If you only learn one dessert sauce, make it crème anglaise. You can alter the flavoring very easily and it goes well with virtually any dessert. It also makes what may be the very best vanilla ice cream ever! You’ll need three bowls to make this; stainless steel bowls are probably best. Crème Anglaise ½ [...]

Categories: dessert, sauce
Tagged: dessert, sauce

Now that I have nearly 2 liters of cherry liqueur sitting around, I have to come up with excuses to use it. Yes, it makes a great Cherry Coke, but I can only drink so many of those. As it happens, I’m teaching a series of classes based on classic French cooking, so instead of [...]

Categories: dessert, entertaining, mother recipe
Tagged: dessert, entertaining, fruit, mother recipe

Mascarpone, the queen of dessert cheeses. At least it is when it’s freshly made. The mascarpone available in most stores is a little rubbery and a bit too citrusy. The real thing has a texture like whipped cream about to turn to butter and an ethereal, ever-so-slightly tart flavor. To make mascarpone you’ll need tartaric [...]

Categories: cheese, dessert, gluten-free, home creamery, vegetarian
Tagged: cheese, dessert, gluten-free, home creamery, vegetarian

Strawberries may well be my favorite food, and this is the time of year when Hood strawberries are just right! To celebrate my birthday I made strawberry tartlets.

Categories: baking, cheese, dessert, pastry, shortbread, vegetarian
Tagged: baking, dessert, fruit, shortbread, vegetarian

Gelato is the truly ethereal version of ice cream that originates in Italy. Most important to a gelato is to start with a good base and to finish with low-speed churning that incorporates as little air as possible. There are two standard gelato bases, white and yellow. The white base is made without eggs, the [...]

Categories: dessert, gelato, gluten-free, home creamery, mother recipe, mushroom, vegetarian
Tagged: dessert, gelato, gluten-free, home creamery, mother recipe, mushroom, vegetarian

The Mayans turned cacao beans into a drink, but it was the Aztecs who added vanilla and honey to make it sweet. If they had invented sorbet, I’d like to think they would have made something like this.

Categories: chocolate, dairy-free, dessert, gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian
Tagged: chocolate, dairy-free, dessert, gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian

Grenadine is used in many drinks, but the grenadine you can buy in grocery and liquor stores is, well, nasty. And it might not even have any pomegranate in it, but it may contain some “tasty” corn syrup and bright red dye. Unfortunately, pomegranate juice really isn’t bright red, and grenadine shouldn’t set your teeth on edge with sweetness.

Categories: beverage, condiments, dairy-free, dessert, entertaining, gluten-free, ingredients, pantry, vegan, vegetarian
Tagged: condiments, dairy-free, dessert, entertaining, gluten-free, ingredients, pantry, vegan, vegetarian

Shortbread cookies are really my favorite, and the dough can double as a sweet tart dough, making it really a useful part of your repertoire. This recipe requires two types of vanilla: Tahitian vanilla extract and Madagascar vanilla paste. If you aren’t familiar with Tahitian vanilla, it’s very floral and should only be used when vanilla [...]

Categories: cookie, dessert, pastry, shortbread
Tagged: cookies, dessert, shortbread, vanilla, vanilla shortbread

As a child, I always wanted to eat dessert first. Now that I’m an adult, I often do. Naturally, then, my first blog post should be a dessert recipe, don’t you think?

Categories: dessert, gelato
Tagged: dessert, gelato, vanilla