Berry

All the wonderful flavors and textures of summer berry pie à la mode in an ice cream sundae. For a casual party, offer the individual components buffet style and let guests make their own.

The "black bottom" is a layer of superb chocolate pudding — plus a chocolate cookie crust. The pie must be chilled overnight before the topping is added.

Using frozen blueberries in the batter will keep the fruit from sinking to the bottom of the pan as the cake bakes.

Pack this delicious condiment in decorative glass jars for a nice gift.

A conserve usually consists of a mixture of fresh fruits, often with raisins, currants or nuts added. New England seafarers prized citrus fruits, which are perfect with native cranberries.

The small, sweet Meyer lemon, common in California backyards, has a thin, smooth skin and a juice interior and is particularly fragrant. These scones, which are lighter than most, will spread slightly during baking.

Inspired by a trip to Scotland, where some cooks make their Christmas pudding and hard sauce with their favorite Scotch.

This cake, bursting with berries, is perfect for a picnic. Dress it up for company with unsweetened whipped cream and a simple vanilla custard sauce.

Add a splash of Angostura bitters, a flavoring found in the supermarket's liquor section, for an intriguing spicy note.

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

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.

Chopped toffee candy gives orange-scented vanilla ice cream a surprise crunch in this easy and innovative dessert.

This luscious frozen dessert can be made without an ice cram maker. Begin preparing the recipe at least one day ahead.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less but requires additional unattended time.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.