Torte

Perfect for the Jewish holiday, this flourless torte has an airy soufflé-like texture. The sauce adds a special-occasion touch.

Trude Reder of Long Branch, New Jersey, writes: "My mother's recipe for linzertorte is one of my favorites. It brings back memories of my childhood and of my mother and grandmother busy baking in the kitchen, the delicious aroma of cinnamon and cloves filling the whole house. I've been baking this dessert for family and friends since my husband and I came to this country from Austria over 45 years ago. Now, I've started teaching my own grandchildren the recipe, hoping they will love it as much as I do." Don't substitute jelly for the jam in this recipe — it might leak from the crust. Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 3 1/4 hr

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 2 1/2 hr

Dark chocolate, light chocolate and coffee fillings alternate with nut meringue layers, and dark chocolate ganache covers the whole torte. This is an irresistible version of the traditional Parisian dessert.

Though similar in texture to a flourless chocolate cake, the addition of poppy seeds makes this torte delightfully different.

This is an elegant dessert, light but filled with berry flavor — and it's much easier to make than it looks. The generous crust is made from store-bought shortbread, so rich in butter there's no need to add more. We used Walkers, a pure-butter shortbread from Scotland that's widely available in supermarkets.

(Toasted Almond, Cinnamon and Chocolate Torte)

Because of reader demand, this recipe was published in one form or another in The New York Times almost every year between 1983 and 1995, when the then editor of the food section told me to tell my readers it was the last year it would be published, and if they lost it, it was too bad. She suggested they cut it out, laminate it, and put it on the refrigerator door. My coauthor of the first Elegant but Easy Cookbook brought this recipe to the book. Its appeal comes from its lovely old-fashioned flavor and its speed of preparation. It was originally called Fruit Torte.

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.

This dense, moist chocolate cake, made with dried pears, is stunning when decorated with gold leaf. Of course, you can always simply top it with chocolate curls.