Dessert/7 recipes

Lots of apples and nuts make a filling rich snacking cake.

Buttery rolled sugar cookies with lemon zest and vanilla, made with cake flour for a melt-in-your-mouth tender crumb. A classic cut-out cookie recipe that's ideal for decorating and holiday baking.

Chocolate angel food cake made with cocoa powder, whipped egg whites, and zero butter or oil. Tall, airy, and deeply chocolatey with a featherlight crumb. A fat-free chocolate cake that actually delivers.

Holiday mint log is a light chocolate sponge cake rolled into a classic yule log shape. Separated eggs keep the cake airy enough to roll without cracking, baked in just 12-15 minutes.

Four-fruit pie with rhubarb, apple, blueberries, and raspberries in a double-crust shell. A tart-sweet summer pie that showcases the season's best.

Herbal lemon cookies with fresh lemongrass, lemon thyme, or lemon basil baked into a buttery sugar cookie. A unique drop cookie with real herb flavor in every bite.

Almond-raisin biscotti, twice-baked until crisp, with toasted almonds, plump raisins and bright orange in two forms. A coffee-dunking Italian cookie made airy by folding in whipped egg whites.

Bailey's fudge cake is a dense, boozy single-layer chocolate cake spiked with Irish cream and chocolate syrup, finished with a sour cream Bailey's glaze and chocolate-dipped pecan halves. Showpiece dessert, low effort.

Three-layer pistachio cake with white chocolate buttercream, orange zest, and almond extract. A showstopper dessert with chopped pistachios pressed into the frosting.

Fresh fruit pie with blueberries, strawberries, or peaches set in cornstarch-thickened glaze: whipped cream lining the crust, fruit filling on top, chilled until firm and sliceable.

Mini cream cheese tarts on vanilla wafer crusts topped with cherry pie filling. No-roll, no-fuss bite-sized cheesecakes that bake in just 15 minutes.

Saffron kulfi pops simmer whole milk with sugar until reduced by half, then bloom saffron threads in hot water and freeze in cones or cups. Authentic Indian frozen dessert without an ice cream maker.

A feather-light cheesecake lightened with whipped egg whites for an airy texture, on a cinnamon zwieback crust, finished with a sour cream, crumb, and almond topping. Far lighter than dense New York style.

Paris-Brest style cream puff pastry: piped pâte à choux rings baked with slivered almonds, split and filled with pastry cream, dusted with powdered sugar. A French patisserie classic at home.

Impressive apple pie with cinnamon crust, sour cream filling, and crunchy walnut-brown sugar topping. Three distinct layers of flavor and texture.

A rich cocoa bundt cake with a sweet coconut macaroon filling swirled through every slice and finished with chocolate glaze. Two classics, one spectacular cake.