As we look ahead to the (hopefully) cooler fall months, it's time to turn on the oven and start baking. For my latest story for the San Diego Union-Tribune's food section, I turned to Joanne Sherif, owner of North Park's Cardamom Cafe & Bakery for inspiration--and she delivered. Over the years, I’ve hung out with Sherif to learn some of her baking tricks. And recently she shared with me three recipes perfect for launching the fall baking season: a moist artisanal-looking jam cake, her angel biscuits shaped with a pocket for butter, and unique brioche sweet rolls studded with fruit.

You'll want to bake these--and get her nifty tips for turning sometimes daunting baking recipes into sublime treats for your family and friends.