Author Jamie Schler has a sure-fire hit with her new cookbook devoted entirely to oranges, Orange Appeal: Savory and Sweet. Her love of oranges started as a child when she lived in Florida and has only grown larger as an adult. I’m not big on one-subject cookbooks; this book made me think twice about that. She’s developed a stunning collection of recipes that make you want to run out to the market and stock up on oranges.

Her love of the orange is reflected in dishes from main courses to dessert. Many of the recipes show off the oranges’ diversity like Orange Fig Sauce, Orange Braised Belgian Endive with Caramelized Onions and Bacon, Beef in Bourbon Sauce, Glazed Apple and Orange Braid, and Chocolate Orange Marmalade Brownies. The photos are beautifully shot and you’ll find many tips and hints to guide you along the way. Schler is an accomplished teacher and hotel owner. Together with her husband Jean-Pierre Dagneaux, she runs the Hotel Diderot in Chinon, France, an ancient city in the beautiful Loire Valley. Her three-star property offers not only first-rate accommodations but also award-winning cuisine. Clearly, Jamie never sleeps because she also makes and sells an amazing line of jams.

This Glazed Blood Orange Cake turned out to be the perfect recipe to test. I didn’t have blood oranges available so I used navel oranges instead. I imagine with blood oranges, the cake might have had a more complex sweet-slightly bitter flavor. Author Schler explains “Thanks to the yogurt and the vegetable oil, this spectacular, intensely orange loaf cake stays moist for several days”. This recipe is Seriously Simple to prepare in the food processor.

Once the cake comes out of the oven you may find the top is high. When I let it cool, I reversed it on a cooking rack and the top flattened out beautifully. Make sure to poke lots of hole in the warm cake and then spoon over the orange syrup to evenly moisten the cakes interior. The author says the glaze is optional so try it either way. This cake is the definition of versatile I’m serving it for Halloween night this year. You can also serve it with coffee or tea for breakfast, as an afternoon snack or at teatime and as dessert for lunch or dinner. I can’t wait to try it with blood oranges.

Blood Orange Yogurt Loaf Cake

Makes 1 (9-inch/ 23 cm) loaf cake

1 1/2 cups (7 ounces / 195 grams) flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup (250 ml) unsweetened plain whole milk or Greek yogurt

1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar

3 large eggs

Zest of 3 blood oranges

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup (125 ml) vegetable oil

Blood Orange Syrup

1/3 cup (85 ml) blood orange juice

1 tablespoon granulated white sugar

Glaze

2 tablespoons blood orange juice

1 cup (135 grams) confectioner’s sugar

Loaf Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degree F (180 degrees C). Butter a standard 9 x 5 x 2 1/2-inch (22 x 13 x 6 ½ cm) or 8-cup (2 1) loaf pan, line the bottom with parchment paper and flour the sides of the pan.
2. Sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the yogurt, sugar, eggs, zests, and vanilla until blended and smooth. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients just until combined and smooth. Fold the oil into the batter, a little at a time, until well blended and no oil has collected around the edges of the batter.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake in the preheated oven for 45–50 minutes or until the center of the cake is moist but set and a tester inserted into the cake comes out clean.
5. Prepare the orange syrup by placing the orange juice and sugar in a small saucepan over low heat. Cook until warm and the sugar is completely dissolved and the liquid is clear. Set aside to cool slightly.
6. When the cake is done, remove from the oven onto a cooling rack that has been placed on top of a large foil-lined baking sheet and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Carefully loosen the cake from the pan by running a knife around the edges between cake and pan. Turn the cake out of the pan, discard the parchment paper, and then place the cake upright on the cooling rack. While the cake is still warm, pour and brush the warm syrup all over the top, allowing it to seep into and soak the loaf and to run down the sides. Allow to cool completely. ( At this point you can serve the cake; the glaze is optional.)
7. Prepare the glaze by stirring the orange juice into the sugar until the sugar ha dissolved and the glaze is smooth. The glaze should be thin enough to spoon or drizzle over the cake but just stiff enough that some of the glaze will cling to the sides.
8. Gently lift the cake off of the rack and onto a serving platter.

            Desserts can be tricky for a Seriously Simple cook, especially as the temperature goes up. Making pie dough or baking a fancy cake isn’t what I have in mind in the heat of the season. Ice cream pie answers the call for a decadent, delicious and very easy to-put-together dessert. Here are two of my favorite ice cream pies, perfect for entertaining since they are need to be made ahead and are easy to assemble:

The first, my 5-minute icy confection says it all… five minutes for a wow-factor sweet. Since you are buying the crust, insert the pre-made crust into a pretty pie plate, either simple glass or porcelain for a pretty presentation. Softened ice cream is spooned into the crust and frozen. Then a simple decoration can be added like nuts, drizzled syrup or grated chocolate. A warm berry compote is spooned over the pie slice just before serving. For a Fourth of July theme, use strawberry and vanilla ice cream, no chocolate syrup, and use all blueberries for the sauce (6 6-ounce containers); garnish with strawberries and whipped cream—Red, white and blue— It’s a knockout summer dessert.

In the spirit of America’s favorite dessert, this Banana Split Ice Cream Torte requires a little more work since you put the cookie crust together but is fun to be create your own flavor palate. The ice cream varieties have exploded so look for your favorite combinations to build this torte. If you want to make it Fourth of July festive, arrange raspberries and blueberries (that can be frozen) on the outside border. I also look for little American Flags to decorate the top of the pies.

