289322 Fri May 17 18:00:01 -0700 2002 19 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1565850 I am looking for suggestions on a dessert for a dinner party that will make everyone ooh and aah from sight and taste. I would prefer something I can make myself. Suggestions? I am toying with the idea of a rosewater cake garnished with candied rosepetals and rosewater icecream. Fri May 17 18:00:01 -0700 2002 0 Elle 1 1565865 Make sure your guests like cold cream before you attempt that. Fri May 17 18:58:41 -0700 2002 1565850 0 CTer 1 1565888 Personally I love rosewater, but tread lightly, not everyone does. (I had a really lovely pound cake not long ago scented with rose geranium.) The candied rose petals sound beautiful, but personally, I think a complementary flavor for the ice cream might work better than repeating the same flavor in everything. A traditional combination of flavors in the middle east is pistachios, rosewater, apricot. What about a rosewater scented meringue filled with a pistachio ice cream garnished with rosepetals and finely chopped pistachios. It would give you the color play of the white meringue, green of the pistachios, and pink (or multicolors) of the petals. Fri May 17 22:34:34 -0700 2002 1565850 0 Saucyknave 1 1565901 I have two suggestions, both involving chocolate: 1. Make a flourless chocolate cake. The Bon Appetit magazine from January 1999 (or maybe 2000) had an excellent recipe that includes instructions on how to make edible gold-leafed chocolate leaves for garnish. Very delicious, and very showy! If you don't want to bother with the leaves, you can garnish with raspberries and edible flowers (find them at Bristol farms). Recipe availabe on Epicurious.com. 2. Get ahold of Marcel DesAulniers cookbook from the Trellis restaurant in Williamsburg, VA. He has a recipe for a layered cake called "Chocolate Damnation". First layer is chocolate cheesecake in a chocolate cookie crumb crust. Second layer is a split layer of chocolate cake, with chocolate-raspberry mousse in between. Each layer gets a coating of raspberry puree during assembly. The entire cake is then coated/frosted in chocolate ganache. I brought this to a Xmas buffet, and was asked which bakery it came from. This is a two or three day recipe, but I guarantee it will be memorable. Sat May 18 00:37:37 -0700 2002 1565850 0 LBQT 1 1565916 Baked Alaska;Use ice creams and sorbets of your choice.It can be delicious,is dramatic,and isn't something people have very often.It isn,t that difficult to make if you prep ahead,and have freezer space... Sat May 18 06:46:04 -0700 2002 1565850 0 M.K. 1 1565921 The biggest reaction I ever got was from the following: Chocolate wafers (the type your mother or grandmother made icebox cake from) lightly crushed and topped with vanilla ice cream, which, in turn is topped with a hot topping made from apple slices, butter, maple syrup and a pinch of kosher salt. Unbelievable reaction. Sat May 18 07:36:45 -0700 2002 1565850 0 fladd 1 1565931 OK...here is my "cheater" solution for you. I am reluctant to give it because now my dinner party guests will know that I DID NOT make my tres leches cake!!!!!I did the following...I bought a whole tres leches cake from La Palapa ( about $55.00) and a pint of their rose petal ice cream. They also provided me with a pint of their "tres leches" to serve on the side. I put it in a lovely gravy boat and everyone was very impressed with my fluffy meringue icing....if they only knew!!! Obviously this is only a good solution if you live in or near the East Village.Good Luck! Sat May 18 10:17:08 -0700 2002 1565850 0 mellissa 1 1565940 Here's one of my Favs, Boccone Dolce means sweet mouthful. It is basically 3 8" circles of meringue two with melted chocolate spread on the top, then layer them with a 1/2" of whipped cream topped with fresh sliced strawberries (which are in season now). The top layer of meringue is plain and entire cake is frosted with whipped cream and decorated with fresh strawberries. It needs to be refrigerated for 24 hrs. You can really decorate it up and make it beautiful easily and oh is it deliscious Sat May 18 12:10:08 -0700 2002 1565850 0 Marilayne 2 1565945 Sorry Thats Delicious!Good thing you don't have to spell correctly to eat well. Sat May 18 14:14:18 -0700 2002 1565940 0 Marilayne 1 1565948 Has anyone ever tried individual serving size croquembouche (sp?)