Berry

Use firm, dense apples such as Granny Smith, Fuji, or Pippin, which will hold their shape when cooked. Fresh ginger gives this sauce its gentle bite—don’t substitute the ground kind.

You can start baking this beautiful cake two days ahead: Make the cake layers and the raspberry curd a day before assembling; then the completed cake can be refrigerated a day before serving.

Fresh orange juice always makes the best cranberry relish. Zest whole oranges before squeezing them for juice.

Nancy Pellini Morrow of Haddonfield, New Jersey, writes: "My friend and I had a wonderful meal at Canyon Southwest Cafe in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Everything we ate was top-notch, but the best part was the cheesecake with mixed-berry sauce we had for dessert."

'90S SEINFELD After Elaine exclaims that she only likes the tops of muffins ("The Muffin Tops" first aired on May 8, 1997), her former boss thinks Elaine has hit on a clever marketing idea. But when you only sell the tops, what do you do with the hundreds of muffin "stumps" (bottoms) that are left? Elaine and her gang take to the streets with garbage bags of stumps, trying to pawn them off on anyone and everyone. There are no takers; even the homeless turn them down with disdain. It didn't take long after the airing of the episode for muffin-top pans to appear on store shelves — another TV triumph. Active time: 35 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

Active time: 10 min Start to finish: 2 1/4 hr

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

Italy's sweet and buttery-smooth mascarpone cheese adds flavor and creaminess. Begin this cheesecake at least one day ahead.

Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 3 hr The walnuts in this recipe aren't crucial to its success — some of us like these buns with nuts, others prefer them without. So the choice is yours.

Peppery arugula, sweet, ripe strawberries, and buttery hazelnuts create layers of contrasting flavor in this simple salad.

Fresh raspberries are baked into these chewy, downright irresistible blondies. You can chill them for a day before serving.

"I have prepared the plum torte from Marian Burros’s The Best of De Gustibus many times, and I’ve also tried variations using different kinds of fruit," says Peter Wayne Gagnon of Pineville, North Carolina. "My experiments helped me arrive at my own version of this dessert." Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 1 1/4 hr

This quick little pan roast really captures the spirit of Italian food culture although I've never seen anything quite like it in Italy. The balsamic-flavored zabaglione is a nod to the classic Modenese osteria dessert of raw strawberries with balsamic vinegar and black pepper.

"This past year, I've enjoyed more opportunities than usual to travel and dine out," writes Tony Solomita of Arlington, Virginia. "Instead of a photo album, I'd like to create an album of recipes from these new favorite restaurants. I'll start with a dessert: the berries with custard sauce from L'Auberge Chez François in nearby Great Falls." For these individual desserts, a light, foamy custard called a sabayon is poured over berries and broiled until just brown.