Dessert/7 recipes

Imperial coconut flan made from scratch with a whole fresh coconut, homemade condensed milk, and separated eggs baked in a caramel-lined mold. A traditional Mexican showpiece.

Cumulonimbus chocolate cake hides a secret ingredient: sauerkraut. Drained, snipped, and folded into a cocoa-and-coffee batter, it disappears completely and leaves behind a moist, fluffy chocolate cake. Frosted with a two-ingredient chocolate sour cream icing.

Showstopper pecan pie with homemade toffee crunch, caramel sauce drizzle, and pastry-leaf crust decoration. A Thanksgiving centerpiece that earns every compliment.

Therapeutic oatmeal cookies where you squeeze, smash, and beat the dough to release stress: brown sugar, margarine, oats, and flour become tender cookies through aggression.

Oreo Midnight Cake with a crushed Oreo crust, semi-sweet chocolate cake, vanilla cream filling, and cocoa frosting. A multi-layer chocolate-Oreo showstopper from scratch.

Mandel rolls (mandelbrot) made with cake meal, matzo meal, potato starch, and chopped nuts. Twice-baked Jewish biscotti that are crisp, cinnamon-spiced, and Passover-friendly.

French genoise sponge cake soaked with Amaretto and filled with whipped chocolate ganache. A light, egg-leavened cake with lemon zest and an overnight chocolate cream.

This Tex-Mex style tres leches splits a golden sponge cake in half and drenches both layers in a vanilla-rum milk bath. Topped with crunchy pecans, it's pure indulgence that only gets better overnight.

Lite cheesecake with raspberry sauce uses nonfat cream cheese and 2% cottage cheese for a silky, tangy slice without the guilt. Topped with bright homemade raspberry sauce.

Pecan tassies with cream cheese pastry shells filled with brown sugar, pecans, and egg. Bite-size pecan pies baked in mini muffin tins until golden and set.

Brown-eyed Susan cake, a chocolate and orange marble cake: one batter split and flavored two ways, then dropped together so every slice swirls dark chocolate through bright orange. A charming retro layer cake.

Impossibly easy coconut pie that forms its own crust while baking. Just blend, pour, and let the oven work magic for a custardy slice with toasted coconut on top.

Sturdy gingerbread dough engineered for building. Stiff enough to hold its shape, deeply spiced with cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg, ready for cookie houses, churches, and edible structures.

Dump cake with pie filling, crushed pineapple, yellow cake mix, and melted butter topped with coconut and nuts. A no-mix dessert where you literally dump everything into the pan and bake.

Creamy, moist and buttery, this greek style lemon cake is so tasty, the citrus flavor makes the cake so refreshing.

Apple cake layered with cinnamon-sugar apple slices in a tube pan and topped with brown sugar streusel and chopped nuts. A tall, moist Jewish-style apple cake made with orange juice instead of milk.