Cake

Sandra Sowis of Allenhurst, New Jersey, writes: "My mother loved bananas and used them in anything she could dream up. She made this banana cake for my birthday more than ten years ago, and it has traditionally been my birthday cake ever since." Active time: 40 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

The recipe calls for a pastry bag, but the meringue disks can also be formed with a spatula. If made ahead, the meringue will soften slightly from contact with the buttercream.

This feather-light, sweet-tart bread is as good as it sounds.

An old-fashioned cake gets a new treatment: Some of the trimmed cake crumbs are mixed with chocolate-cookie crumbs and pressed onto the frosting. Fresh raspberries are the colorful crowning touch.

Spectacular but easy, thanks to purchased ice cream and sorbet. The meringue is browned in the broiler, like a baked Alaska, just before serving.

The big, All-American layer cake returns. Think pancakes and syrup, all dressed up. Buttermilk makes the cake moist, and maple-walnut candy provides the crunch.

Every year for nearly twenty years Gourmet's production director baked this cake for our mailroom manager on his birthday. Suffice it to say that this delectable dessert has stood the test of time.

Rich with chocolate and dried apricots, this dessert is a stately yeast-risen cake that requires no kneading and very little attention. When you set it aside in a warm place, it does much of the work by itself. A large bundt or angel food pan can replace the traditional ornate mold.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Active time: 20 min Start to finish: 45 min

This dense, moist chocolate cake, made with dried pears, is stunning when decorated with gold leaf. Of course, you can always simply top it with chocolate curls.