"easy dessert" news and stories

Being that I'm known in my circle of friends as something of a food lover and able cook, I often get called upon to bring contributions to communal meals or other food events. Nearly once a month, I get tapped to make a birthday dessert and so I'm always on the hunt for a quick, tasty birthday cake that doesn't come from a box. I have a go-to cake for the chocolate lovers but I've always been stymied by from scratch white cakes. They never come out quite right for me and so the search continued.

Until Saturday morning, that is. I needed to make a cake for my boyfriend's birthday party that night, and he had specifically asked for a white cake with chocolate frosting. Simple enough, right? My theory is that when you're working with such a classic combination, you have to do a really great job of it, or it's a let down. I flipped through at least six cookbooks, looking for a recipe that didn't use a pint of cream or require you to separate half a dozen eggs and beat the whites. What I ended up using was the All-Occasion Yellow Cake recipe from the Gourmet Cookbook. It is billed as being "incredibly simple" and it lived up to that promise. It came together quickly, baked up evenly, came out of the pan easily and tasted wonderful. This one is a keeper (and the recipe is after the jump).

Source

An ice cream sandwich is a great summer treat. Not only is it cool and tasty, but it has a little bit of nostalgia attached to it because you probably ate them as a kid, with the ice cream squishing out from between the cookies and making a mess of things. Somehow, that seemed to make it taste even better at the time.

Substituting pound cake for the cookies usually found on ice cream sandwiches is a great way to reinvent the classic dessert into something a little bit more elegant for summer entertaining. Just thinly slice up a store-bought (or homemade) pound cake and spread some softened ice cream between two slices. Wrap each serving up with plastic wrap and, when you're ready to serve, just place one on each plate and garnish with whipped cream and berries.

There is no reason that you have to use these sandwiches when entertaining, of course. You can simply stock them in your freezer and have them yourself when the mood strikes you.

This deliciously patriotic-looking dessert is the perfect thing to throw together if you are headed out to a barbecue this afternoon. It is a variation on Eton mess concocted by Maki from i was just really very hungry for a 4th of July party and it consists of only a few ingredients: strawberries, blueberries, whipped cream and meringue (for crunch). She topped hers with a few star-shaped cookies for an especially festive look.

To make one, you just need a big bowl and all the ingredients, most of which you can buy (though Maki made her own meringues). The only tricky part is getting the cookie stars, which you'll either have to track down at the market or make yourself. Of course, it's probably a good idea to read though the whole recipe because that way you'll learn all the tricks that were used in adding tasty touches to this simple dish, such as balsamic vinegar on the strawberries and adding creme fraiche to the whipped cream.

Happy 4th of July!

Source