Make sure the ice cream is soft enough to work with for both pies but is not already melting; remove the ice cream from freezer for 20 minutes before working with it. Either of these is easy to make and can involve children as well. Kids can help decorate the finished frozen dessert. This is a great item to keep in your freezer. Remember to remove the pie from the freezer 15 minutes before serving for easy slicing. Enjoy.

Five-Minute Ice Cream Sundae Pie with Berry Sauce

Serves 6 to 8

1 quart (or 2 different flavored pints) favorite ice cream, slightly softened,

1 (9-inch) purchased graham cracker piecrust or chocolate-cookie piecrust

1/3 cup purchased chocolate syrup (in squirt bottle)

2 tablespoons toasted almonds, sliced or chopped

2 (6-ounce) containers blueberries

2 (6-ounce) containers raspberries

2 (6-ounce) containers blackberries

2 tablespoons water

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1. Spoon ice cream into crust (if doing two different ice creams, spread one on top of the other); smooth top.
2. Squeeze chocolate sauce in straight lines over pie, spacing 1/2 inch apart. Draw tip of knife through chocolate lines, forming pretty pattern.
3. Sprinkle with almonds; freeze until firm.
4. Just before serving, bring all berries, 2 tablespoons water, and brown sugar to simmer in medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook until sauce thickens, stirring gently, about 4 minutes; remove from heat. Cut pie into wedges; place on plates. Spoon warm sauce over and serve immediately

The pie may be prepared up to 2 weeks ahead, covered tightly, and frozen.

Banana Split Ice Cream Torte

Serves 6 to 8

Crust

6 tablespoons sliced blanched almonds

40 chocolate wafers (One 9-ounce box)

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Filling

3 bananas, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch slices

1 quart French vanilla ice cream, softened

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

Garnish

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, grated

1. Preheat the oven to 350° Toast the almonds on a baking sheet for 7 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the almonds for the garnish.
2. For the crust, process the remaining 1/4 cup of the almonds in a food processor for 10 seconds. Add the cookies and process until they resemble crumbs. Transfer the crumbled cookies and nuts to a medium mixing bowl and add the butter, mixing with your fingers until completely combined. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9 1/2-inch springform pan. Pat the crumb mixture on the bottom and halfway up the sides. (Don’t worry if it’s not perfectly even.) Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or freeze for 1 hour.
3. For the filling, puree 2 bananas in a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Add the ice cream and process until well blended. With a few pulses, blend in the chocolate and then the remaining sliced banana, being sure not to break it up too much.
4. Pour the filling into the crust in the pan in an even layer, smoothing it down. Cover it with wax paper and place it on a baking sheet to keep it level. Freeze for 1 hour. When the ice cream is set but not completely frozen, garnish the top with toasted almonds and the grated chocolate in an even layer. Freeze the torte for at least 12 hours, then cover it with plastic wrap. Remove the torte from the freezer 15 minutes before serving, place it on a serving platter, and release the sides of the pan. Use a serrated knife to cut the pie in slices.

May be prepared up to 1 month ahead, covered tightly, and frozen.

Desserts are a challenge during the Passover holiday. Why? Wheat flour isn’t permitted and also most guests don’t have room for a big dessert. I have made flourless chocolate tortes, meringues topped with lemon curd and almond olive oil cakes that sit idle at the table. This is a serious hit on my Passover table year in and year out. I like to make this up ahead and keep refrigerated until serving. You can even freeze it if you have any left over. When I came across the recipe idea many years ago I thought this is the perfect way to enjoy a sweet without it being too heavy. I break the matzo apart into shards or use a serrated knife to cut into pieces so that everyone can have as much as they want or just a taste. I like to accompany this with a bowl of beautiful fresh strawberries that celebrate the spring season. I find that having the ingredients organized in small bowls is a big help in putting these sweet gems together. I use an offset metal spatula to help spread the caramel and chocolate quickly. Another Seriously Simple tip is to use disposable aluminum baking sheets for easy clean up. You can double this recipe but you will have to make the caramel in two different batches. I have also given this as a gift when I am going to someone’s home for Passover. Look for food safe clear cellophane and wrap it with a pretty ribbon.

Makes 4 sheets

6 tablespoons unsalted butter or margarine

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

4 sheets matzo

3/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

1/3 cup toasted almonds

1/3 cup toffee bits

1. Set the oven at 400 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with foil or parchment paper. (I prefer to use 2 disposable baking sheets and place on top of the cookie sheets since it is so messy). Place two matzos on each baking sheet.
2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter or margarine. Add the sugar and stir well. (If the heat is too high the mixture will burn.) Simmer for about 3 minutes, making sure to whisk constantly so the mixture blends well, or until it becomes a thick caramel-like mixture. Remove from the burner.
3. Working quickly so that the caramel doesn’t harden, divide the caramel mixture among the sheets of matzo using a metal spatula to evenly spread the mixture over the entire surface of each matzo.
4. Return to the oven and bake the matzos for about 5 minutes or until the topping is bubbly and brown. Watch carefully so they don’t burn.
5. Remove the sheets from the oven and immediately sprinkle each evenly the chocolate chips. Place the matzo back in the oven for about 2 more minutes or until the chocolate is just melted. Remove from the oven and spread the chocolate evenly over each piece with a spatula. Sprinkle evenly with the almonds and toffee bits.
6. Place in the refrigerator for at least an hour. Break into pieces or cut into strips and arrange on a serving platter. This can be stored in an airtight container and refrigerated. It can also be frozen.