Dessert/2 recipes

Almond orange macaroons made with blanched almonds, sugar, egg whites, and orange flower water. The naturally gluten-free Mediterranean cookie with a chewy interior and crisp golden top.

A two-layer chocolate almond torte with whipped egg whites for lightness and a glossy chocolate chip glaze. Bake it in heart-shaped pans for a Valentine's Day stunner.

Shaker honey almond cake bakes a spice-warmed honey-sour cream batter under a crown of almonds, then ripens 2 days for deeper flavor. Heritage New England keeping cake.

Harvest pie made with Granny Smith apples and green tomatoes, spiced with cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg, finished with a lattice crust. A rustic fall deep-dish pie with optional rum.

Sugarplum black forest torte stacks four thin chocolate buttermilk layers with a fudgy chocolate-almond filling and almond whipped cream. A nutty twist on the classic, with toasted almonds in every bite.

Easy chocolate-covered cherry cookies from a brownie mix: fudgy chocolate drop cookies studded with pecans and maraschino cherries, baked just until set for a soft, brownie-like center. A quick holiday cookie.

Creme de menthe truffle cups: bite-size chocolate candy shells piped full of minty chocolate ganache with ground almonds. A boozy, bakery-style Christmas confection made in a double boiler.

Honey almond parfait is a frozen mousse-style dessert with whipped cream, honey-sweetened sabayon, and toasted sliced almonds. A French-inspired semifreddo that skips the ice cream machine.

Saffron-kissed almond biscotti with bright lemon zest and a glossy egg-white glaze. Twice-baked until dry and crisp, these Italian cookies actually improve after a few days in a paper bag.

Traditional Italian almond biscotti (Biscotti di Prato) baked twice for shattering crunch. No butter, no oil, just flour, eggs, sugar, and whole blanched almonds.

Chocolate turtle cheesecake: vanilla wafer crust topped with melted caramel, toasted pecans, and chocolate cheesecake filling. A layered showstopper dessert for serious occasions.

Linzer Augen are Austria's almond shortbread sandwich cookies: two tender, nutty rounds glued with apricot jam, the top cut with a little window that frames the glistening preserves under a snowfall of powdered sugar. A Christmas cookie tin classic.

Classic apricot sweet simmers dried apricots with cardamom, ginger, and almonds into a fragrant, spiced compote, much like Hyderabad's qubani ka meetha. Naturally fruit-sweet, served chilled. A make-ahead Indian dessert.

A rustic free-form peach pie heaped with juicy peaches and brandy-plumped cherries over a layer of toasted almonds, the pastry folded loosely over the top and dusted with cinnamon sugar. Juicy and golden.

No-bake chocolate cheesecake built on a toasted almond wafer crust with a silky milk chocolate, cream cheese, and whipped cream filling. No oven required.

Ischler cookies are an Austrian classic from Bad Ischl: ground-almond shortbread rounds sandwiched with raspberry jam and crowned with espresso-spiked chocolate icing. Spa-town pastry royalty.