Baking

Because the torte is so rich, a small piece really satisfies. Start preparing this the day before you plan to serve it.

Named for the famous resort island in the Bay of Naples, this chocolate nut cake is one of Italy's few chocolate desserts. It's a specialty of all the fancy pastry shops in Chiaia, the district of Naples closest to the dock where the ferries leave for Capri. The cake is often decorated with a stencil of the island and of a solitary palm tree.

Scones are the classic tea and coffee partner. Tiny and elegant for a silver-service tea or as large as a fist, they're everyone's favorite served warm, split and spread with butter or whipped cream and jam.

This cake, also called fraisier (French for "strawberry plant"), is usually made with almonds, but pistachios are used in this rendition. The delicate cake is layered with fresh strawberries and a mousselike white chocolate buttercream and then topped with marzipan.

There's an extra hit of flavor from crystallized ginger in this scrumptious layer cake.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Cèpe is the French name (porcini is the Italian name) for the boletus mushroom, which grows in the southwest. Dried cèpes are not readily available here, so we use dried porcini.

Haman's pockets, or Hamantaschen, were brought to this country by Jews from the eastern part of Germany and Eastern Europe. Hamantaschen are so popular here that at many academic institutions there is an annual Hamantaschen versus latke debate. The filling for the following Hamantaschen recipe comes from the Taste of History: Recipes Old and New put out by Philadelphia's Historic Spanish and Portuguese Congregation, Kahal Kadosh Midveh Israel, founded in 1740. With the filling I used my own butter cookie dough, which everyone in my family loves. Although adults like fruit or poppy-seed fillings, my children do not, and they fill the dough with chocolate chips and even make a Hamantaschen with chocolate chips and peanut butter. I'll stick to this prune filling and leave the chocolate-chip Hamantaschen to them. Regional Variation: A similar and equally delicious Hamantaschen filling comes from Natchez, Mississippi. Naturally, it includes pecans rather than walnuts.

Chocolate ganache and hazelnut cream are encased in a tender nut cake.

This fragrant bread is great plain or toasted, and it makes a delicious accompaniment to any hearty soup.

These cookies travel well and sustain travelers well, too.

Wonderful sugar cookies with the crunch of poppy seeds and a luscious lemon cream cheese filling. Assemble them shortly before serving to keep them crisp. If you like, you can always skip the filling and serve the cookies on their own.

Perfect for any holiday breakfast or brunch.