One really good and simple dessert that's always a hit:

Vanilla Ice Cream (use the best you can find)

puree fresh strawberries, raspberries and chocolate syrup (hershey's will work but if you have something better, go for it)

drizzle this over the ice cream just before serving, garnish with a couple of fresh berries and some chocolate shavings.

ENJOY!

Made this a couple years ago based on a recommendation I found here. It was a hit and the pears could be poached the day before.

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pears-Poached-in-Red-Wine-Cardamom-and-Orange-3162

Anonymous wrote:How do you get the slices to stick to the sides?

Just run some water over the sliced fruit, tip the plate over the sink to let the water drain off. The little moisture left on the fruit is enough to stick to the glass.

Anonymous wrote:Guests have always been blown away by my opera cake.

Please please share!! I have been on the hunt for a good recipe for months!!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Strawberry Bavarian. I take large wine glasses, line the sides with slices of fresh fruit (strawberries, kiwi and banana work), then put the Bavarian in the glass sprinkling blueberries and raspberries in the middle.

I love it because I make it the night before, put them in the fridge and when it's dessert time, just take them out and serve.

Shows how good my memory is...it's actually a raspberry bavarian (although it's easy enough to sub strawberries for raspberries):
http://dinnercoop.cs.cmu.edu/dinnercoop/Recipes/karen/RaspberryBavarianCream.html

And I do something like this for the wine glasses (I stole the idea from a coworker who brought a homemade trifle to a potluck)


I make whipped cream up and give everyone the option of having it on top or not.

How do you get the slices to stick to the sides?

Anonymous wrote:Guests have always been blown away by my opera cake.

Opera cake?

I think this depends on if you mean elegance or pure goodness. I made sticky toffee pudding that was to die for a few months ago. It isn't a beautiful dessert, but it is unique and if done right, unmatched.

Suzanne Goin's Hazelnut Brown Butter cake with poached pears, salted butter caramel sauce and homemade french vanilla ice cream. The cake uses only egg whites, the yolks go into the ice cream!

Apple Matzoh Pudding (served as both a dessert and a breakfast)

6 sheets of matzoh
3 lbs red apples
1 & 1/2 lemons
6 eggs
1 & 1/2 cups of sugar (I've already decreased the sugar from the original recipe)
Cinnamon to taste in the sugar
9x13 pan

Wash apples.
Peel apples, putting them in a big bowl full of water to prevent browning
Slice apples, putting them BACK in same bowl of water to prevent browning (you want slices more than chunks, but some chunks are just fine)
Preheat oven to 350
Take two handfuls of sliced apples and put them aside
Put half the cup of sugar/cinnamon combo aside as well
Break matzoh into small pieces and soak in water
Crack eggs. Scramble.
Pour out water from big bowl of apple slices (at this point you have 46 silver bowls of water and food spread all over your counters) and this is the moment to MAKE SURE you set aside two handfuls of sliced apples
Pour out water from bowl of matzoh, gently pressing with your fingers.
Pour matzoh and egg into big bowl of apples
Dump in the cup of sugar/cinnamon
Mix

Spray glass pan or tin pan with Pam or grease it with butter
Dump gloppy concoction into pan.
Smooth it out. Then place apple slices that you set aside across the top.
Then sprinkle half cup of sugar/cinnamon over artfully placed apples.
Now place in oven for an hour.
At 45 minutes, start inhaling the smells in your kitchen and dying of bliss.
At 60 minutes, take out of oven. Do not be like my mother, who accidentally flipped entire pan all over newly washed kitchen floor. You will cry like she did.
Best served warm, with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream (but can also happily be eaten cold).

Gateau ganache:

http://blogs.courier-journal.com/recipes/2012/02/23/uptown-cafes-gateau-ganache/

Nice combo of many things I like: whipped cream, chocolate, nuts...but not too heavy. Making the meringue can be a little tricky (make sure to use the recommended parchment paper). Best after it sits in the fridge at a few hours.

Chocolate Mousse
Cheesecake
Chunky Apple Cake