Baked goods recipes

Pumpkin orange cake: moist sheet cake with canned pumpkin, orange juice concentrate, and zest, finished with a citrus glaze. Fall flavors with a bright twist on standard pumpkin spice.

Lemon almond madeleines: classic French shell-shaped tea cakes with ground almonds and fresh lemon zest, finished with powdered sugar. Twenty-four buttery cookies for tea time.

Brown sugar pound cake topped with butter-toasted pecan frosting. Tall Bundt with a dense crumb, deep caramel notes, and a nutty browned-butter glaze that drips down the sides.

Fat-free lemon poppy seed biscotti made with no added oil or butter. Crisp twice-baked Italian cookies powered by ground almonds, egg whites, and bright citrus.

Herb focaccia with rosemary and olive oil, made from scratch with a simple yeast dough. Golden, dimpled, and pillowy soft with crispy edges.

Pineapple ice box cake, a vintage no-bake dessert with lemon gelatin and whipped cream folded with crushed pineapple, layered between vanilla wafer crumbs. Chilled overnight for sliceable dessert.

Microwave oatmeal chews are no-bake bars with chewy oat base, melted chocolate chip top, and chopped nuts. Seven-ingredient bars made entirely in the microwave for fast snacking.

Date pudding cake with chopped dates and nuts in a light egg batter with barely any flour. Dense, sticky, and caramel-sweet, served warm with ice cream or whipped cream.

Tiny cheesecakes built on a single vanilla wafer crust and finished with a candied cherry. Four-ingredient mini cheesecakes that bake in muffin liners for instant holiday party trays.

Mocha cake is a spiced coffee loaf studded with raisins, currants, and citron. Brewed coffee, brown sugar, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice create a warmly spiced fruitcake for any occasion.

Red, white, and blue ice cream pie with a blueberry muffin mix crust, French vanilla ice cream filling, and sugared strawberries on top. A Fourth of July dessert.

No-egg raisin cake with brown sugar, walnuts, cinnamon, and ginger baked low and slow. A Depression-era pantry cake that's moist, spiced, and surprisingly rich.

Christmas crackers are sweet honey-wheat holiday cookies stamped with cookie cutters and sprinkled with sugar. Makes 45 crispy-edged rectangles for gifting or dipping.

Chocolate cheesecake on a buttery Oreo crumb crust, spiked with amaretto and finished with chocolate-sour-cream glaze. Dramatic dinner-party dessert topped with toasted almonds and chocolate curls.

Van's Faves are crisp lace-thin oat cookies scented with orange zest and finished with a chocolate drizzle. Eight ingredients, big crunch, and an old-fashioned tin-cookie feel.

Soft, chewy banana cookies loaded with chopped pecans and a hint of molasses and cinnamon. This drop cookie recipe makes 3 dozen and disappears even faster.