Ingredients

3/4 pound boned, skinned rock fish, or other firm white fish
3/4 cup fresh-squeezed lime juice
3/4 cup fresh-squeezed orange juice
3/4 cup finely diced red onion
1 1/2 seeded and finely diced serrano chilies
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup finely diced strawberries
2 tablespoons slivered mint leaves
tortilla chips or other chip or saltines, for serving

Directions

1. Cut the fish into 1/2-inch squares.
2. In a glass bowl, mix the fish with lime juice, orange juice, onion, chilies, and salt. Cover and chill for 30 minutes.
3. Add fresh strawberries and mint. Mix ceviche gently to combine.
4. Serve with chips or saltines.

Serves 4-6.

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Ingredients

For the sauce:
1/2 cup cream cheese, room temperature
3 scallions, white and greens, finely chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 teaspoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 teaspoons chopped capers
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 cornichons, minced
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons grated lime zest
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
For the pickled onions:
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
3 tablespoons white vinegar
1/2 cup red-wine vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons coarse salt
For the burgers:
2 pounds skinless, boneless salmon fillet, cut into 1- to 2-inch pieces
1/4 cup minced scallions, white parts only
Zest of 1 lime
Zest of 1 lemon
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
Olive oil, for griddle
6 hamburger buns with sesame seeds, split
1 pound baby arugula, washed and dried
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and cut lengthwise into 18 pieces

Directions

1. Make the sauce: In a medium bowl combine all the ingredients. Whisk until smooth. Chill until serving.
2. Make the pickled onions: Place all ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove from heat and let steep for 20 minutes. Let cool before using.
3. Make the burgers: Pass salmon fillet through a meat grinder fitted with a large disc or cut into 1-inch pieces and place in the bowl of a food processor; pulse until ground, 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Transfer ground salmon to a large bowl. Add scallions and lemon and lime zests; mix until well combined. Divide mixture evenly into six portions. Using a 3-inch ring mold, evenly pack one portion of the salmon mixture into ring mold to create a 3/4-inch thick patty. Repeat process with remaining salmon. Place patties on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and transfer to refrigerator until chilled, about 15 minutes.
5. Preheat a griddle over medium-high heat. Remove salmon patties from refrigerator and brush evenly with butter; season with salt and pepper. Lightly brush griddle with oil and place patties on griddle.
6. Cook, turning once, until medium-rare, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove patties from griddle.
7. Brush cut sides of buns with remaining butter and place, cut side-down, on griddle until toasted, about 1 minute.
8. Place arugula in a small bowl and drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice; toss to combine.
9. Spread 1 tablespoon sauce over the top half of each hamburger bun. Top sauce with 1 tablespoon pickled onions, baby arugula, and 3 slices of avocado each. Place the salmon patties on the bottom half of each bun and sandwich with top half; serve immediately.

Serves 6.

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Ingredients

2 bags Pepperidge Farm Chessmen cookies
6 to 8 bananas, sliced
2 cups milk
1 (5-ounce) box instant French vanilla pudding
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-ounce) container frozen whipped topping thawed, or equal amount sweetened whipped cream

Directions

1. Line the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch dish with 1 bag of cookies and layer bananas on top.
2. In a bowl, combine the milk and pudding mix and blend well using a handheld electric mixer. Using another bowl, combine the cream cheese and condensed milk together and mix until smooth. Fold the whipped topping into the cream cheese mixture. Add the cream cheese mixture to the pudding mixture and stir until well blended.
3. Pour the mixture over the cookies and bananas and cover with the remaining cookies. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

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Ingredients

For pudding and candied pecans
3 large egg yolks
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar, divided
3 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups whole milk
5 teaspoons bourbon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons mild honey
1 1/2 teaspoons water
3/4 cup pecan halves

For spongecake and syrup
3 large eggs
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sifted cake flour (not self-rising; sift before measuring)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, divided
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1/4 cup bourbon
1/4 cup water

For assembly
3 ripe medium bananas
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon granulated sugar

Directions

Make pudding and glaze pecans:

1. Lightly beat yolks in a medium bowl.
2. Whisk together 3/4 cup brown sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a small heavy saucepan. Slowly whisk in milk, then boil over medium heat, whisking constantly, until pudding is thick, about 3 minutes. Gradually add hot pudding to yolks, whisking constantly, then whisk in bourbon and vanilla.
3. Cover surface with wax paper and chill until cold, about 2 hours.
4. Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
5. Warm remaining 2 Tbsp brown sugar with honey and water in a small saucepan, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Stir in pecans, tossing to coat, then transfer to a lightly oiled 4-sided sheet pan.
6. Bake, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and shiny, about 15 minutes. Transfer pecans with a metal spatula to a rack to cool. Coarsely chop, reserving 4 halves for garnish.

