"This combination of buttery shortbread and sweet chocolate is wonderful," promises Valarie Wheeler of DeWitt, Michigan. "Whenever I make it, there are nothing but crumbs left," she adds. Be sure to cut these into small squares because they're very rich.

"This lovely layered dessert is my husband's favorite," relates Karen Bourne of Magrath, Alberta. "I always make it for our Christmas dinner, but it's excellent after any special meal."

"Our teacher challenged our class to use the microwave for more than defrosting and reheating leftovers," write Michael Saunders and Andy Lyness of West Delaware Middle School in Manchester, Iowa. "This crispy jelly roll is one of our favorite microwave recipes."

During the hectic holiday season, you'll appreciate the ease of these irresistible butter cookies from Kathy Kittell of Lenexa, Kansas. It's wonderful to pull the two-tone dough from the freezer and bake a festive batch in no time.

Julia Kinard of Dallastown, Pennsylvania recommends this impressive make-ahead dessert to please a crowd. "For my granddaughter's birthday, my daughter placed slivered almonds artfully to decorate this cake as a bear instead. It was a big hit," she reports.

"My mom fixed this dressed-up chocolate cake for me when I came home from college," recalls Laura German of West Warren, Massachusetts. "Now I serve it to my family. They love the yummy pecan-packed caramel sauce."