Alexandra Guarnaschelli

"It's amazing how meaty cauliflower can be," chef Alex Guarnaschelli says. Here, she treats the vegetable like steak, searing thick planks and topping them with a super-tangy salsa verde. The salsa would also be delicious on beef steaks and other assorted vegetables.

These fluffy, buttery rolls have a homey quality. “They are deep Americana,” says chef Alex Guarnaschelli. This recipe makes a big batch, but the unbaked rolls freeze well.

For this comforting soup, Alex Guarnaschelli cooks fresh and canned tomatoes separately, which adds layers of flavor. She then purees some of the soup and leaves the rest chunky to give it a lovely texture.

Alexandra Guarnaschelli's mother, Maria, the legendary cookbook editor at W.W. Norton, made a version of this lightly spicy dish when Guarnaschelli was a kid. Alex has adapted the recipe by adding red wine.

Diners—and the chefs who feed them—are embracing retro dishes like sole amandine. At NYC's The Darby, Alexandra Guarnaschelli perused old supper-club menus and came away with ideas for cheese soufflé and chilled tomato soup.

"I like that all of the ingredients in this dish get a chance to meet each other," says Alexandra Guarnaschelli. She roasts the carrots and shallots along with the mustard-coated pork loin; then she uses the drippings to make a sauce. "The idea is that you never throw flavor away," Guarnaschelli says. "In fact, you collect flavor. It's a good philosophy for healthy cooking."

Plum tomatoes, cherry tomatoes and tomato paste ensure that this soup is ultra-tomatoey.

Alexandra Guarnaschelli loves to serve raisin-studded braised fennel with a meaty white fish, like halibut, black bass or striped bass. Roasting the large fish fillet whole (rather than in portions) is a great way to serve a small crowd.