Recipe Sifter

[Note: Bobby Flay, chef of NYC's Mesa Grill, prepared this dessert for a Meals on Wheels benefit meal at the Frontera Grill in Chicago

Margarita shrimp with fettuccine: tequila-lemon-marinated shrimp dipped in egg and flour, seared, and served over pasta with a lemon-ginger-wine butter sauce.

Maple macadamia quick bread with whole wheat flour, buttermilk, and a warm maple-cinnamon glaze. Rich, nutty, and sweetened entirely with real maple syrup.

Baked marmalade pancake: a Dutch baby-style oven pancake with puffed golden edges, almond extract, and a sweet swirl of orange marmalade and powdered sugar. Brunch theater in 30 minutes.

Flourless-style chocolate decadence cake with bittersweet and unsweetened chocolate, espresso, and whipped egg whites. Dense, fudgy, and dusted with powdered sugar through a stencil.

Crisp oatmeal cookies with brown sugar, walnuts pressed into the tops, and a thin, crunchy texture that spreads to 4 inches wide. Snappy edges with a buttery oat flavor.

A New Orleans-style charlotte: chocolate sponge rolled with almond paste, sliced and pressed into a springform, filled with amaretto-soaked chocolate mousse. A Mardi Gras showstopper.

Decadent chocolate mousse cake: a light, airy chocolate cake kissed with orange liqueur and zest, made by folding whipped egg whites into a rich chocolate batter, then frosted with chocolate mousse.

Super chunky cookies pack four kinds of chocolate plus pecans and English toffee bits into a brown sugar dough. Bakery-style chocolate chip cookies with crispy edges and chewy centers.

Paneed veal fried golden in seasoned bread crumbs served over fettuccine in a rich Parmesan cream sauce with cayenne. A Cajun-Italian restaurant classic made at home.

Intensely chocolate layer cake with cocoa filling and dark chocolate frosting, inspired by Brooklyn's famous blackout cake. Four layers of moist cake with fudgy frosting.

Chunks of apples and buttermilk make these cupcakes incredibly moist and delicious. Use most whole wheat flour, some vegetable oil and some butter to make these cupcakes a lot healthier without losing any great flavor and texture.

A traditional Portuguese-style bacalhau casserole layering salt cod, golden potatoes, and caramelized onions with parsley and black olives. Soaked, simmered, and baked to golden comfort.

Three layers of deep chocolate cake get brushed with vanilla sugar glaze while hot, then stacked with mocha buttercream icing spiked with coffee and cocoa.

Intensely rich chocolate silk mousse cake baked in a water bath with a pound of semi-sweet chocolate and a glossy ganache glaze. Make up to 3 days ahead. Serves 8.

Try this scrumptious cake recipe when you have company to come over, definitely will impress everyone!