? My own personal little tower of pastry. That would impress me, I think. Sat May 18 15:16:40 -0700 2002 1565850 0 Sarnie 2 1565972 I do what might be called an "individual croquembouche" fairly often because it's so easy and so impressive. I make small choux puffs (usually from Mastering Vol. I) and freeze them ahead of time. Before serving, I crisp them in the oven, cut in half, fill with ice cream (I used to make my own caramel ice cream, but now that it's readily available I often buy it), put three in a dessert dish, and squirt a homemade chocolate sauce over it. Or, I'll use chocoate ice cream and caramel sauce. Variations are unlimited. It's easy, mostly do ahead, and eveyone loves it. Joan Sat May 18 20:54:17 -0700 2002 1565948 0 Joan 2 1566055 The most impressive dessert I ever made was Gateau St, Honore, which consists of a puff pastry circular base, onto which cream puffs are arranged, filled with vanilla pastry cream and dipped in caramelized sugar. The spaces between the cream puffs are filled with whipped cream and fresh raspberries. Even with buying the puff pastry dough at a bakery, this took all day to create. I made it for my husband's 30th birthday party and it knocked the socks off of all our guests. He's asked for it again to no avail every year since, and it's been 22 years now... it's looking like that gateau was one of those once in a lifetime pleasures. Sun May 19 16:18:59 -0700 2002 1565948 0 zora 3 1566065 I'm with Zora. We just call it a St. Honore cake. It was our WEDDING CAKE. We favor Victoria Pastry's version from the North Beach district in San Francisco. We have a bash for family and friends every Xmas Eve and our good friends bring a St. Honore cake from their favorite bakery here in San Francisco. It's become our tradition also. I will add that not everyone likes the rum flavoring, however. Sun May 19 18:00:06 -0700 2002 1566055 0 Ciaohound (Bob Savelli) 1 1565977 What's the rest of your menu going to be? Sat May 18 21:50:29 -0700 2002 1565850 0 Dee Gustay 1 1566009 Strawberry Burnt Cream This is more than likely way too simple for what you are looking for. I don't make this much anymore because there is little taste in strawberries these days. You could make some homemade strawberry ice cream (one of my favorites) to go with it for both color and taste. I don't know why say blueberries would not work in this even though I have not tried them yet. You could make say bosenberry ice cream (another of my favorites) to go with the blueberries version. Strawberry Burnt Cream The strawberries are blanketed with whipped cream, sprinkled with dark brown sugar, and broiled under the fierce heat, the sugar melts to become a crunchy lattice, the cream foams and browns lightly, and the strawberries heat enough just to become warm. Other fruits such as blueberries, sliced peaches, and pears also do well in this delicious original dessert. 2 cups chilled heavy cream 1 quart strawberries 1 cup dark brown sugar Preheat broiler Chill mixer beaters and bowl in freezer, allowing 5 to 10 minutes for this before you start. Start whipping cream at medium speed. Meanwhile, hull the strawberries, washing if only sandy. Spread in a baking dish, halving any that are large. When cream hold stiff peaks, spread over strawberries. With your fingers, crumble brown sugar over cream, spreading as evenly as possible. Broil very close to heat until sugar has melted and cream starts to brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Serve at once. Note: Be sure to watch the time. Seems like 30 seconds is sometimes enough. Yield: 4 servings Sun May 19 06:22:36 -0700 2002 1565850 0 DavidH 2 1566229 yummmmmmm Tue May 21 01:00:38 -0700 2002 1566009 0 torta basilica 1 1566023 This may be more along the lines of participatory fun than showstopping, but how about chocolate fondue with strawberries and pieces of angelfood cake to dunk in it? Sun May 19 11:56:06 -0700 2002 1565850 0 Sharuf 1 1566283 1) I'm with the anti-rosewater crowd. 2) Croquembouche was the first thing to come to my mind, not individual, but a whole one with spun sugar. Cant remember which mag I saw the recipe in a few years ago...try Epicurious.com 2) I have made a Martha Stewart Cake a few times that is pretty fab. Five layers of yellow cake, lots of lemon curd between the layers, no icing on the sides so that the lemon curd filing shows, MOUNDS of whipped cream on top and mixed fresh berries arranged on top of that. Dusting of powdered sugar. At this point the cake is VERY TALL, be careful moving it. Guests very impressed. Slightly sloppy to serve, however. I did it at an outdoor party. Tue May 21 11:59:13 -0700 2002 1565850 0 Danna 2 1566298 I haven't read the whole thread so I don't know if this has been suggested yet, but I would say "Baked Alaska" It's decadent, easy to prepare, and it looks fantastic....people always think it must be a very complicated dessert, so it makes you look like a pro. Tue May 21 13:35:13 -0700 2002 1566283 0 Maria 1 1566307 I am looking through Flo Braker's Simple Art of Perfect Baking and the Charlotte Malakoff is not only beautiful but relaively simple: Line a mold with ladyfingers, then fill it with buttercream (butter has been whipped, sugar added, whipped somemore, kirsch, vanilla, & almoned extract added, whipped more, then ground almonds added) mixed with Chatilly whipped cream. You can probably get the book from the library. I'm definitely putting it on my to do list for the spring. After refrigeration to firm it up, this is garnished with more whipped cream and decorated with almonds. The beauty of this is that you can vary the flavors everywhich way - even using rosewater if you still want that aroma/flavor and garnish with rosepetals. It's also a prepare ahead dish except for the last minute garnish. It's pictured on the cover and is certainly beautiful. Tue May 21 14:09:25 -0700 2002 1565850 0 saucyknave