Characteristic: dessert

Let’s be honest, if we really want to use up a lot of zucchini we should make ratatouille or zucchini fritters or myriad other savory dishes that can be the centerpiece of a meal. Zucchini bread/cake does not really use up that much, or maybe I just don’t have the right recipes. However, this cake I've adapted from David Lebovitz is worth making, and it uses 3 small-medium zucchini, which might make a dent if you have a backlog of zucchini, and is just so delicious it might as well be the centerpiece of a meal! I've added more zucchini, lemon zest and have reduced the sugar. With the crunchy glaze it seems plenty sweet enough for me.   ... Read more »

These wholesome muffins are lightly sweet, spiced and moist. They’re a perfect breakfast or snack with a spread of butter or nut butter.  Makes 12 muffins  ... Read more »

This cake is moist and slightly dense thanks to the addition of almond flour. It’s rich, buttery flavor is a perfect complement for tart marionberries or blackberries, but really any berry would be delicious.  Serves 8... Read more »

These custards are rich, lightly sweet and quite easy to make. The custard is delicious on its own, but the tart sauce cuts through the richness of the custard just perfectly. You could really use any berry, fresh or frozen, cooked down with a little sugar in place of the strawberries and rhubarb. You will likely have leftover sauce - feel free to halve the recipe or use leftovers on ice cream, yogurt, oatmeal, etc. Serves 4  ... Read more »

My husband is committed to chocolate chip cookies. He is also precise and thus an excellent baker. He has tinkered with this recipe over the last 8 months and has permitted its public debut here. My son now prefers these bars to chocolate chip cookies. They get crispy and a bit cakey around the edges and the middle stays gooey and chewy if you don’t over bake. The bit of oats–in two forms–dark brown sugar and finely chopped chocolate are all part of the symphony here. I like larger bits of chocolate just fine so skip that step if you’d like. If you like thin, crispy chocolate chip cookies these are not going to do it for you but if you’re more in the chewy, gooey camp, make them!... Read more »

These muffins are tender, lightly sweet and full of nutritious ingredients. Feel free to leave the nuts out (or add them to half the batch like I did in the photo above!) or add different mix-ins like oats or chocolate chips.  Yields 12 muffins  ... Read more »

I was going for a not-too sweet apple dessert reminiscent of German and Italian apple pudding-cake like concoctions I grew up with, but a bit more cake-like. The addition of the sprinkle of brown sugar in the pan and the fresh nutmeg gives it a hint of Americana and cake doughnut flavor. All the fresh apples give it some weight but it's sill more cake than pudding! ... Read more »

Toasted hazelnuts (or filberts as we used to call them in Oregon) are one of my favorite snacks. Between growing up in Oregon and Germany and lots of time in Italy, hazelnuts are in my blood. If you grind them up with a little salt, honey, olive oil and cocoa powder (optional), you get a spectacular treat. Eat by the spoonful, spread on toast, top your granola . . . good lord, it’s delicious! It’s a bit more like a nut butter than Nutella but the cocoa puts it in Nutella territory for sure. Try it without first and see what you think. A jar of this makes a fantastic gift for someone you really love! If you happen to have nuts in their shells, get cracking! It took me just about an hour to crack a pound of filberts yesterday. The nuts will be fresh and delicious (they keep better in shell) and you’ll save lots of $ but by all means use whatever you can get your hands on.  ... Read more »

These apples are delicious for dessert and just as good for breakfast the next morning with Greek yogurt and maple syrup. Many European countries have a variation of this dish (which is also delicious with pears) and I grew up with some German renditions of this. The below recipe was loosely inspired by Dorie Greenspan’s in Around my French Table, however, I simplified it significantly.   My favorite part is actually all the toasty, caramelized nuts and dried fruit that spill out over the apples. The recipe calls for more filling than most apples can hold so that you get these wonderful bits.... Read more »

These muffins are nutrient dense with ground almonds, olive oil, eggs and flavorful thanks to both lemon and lime zest (or just one or the other if that’s all I have) and a good dollop of jam on top. I make jam every summer in great part for these muffins. You could vary the flour(s), nuts, oil, zests, different jams or marmalades or add spices. They’re not very sweet at all so if you want a sweeter treat add a little more sugar or swirl more jam into each muffin.  ... Read more »

Fresh berries, rhubarb or stone fruit, in most any combination, shine in these simple, not too sweet bars. The above is straight strawberry. My favorite might be apricot and sour cherry but actually every time I make them I say that batch is my favorite. ... Read more »

