Recipes with sugar

Coconut pecan upside-down cake with chocolate chips, dark brown sugar, and a tender vanilla butter cake. Like a German chocolate cake meets a skillet dessert.

Lemon meringue pie reimagined as a cake: a cloud-light, lemon-scented angel food cake split and filled with tangy homemade lemon curd, then swathed in glossy Italian meringue frosting. Airy, bright, and showy.

A moist tube cake where grated apples meet cocoa, cinnamon, allspice, and chocolate chips. Baked low and slow for a dense, spiced crumb that's part apple cake, part chocolate cake, and entirely irresistible.

From-scratch blueberry pie with toasted walnuts in the filling, a buttery sweet pastry crust, and a cinnamon-walnut crumb topping. Lemon zest brightens every bite of this three-component pie that's worth the extra effort.

Peach breakfast cake bakes fresh peaches into an almond-and-orange butter cake, then crowns them with a sour cream topping that sets like custard. Dusted with cinnamon sugar and served warm or cool. A brunch-ready coffee cake.

Cinnamon pear tart with a rustic whole wheat crust, warm spices, and juicy sliced pears. A free-form galette for two that's simple enough for any weeknight dessert.

Toffee-coated popcorn with pecans and mixed dried fruit, baked until crunchy. A homemade caramel corn snack mix cooked to hard-ball stage for a crispy, buttery shell.

Silky chocolate mousse made with unsweetened chocolate, gelatin, and whipped cream, chilled until fluffy and served with almonds.

COMMENT: What makes this dessert so irresistible? As it bakes, a pudding sauce forms beneath the cake layer. Cocoa-based and made without eggs, its an old-fashioned treat that should be served with a dollop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream and a big spoon.

Five fragrant spice pork is a quick Chinese stir-fry of marinated lean pork strips tossed with soy sauce, sherry, and aromatic Chinese five-spice powder. Ready in 25 minutes.

Lighter orange-scented cheesecake made with cottage cheese and Neufchatel, baked on a cinnamon vanilla wafer crust and crowned with fresh strawberries and orange sections. Brighter than classic.

Thin, crispy oatmeal lace cookies with orange zest and shredded coconut. Made with lard for extra-crisp edges that spread paper-thin during baking.

Cake flour muffins with nutmeg, rolled in melted butter and cinnamon sugar while warm. They taste like old-fashioned cake doughnuts in muffin form.

Classic cocoa layer cake with a tender crumb from the creaming method, ready for your favorite frosting. Swap water for coffee to deepen the chocolate flavor. A reliable two-layer cake in under an hour.

Crunchy cabbage salad with carrots and green onions in a tangy sour cream dill dressing. A crisp, no-cook coleslaw with white wine vinegar and mustard.

Mom said we had to have this even if Melissa didn't send it in. She's right, there is no way to each just one piece. So....easy.