Make spongecake and syrup:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle. Butter and flour cake pan. Warm eggs (in shell) in hot water 5 minutes.
2. Whisk together flour and salt.
3. Beat eggs, 1/3 cup sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer at high speed until tripled in volume and thick enough to form a wide flat ribbon that holds its shape on top of batter when beater is lifted, 7 to 8 minutes in a stand mixer or 14 to 16 with a handheld.
4. Transfer to a wide bowl. Sift flour mixture, one third at a time, over batter, folding gently but thoroughly with a rubber spatula after each addition. Stir together butter and about 1/4 cup batter in a small bowl until combined, then fold butter mixture into batter gently but thoroughly.
5. Pour batter into cake pan and smooth top. Bake until golden brown and edges start to pull away from sides of pan, 12 to 14 minutes.
6. Meanwhile, bring bourbon, water, and remaining Tbsp sugar to a boil, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat.
7. Transfer cake in pan to a rack, then run a thin knife between cake and side of pan and cool 5 minutes. Invert cake onto rack.

Assemble dessert:

1. Cut off one third of cake, reserving for another use. Brush remaining cake with half of bourbon syrup. Carefully turn cake right side up and brush with remaining syrup. Cool completely, about 30 minutes.
2. Cut cake into 1 1/2-inch squares. Thinly slice bananas.
3. In 4 bowls or 10-oz glasses make 2 layers each of pudding, bananas, cake (use all of it), and chopped pecans, then top with a third layer of pudding, bananas, and chopped pecans.
4. Chill, loosely covered, 1 hour. Let stand at room temperature 20 minutes before serving.
5. Whip cream with sugar until it holds soft peaks, then dollop on top of each dessert. Garnish with reserved pecan halves.

Cooks’ notes

• Pudding can be made 1 day ahead and chilled.
• Glazed pecans can be made 3 days ahead and kept (leave whole), layered between sheets of parchment paper in an airtight container, at room temperature.
• Cake can be baked and cooled (but not soaked with syrup) 1 day ahead and kept, wrapped in plastic wrap, at room temperature. Brush with syrup before using.
• Store-bought spongecake can be substituted for homemade. Assembled desserts can be chilled up to 6 hours.

Serves 4.

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Ingredients

6 waffle cones
1 cup malted milk balls, plus 6 more for the cones
4 large chocolate-covered peanut butter cups, chopped
2 quarts vanilla and/or chocolate ice cream
1/4 cup chocolate fudge sauce
5 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1 ounce milk chocolate, chopped
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 1/2 tablespoons corn syrup or agave syrup
1/2 cup roasted peanuts, finely chopped

Directions

1. Place a stainless steel bowl in the freezer to chill, about 20 minutes.
2. Set 6 tall glasses on a baking sheet and put a cone in each. Drop a malted milk ball into each cone.
3. Roughly chop the remaining malted milk balls and put in the cold bowl with the peanut-butter-cup pieces and ice cream. Use a metal spoon to smash and stir the candies into the ice cream, working quickly to keep it from melting.
4. Press 1 small scoop of the candy ice cream into each cone. Dot with a heaping teaspoon of fudge sauce and top with 2 generous scoops of the candy ice cream. Freeze the cones (in the glasses) until firm, about 2 hours.
5. Meanwhile, melt the semisweet and milk chocolate with the butter and corn syrup in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water (do not let the bowl touch the water), stirring until smooth. Remove the bowl from the saucepan and let sit until the chocolate is cool but still pourable, about 10 minutes.
6. Remove the cones from the glasses and dip the ice cream into the chocolate, swirling to coat. Immediately sprinkle the peanuts over the chocolate; place the cones upright in the glasses and freeze until the chocolate shell is set, at least 1 hour or overnight. Be sure to freeze each cone upright in a tall glass to keep the chocolate shell intact.

Makes 6.

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