Electric Mixer

A unique no-knead loaf developed for baking in coffee cans to create that special mushroom shape, this white bread is a savory loaf that fills the kitchen with an incredible aroma while it bakes. Since it takes only one rise in the molds, you can plan on 2 hours from mixing to table. In my travels around the United States, home bakers most often surprise me when they tell me this is their favorite bread recipe. It utilizes creamy evaporated milk, which has 60 percent of its water removed and gives the bread an especially delicate, moist texture. I think you will find it exceptionally easy to prepare, and each variation is as good as the master recipe. I use two glass baking canisters in lieu of coffee cans, which are not so often readily available.

Also good on pie; just double the recipe.

A few tips: At several points in the recipe, components need to be chilled for a while before you can proceed, so plan accordingly. In our test kitchen, Philadelphia-brand cream cheese gave consistently good results. Note, too, that the cake can be completely assembled, then frozen for up to one week.

A simple and festive way to serve fresh bananas for dessert. Pipe extra meringue onto foil-lined cookie sheet and bake at 250°F. until dry for some low-fat cookies.

The cake is put into a cold oven and then baked slowly at gradually increasing temperatures.

Sandra Sowis of Allenhurst, New Jersey, writes: "My mother loved bananas and used them in anything she could dream up. She made this banana cake for my birthday more than ten years ago, and it has traditionally been my birthday cake ever since." Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

"My grandmother, who emigrated from Sweden to the United States when she was a little girl, passed on to our family a taste for cardamom," writes Lisa Tracy of Marion, Iowa.

"Every Christmas, my grandmother's best friend, Mrs. Mack, would give me and each of my brothers just one of these cookies, large and exquisitely decorated," writes Wendy Phillips Kahn of New York, New York. "I would save mine for days and then nibble carefully to make it last. Today, it seems a little decadent to make a whole batch, yet my daughter and I love the excuse to use our extensive collection of cookie cutters, and then enjoy painting our reindeer, Christmas trees, bells, birds, and snowmen, complete with jaunty ribbons around their hats. They may not be as elegant as Mrs. Mack's, but they're a colorful highlight in gift boxes of treats." Note: One of our readers alerted us to a problem with the cover recipe for cinnamon cookies in our December 2000 issue. We forgot the eggs! In order to make the cookies properly, add 2 lightly beaten eggs after beating together the butter and sugar, mix until blended, then follow the rest of the recipe. We apologize to Mrs. Mack, Wendy Phillips Kahn, and all of our readers for this oversight. These cookies are truly delicious, and we hope that you enjoy them.

Before grilling the pineapple, be sure to preheat your grill rack and then clean it with a metal brush to remove any bits of previously grilled food, which can give an off flavor to the pineapple. This recipe makes great use of the Börner V-slicer*. Other adjustable-blade slicers also work well, but if you don't have one, you can use a sharp 10-inch chef's knife. The smooth-sided tart in our photo was made in a springform pan, but since the crust is very delicate, it's much easier and less likely to break when made in a round tart pan with a removable bottom as called for in the recipe below. Active time: 50 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

Cornmeal gives these blini a slightly crunchy texture that is perfect with the salsa.

The recipe calls for a pastry bag, but the meringue disks can also be formed with a spatula. If made ahead, the meringue will soften slightly from contact with the buttercream.

(Dark Chocolate Mousse Pies)

This recipe was created to accompany White Chocolate Cream