If you want to impress on your next cooking extravaganza here’s your secret. 1,001 Best Grilling Recipes: Delicious, Easy-to-Make Recipes From Around the World by Rick Browne is destined to make your cooking stand out. This latest addition to Agate Surrey’s bestselling 1,001 Series is a grilling cookbook packed with helpful hints and exquisite recipes from around the globe.

From every imaginable type of burger to a wide range of game entrees to an array of delicious side dishes and appetizers to a surprisingly eclectic selection of desserts, 1,001 Best Grilling Recipes covers the entire spectrum of grilled cuisine.

You can get your own copy of the book here and read on for exquisite recipes to wet your appetite.

Pesto-Filled Mushrooms

Yield: 24 appetizers

If you want to make pesto the traditional way, use a mortar and pestle to grind everything together. I use a modified method: I grind the garlic the old-fashioned way and then put it into the mortar and pestle of today—a food processor—to finish puréeing the sauce.

3 large cloves garlic, peeled
2 cups (473 mL) fresh basil leaves, chopped
1/2 cup (118 mL) plus 2 tablespoons (30 mL) grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1/2 cup (118 mL) pine nuts, minced
1/4 cup (59 mL) minced fresh parsley
1/4 cup (59 mL) olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
24 fresh button, brown, or crimini mushrooms, stems removed, cleaned

1. Make sure the grill is clean and generously sprayed with nonstick grilling spray. Preheat the barbecue to medium high (350°F [180°C] to 400°F [200°C]).

2. Place the garlic in a mortar and grind the cloves to a fine paste. Set aside.

3. To make the pesto, in a food processor, combine the mashed garlic, the basil, 1/2 cup (118 mL) of the Parmesan cheese, the pine nuts, the parsley, and the oil and process until smooth. Add the pepper to taste.

4. Spoon a rounded teaspoon (7.5 mL) of pesto into each mushroom cap and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan cheese.

5. Place the mushrooms directly on the grill (or you may wish to line the grill with a sheet of aluminum foil first) and bake about 10 minutes, or until bubbling and browned on top.

6. Remove the mushrooms from the grill with tongs and drain them on a paper towel. Serve warm.

Grilled Sea Scallops with Raspberry-Thyme Butter Sauce

Yield: 4 servings

Scallops should be cooked just until they are lightly browned on the outside. The inside should be moist, barely translucent, and medium-rare. Cook them any longer, and they become white hunks of rubber.

1/2 cup (118 mL) fresh raspberries, plus 1/4 cup (59 mL) for garnish
2 tablespoons (30 mL) fresh thyme leaves, plus 3 sprigs for garnish
1 cup (236 mL) medium-dry white wine
2 tablespoons (30 mL) minced shallots
1/2 teaspoon (2.5 mL) sugar
2 pounds (908 g) large sea scallops
1 cup (236 mL) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1/4 teaspoon (1.25 mL) salt
1/8 teaspoon (0.6 mL) freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons (30 mL) butter, melted

1. Preheat the barbecue to medium high (350°F [180°C] to 400°F [200°C]).

2. In a small bowl, use a spoon to crush 1/2 cup (118 mL) of the raspberries.
Add 2 tablespoons (30 mL) of the thyme. Strain this mixture into a small, heavy, nonreactive saucepan. Add the wine, shallots, and sugar. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, until the liquid is reduced to 1/3 cup (79 mL), 12 to 14 minutes. Strain the mixture, return it to the saucepan, and set aside

3. Rinse the scallops, pat them dry, and thread them onto 4 long, flat, metal skewers.

4. Warm the raspberry reduction over low heat. With a whisk, stir in the cold butter, 1 to 2 pieces at a time, whisking well. Stir in the salt and pepper. Cover the sauce and keep it warm.

5. Make a smoker package by putting a handful of soaked hickory or oak chips in a 12-inch (30-cm) square of heavy-duty aluminum foil, folding over the package, poking 3 or 4 holes in the top of the foil, and placing the package directly on the coals or open flame to add smoke to your grilling.

6. Place the scallops on the grill, brush them with the 2 tablespoons melted butter, and grill, turning once, until lightly golden and opaque, about 4 minutes on each side.

