Cream Cheese

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

This recipe was developed by Houston pastry chef Carrie Hart with the assistance of Girl Scout Amanda Marlow.

Make these individual desserts a day ahead.

"My profession as a real estate agent requires a lot of my time," writes Edi Meadows Morrissette of Westin, Florida, "so it helps that I am lightning-fast in the kitchen. I cook every day, and on the weekends I sometimes make three meals a day. I accomplish that by following my main cooking principles: (1) do a lot of prep work, and (2) keep the kitchen well stocked. For example, at holiday time I might chop onions in advance or bake bread the day before company arrives. And since I converted the bedroom next to my kitchen into a pantry for extra storage, I know I'll always have the right ingredients at my fingertips." Nice with drinks, soup, or salad. The cheese spread can be made a day ahead.

A few tips: At several points in the recipe, components need to be chilled for a while before you can proceed, so plan accordingly. In our test kitchen, Philadelphia-brand cream cheese gave consistently good results. Note, too, that the cake can be completely assembled, then frozen for up to one week.

The cake is put into a cold oven and then baked slowly at gradually increasing temperatures.

Before grilling the pineapple, be sure to preheat your grill rack and then clean it with a metal brush to remove any bits of previously grilled food, which can give an off flavor to the pineapple. This recipe makes great use of the Börner V-slicer*. Other adjustable-blade slicers also work well, but if you don't have one, you can use a sharp 10-inch chef's knife. The smooth-sided tart in our photo was made in a springform pan, but since the crust is very delicate, it's much easier and less likely to break when made in a round tart pan with a removable bottom as called for in the recipe below. Active time: 50 min Start to finish: 1 1/2 hr

Ana Garcia of Cuernavaca, Mexico, writes: "My great-grandmother, Josefina, was a highly regarded butcher, and she taught me the communal style of cooking that Mexico is known for. That's one of the reasons I opened my own cooking school, La Villa Bonita — to show others how authentic Mexican cuisine is prepared, as opposed to the usual tacos, burritos, and Tex-Mex dishes. "My husband, Robb, and I also run our own restaurant, Reposado. He insisted that we open the place because he thought my recipes deserved a wider audience. At the restaurant I like to experiment — the menu at Reposado is nouvelle Mexican — but at my cooking school I feature more traditional recipes. Working at both places gives me the chance to show off both cooking styles. " Unlike the classic delicate flans, these are made with condensed milk and cream cheese, which results in a rich texture.

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less, but requires additional unattended time.

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

Bright red berries and a sour cream topping make this luscious cheesecake a Christmas favorite at the Old Manor Estate & Hotel on Nevis. Begin preparing the dessert a day before you plan to serve it.

Originally this dish consisted of topfenpalatschinken (Hungarian cheese crêpes) baked in a rich custard. This variation skips the time-consuming process of making blintzes. Double the recipe and bake in a 13-by-9-inch baking pan.

Whole eggs, angel food cake, light cream cheese and light sour cream bring the calorie count of this Italian dessert way down.