Caramel
1 cup sugar
¼ cup water
BERRIES AND YOGURT: Mix yogurt and ginger in medium bowl. Spread mixture in large shallow serving bowl. Cover yogurt with all the berries.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover and chill.
CARAMEL: Stir sugar and ¼ cup water in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and boil without stirring until syrup is deep amber color, occasionally brushing down sides of pan with wet pastry brush and swirling pan, about 7 minutes. Immediately pour hot caramel over berries, avoiding pouring down inner sides of bowl. Let stand until caramel hardens, about 5 minutes, and serve.Ingredient Tip: Greek-Style YogurtFor more information on Greek-style yogurt, see page 8. To make your own, see page 36.
This would be the perfect dessert following a Greek, Turkish, or Moroccan meal. Igniting the Cognac burns off the alcohol while preserving the lovely flavor; make sure you have long matches on hand for this step. 6 servings
Yogurt
3 cups plain Greek-style yogurt or drained plain whole-milk yogurt
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Apricots
1 tablespoon finely slivered orange peel
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons sugar
1 pound dried pitted whole Mediterranean-style apricots (about 3 cups), halved crosswise
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons orange juice
⅓ cup Cognac or other brandy
Unsalted natural pistachios, toastedFresh mint leaves, slivered
YOGURT: Stir yogurt and cinnamon in medium bowl to blend. Cover and chill at least 1 hour.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled.
APRICOTS: Cook orange peel in small saucepan of boiling water 5 minutes. Drain and reserve peel.
Melt butter in medium skillet over medium heat. Whisk in sugar. Add apricots; toss. Sauté until beginning to brown in spots, about 8 minutes. Add 1 cup orange juice and reserved orange peel. Simmer uncovered until juice is reduced to thick syrup and apricots are tender, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Bring to simmer before continuing.
Remove apricots from heat; add Cognac. Carefully ignite with long match. Let flames subside and return skillet to heat, shaking skillet occasionally. Mix in remaining 2 tablespoons orange juice and simmer 1 minute, stirring constantly. Spoon chilled yogurt into 6 dessert dishes. Spoon warm apricots and syrup over. Sprinkle with pistachios and mint.
This simple and delicious British concoction is much more than the sum of its parts: Fresh berries with buttered bread and sugar are transformed into a surprisingly light and luscious dessert. Removing the strawberry’s hull, the tough bit of pulp at the stem end, is easy with a huller (stub-ended tweezers designed expressly for hulling strawberries) or a paring knife. 8 servings
2 pounds strawberries, hulled, sliced
6 tablespoons sugar, dividedPinch of salt
1 pound blueberries
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
12 slices firm-textured white bread (such as Pepperidge Farm), crusts removed
2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream
¼ cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Combine strawberries, 2 tablespoons sugar, and salt in large bowl. Mash to coarse puree. Stir blueberries and remaining 4 tablespoons sugar in large saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves and berries release juices, about 7 minutes. Increase heat and boil until mixture thickens slightly, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; add strawberry mixture.
Line 6-cup bowl with 3 sheets of plastic wrap, leaving 6-inch overhang. Generously butter 1 side of bread slices. Line bowl with bread, buttered side up, cutting pieces to cover bowl completely. Pour berry mixture into bread-lined bowl. Top with remaining bread, buttered side down, cutting pieces to cover completely. Fold plastic wrap over bread. Place plate slightly smaller than top of bowl atop pudding. Weigh down plate with 4 pounds of canned goods or dried beans and chill at least 12 hours.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.
Beat cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla in large bowl until peaks form. Remove weights and plate from pudding. Open plastic wrap. Place large plate atop bowl and invert pudding onto plate. Remove bowl, then plastic. Spoon pudding onto 8 serving plates. Serve with whipped cream.
Zabaglione is a velvety Italian custard. This one is enhanced with saba, a thick, syrupy Italian vinegar that is made with unfermented grape juice. It’s dark in color, with an intense, sweet-tart flavor. Saba is available at specialty foods stores and from online retailers. 4 servings
4 large egg yolks
¼ cup powdered sugar
¼ cup saba vinegar
2 tablespoons water
½ cup chilled heavy whipping cream
12 ounces raspberries
Whisk egg yolks, sugar, saba, and 2 tablespoons water to blend in top of double boiler over barely simmering water (do not allow upper pot to touch water); whisk constantly until mixture thickens and instant-read thermometer inserted into mixture registers 160°F, about 4 minutes. Place top of double boiler with saba mixture over large bowl filled with ice water; continue whisking until mixture cools, about 3 minutes. Beat cream in small bowl until soft peaks form; fold into saba mixture. Cover sabayon with plastic wrap and chill until cold, at least 1 hour.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 4 hours ahead. Keep chilled.
Divide raspberries among 4 dessert coupes. Spoon sabayon over and serve.
frozen desserts
ice cream, gelato & sorbet
Vanilla Ice Cream
French Quarter Chocolate Ice Cream
Coffee-Molasses Ice Cream with Molasses-Glazed Pecans
Brown Butter and Peanut Brittle Ice Cream
Brown Sugar Ice Cream with Cayenne-Spiced Walnuts
Orange Ice Cream
Lemon Verbena Ice Cream
Persimmon Ice Cream
Brandied-Prune Ice Cream
Lemon-Ginger Frozen Yogurt
Zabaglione Gelato
Pistachio Gelato
Chocolate-Cinnamon Gelato with Toffee Bits
Hazelnut Gelato Profiteroles with Warm Kahlúa Sauce
Coffee Gelato
Strawberry Sorbato
Buttermilk Sorbet with Fresh Strawberries
Sparkling Strawberry and Orange Sorbet
Plum-Raspberry Sorbet
Plum Sorbet with Black Currant Liqueur
Rhubarb Sorbet with Gingered Orange Compote
Watermelon-Lime Sorbet
Cantaloupe Sorbet with Melon Confetti Compote
Gingered Lychee Sorbet
Rich Chocolate Sorbet
Margarita Sorbet
Mai Tai Sorbet
Mint Julep Sorbet
White Russian Sorbet
granitas
Strawberry Granita with Whipped Cream