This is a more grown-up version of the modern cupcake. It's not too sweet, with super-moist chocolate cake that contains semisweet chocolate and cocoa powder, and a luscious, ganache frosting on top. The recipe is from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours, a book that inspired me to learn to bake and eventually "go pro". I love topping them with spun sugar for birthday celebrations. More

[Photograph: Carrie Vasios] Check out other recipes from An Early Spring Dinner. Tart dough adapted from Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan.... More

This All-White Salad was created for the café in Paris's Le Bon Marché department store and comes with a predictably fashionable story. Adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table, this salad was part of a group of salads that Greenspan's friend Hélène Samuel came up with for the café, each composed of ingredients of a single hue. More

After baking a batch of these Salted Butter Break-Ups from Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table all I could think about was how much more fun they were than a typical butter cookie, both in flavor—salty-sweet to the max and in how they're meant to be eaten—broken up at the table and plenty messy. More

I had been trying my hand at French lentils with varying degrees of success for the past few years when I finally found the prefect recipe for Basic French Lentils in Dorie Greenspan's Around My French Table. While I had always incorporated a combination of carrots, celery, and onions I was missing a few key ingredients—one lone clove, a bay leaf, a bit of cognac, and most importantly, plenty of stock to cook the lentils in. More

When Dorie Greenspan, author of Around My French Table says this version of Beef Daube is her go-to recipe for the French classic, there's really no doubt in my mind that it's going to be incredible. Luckily, the cool temperatures over the weekend made this beef stew a perfect way to dive into fall and winter braises. More

According to Dorie Greenspan author of Around My French Table if you have never been a fan of endives it's because you have never tried this recipe for pan roasted Endives, Apples, and Grapes. Adapted from Alain Passard, a French chef with an undeniable passion for vegetables, this combination of sweet, bitter, and herbaceous notes lend a complexity of flavor that belies the simplicity of the cooking process. More

Greenspan's fougasse is studded with oil-cured black olives, flecks of rosemary, and bits of tart and aromatic lemon zest. It's included into a chapter entitled "Nibbles and Hors d'œuvres" since the bread is meant to be served whole to make the most out of it's lovely shape, perhaps accompanied by some slices of saucisson a l'ail, a garlicky sausage, and a glass of rosé de Provence. More

This recipe for 15-Minute Magic, a non-kosher/non-Parve chocolate-amaretti torte, is hardly traditional Passover fare, but it's delicious and doesn't use flour. My favorite amaretti to use for this cake are amaretti di Saronno from D. Lazzaroni & Co. You'll find them in their beautiful red tins at specialty shops, Italian markets and some supermarkets. That said, I've used just about every other brand available and have never eaten a torte I didn't love. More