Peanut Butter

An old-fashioned layer cake topped with a lusciously sticky icing.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

For kids of all ages, this dessert is dense and chocolaty, and comes in a cute package. When was the last time you had a cupcake with chocolate sprinkles on top?

Juli Tsuchiya-Waldron of Tokyo, Japan, writes: "I was born in California but moved to Tokyo with my family when I was 6 years old. Now I'm 19, and have started a small craft shop where I sell my handmade place mats and coasters. Cooking is my other creative outlet. When my mother is too busy to cook for the family, I enjoy coming up with dishes that are interesting and nutritious but still quick." To turn this salad into a main course, add cooked shrimp and more vegetables, such as slivered carrots and red cabbage.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

My childhood memories of Christmas revolve around cookies," says Fran Gallagher Ripsom of Sun Valley, Idaho. "My mother started baking as soon as Thanksgiving was over. She prided herself on a beautiful assortment, never less than 12 kinds of cookies. Some became traditions, but she also tried new recipes. I loved the pinwheel cookies. I often bake them at other times of the year, because they are too delicious to enjoy only at Christmas."

If you love peanut butter, these cookies will be It. I created what I believe to be quintessential peanut butter cookies to honor the one hundredth anniversary of peanut butter. They are very peanut buttery yet exceptionally light, with a lovely "sandy" bite. At my husband's urging, I doubled up on the peanut butter and decreased the flour, making the chocolate cookie centers seem like biting into a Reese's peanut butter cup. Chocolate centers blend wonderfully with the peanut flavor, but the bright, tart, sticky cherry centers, are my first choice.

Debra says this very American made-from-scratch cake, which is truly fast and easy, always gets rave reviews from kids and their parents in Paris.

Instead of white cubes of tofu bobbing in this African-style soup, where they look decidedly odd, I purée the tofu with a portion of the finished soup until everything is smooth. The tofu is there, but it doesn't intrude. And this is a method you can use with virtually any puréed soup. If you wish, you can purée the entire soup or leave it textured, with bits of sweet potatoes and peppers.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This colorful Asian-inspired salad is great with grilled ribs, chicken or pork chops.

A couple of the best convenience foods of the century undoubtedly are peanut butter (introduced at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair) and chocolate chips (first sold by Nestle; in 1939). Separately, they are the basis of two of the nation's favorite cookies. Together, the ingredients are an unbeatable team.