Tart

"My mother's favorite restaurant in Sacramento is Biba," writes Grace Bannor, San Francisco, CA. "She claims it's the most authentic Italian food she has tasted outside her native Florence. Whenever the jam tart is on the menu, it's a must-have for my mother. If I had the recipe, I could make it for her next birthday."

Fuji or McIntosh apples work best for this tart; other varieties may be too juicy.

For a shiny finish, brush the warm tart with melted apricot preserves.

In this dessert, two fillings — a dark mocha ganache and a white chocolate ganache — are swirled together with a small knife for a dramatic effect.

This crust is an excellent choice for double-crust fruit pies. For a single-crust pie, simply divide the recipe in half. The dough may also be used for tartlets

Executive chef Bridget Batson of Hawthorne Lane serves this dessert with homemade caramel sauce (you can use purchased if you like). If you're running short of time, omit the homemade ice cream and mix chopped peanut brittle into your favorite vanilla ice cream.

Easy and elegant. A store-bought pie crust is filled with brownie mix that has been given a lift with peppermint extract. Offer mint chip ice cream alongside, if you like.

A sweet, buttery dessert that's a snap to make. It's excellent with tea.

There will be some leftover pastry dough after rolling out the crust and decorative leaves for the pie. The scraps make delicious snacks when pieced together and baked .

All of the components for this sophisticated dessert can be made the day before, then assembled quickly at the last minute. Sabayon (also called zabaglione) is a custard sauce that is whisked over hot water until it is light and foamy.

Very nice for a fancy dinner party, these little tartlets have an almond crust, tangy lemon filling and strawberries on top.

Frangipane is typically a ground almond filling; here, walnuts are used in a similar preparation. You can make the frangipane and cut out the pastry one day ahead.

Active time: 35 min Start to finish: 45 min

I use these prebaked tart shells (also called galettes) for a wide variety of fillings, both sweet and savory. Because you bake them directly on baking sheets, you don't need a cupboard full of tart pans to make any size tart you want. You don't need to weight the tarts as they bake to prevent the sides from caving in, and they always turn out very crisp and delicate throughout because there is nothing to get in the way of the oven's heat flow.