Mascarpone

Zucchini bread is one of those things that is almost always good but rarely spectacular and a slice can serve as a breakfast, snack or dessert. Sprinkling it with sugar and grilling it so it becomes nicely caramelized moves it firmly in the dessert category (and, along with adding a spoonful of mascarpone, makes it much closer to spectacular). This recipe works with your favorite zucchini bread recipe or try it with this Spiced Zucchini-Walnut Bread .

My friend Keena lives less than a mile away and has a plum tree she can't keep up with. In early fall, she makes jam with as many plums as she can and sends me home with a big grocery bag full of them every time I see her. I'm not much of a canner, so I began sautéing them and using them as a topping for yogurt and porridge, and as a filling for these simple buckwheat crepes. While buckwheat groats have a pretty distinct flavor and can be a hard sell for many folks, buckwheat flour is commonly used and adored in both sweet and savory crepes. For this recipe, use oval-shaped Italian plums (or prune plums) if you can; they're nice and firm and lend themselves well to sautéing—or just plain snacking. Morning Notes: The crepe batter needs to rest for at least an hour, so plan accordingly or make the batter and refrigerate it overnight. If you go that route, the crepes cook best when the batter is at room temperature, so let it sit out for at least 30 minutes before cooking them.

Consider this sweet and crunchy dessert a free-form fruit crisp. Be warned: The nutty oat topping is addictive.

Using the best and freshest crabmeat you can get your hands on makes all the difference in these lightly battered and totally delicious fritters from La Petite Grocery, a new-school NOLA bistro.

Who doesn’t love chocolate cake? This one is moist, dense, rich, and naturally gluten-free.

We get a little weak-kneed with delight around cakes, particularly cakes whimsically shaped to look like something else—in this case, a Yule log. Made famous in France as Bûches de Noël, these sheet cakes, filled, rolled, and frosted to look like the trunks of trees, complete with the stumps of sawed off branches, provide creative cooks the very real opportunity to play with their food. Want a few woodsy meringue mushrooms made from meringue to continue the conceit? Why not? No offense to the French, but we think this Italian version, brushed with an espresso syrup, filled with whipped cream lightened mascarpone cheese, and encased in a serious chocolate ganache, which lends itself well to sculpting, is just about the best we've ever had. Buttercream frosting is good—we know only too well from licking many bowls of it clean—but ganache is easier to make and even better to eat! Editor's Note: This recipe is part of Gourmet's Modern Menu for A Christmas Classic. Menu also includes Herb-Crusted Beef Rib Roast with Potatoes, Carrots, and Pinot Noir Jus and Green Beans with Caramelized Pecans .

Kids and adults alike will get a kick out of these "red-veined eyeball" toasts. The great thing about the boo-schetta is that a platter full of them not only looks eerie but also tastes delicious—a claim you can’t always make when striving for themed party food. Whatever you do, don't blink! These cheese-topped toasts will disappear before your very eyes. Editor's Note: This recipe is part of Gourmet's Modern Menu for Halloween: Spooky Snacks. Menu also includes Scary Barbecue Snack Mix and Chocolate-Covered Pumpkin Cheesecake Pops.

Just before serving this light and simple buttermilk cake, drizzle the warm, syrupy berries on top. Serve for casual get-togethers or a birthday party, paired with a dessert wine.

This cheesecake from California’s Wente Vineyards is ethereal and easy. An Italian grandmother might scold you for not using ricotta, but good-quality mascarpone will yield a smoother, richer, and denser cheesecake. Feel free to experiment with different kinds of biscotti such as chocolate, but really, what makes this cheesecake are the balsamic strawberries, which are sweet and tart—the perfect counterpart to the cheesecake’s richness.

This needs to set up overnight, so start one day ahead.

Fabio Trabocchi, Fiola, Washington, D.C.: "Dijon adds the right amount of spice to rich mascarpone in this easy spread."

This recipe is part of the Epicurious Online Cooking School, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America. To watch it being made, and to learn how to make other Italian classics, check out the videos.

Use plums that hold their shape when cooked, such as black or red (avoid soft-fleshed Santa Rosas). If you prefer a taller pie, use all 5 pounds of fruit.

If you have difficulty finding buster crabs or small soft shells, you can use large soft shell crabs, quartered, and they'll still make a great dish.

A yellow cake gets filled with jam then cleverly surrounded by a rhubarb mousse by using a larger spring-form pan as a mold. A jewel-like rhubarb glaze creates a finishing touch. If you have small, early tri-star or wild strawberries to garnish the top, so much the better!

Creamed corn has never been so sophisticated! This delicate, creamy filling deserves the equally subtle flavor of good, fresh pasta, so make this sometime when you are inspired to make your own pasta, or if you find a source for really fresh, homemade pasta sheets.

There are not many meals that are easier than this one, which transforms prepared tortellini and marinara sauce into a rich, savory, comfort-food meal. Just add a salad and you’re done.

Torta della Nonna, or “grandmother’s tart,” is traditionally a two-crusted tart filled with pastry cream that is seen in almost every trattoria in Italy. Dahlia and I knew we wanted to include a version, but luckily, the name gave us a lot of room to be creative. As long as it was reminiscent of something a grandmother would make—meaning homey, simple, and comforting, like this cheesecake version that Dahlia created—I felt we could call it Torta della Nonna. Honey is an obvious pairing with cheese in Italy, so we serve this dessert with three different types of honey on the side: a sweet, delicate, floral honey, such as wildflower honey; a bitter honey (also referred to as savory honey), such as buckwheat or chestnut honey; and honey in the comb. The crust that we use for this torta, Pasta Frolla, is a typical Italian pastry dough used in many classic Italian desserts. In keeping with the Italian spirit, I make it with Italian leavening. You will need an 11-inch flan ring (a straight-sided, bottomless tart ring) for the tart and one that is slightly smaller (we use an 8-inch ring) to cut a circle for the top crust.

This recipe will also make four 16-ounce servings; divide filling amounts accordingly.