Torte

This torte consists of three flavors of ice cream or frozen yogurt that are layered with Nutella, a creamy hazelnut-chocolate spread available in specialty foods stores and most supermarkets. (Look for it where the peanut butter is sold.) The Nutella freezes firmly on the ice cream, but is soft enough to cut through.

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.