Dessert Recipes

Practically fat-free York gingerbread bars made with pureed carrots, buttermilk, fresh ginger, and molasses. No butter, no oil. Moist crumb with bright orange zest and a cinnamon-sugar top.

Pennsylvania Dutch almond cake with lemon extract, sliced almonds, and sugar topping. Thin batter bakes into light cake that slices best when cooled in the pan.

Honey cut-out cookies with lemon extract, rolled thin and baked until lightly golden. A sturdy dough that holds its shape for holiday decorating with powdered sugar glaze.

Hot cinnamon apple parfait layers warm spiced apples and golden raisins with crushed shortbread crumbs and vanilla ice cream. Comfort dessert that lands somewhere between apple crisp and sundae.

Goblin Goodies oatmeal cookies with orange zest, raisins, walnuts, cinnamon, and orange and brown chocolate candies. A festive Halloween drop cookie loaded with mix-ins.

A flourless-style chocolate cake with ground almonds, rum-soaked currants, and pine nuts on top. Bittersweet chocolate and whipped egg whites create an intensely fudgy, gluten-light torte.

Sauteed plantains pan-fry ripe yellow plantains in canola oil until golden and caramelized. Three ingredients, ten minutes, the simplest Caribbean side.

Lower-fat banana cake with pureed prunes replacing most of the butter, nonfat vanilla yogurt, and egg whites. A moist sheet cake that cuts the fat without losing flavor.

Beer float made with chocolate ice cream and a 12-ounce pour of beer in a tall glass. Two ingredients, ready in 30 seconds, and the strangest dessert-drink you'll ever love.

Coffee pots de creme infused with whole roasted coffee beans and Kahlua, baked in a water bath, and topped with homemade almond praline. A silky French custard dessert.

Two-ingredient palmier cookies made from puff pastry and sugar, folded and sliced into caramelized golden crescents. A classic French bakery cookie with shattering, flaky layers and a crunchy sugar crust.

Pumpkin cheese tart with a gingersnap-oat crust and a marbled cream cheese-pumpkin filling, finished with warm caramel sauce. A lighter take on pumpkin pie that actually holds its own on the holiday table.

Oatmeal orange cookies with rolled oats, cinnamon, and chopped orange pamelas (pomelo) mixed into brown sugar cookie dough. Chewy citrus-spiced drop cookies.

Using fresh strawberries, eat with the light whipping cream, very good.

Fresh banana-pineapple sorbet churned with low-fat yogurt and honey, served in a hollowed-out pineapple shell for a stunning tropical presentation. Light, fruity, and low-fat.

Lighter chocolate cheesecake with a chocolate wafer and Grape-Nuts crust. Cottage cheese blended smooth with cream cheese, melted chocolate, espresso, and cocoa for triple chocolate richness.