Cake

As if by magic, this cake creates its own beautiful picture as it bakes. Spread a buttery dough onto a shallow pan and press apple wedges into the top; as the kuchen bakes the dough rises up to frame the apples. This is delicious served warm from the oven topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Chinese five-spice powder adds a complex, spicy note to this cake.

Fragrant persimmons star in this new take on the classic British cake.

Cupcakes for Thanksgiving? Why not? These treats pair tender cake with a salty-caramely frosting.

Chocolate and pears make an excellent combination. Here, bittersweet chocolate and sweet pears meld together to form the perfect balance. For this recipe, you can either take a rustic approach and toss the pears haphazardly into the pan or opt for a more elegant look by arranging the pears in concentric circles. Look for a good dark chocolate, which is not the same as unsweetened chocolate. Also, there are two kinds of unsweetened cocoa on the market; be sure to use unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa, not natural cocoa. When combined with baking soda, natural cocoa can impart a bitter taste to baked goods and cause them to rise too much.

When it comes to dessert, I am a chocoholic first and fruit-pie lover second; but after several test batches to perfect this cake, I am completely won over, and so is everyone who has tasted it. This is simply a spectacular cake—moist and light with spiced pumpkin flavor and sweet bites of coconut and pineapple. In addition, it is a snap to make. It requires two 9-inch cake pans to make the layers, but the cake itself can be mixed together with a rubber spatula and bowl. If all the cake ingredients are pre-measured and the cake pans prepared, this can be a fun kitchen project to do with children, especially since it can be made ahead and frozen.

Forget milk—stout is the perfect pairing for this cake. Serve glasses of the same brew you used in the cake batter. Take it up a notch by adding a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream to the beer for a grown-up float.

Kid-size and super-easy to make, these Halloween cupcakes are the perfect festive treats for the holiday.

Why Fujis? This not-too-sugary cake (inspired by carrot cake) is best when made with fairly sweet apples. Plus, it's important to choose an apple variety with a sturdy structure so that it won't break down during baking. Fuji apples fill the bill on both counts.

A treat that's rich in superfoods—blueberries and flaxseeds!

Plums and pluots—a hybrid that blends the color of plums with the flavor and soft texture of apricots—have a natural tartness that flatters the accompanying pound cake (which tastes even better if made a couple of days ahead).

The nectarine, a subspecies of peach, generally has a sharper, more intense taste. The homey yellow cake here is studded with wedges of them, their summery, sunshiny essence set off by a trace of nutmeg. It's buttery and flavorful yet not too rich; a sprinkle of sugar on top gives it just enough crustiness to hold up a dollop of softly whipped cream, but it's delicious stark naked as well.

Pastry chef Mathew Rice uses flavors from his childhood as inspiration for his desserts. Here, pears and buttermilk cake are transformed with thyme, lemon, and crème fraîche. And the ice cream? A very grown-up Greek yogurt.

Almost every ingredient in this delicious chocolate cake is a pantry staple, making this a time-saving, budget-friendly dessert that still feeds a crowd. Plus, it keeps well, so even if you do have leftovers, you can enjoy the cake all week.

This treat is a holiday or wedding dessert, but delicious any time. It is a dense sponge cake soaked in syrup.

Dripping with snowy-white icing and paired with fresh berries and a ruby-red currant and raspberry sauce, this sheet cake is a charming way to end a dinner party.

This kuchen would be terrific made with all types of stone fruit, so feel free to substitute any of your summertime favorites for the plums.

My biggest challenge to date has been making cupcakes for a six-year-old's birthday party. This recipe, the result of many trials and taste My biggest challenge to date has been making cupcakes for a six-year-old’s birthday party. This recipe, the result of many trials and taste tests, was a huge hit with the kids, who are always our toughest fans. Packed with coconut for electrolytes, lemon juice for vitamin C, and bananas for potassium, these little gems keep us feeling great.