Sundae

With its warm, gooey goodness, this dessert will bring bananas Foster to mind. You'll have some sauce left over, which will be handy because, we assure you, you'll be in the mood to have this again the next night—if not sooner.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from Ted Allen's The Food You Want to Eat. This recipe can be doubled, using a 9x13-inch baking dish. Cooking time may need to be adjusted slightly. For Allen's tips on throwing a Thanksgiving party, click here. These brownies are made to live under a blob of vanilla; as such, they're intentionally cakey, buttery, and not too sweet. This can be made ahead, and the brownies reheated for 30 to 60 seconds in your microwave; the sauce reheats perfectly over low heat.

Fresh and creamy all at once, this clever combination of rich ricotta ice cream and icy-cold watermelon chunks is a twist on the classic Creamsicle. Shaved bittersweet chocolate complements both flavors beautifully.

Even die-hard chocolate lovers won't miss the hot fudge in these sensational sundaes.

In July of 1864, the Confederate cavalry rode into Owings Mills, Maryland, where an ice cream factory's employees were loading a shipment bound for Baltimore. With rations low, the soldiers seized the ice cream and ate it straight out of the ten-gallon freezers for breakfast. Many of the mountaineers had never seen ice cream before. Some put it into their hats and ate it while riding, while others thought it too cold, so they put it in their canteens to melt.

Be sure to clean the grill rack thoroughly with a metal brush to remove any bits of grilled food that might impart an off flavor to the cake. Reheat the cake on a baking sheet in a 350°F oven before serving.

Strawberries and rhubarb are just two of the many flavorful produce varieties grown in this region. During fall and winter, the frozen versions stand up surprisingly well, especially in dishes like this compote, which we serve over ice cream or frozen yogurt for dessert or plain breakfast.

From Charleston Grill, Charleston, South Carolina.

"By adding a little espresso powder to a recipe for caramel sauce, I created an ice cream topping that has made this sundae the signature dessert in my house I had always refused to share the recipe with friends who requested it, but I finally decided that it's too good to keep secret," says Gordon Finley of Durham, North Carolina. These are terrific made with coffee or vanilla ice cream — or both.

Here is a delicious interpretation of a campfire classic.

If you don't feel like making your own vanilla ice cream for these red, white and blue sundaes, simply pick up a premium brand at the supermarket.

Sopaipillas are crisp fried breads traditionally topped with honey; cinnamon and sugar are sometimes added to make a great dessert. In this recipe, fried tortillas approximate the texture of true sopaipillas.

Thick hot fudge sauce spiked with raspberry brandy covers scoops of vanilla ice cream — or any other favorite flavor. The sauce thickens further when it hits the cold ice cream, creating a dessert reminiscent of the one served in old-fashioned ice cream parlors.

Crème fraîche gives this exceptional ice cream irresistible tang and a silky texture.

It is essential to slice the brownie in half through the middle lengthwise; otherwise, the cake slices will be too thick.

What could be more basic than an ice cream sundae? Our version has a luscious chocolate-caramel sauce spiked with bourbon and studded with macadamia nuts.

This dessert is easy to make on a cleaned rack after grilling a main course.

Colorful boysenberry and mango sorbets team up in a refreshing, guilt-free alterative to traditional ice cream sundaes.

The graham cracker crunch topping is delicious on its own, but combined with ripe peaches, cinnamon syrup and ice cream, it makes for positively addictive sundaes.