Chocolate

This is a Baker & Spice original and it's our most popular cake—loved by men and women alike! The buttercream frosting is tinted pink by a raspberry puree (not food coloring)—be sure to save your extra whites from baking the cake to make the frosting. The cake itself is a rich, moist chocolate cake. If you want a go-to recipe for all your chocolate cake cravings, this is the one.

This recipe is part of the Epicurious Online Cooking School, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America. To watch it being made, and to learn how to make other dessert classics, check out the videos.

This recipe is part of the Epicurious Online Cooking School, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America. To watch it being made, and to learn how to make other dessert classics, check out the videos.

This recipe is part of the Epicurious Online Cooking School, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America. To watch it being made, and to learn how to make other dessert classics, check out the videos.

This recipe is part of the Epicurious Online Cooking School, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America. To watch it being made, and to learn how to make other Mexican classics, check out the video classes.

Apricots have roughly 60 percent more immunity-enhancing beta-carotene—which can help you fend off colds and flu—than their closest fruit competitor, cantaloupe. Consider a slice sniffle prevention!

Strawberries are full of vitamin C, which does double duty: It helps you burn more fat during exercise and helps build skin-firming collagen, resulting in a slimmer, prettier you!

To get a super-light mousse, you'll need to properly fold together the whipped cream, egg whites, and melted chocolate.

Chocolate has the incredible ability to stand alone quite nicely while playing along with loads of other prominent ingredients—without being a bully. And that is why a brownie sundae can be so frustrating: How can you settle on one ice cream flavor or a single sauce?
We figured Father's Day is the right time to have a brownie sundae your way. Dads have soft spots for cuteness, so serving up a brownie raft supporting mini-scoops of three different ice creams adrift in three different sauces will tickle him to no end. Feel free to use whatever ice cream flavors are the family favorites. Editor's Note: This recipe is part of Gourmet's Modern Menu for A Father's Day Feast. Menu also includes Pretzel Bites with Quick Cheddar Dip and Grilled Rib Pork Chops with Sweet and Tangy Peach Relish.

When frozen, bananas become so creamy they can almost pass for sorbet or even ice cream. Coat them with chocolate and sprinkle them with homemade peanut brittle—there will be plenty left over for snacking—and you've got a refreshingly cold treat that feels almost as virtuous as a serving of fruit. Editor's Note: This recipe is part of Gourmet's Modern Menu for Summer Fair Favorites. Menu also includes Fried Onion Dippers with Balsamic Ketchup and Turkey Meatball Garlic Bread Heroes.

This is the easiest hot fudge sauce ever. You'll be glad to know that it firms up to that chewy fudge consistency on contact with ice cream, just as you expect hot fudge sauce to do!

This recipe is so versatile you can use any type of chocolate, nut or dried fruit. Don’t expect leftovers!

These chocolate-covered mint leaves have a fresh, wild flavor that sets them apart from other chocolate-covered treats. Serve as an after-dinner refreshment with tea or coffee.

This sophisticated mashup of the campfire classic uses Nutella to bind the graham cracker crust and coffee to deepen the chocolate flavor in the rich ganache filling.

The keys to a light, airy semifreddo that melts in your mouth? Just enough sugar to sweeten it and keep it soft in the freezer. Also, "gently folding and not overmixing," says Laiskonis. Go over the top by serving it with cinnamon whipped cream and chile-chocolate sauce (or use store- bought chocolate sauce).

Chilling Time: 2 hours or overnight
Shelf Life: 1 week This recipe was inspired by the malted ice cream at Herrell's in Massachusetts. They were doing smush-ins long before anyone else, and it was there that Anne first tried malted vanilla ice cream with Heath bar pieces mixed in. It was love at first bite!