Make Ahead

The chef uses Georgia quail in this dish; chicken works well and is easier to buy.

The use of leavening in a cake is first recorded in a recipe for gingerbread from Amelia Simmons's American Cookery, published in Hartford in 1796; I guess you could say it is the original great American cake. Early-19th-century cookbooks included as many recipes for this as contemporary cookbooks do for chocolate cake. This recipe, from Claudia Fleming, pastry chef at New York City's Gramercy Tavern, is superlative—wonderfully moist and spicy.

A chocolate-caramel cake is perfect for a child's birthday party. Serve with scoops of vanilla ice cream.

Impressive—and a breeze to put together. The bombe is just a layering of purchased ice cream, sorbet and cookies, and it's topped off with a store-bought fudge sauce spruced up with chocolate chips and brandy. For Valentine's Day, dress up the dessert even more with chocolate curls and maraschino cherries. Begin preparing this a day ahead.

These easy refrigerator cookies are great to have on hand. Chill or freeze the dough, then just slice some off and bake when you want cookies.

This recipe is an accompaniment for Cabbage Slaw .

Offer toasted pita bread triangles or toasted baguette slices with this tangy dip. It's nice with raw vegetables, too.

Top off this easy-to-make dessert with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Named for the "muddy" Mississippi River, this is a dark and rich chocolate cake.

This tart has an unusual cake-like texture.

This is great warm or at room temperature.

These cookies are also good on their own.

These cakes are actually better made ahead. They become richer and fudgier one to two days after baking.

Begin making these one day ahead. The dough is much easier to roll out when chilled, and the buns hold their shape better when formed with cold dough.

Keep an eye on the caramel as it nears the end of cooking—it can go from deep amber to just plain burned very quickly.