Dessert/5 recipes

Adorable cat-shaped cookies made from refrigerated dough with pecan ears, M&M eyes, and pretzel whiskers. A fun baking project kids absolutely love.

Caramel pecan pie with a silky custard filling and billowy meringue topping. Caramelized sugar, toasted pecans, and vanilla custard pour into a flaky crust for a Southern-style holiday dessert.

Classic springerle: traditional German anise cookies embossed with intricate designs, dried overnight, and baked pale, then mellowed for a week into crisp, picture-perfect holiday treats.

Tiramisu-style cake with three sponge layers soaked in espresso-rum syrup, filled with mascarpone cream, and finished with cocoa powder and chocolate shavings. A classic Italian pick-me-up.

Key lime cream pie cooks the egg yolks with fresh key lime juice for a custard-thick filling, then crowns it with billowy sweetened whipped cream on a buttery graham cracker crust.

Double crust apple pie pre-cooks the apple filling on the stovetop before baking. This smart technique prevents soggy bottom crust and delivers tender, perfectly shaped apple slices under a flaky sour cream dough.

Lemon poppy seed pound cake with a tender buttermilk crumb, bright citrus zest, and a tangy lemon glaze drizzled over the top. The bundt cake that wakes up dessert.

Patriotic jello cake is a red-white-and-blue poke cake with strawberry and blueberry jello soaked into a white cake, frosted with whipped topping. A July 4th potluck classic that slices into stripes of color.

Marji's fudgies: dense fudgy chocolate drop cookies with cocoa, powdered milk, and a stiff dough that bakes into a brownie-cookie hybrid. Foil-pan baking trick included.

Praline ice cream cake bakes softened vanilla ice cream right into a graham-cracker crumb batter, then finishes with sour cream caramel topping and chopped pecans.

Rich sour cream cheesecake with four packages of cream cheese, six eggs, cinnamon, and a vanilla wafer crust. Baked in a springform pan for 70 minutes. Dense, creamy, and tall.

Chewy butterscotch oatmeal cookies made with brown sugar, quick oats, and vanilla. A simple drop cookie with crispy edges and a soft, caramel-flavored center that comes together fast.

Canned apple pie filling with Granny Smith apples, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a thickened syrup. Water-bath processed for shelf-stable jars ready to spoon into a pie crust any time of year.

Roll-and-cut almond cookies with toasted sliced almonds folded into a buttery dough and finished with a dusting of powdered sugar. Crisp edges, tender centers, and a double hit of vanilla and almond extract.

Cookie tacos are crisp buttery tuile shells shaped into taco folds while hot, then stuffed with lime-scented sour cream and lemon pie filling and piled with sugared strawberries. A playful dessert that draws every eye at the table.

Vegetarian mincemeat made with fresh pears, dried fruit, candied cherries, almonds, and a splash of whiskey. No suet needed. Spiced with allspice, nutmeg, and ginger for traditional Christmas mince pies.