Liqueur

These gorgeous, grown-up treats feature crunchy almond cookies, icy coffee granita, and creamy orange ice cream. Amaretti cookies vary in size—you'll need eight to twelve cookies for the parfaits.

For this spiced coffee with brandy and orange, we ignite the spice- and citrus-infused spirits in the saucepan, add the coffee, and serve the glowing drink in demitasse cups. It’s a less risky—but equally astounding—spectacle.

You'll turn up your nose at plain old chocolate chip ice cream once you try this cool, stracciatella-flavored concoction—stracciatella being a vanilla-flavored cream with thin ribbons or chips of chocolate (which melt on the tongue) running through it. The stracciatella cream fills this semifreddo-like cake, which also shines with a toasted-almond cookie-crumb base, a toasted-almond topping, and a drizzle of espresso fudge sauce.

Eben Freeman, bartender of Tailor Restaurant in New York City, developed this adaptation of a classic cocktail. Reposado tequila, aged in oak for at least two months but less than a year, gives the drink a smooth smokiness. If you prefer a more vegetal flavor, you could substitute blanco (unaged) tequila; it's probably best to steer clear of añejo (aged in oak for at least a year but less than three years), which could darken the hue and add unwanted oak, vanilla, or caramel flavors. To sweeten his Margarita, Freeman trades the traditional sugar syrup for superfine sugar, which gives the drink a slightly grainy texture. Freeman's final signature touch: Only half the glass gets a salted rim.

In a twist on the classic Italian combination of peaches and Amaretto, Ferrigno pairs fresh apricots with a seriously over-the-top syrup, made with amaretti and the liqueur, that plays up the complexity of the sweet-and-tart fruit.

One of our favorite spring ingredients— rhubarb—shines in this dessert. The compote can be served warm, at room temperature, or cold.

The unique texture of tapioca—creamy pudding studded with soft, slightly chewy pearls—inspires intense devotion among fans. This version gets lively citrus flavor from four incarnations of orange: zest, juice, liqueur, and fresh pieces of the fruit.

Brushing the pastry with egg adds shine while it bakes.

Small wedges of this luscious, superchocolaty cake go a long way.

Rosé wine with fresh fruit adds the right touch to this spiced-up menu.

This vibrant condiment takes its inspiration from the popular Cosmopolitan drink. The alcohol heightens the sauce's flavor, but for kids and nondrinkers, the recipe can easily be made nonalcoholic by substituting orange juice for the water and deleting the vodka and liqueur.

In this recipe, butter lettuce is cooked in pan drippings for a quick side.

Guests are always tickled by their own individual desserts, and after a light summer meal, these tartlets are just the thing. A flaky crust cradles plump crescents of fruit accented with almonds and Amaretto.

If you're searching for a showstopping dessert (that is secretly easy to make) to serve company, look no further. Each gorgeous — and delicious — tricolored slice is a canvas of decorative swirls: vibrant orange, deep purple, and creamy white.

Cynar, the artichoke-derived Italian liqueur, is popular in the Swiss border region of Ticino, where Italian is spoken; here, shot through with vermouth and soda, it maintains that bitter-followed-by-sweet sensation you get when eating an artichoke (plus a little fizz). And, like the vegetable itself, it goes well with cheese — which is to say it goes very well with the Appenzeller crisps below.