Py Recipes

A show-stopping 4-layer banana cake with stiff meringue folded into the batter, filled with vanilla custard, and frosted with a silky cooked flour-butter frosting laced with almond extract. This is banana cake at its most dramatic.

Berkshire apple pie with a dump-and-bake cake batter topping over cinnamon apples. No rolling pin needed for this rustic New England-style dessert.

Best apple raspberry pie: tart Granny Smith apples and jewel-bright raspberries spiced with cinnamon under a flaky, folded lard crust. A sweet-tart twist on classic apple pie.

Best homemade harvest apple pie: a tender egg-and-vinegar crust filled with cinnamon-spiced Granny Smith apples and a brown sugar crumb, splashed with cider and finished with pastry apple cutouts.

Classic double-crust blackberry pie with a flaky shortening crust and simple sugar-flour filling. No frills, just four cups of berries baked golden in a homemade shell.

Frozen blueberry-coconut pie with a baked coconut-walnut base topped with crushed blueberries folded into whipped cream. A make-ahead frozen dessert straight from the freezer.

A showpiece blueberry pie with 7 cups of fresh berries in a glossy orange glaze, nestled in a homemade orange-zest crust. Served chilled and can be made a day ahead.

Boston cream pie made entirely in the microwave, with vanilla rum custard between two yellow cake layers and a glossy chocolate corn syrup glaze drizzling down the sides.

Brown paper sack apple pie, the old-fashioned trick of baking a Granny Smith pie with buttery crumb topping inside a grocery bag. The enclosed heat steams the apples tender and keeps the crust from burning.

Fresh blueberry lattice pie baked inside an oven bag for a bubbly, perfectly thickened filling and golden crust. Simple ingredients: blueberries, flour, sugar, and lemon.

Butter pecan pie crust: a four-ingredient shortbread-style crust with chopped pecans pressed into a 9-inch pie plate. Press in, bake 15 minutes, fill with cheesecake, custard, or icebox pie filling.

Cape Cod cranberry pie with a self-forming buttery crust that bakes right over tart cranberries and chopped nuts. No pie crust rolling needed. Just mix, pour, and bake.

Caramel apple pie with cinnamon-kissed apples stacked over a pecan-studded crust, baked until bubbling, then drizzled with warm caramel and more pecans. Fall dessert at full volume.

Caramel pecan apple pie with a double crust, drizzled with caramel ice cream topping and sprinkled with chopped pecans right out of the oven. A simple twist on classic apple pie.

Crustless apple pie with a buttery graham cracker and pecan streusel, finished with a melted caramel sauce poured right over the top. Spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg for a warm, gooey fall dessert.

A savory carrot quiche with homemade butter crust, Edam cheese, cream, and bacon. Arranged in a star pattern, this European-style tart makes a gorgeous brunch or light dinner centerpiece.