Selecting from a bounty of honey-inspired recipes menuwide, the National Honey Board, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), has named the four finalists in the Sweet 16 Honey Recipe Challenge. Two students each from CIA's Greystone and Hyde Park campuses – the "Final Four" – will vie for $8,000 in scholarship prizes at the Sweet 16 Honey Recipe Challenge's culminating cook-off, Aug. 20 at CIA Greystone in St. Helena, Calif.

"We are incredibly impressed by the creativity and passion each of the participating future chefs have brought to this Challenge," said Catherine Barry, Director of Marketing at the National Honey Board. "From savory starters to decadent desserts, the CIA students presented a range of inventive dishes highlighting honey's tremendous versatility. It was, admittedly, a difficult task narrowing down to the Final Four. However, we are thrilled with the line-up of finalists and look forward to the cook-off."

The finalists, one each from the Honey Recipe Challenge's four categories, are as follows:

Appetizer
Goat Cheese Tempura with Honey Dipping Sauces - Perry Xu Cao (CIA Hyde Park) of New Rochelle, NY. 

- Cao is proud of his dish because it offers a practical yet creative way to highlight several different honey varietals, or flavor profiles.

Sides/Salad 
Honey-Seared Ahi Tuna with Citrus and Greens - Jennifer Shea (CIA Greystone) of Lake Villa, IL.

- Shea says the star of this dish is the flavorful Basswood honey, which adds the perfect amount of sweetness while balancing out the other bold tastes in the salad.

Entrée 
Ba Kwa Style Pork Burger with Honey-Lime Pickle, Sweet Thyme Aioli and Okinawan Sweet Potato Fries with Kecap Manis - Eric Hodet (CIA Hyde Park) of Fairfax, VT. 
- Hodet drew on Asian flavors as inspiration for his dish, while highlighting honey in each component.

Dessert 
Honey and Blackberry Ice Cream Sandwich - Courtney Weyl (CIA Greystone) of St. Helena, CA.
- Weyl's on-trend recipe showcases the light and fruity sweetness of Wildflower honey, complemented by the tangy flavor of fresh blackberries.

Please visit the National Honey Board website www.honey.com to find these and other winning recipes from the Sweet 16 Honey Recipe Challenge.