Chocolate

Before morning runs, I'm always looking around the kitchen for a healthy nibble that will hold me over until I can eat a proper breakfast. These 86-calorie bites are just the ticket. And since they are dairy- and nut-free (and wheat-free if you use puffed rice), they pass the school test!

With a cocoa-infused batter and chopped chocolate stirred throughout, these indulgent waffles are just the thing to make any morning feel special.

When making the candied almonds, stir them until the caramel transforms into a dry, crystallized coating.

The idea here is to concentrate a few strong complementary flavors to create a cake that is pleasantly bitter and not too sweet. Tartine chiffon cake is made with whole-grain dark buckwheat flour, and then layered with blood orange marmalade and bergamot-infused blackout chocolate ganache. The ganache sets quickly, so cut your cake layers and have your filling and syrup on hand when ready to assemble.

No one has to know these moist, chewy, decadent chocolate cookies are totally wheat-free.

More proof that salt makes any dessert taste better—we'd even top these puddings with crushed potato chips.

These slice-and-bake shortbreads can be prepped and kept wrapped in the freezer for up to a month before baking. And guess what? No need to defrost before slicing and zipping them into the oven.

Sparkly candy canes and winking snowmen aren't for everyone. Salted Honey and Chocolate Bark is a sweet-and-salty confection that even the manliest of men would be pleased to nibble on—or make. No cookie cutters, sprinkles, or icing necessary.

Cook the figs until just softened: Overcooking or intense boiling will render them tough instead of lush.

These intensely flavored dark chocolate brownies are spread with a layer of caramel then topped with bittersweet chocolate ganache.

I love how the fruitiness of Cluizel Concepción chocolate, mellowed by a little cream cheese, plays against the caramel and the flowery, slightly musky acidity of the blossoms (actually, calyces) called "Jamaica flowers" in Mexico and red hibiscus in this country. (They are what gives Red Zinger tea its color.) When I first developed this recipe, I used hibiscus to flavor the caramel, but now I include it in a separate sauce where its red color makes a gorgeous contrast with the dark flan. You will find that this flan is reminiscent of the classic cream cheese–fruit paste pairing that Latin Americans like in other contexts. For this recipe, do not use the spice marketed as "cinnamon" in American stores (it's really cassia). Look for the soft, flaky true cinnamon from Ceylon (Sri Lanka), which has a much subtler and more delicate flavor. You can find it in Hispanic markets under the name canela.

A sensuous variation on the theme of bread and chocolate is a silky ganache flavored with a garlicky Cuban-style olive oil mojo, smeared over slices of Cuban bread. Because the ingredients are so few and basic, it is important to use a not-too-bitter premium chocolate. I also like the effect of a mellow Spanish extra-virgin olive oil made with Arbequina olives, with their slight accent of apple peel. Sea salt sprinkled on the bread right at the moment of serving brings out all the flavors.

Most chocolate mousses are high in calories, but it's quite easy to make a delicious chocolate mousse that contains a fraction of the original calories and fat. The secret is to use high-quality bittersweet chocolate. It packs a strong, lively chocolate flavor and makes up for the fact that the mousse doesn’t have a quart of whipped cream in it.

These protein "truffles" are so ridiculously easy that I feel somewhat silly adding them to this collection. Then again, my super-simple, silly recipes are often my most popular. They are certainly favorites in my repertoire, in large part because of their fast factor, but also because of their portability and candy-like appeal. Plus, they are endlessly customizable by varying the spices, extracts, and other add-ins, or by giving them a chic coating of chia seeds, cocoa powder, or chopped nuts. Who says pretty and power can’t go together?

Adding barley malt syrup offers a rounder, less-sweet note in this take on pecan pie. Look for it at health food stores.

Mayonnaise in the batter isn't as weird as it sounds—it's just eggs and oil, after all. It's also why this cake is so moist.