Gourmet

This recipe, all the rage at the turn of the previous century, makes the quintessential layer cake—old-fashioned and toothsome.

The meringue bits will stay crisp in this ice cream for about 2 days. The ice cream is still delicious, however, when the meringue is softened and the texture more uniform. The ice-cream mixture (before meringue is added) will easily fit into a standard 1-quart ice-cream maker.

This recipe works well with other fresh fruits such as nectarines, plums, figs, and bananas.

This ragù would also be excellent served over instant polenta instead of pasta.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe makes very dark, mahogany-colored drumsticks. Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Here is an almost effortless soup. Everything goes into the pot at once, and the finished dish is just the thing on a cold winter day.

For this recipe you will need three mini-muffin pans, each containing twelve 1 3/4-by-1 inch cups.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe can be prepared in 45 minutes or less. This recipe originally accompanied Chocolate Soufflés with Creamy Caramel Sauce .

The people of Tuscany are known in Italy as mangiafagioli, or bean eaters, and when I was in Florence as an art history student and then in Lucca as a teacher I learned the reason why. All the trattorie served fagioli all'uccelletto for only a few lire. I was fortunate to find an Italian friend in Arkansas who had a recipe.

Because the lamb in this recipe is marinated in a barbecue-style sauce and then grilled, the hotel nicknamed the dish "paniolo", which means "cowboy" in hawaiian.

To recall the miracle of Hanukkah, dishes fried in oil are prepared during the holiday festivities. The mother of our executive editor used to dazzle her family with these cookies-each one slightly different from the next.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.