into a buttery dough with brown sugar, nuts, and chocolate chips.

Apple raspberry streusel pie: tart apples and ruby raspberries bound in a cinnamon-cornstarch glaze under a buttery brown sugar crumb topping. Single-crust convenience, double-fruit flavor.

Sour cream chocolate chip cake: a tender, coffee-cake style cake made with cold-cut butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and a generous cup and a half of chocolate chips. Sinks slightly in the center as it cools.