10,000 batter recipes

Gourmet's chicken divan layers blanched broccoli and sliced chicken under a silky sherry velouté finished with whipped cream, lemon, and broiled Parmesan. A refined take on the American classic.

Homemade butterhorn rolls shaped into buttery crescents from a soft yeasted dough with eggs, milk, and shortening. Light, flaky, and golden after a double rise.

Classic New Orleans bananas Foster: halved bananas caramelized in brown sugar and butter, flambeed with rum, and spooned over French vanilla ice cream tableside.

Chocolate orange truffles with semi-sweet chocolate, Cointreau, orange marmalade, and chopped almonds. A no-bake French-style candy rolled by hand, ideal for holiday gift boxes.

No-bake chocolate nut cake layered with graham crackers. A creamy cocoa filling with cashews or almonds sets firm in the fridge. No oven needed.

Classic French silk chocolate pie with a rich, mousse-like filling of creamed butter, sugar, melted chocolate, and eggs beaten to silky perfection. No baking required for the filling.

Soft whole wheat rolls with potato flakes for pillowy texture, brushed with egg wash and topped with crunchy rolled oats. Honey-touched dough makes 16 pull-apart rolls.

Spareribs braised with sauerkraut, sliced apples, onions, and white wine for nearly two hours. A hearty Alsatian-style one-dish pork dinner with sweet and tangy layers.

Homemade naan bread with yogurt, milk, and poppy seeds, cooked on a hot griddle then finished under the broiler. Soft, pillowy, and perfect with curry.

Chicken Marsala with mushrooms and shallots in a creamy marsala wine sauce. The chicken is pounded thin and quickly seared before simmering in the rich pan sauce.

Cookie tacos are crisp buttery tuile shells shaped into taco folds while hot, then stuffed with lime-scented sour cream and lemon pie filling and piled with sugared strawberries. A playful dessert that draws every eye at the table.

Mint-chocolate brownies with a fudgy crumb and cool peppermint punch, built from melted mint morsels stirred straight into the batter. Easy one-bowl dessert for the holidays or any day.

Pan-seared lamb rib chops with rosemary, garlic, sauteed mushrooms, and a red wine pan sauce. A simple, elegant dinner that comes together in one skillet in 45 minutes.

Challenge Winner, AJ Horst (Test Your Tastebuds, October 2011)

Crispy golden seafood croquettes with a creamy, nutmeg-spiced filling rolled in bread crumbs and fried until crunchy. Freezer-friendly and served with tomato mayonnaise.

Traditional lasagne from Bologna uses handmade egg pasta, a long-simmered pork Bolognese with white wine and cream, silky bechamel, and Parmigiano-Reggiano. No mozzarella, no ricotta, just the real deal.