Baking

Serve this dense, moist cake with a big bowl of lightly sweetened strawberries.

Orange syrup sweetens the cake and the fresh fruit that goes with it.

In this dessert, buttery pastry shells enclose a silky dark chocolate ganache filling highlighted with fresh lemon.

Puff pastry as strudel dough is even faster and more convenient than phyllo dough. A scoop of vanilla ice cream or frozen vanilla yogurt is great alongside.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. This granola is delicious topped with fresh fruit (we suggest kiwifruit and pineapple) or on its own, served with milk or yogurt. The recipe makes about 6 cups, so you'll have some left over.

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 4 hr

Rosemary Leicht of Bethel, Ohio, writes: "I've been a finalist in the Pillsbury Bake-Off three times, so I'm something of an expert at cooking with prepared doughs and bread mixes. Even though these items are simple to use, many people don't venture beyond the package directions. For each contest, I experimented with dozens of recipes, and some of my favorites have been breakfast dishes and desserts. Nowadays I don't enter as many competitions as I used to, but my family still looks forward to my latest creations." Look for cinnamon chips in the supermarket's baking section.

(CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH NUTS AND RAISINS) Here is a chocolate cake that will delight your palate. Use the best bittersweet chocolate you can find!

This delicious dessert from March in New York has a decadent molten center.

When you brush the bottom pie crust with an egg wash, you keep the fruit from making the pie soggy as it bakes. By sprinkling the top crust with sugar, it makes for a great sugary crust.