Torte

This rich dessert is perfect for the holidays and other special occasions.

Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 2 1/2 hr

This decadent dessert is even better made a day ahead, so the flavors can mellow overnight in the refrigerator.

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.

This is the chocolate lover's dream dessert: rich, creamy and intensely flavored.

Giving a nod to tropical fruit, this irresistible treat combines rich ice cream with a nut crust and thick fudge sauce.

(Toasted Almond, Cinnamon and Chocolate Torte)

A different take on favorite Thanksgiving flavors, this beautiful do-ahead pumpkin dessert is made even easier by the use of purchased sauce.

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 torte consists of three flavors of ice cream or frozen yogurt that are layered with Nutella, a creamy hazelnut-chocolate spread available in specialty foods stores and most supermarkets. (Look for it where the peanut butter is sold.) The Nutella freezes firmly on the ice cream, but is soft enough to cut through.

Trude Reder of Long Branch, New Jersey, writes: "My mother's recipe for linzertorte is one of my favorites. It brings back memories of my childhood and of my mother and grandmother busy baking in the kitchen, the delicious aroma of cinnamon and cloves filling the whole house. I've been baking this dessert for family and friends since my husband and I came to this country from Austria over 45 years ago. Now, I've started teaching my own grandchildren the recipe, hoping they will love it as much as I do." Don't substitute jelly for the jam in this recipe — it might leak from the crust. Active time: 30 min Start to finish: 3 1/4 hr

Dark chocolate, light chocolate and coffee fillings alternate with nut meringue layers, and dark chocolate ganache covers the whole torte. This is an irresistible version of the traditional Parisian dessert.

This is an elegant dessert, light but filled with berry flavor — and it's much easier to make than it looks. The generous crust is made from store-bought shortbread, so rich in butter there's no need to add more. We used Walkers, a pure-butter shortbread from Scotland that's widely available in supermarkets.