7. Pour the raspberry butter sauce onto a large serving tray and place the scallops on top of the sauce. Garnish the platter with the remaining raspberries and sprigs of thyme, and serve immediately.

Honey-Baked Lamb Ribs

Yield: 8 servings

For sweetener, you can substitute orange or lime marmalade, pure maple syrup, or molasses for the honey.
4 3/4 pounds (2.2 kg) lamb ribs
3 red onions, peeled and chopped
1 1/3 cups (315 mL) Zinfandel
1/3 cup (79 mL) fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup (79 mL) dark soy sauce
1/4 cup (59 mL) fresh cilantro leaves
1 1/2 tablespoons (22.5 mL) honey
1 tablespoon (15 mL) minced garlic
1 tablespoon (15 mL) extra virgin olive oil
1 1/4 teaspoons (6.25 mL) salt
1 teaspoon (5 mL) freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon (1.25 mL) ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon (1.25 mL) favorite hot sauce

1. Place the lamb in a 1- to 2-gallon (3.8- to 7.6-L) resealable plastic bag.
In a small bowl, combine the onions, wine, lemon juice, soy sauce, cilantro, honey, garlic, oil, salt, pepper, allspice, and hot sauce and mix well. Pour this mixture all over the lamb. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours.

2. While the ribs are marinating, preheat the barbecue to medium high (375°F [190°C] to 425°F [220°C]) for indirect grilling, putting a water pan under the unheated side of the grill. Spray with nonstick cooking spray and grease a roasting or baking pan.

3. Remove the ribs from the marinade. Pour the marinade into a saucepan and boil for 10 minutes while the lamb ribs come to room temperature.

4. Grill the ribs directly on the heated grill for 2 minutes per side, then place them in the prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes, or until the ribs are cooked through, turning and basting often with the marinade.

Barbecued Ice Cream

Yield: 6–8 servings

I introduced this recipe to national television with a live appearance on Live with Regis and Kelly in 2001. Since then, I’ve repeated the demonstration of this fun dish on the Today Show, FOX & Friends, CBS Good Morning, and many other popular daytime TV shows.

8–10 egg whites
1 cup (236 mL) sugar
1 teaspoon (5 mL) cream of tartar
1 (1-pound [453-g]) Sara Lee pound cake, thawed
1 (8-ounce [227-g]) jar raspberry or apricot jam (or other favorite)
3 Klondike ice cream bars (your favorite flavor or a mix of flavors)
1 (8-ounce [227-g]) jar chocolate-mint fudge sauce
1 small bunch fresh mint leaves, for garnish
Chocolate sprinkles, for garnish

1. Wrap a 12-inch (30-cm) square, 1/2-inch (1-cm) thick wooden plank in 2 or 3 layers of heavy-duty aluminum foil.

2. Get a good, hot (600°F [315°C] to 700°F [370°C]) fire going in a grill or smoker. If you use charcoal or briquettes in a grill, use enough to cover the bottom of the grill pan. If you use a gas grill, turn all the burners to high.

3. Using an electric mixer, whip together the egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar into a very stiff meringue, so that when you pull the beaters away, sharp points stand up. Refrigerate the mixture until ready to use.

4. Set the foil-wrapped plank on the counter. Use a sharp, serrated knife to cut the pound cake in half horizontally, and lay one half on the foil.

5. Spread the jam on one side of each cake half. Place the Klondike bars on the bottom layer of the cake, then cover it with the second cake.

6. Using a rubber spatula, completely cover the cake on all sides with the meringue, being sure to spread the meringue all the way down to the foil all around the cake. If you leave any gaps between the meringue and foil, the ice cream may melt and spoil the dessert.

7. Place the plank in the center of the grill and immediately close the cover.
Check it after 2 minutes, and as soon as you see the peaks of meringue turning brown, remove the dessert from the cooker.

8. Spoon a generous pool of fudge sauce on each serving plate. With an electric knife (an ordinary knife could crush the meringue and ice cream, ruining the look of the dish), cut vertical slices through the dessert, and put the slices on the plates. Garnish with the fresh mint leaves, shake chocolate sprinkles over the meringue, and serve immediately.