ganache

I'm hosting a big seafood feast after a local parade. The menu is light and fresh with raw oysters, grilled sardines, and a seasonal pasta salad with peas and radishes. With a meal that's not too heavy or rich, it's fun to surprise guests with a decadent dessert like this chocolate-glazed hazelnut mousse cake. It's the sort of thick, insanely sinful chocolaty cake that you can only enjoy a sliver of.

It's a mousse, so it must be chilled and can be made up to two days in advance — which is ideal for any sort of entertaining. I'll serve it with a big bowl of beautiful ripe strawberries. To see the recipe, read more

A couple of weeks ago I was asked to make a birthday cake for a friend. His favorite flavors are ginger, pumpkin, and chocolate — in that order, so I wanted to make some sort of layer cake that incorporated these elements.

After an extensive Internet search, I couldn't find a recipe. There are tons of ginger chocolate desserts and lots of pumpkin chocolate confections, but nothing that combines them all. Thus, I took matters into my own hands and created this gingerbread layer cake with pumpkin-spiced whipped cream and chocolate ganache drizzle. It's three different recipes that together, make one gorgeous and delicious cake.

The layers are moist, the filling pillowy, and the topping rich. It's a stunning and impressive cake full of holiday flavors, that I highly recommend. Everyone at the party loved it and your guests will too, so get the recipe.