Baking

Baking is a way of cooking sweet or savory items in the dry heat of an oven. Although baking itself is a relatively easy process, it is good to have some knowledge of the role each ingredient plays in creating the final dish. Read more »

While they have origins in Moorish Spain, alfajores are especially popular in South America. They are simple shortbread sandwich cookies with a sweet filling of dulce de leche. Different doughs are used for the cookies depending on the country. Some use normal flour dough, while others add cornstarch or even cassava flour for a more delicate crumb. This recipe uses a mixture of flour and cornstach. Read more »

These tasty biscuits (called "cookies" in the U.S.) got their beginning during World War I. Mothers and wives with boys in the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) worried they weren't eating well. So they devised a sweet treat in a time of rationing that would travel well in care packages sent a world away. These days ANZAC biscuits are enjoyed on ANZAC Day (April 25) to remember the sacrifices of the men in WWI. They also make a great food for hikers and campers. Read more »

Apple cake is popular throughout the United States, especially during the fall when the new apple harvest is coming in. This simple, moist, rich cake really hits the spot. Read more »

Here is an easy, quick recipe for basic American breakfast biscuits. Spread with jam or serve topped with a generous portion of sausage gravy. Baking powder biscuits make a great addition to any Sunday morning breakfast. Read more »

Banana bread is eaten in many countries, of course. But it is especially popular in the Caribbean, particularly in Aruba, Jamaica and the Bahamas. Serve slices with dollop of whipped cream and a cup of coffee or hot tea. Also great for breakfast or as a snack for kids. Read more »

Barmbrack is a tea bread popular in Ireland, especially around Halloween. It is best served toasted with a smear of butter and a cup of Irish tea. Read more »

A favorite Egyptian sweet, basboosa is a semolina cake that is baked and soaked with a floral-scented syrup. Its melting sweetness goes well with a cup of hot coffee or tea. Read more »

True blue American blueberry pie. Simple, sweet, rich, delicious and chock full of antioxidants. Blueberry pie is the perfect finish to a meal during the summer blueberry season. Try the star-studded crust variation for your next Memorial Day, Fourth of July or Labor Day celebration. Read more »

Challah is the traditional bread that begins Sabbath meals in every observant Jewish home. These braided loaves are a symbol and reminder of the miraculous manna that fell from the heavens to feed the Israelites as they wandered in the desert. For Rosh Hashanah, a round challah is favored and symbolizes the cycle of the year. Read more »

Clafouti originated in the Limousin region of France is often served as a breakfast dish, and can be made with all sorts of fruits. But cherries are classic. Cherry clafouti is traditionally made without first pitting the cherries. Read more »

This fun cake originated in the Southern United States. Bake one up when you find yourself stuck with some flat leftover soda. A favorite for birthday parties. Read more »

This recipe is for Southern cornbread, a drier, crunchier cornbread than its more cake-like Northern counterpart. It is best eaten same day it is baked. Stale leftovers can be used to make cornbread dressing. See the variations to make the Northern version. Read more »

Dresdner Stollen is the famous fruitcake from Dresden that is sold throughout Germany during the Christmas holiday season. Stollen is made from a rich yeast dough mixed with candied fruit and almonds. Loaves are folded to symbolize the Christ child in swaddling clothes. Although the dough itself is not traditionally all that sweet, baked loaves are brushed with butter, topped with powdered sugar and stored for at least two weeks before eating, allowing them to develop a rich and complex flavor. Also known as Christstollen, or Weihnachtsstollen. Read more »

Empanadas are meat pies popular throughout the Latin world. They probably originated in Galicia in the northwest corner of Spain. Spanish settlers introduced empanadas to the New World, and they are a special favorite in Chile and Argentina. The variety of fillings for empanadas is endless and includes stewlike mixtures chicken, beef, ham and cheese, fish and seafood. Other fillings include spinach, peas, potatoes, pumpkin and beans. Read more »

Spiced breads have been popular in Europe reaching back to the time of the ancient Romans and Greeks. Germans have their lebkuchen and gingerbread houses. The English have traditionally shaped ginger-scented dough into men, animals and Father Christmas for the holidays. This recipe is always a favorite with kids. Read more »

This is the traditional recipe for Irish soda bread, containing only flour, baking soda, salt and buttermilk. Soda bread became a popular hearth bread in Ireland in the mid-19th century when baking soda became available as a leavener. A baked loaf of bread is called "cake," while flattened wedges baked on the stovetop are called "farl." Soda bread is best eaten warm from the oven. It stays fresh for only a day or two, tightly wrapped. Leftovers are good for toast. Read more »

Lekach is a spiced honey cake that is especially popular for Rosh Hashanah when sweet dishes symbolize a sweet New Year on the Jewish calendar. Read more »

Kugels are sweet or savory puddings that originated with Ashkenazi Jews, those from Eastern Europe. Lokshen kugel, or "noodle pudding," is probably the most popular. It is usually sweet and is often studded with chopped fruit. Kugels are often served at Sabbath meals and for Jewish holidays. Sometimes spelled kigel. Read more »

Variations of the poppy seed torte are found throughout Central and Eastern Europe. It is known as Mohntorte in Germany and makowiec in Poland. This recipe is a simple, flourless version from the Czech Republic. Read more »

These easy-to-make, flourless cookies are excellent served with tea or coffee. They will keep for over a month stored in a well sealed container. Read more »

