Dessert recipes

Low-fat Dutch apple cake spreads a thin, biscuit-like batter under overlapping cinnamon-sugar apples. Egg whites and skim milk keep it light, more fruit than cake in every slice.

Butternut squash pie with a from-scratch shortening crust, spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and a touch of lemon extract. A sweeter, nuttier alternative to pumpkin pie.

Chocolate peanut dream pie with creamy peanut butter folded into chocolate pudding, lifted with whipped topping, and chilled in a graham cracker crust. The 4-ingredient potluck pie that disappears first.

German chocolate brownie cookies marry fudgy cocoa cookies with the classic coconut-pecan caramel topping. Brown-sugar dough loaded with chocolate chips, crowned candy-bar style.

Got his recipe in an email. From the Harvest restaurant, Cambridge, MA

Karithopita, a Greek spiced walnut cake with cinnamon and cloves, soaked in a honey-citrus syrup with orange and lemon peel. Rich, aromatic, and drenched in sweetness.

Chocolate cherry cheesecake with a chocolate wafer crust, melted chocolate chip filling spiked with cherry liqueur, and cherry pie filling on top. A show-stopping dessert that chills for 24 hours.

Warm fruit crisp loaded with sliced apples and plump raisins under a crunchy oat-pecan streusel. Soaking the raisins in boiling water keeps them tender. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Simple rhubarb sauce with sugar, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt simmered until thick and saucy. A versatile spring condiment for desserts, pancakes, or yogurt.

Marinated melon and strawberries in orange juice and brown sugar, topped with a honey-ginger sour cream sauce and fresh mint. A refreshing no-cook summer dessert.

Molasses cookies are soft, chewy spice cookies rolled in sugar before baking, with cinnamon, ginger, and cloves balancing rich molasses. Crinkly tops, chewy centers, classic holiday cookie tray staple.

No-bake cocoa bourbon balls made with crushed vanilla wafers, pecans, powdered sugar, and a generous pour of bourbon. Roll in fruit sugar, chopped pecans, or cocoa powder. Ready in 15 minutes.

Four-layer maple walnut torte with a chocolate-coffee-toffee filling and whipped frosting. Vintage potluck cake that splits two layers into four for impressive presentation.

Classic devil's food cake with deep chocolate flavor and silky fudge frosting. Two-layer cake with tender, moist crumb from boiling water and rich cocoa.

Pretzel and peanut butter truffles roll crunchy peanut butter and chopped salted pretzels into bites, freeze them firm, and dip in melted milk chocolate. Three ingredients and no baking required.

Try this delicious and low fat cream cheese cake, satisfy your mouth without feeling guilty!