CHRISTMAS EDITION: Chocolate Crunch Cake, Fresh Orange Cake, Cranberry Crackle Tart

For holidays, and when I know I'll have guests over, I love to make three desserts. I know I'll always have plenty if there are three options, and I like to find recipes that all harmonize well. I was really happy with the sweets I made for Christmas; all three came from Dorie Greenspan's "Baking Chez Moi" book. I didn't get any pics, unfortunately. 

Chocolate Crunch Cake: the "crunch" of this cake comes from poppy seeds. It was mousse-like, very rich, and super easy to make. I love poppy seeds so was delighted to find this recipe where they are featured prominently.

Fresh Orange Cake:  I made the slight fancy variation of this cake, which involved boiling orange slices in a sugar-water, draining the oranges, and then topping the cake with the slices. This cake was hands-down my favorite of the bunch, it was so buttery and orange-y, but not overly sweet, so in my book it was perfect. I will definitely make this again but I will likely leave off the orange slices.

Cranberry Crackle Tart  I love fresh cranberries and buy them regularly in the fall and winter when they are available in supermarkets. This cranberry meringue was a really neat combination, with the succulent cranberries suspended in the airy meringue. I also made the Sweet Tart Dough that Dorie recommends for this.