  A few stalks of rhubarb and a not-very-vibrant-anymore orange inspired this concoction that I’m calling a pudding cake. It’s not quite fruit-heavy enough to be a cobbler and it’s just custardy enough not to be a sliceable cake. It’s a quick affair, doesn’t call for eggs or butter and can be adapted based on your likes. I can’t wait to try it with other fruit, other flours and spices. And if you use a non-dairy milk it will be vegan. Please report back if you make it and vary it! Figuring out what to bake it in might be your biggest challenge. I used an 11-inch round ceramic tart pan of sorts. You need something bigger than a typical pie pan. I thought a 9 x 13″ baking dish might be good but I’ve gotten feedback that it seems a little big. I just love the look of the round cake here. You don’t want it to be too deep as I think you’ll lose some of the appeal. And if you’re using a round pan be sure to bake it on a sheet pan in case it bubbles over like mine did.  ... Read more »

I pit and freeze as many sour cherries as I can in late June (in Oregon) so I can have cherry pie all winter. It's my son's (and possibly my) favorite pie. Fruit pies can be very juicy especially if using frozen and then thawed fruit. I have two tricks to achieve an extra delicious pie with a semi-stable filling that you can slice well when fully cooled.   Trick 1 (only if using frozen and then thawed fruit): Drain the juice from your thawed cherries and put it in a sauce pan with 1/4 cup sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for about 10 minutes (depending on how much juice you have) until it's reduced by about half and a little viscous/syrupy. Be careful not to reduce too much and burn.   Trick 2 (do this with fresh or frozen and then thawed fruit): Add 1/3 - 1/2 cup jam or fruit compote to your fruit/filling. I use berry or plum jams for cherry pies. When eating you won't really know it's there but it will help set the pie and intensify the flavor. It also adds a little sweetness so calibrate your sugar amount accordingly. I use my homemade jams and compotes which are quite a bit less sweet than typical jams so taste your filling before adding all the sugar. I like my pies a bit tart!... Read more »

This is a classic German cake in a several ways – not terribly sweet, employs lots of ground nuts, and is encased in a buttery short crust. It is a bit more labor intensive than some but if you like currants or think you might and have been looking for a way to use some, give it a try.   This recipe calls for a lot of ground hazelnuts (or almonds). I grind my own which creates a very, fluffy light nut flour/meal. You will not get the same consistency if you grind them in a food processor. You’ll get a coarser texture which then easily turns into nut butter. So I would recommend hand grinding them if you have a grater (many people have them for Parmesan) or buying the nut meal. Bob’s Red Mill carries almond meal that would be fine.   You’re going to have six egg yolks left over. I will be making ice cream with mine. . . .  ... Read more »

My husband learned to make this when he was 12. I think the recipe originally came from an old Fannie Farmer cookbook. I've now been making it for 25 years and it's absolutely to die for and so quick. It's fantastic as is but if you have some fruit compote or not-very-thick jam you can top it with a little of that or sliced fresh fruit.  ... Read more »

I make this cake every spring when rhubarb starts showing up in the farmers’ markets and now also in my very own garden.  ... Read more »

This is hands-down one of my favorite cobbler recipes. It was originally written for Italian Prune Plums but is equally good with apricots and peaches or a combination or with the addition of a few handfuls of blackberries. It calls for a bit of cardamom and crunchy turbinado sugar on the tops of the biscuits and is a perfect combination of juicy fruit and light, creamy biscuits.  ... Read more »

The winey, warm taste of bubbling blackberries topped with the simplest possible biscuit-like crust is the epitome of summer desserts. I’m sure juicy peaches and/or plums would work well as would other berries.   If you are using frozen fruit or very juicy fruit you can mix the 1/3 cup sugar with 1 tablespoon cornstarch and then mix it with the fruit.  ... Read more »

This is the kind of tart that you can eat several slices of and still not feel overly indulgent. It’s the opposite of the rich, gooey pecan pies or custardy pumpkin ones. And even with a dollop of whipped cream it’s on the lighter end of desserts so it might make a nice complement to the typical, richer fare on Thanksgiving.  ... Read more »

There are many versions of this Bavarian dessert and many of them use a yeasted cake as the base. I grew up with a butter heavy, short crust version and am thus devoted to it. You can use regular plums, but Italian Prunes (now more commonly referred to as plums as well) are best because they have the acidity and complexity that makes this simple tart so incredibly good.  ... Read more »