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Tag Archives: dessert

Sweet creamy yogurt dressing

This sauce is perfect for fruit salads, puddings and cakes which need just a hint of sweet moisture. A note about the yogurt: I use lowfat yogurt that’s smooth in the Australian/European style, e.g., Wallaby Yogurt. It doesn’t contain any thickeners like pectin or gelatin. Ingredients 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream 3/4 cup plain yogurt [...]

What’s wrong with prunes in sticky caramel pudding?

Nuffingk. Nuffingk at all. Nor is adding five-spice powder. “What? What?” you ask. Yes, warm sticky pudding made with prunes and dates, especially if one runs out of dates but finds a nearly full bag of prunes, and especially with five-spice and ginger and cardamom — “Bwah! Madness!” you exclaim. Ah, but this pudding does [...]

Bread pudding with apples

I had a bread disaster, using a starved sourdough starter for a Sally Lunn. The bread came out rubbery. In spite of that texture, it was filled with bubbles, so not a complete brick. Bread pudding ended up a great way to repurpose the failed Sally Lunn. I’ve always enjoyed the pudding from the Station [...]

Upside down fruit tarts, er, improvised Tatin

[Yipes, nearly three months since I've posted an entry! I've been busy with cooking and whatnot, just haven't gotten to the writing bit for some time. Thank you for your patience.] Okay, so maybe not quite a tarte Tatin, since we serve these tarts with the crust topside, to reduce the sogginess factor. These are [...]

dulce de leche + ice cream

Appropriate uses for dulce de leche: Thinly spread on crêpes. Thickly spread to sandwich two butter cookies. A generous dollop in coffee. Over fruit (bananas, mangoes), sprinkled with chopped peanuts. On and in ice cream, of course. Inappropriate uses for dulce de leche: Spackling compound (too sticky). A treat for your cat (unhealthy). Ignored on [...]

Hazelnut frosting made from praline spread

Mmmm, hazelnuts. Hazelnuts ground up and used in fillings for truffles, cakes, ice cream, chocolate spreads like Nutella. Mmmuh. Hazelnut products aren’t too popular around here (defined as California, United States), which is sad. It’s more difficult to find things like hazelnut pastes and butters. One time I purchased some hazelnut butter, I think it [...]

Caramel sauce

Childhood memories of jaw-achingly chewy, hard caramel bits forever stuck to my teeth persisted for a long time. It wasn’t until encountering softer, deep flavored examples did I feel that I properly entered the realm of delicious caramel. I’ve wanted to make caramel sauce, but have been discouraged by my fear of burns. Too little [...]

Vanilla sugar

Vanilla sugar has a deeper flavor than vanilla extracts or essences, somehow more fruity and spicy to my tastebuds, more interesting. Sure, you can buy vanilla sugar. But making it at home is easy, and costs a lot less. The results can last for months by the clever continual addition of sugar. You’ll have a [...]

Baklava

There are three parts to this recipe: making the syrup, making the nut mixture and assembling the whole thing. The first two can be done ahead of time. Interestingly, the pastry doesn’t get soggy over time, so the flavor and texture actually improve a day or two later! This dish is dedicated to Samuel and [...]