Baking

The "tart shells" are crisp meringues; they're filled with a soft, mint-infused lemon cream. The meringue shells can be baked one day before serving the dessert.

The clever topping is made with a cake mix.

The crust of this tart is tender and quite crumbly.

For a luxurious brunch, split open these rich biscuits and top them with smoked salmon, cream cheese and caviar.

Arrange the soft, spicy cookies on a platter with apples and Vermont cheddar cheese; also serve hot cider or hot buttered rum.

These splendidly rich tarts are my version of French onion galettes. Buttery, flaky pastry crusts are filled with deeply caramelized onions that are generously laced with sage. The steps to prepare these tarts may seem familiar, but if you take extra care with them, you'll be amazed by the results. Handle the pastry with precision so that it bakes tender, flaky, and shatteringly crisp; spend the time to slowly and thoroughly caramelize the onions until they melt into a golden marmalade; and give the tarts their final baking as close to serving time as possible. You'll notice the onions are caramelized in a deep saucepan instead of a wide skillet. It makes them easier to stir without flying out of the pan and gives them a chance to soften and stew in their own liquid before it boils away. Once the liquid evaporates, the onions will concentrate and brown, and the balsamic vinegar works to balance the sweetness of the onions and deepen their color. For the best flavor, the whole process should take at least half an hour. Be sure to use regular yellow onions, not Walla Walla, Vidalia, or other sweeter summer onions—they have too much water and do not caramelize well. Serve the tarts as an hors d'oeuvre at any elegant occasion, or as an accompaniment to a seasonal salad for a light lunch or supper.

We always had this coffeecake for birthday breakfasts and other special occasions. Even when we lived far away from Maine, the smell brought us back to Bar Harbor.

To make this bread easier to prepare, shape the dough into two loaves after the second rising instead of forming braided loaves, as is traditional. Place each loaf in a buttered 9x5x3-inch loaf pan and continue as per recipe.

Here's a variation on the classic raspberry-jam-filled Viennese specialty, Linzertorte. Show off these cookies in a box that's lined with lace or a linen napkin, and trimmed with wire ribbon.

Terrific with cappuccino or ice-cold milk.

This needs to chill overnight, so plan accordingly.

Bake some of these for the holidays, too.

The potatoes and yams are perked up with fresh ginger and with lemons.

This cheesecake, a delicious contrast of sweet vanilla and tart cranberry, is a scruptious conclusion to any dinner. Whipped cream rosettes are a pretty finish.

These dramatic cakelike cookies are a New York City favorite — and we think they deserve a wider audience.