Baking

Shaped in muffin cups, these cookies have a crisp pie-pastry bottom and a chewy jam-accented coconut filling.

A creamy fruit filling goes between split Cardamom Biscuits for a beautiful dessert.

Malouines At the restaurant, these cookies are about the size of a dime. We found them much easier to work with, however, if we made them a little bigger.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This modern take on a classic French dessert saves time by using frozen puff pastry.

Any favorite ice cream can be used in these treats. Both the walnut cookies and the "sandwiches" themselves can be prepared several days in advance.

Just a few layers of phyllo make a pretty cup for the rich-tasting lemon custard. The leftover phyllo cups and filling can be stored separately and assembled the next day for an afternoon treat.

These cookies are popular in the teahouses of Europe. Their name is derived from that of Count Alexander von Souvarov (1729-1800), a field marshal and epicure.

Active time: 5 min Start to finish: 25 min

This is what Nutella would taste like in cake form; it was the first recipe Gina created for our original dessert menu.

These tender biscuit-like pastries are sprinkled with Greek cheese just before baking.

(Cheese Pastries)

Sandra Sowis of Allenhurst, New Jersey, writes: "My mother loved bananas and used them in anything she could dream up. She made this banana cake for my birthday more than ten years ago, and it has traditionally been my birthday cake ever since." Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.