Desserts

Three plates, each with a crème caramel on them with spoons resting on the side.

Crème Caramel

Similar to flan in its delicate texture, this classic creme caramel is as simple as it is sophisticated. You’d expect nothing less from the French, yes?

A glass jar filled with soft chocolate chip cookies.

Soft Chocolate Chip Cookies

Because some things don’t change. Including the lure of old-fashioned, uncomplicated, chewy chocolate chip cookies with crisp edges and soft centers.

Ten hamantaschen -- jam filled, triangle-shaped pastries -- on a white background.

Hamantaschen

Our testers are singing the praises of these sweet cookies that are stuffed with poppy seed and apricot filling. We’re quite certain you will be, too.

A pile of beignets dusted with confectioners' sugar in a bowl.

New Orleans-Style Beignets

Airy and yet dough at the same time, these iconic, anytime-of-day New Orleans pastries come buried beneath mounds of sweet, sweet confectioners’ sugar. All we have to say is, don’t wear black.

A parchment lined loaf pan filled with partially frosted small batch brownies and a wire whisk on the side.

Small Batch Brownies

These small batch brownies make just enough batter to fill a loaf pan so you don’t have an entire baking pan hanging around all week tempting you. Ideal for just the two of you.

Two homemade Twinkies, with one cut in half and the other resting on top of a cut half.

Homemade Twinkies

Like the classic, these sponge cakes are crammed to almost bursting with irresistibly sweet, fluffy, creamy goodness—but minus the chemicals and other abominations.

A partially-eaten chocolate souffle in a round white ceramic dish.

Chocolate Soufflé

If you’ve been hesitant to make chocolate souffle out of fear, worry not. This easy version is guaranteed to reach lofty heights. A no-stress, high-stakes dessert. We show you how.

A loaf of monkey bread--balls of caramel-coated bread dough dripping caramel sauce on a rectangle plate

Monkey Bread from Zoë François

A gooey, sweet, classic bread made from pull-apart blobs of brioche dough coated in a buttery, cinnamony caramel sauce that’s gonna distract you in the best possible way.

A panettone studded with dried fruit on a silver platter with a couple of wedges cut from it.

Panettone

Panettone, which makes its traditional Italian Christmas appearance, is gussied up here with any dried fruit you fancy. An ever so slight twist on a classic.

A whole gingerbread cheesecake on a white platter with a slice missing from it.

Gingerbread Cheesecake

This gingerbread cheesecake tastes like the classic Christmas spices of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and clove in each and every bite of this simple yet stunning dessert.

Cheese danish braided and sprinkled with sugar, on a sheet of parchment paper.

Cheese Danish

A startlingly spectacular made-from-scratch cheese Danish that is going to forever change your notion of what a cheese Danish ought to be.

Make-ahead cinnamon coffee cake in a large rectangular pan, with two squares cut out, beside two cups of coffee and a bowl of drizzle with a spoon.

Make-Ahead Cinnamon Coffee Cake

No need to get up hours ahead to produce a cinnamon-y sweet coffee cake, still warm from the oven. Mix it all ahead and pop it in the oven when you wake up. It’s that easy, ya’ll!

Several of Dorie Greenspan's rugelach tumbling our of a jar

Dorie Greenspan’s Rugelach

These butter and cream cheese pastries are filled with cinnamon-sugared nuts, a slick of jam, currants, and a handful of chopped chocolate.

A tray of chewy hermit bars

Chewy Hermit Bars

These chewy hermit bars are a revelation. They’re wonderfully spicy, plumped with raisins, and amazingly chewy–even fudge-like.

A round white plate with six slices of eggnog pie and a dish of whipped cream.

Eggnog Pie

Essentially a slightly tipsy cheesecake, this bourbon-enhanced eggnog pie is something we’re classifying as “holiday desserts for parties where people like to party.”

A cranberry scone with white chocolate drizzle on a red plate, which is set on a white plate on a red background.

Cranberry Scones

Got leftover cranberries? Then you’ve got the fixings for these incredible scones that balance tart berries with sweet white chocolate and knee-wobblingly flaky pastry.

Caramel apples with branch sticks sitting on a metal dish, with more in the background.

Halloween Caramel Apples

Forget bobbing for apples. This endeavor requires less effort yet yields more caramel-cloaked gratification and a more elegant version of those sticky, red apples of our youth.