Oat

This salty-sweet granola makes a great snack and is good with yogurt. Skip the salt if you're serving it with milk.

Even imperfect, not-quite-ripe pears will become tender and richly flavored when baked in a crisp (apples, of course, are another good way to go). What makes this crisp especially lovely is cardamom, an assertive, warm spice, traditional in baking (especially in Sweden) with a wonderfully home-filling aroma.

The technique: Streusel—a crumbly mixture of flour, butter, sugar, and spices—often shows up on coffee cakes. The sweet, crunchy stuff also makes a great pie-topper.
The payoff: You have to roll out only one pie crust instead of two, and the streusel adds texture and flavor.

Once you start eating this rich, salty-sweet pie with its oat cookie crust, you won't be able to stop.

If you're using a glass or metal pie dish instead of a deep-dish ceramic pie plate, be sure to keep an eye on the pie. It may cook more quickly. Baking the pie on the bottom rack of the oven ensures a crisp bottom crust.

This scrumptious dessert serves up sweet, seasonal fruit in filling, foolproof portions. And whole-grain oats top it off with a fluffy cobbler cap that's lusciously lowfat.

This breakfast dish is served at Canyon Ranch Hotel & Spa in Miami Beach.

In the early 1990s we hired a chef who loved to bake, and he came up with this pie. It became an instant classic. The fruit is only lightly sweetened, and its tartness combined with the sugar-crumb topping is a perfect pairing. Served warm with vanilla ice cream, it's heavenly. If you use frozen berries, increase them by 1/2 cup each and defrost slightly before tossing with the other ingredients.

When we visited my grandmother in snowy Alsace, she used to serve us this delicious and filling breakfast, rich in fiber and fruity nutrients. It is still one of my favorite winter breakfasts: true baby food for adults. My grandmother usually served her oatmeal variation with freshly baked brioche or kugelhopf (a wonderful cake with raisins and almonds that is one of the great specialties of Alsace). Today, I sometimes find it a filling meal unto itself, and I skip the bread. If I want a little more protein, I have a bite of cheese or some yogurt.

These hearty rolls are packed with good-for-you stuff: whole wheat flour, old-fashioned oats, and wheat bran.

Here is a good basic cereal. As baby gets a little older, you can add a few things to the cereal such as a tablespoon of banana puree. You can make this ahead and refrigerate it for a day or two—at most—or simply have the rice, barley, or oatmeal ground and ready to go.

Many teething biscuits crumble and break too easily. These are a little sturdier and safer for baby to eat.

Use a tablespoon to shape the dough.

You can bake the cookies to order, straight from the freezer.