Almond

When I was asked to be the guest chef for a meal honoring Sr. Alvarez del Manzano, the mayor of Madrid, at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, the menu included this classic Spanish tart. It is so rich and moist, it needs no more garnish than a little natillas [crèeme anglais] and a dusting of powdered sugar.

Active time: 35 min Start to finish: 5 hr (includes chilling)

A cherry lover's dream: This irresistible dessert has fresh cherries, cherry sauce and cherry ice cream.

A filling of bittersweet chocolate truffles is the surprise in this elegant dessert from Michele Dennis at Zefiro.

The filling is wonderfully creamy, like ice cream, but is made without using an ice cream machine. Be sure to have plenty of extra fruit to go along with the torte.

Crusts made of ground biscotti and almonds accent this do-ahead dessert.

Here's a real treat for the lunch box. Adding dried cherries and chocolate chips turns classic oatmeal cookies into something new.

To roll out this dough you will need a pastry cloth and a rolling-pin cover, which are available at kitchenware stores and by mail order from Bridge Kitchenware, tel. (800) 274-3435 or (212) 838-1901.

This tart is a snap to put together, thanks to purchased puff pastry. The square shape is something different for the summer table.

Our food editors dreamed up this variation on a classic theme for our "all-French" issue, published to coincide with the French republic's Bicentennial celebrations.