Maria Luisa is an elegant cake popular in El Salvador and Colombia. A variation is the English tea cake called a Victoria sandwich. Read more »

Naan is the famous bread from northern India that is baked in a distinctive tandoor oven. Variations of naan are found from India to Central Asia on into the Middle East. The intense heat of a tandoor is most closely replicated in the modern home by a very hot oven. Read more »

Pan de jamón is a traditional Venezuelan Christmas bread, but you can enjoy it any time of the year. A sweet, soft dough is rolled up around savory ham, sweet raisins and pimento-stuffed olives. The result is like a gift from heaven. Read more »

Pan de muerto, or "bread of the dead," is a sweet anise-scented bread served during Mexico's Días de los Muertos celebrations. The bread is offered up at temporary altars to relatives and friends who have passed away. Loaves are typically round and decorated with a knob of dough on top, representing a skull, and with bone-shaped pieces of dough around its perimeter. Pan de muerto is often sprinkled with colored sugar or glazed with orange juice. Read more »

Pães de queijo are tasty little cheese buns popular in Brazil. They are made with yuca (cassava) flour, which gives them an interesting taste and texture and makes them a gluten-free treat. Modern Brazilians can purchase packaged mixes or buy pães de queijo from street vendors, but homemade is best. Serve pão de queijo with coffee for breakfast. Read more »

The famous cake of three milks, pastel de tres leches is believed to have originated in Nicaragua. It has become very popular throughout Central America and is becoming more and more common in the United States. Soaking the cake in three kinds of milk gives it a rich, dense quality, almost like a cheesecake. Read more »

Pâte brisée is a basic, all-purpose pastry dough used to make tender crusts for tarts, galettes and small hors d'oeuvre. Read more »

Both Australia and New Zealand lay claim to the birthplace of this heavenly dessert, created to honor the great Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova during her visit in the 1920s. Often called "pav" for short, it is a baked meringue, crispy on the outside and marshmallowy on the inside, that is spread with whipped cream and topped with fresh fruit. Pavlova is a favorite for Aussie Christmases, and in New Zealand, it is often a stand-in for birthday cake. Read more »

Cobbler is a traditional American dessert that uses the freshest fruits of the season. The fruit is baked with a sweetened batter that rises up and around it to form a crispy crust. Peach, apple, berry and cherry cobbler are all popular variations. Read more »

This fruit tart is a simple way to use the freshest stonefruit of the season. Don't restrict yourself to plums! Peaches and apricots work well too. German tarts are generally less sweet than their American counterparts, so the full flavor of the fruit shines through without being cloying. Read more »

Pie crust was once a staple recipe in every American home. But most cooks these days are afraid to even attempt a homemade pie crust. The mere thought scares the bejesus out of people, but it shouldn't. Pie crust is simplicity itself. Just keep two things in mind: keep all the ingredients cold, and work the dough as little as possible. Follow that advice and the following recipe and you'll have flaky perfection. Read more »

Pita bread is common throughout the eastern Mediterranean. Versions of this simple round loaf are found from Northern Africa to as far east as India. The popularity of pita, also known as khoubz araby, is said to have been spread eastward and westward by the conquering armies of Alexander the Great. Read more »

Flatbreads baked with toppings date back to Roman times. But it wasn't until the 1800s that Italians added tomato sauce and cheese. The basic pizza in Naples must have three components: a thin crust, fresh tomato sauce and buffalo milk mozzarella. San Marzano tomatoes from the slopes of Vesuvius are the best if you can get them. Good mozzarella di bufala can be hard to find outside Campania. Fresh cow's milk mozzarella (fior di latte) is an acceptable stand-in. Read more »

Unlike the Mexican snack of the same name, Salvadoran quesadilla is a rich, sweet dessert cake often found in local panaderías, or bakeries. The queso in quesadilla is traditionally unsalted Salvadoran queso fresco, a fresh farmers-type cheese. But parmesan cheese is often substituted. Read more »

Semita, a popular pastry in El Salvador, is basically a tart of bread dough filled with jam or other rich fillings. Semita de piña, with a tasty pineapple filling, is a favorite. Other types of semita are la semita alta and la semita pacha, both filled with a third layer of rich, sweet, buttery dough and often jam. Read more »

These easy-to-make cookies are a favorite in the United States. It is unclear where the name originated, but the Joy of Cooking suggests that it derives from the German Schneckennudeln, a type of cinnamon-scented sweet roll. Read more »

Strawberry shortcake is a classic American early summer dessert. It comes together quickly and easily and is the perfect way to finish a picnic in May or June. Read more »

Tah chin — also spelled tah-chin or tacheen — is a dramatic Persian rice dish. Partly cooked rice is flavored with saffron, yogurt and egg yolks and then layered in a dish with chicken or lamb. The whole dish is baked and then turned out onto a platter, forming a mound of deliciousness with a golden, crispy crust. Read more »

Torta di mele is a typical Tuscan dessert. Tuscans are known for finding all kinds of ways to use up leftover bread, and day-old bread is best for this recipe. Because this torte contains an egg custard, leftovers should be refrigerated. Read more »

Walnuts (noci) are a favorite of the Italians, and this simple, dense cake makes excellent use of their rich, round flavor. Serve with a capuccino or a hot cup of tea. Read more »

This tender, lightly sweet loaf makes good use of Ethiopia's abundant honey. Read more »