Bread

Thanks to purchased frozen dough, this bread is a snap to make. Serve it with soups, salads and pastas.

Barm brack is a dark and fruity yeast-raised cake (barm means "yeast"; brack means "speckled"). Tea brack is the much more common baking powder version.

Active time: 10 min Start to finish: 25 min

I first created this recipe at Routh Street Cafe in 1984. I've since had it on menus at five different restaurants in some form or another. It's also delicious when spread with a mixture of one part jalapeño jelly and three parts cream cheese whipped together. It's also best served warm.

Translated from medieval Scottish, farl means, "the fourth part." In this version, quartered rounds of dark bread are sweetened with treacle, which is similar to molasses, and lightly spiced with ginger. The mixture may occasionally include a handful of raisins or other dried fruit, but the bread is always served sliced and buttered, with a cup of tea.

Fast-rising yeast makes this bread a snap to prepare. A dry red wine, like Chianti, is ideal with this Italian-accented menu.

Half of one of these loaves is enough for the croutons for the White Bean and Ham Hock Soup with Arugula.

Rosemary Leicht of Bethel, Ohio, writes: "I've been a finalist in the Pillsbury Bake-Off three times, so I'm something of an expert at cooking with prepared doughs and bread mixes. Even though these items are simple to use, many people don't venture beyond the package directions. For each contest, I experimented with dozens of recipes, and some of my favorites have been breakfast dishes and desserts. Nowadays I don't enter as many competitions as I used to, but my family still looks forward to my latest creations." Serve this clever, sweet, and peppery bread alongside a bowl of soup for lunch or supper.

These special sweet buns, marked with a symbolic cross, are a fixture on many Easter tables. They are delicious plain; with fresh fruit (we loved them with the first strawberries of the season); or split, toasted, and spread with butter and jam.

Patrice Bedrosian of Brewster, New York, writes: "In the days that followed September 11, 2001, I — like so many Americans — gravitated toward roast chicken, meat loaf, and anything that brought comfort and ease to my home. You see, my stepbrother, Jerry O'Leary, a 34-year-old chef working at Cantor Fitzgerald's corporate dining room in One World Trade Center, was among the many victims on that terrible day. "I feel quite certain that Jerry's love for cooking stemmed from his mother, Julie Lestrange. And as long as I can remember, she has always had something delicious waiting for my family whenever we visit. "I would like to share a recipe that Julie has given to me. My hope is that you will, in turn, share it with my fellow readers, encouraging them to enjoy this delicious and comforting Irish bread, to smile, and to remember the love between a mother and a son." Offer this easy-to-make bread with plenty of butter and your favorite jam.

This playful take on classic Italian rum babà soaks a giant, plush brioche loaf in a fiery rum syrup infused with plenty of citrus.

This breakfast-for-a-crowd crams everything good about babka into a hearty casserole: sweet custard, cinnamon, chocolate, and tender slices of bread.

Sweet potatoes lend a soft orange glow and beguiling sweetness to this tray of dinner rolls with its shiny top coat of melted butter.

This sunny mango bread is ultra-moist and bursting with tropical flavor; the loaf is topped with a tangy mango-lime glaze that sets to a glossy finish.