Recipe: Caramelized Apple Bread Pudding

A simple dessert to warm you up on chilly nights, there is no better way to celebrate the comforting flavors of fall than with this bread pudding. Sweet caramelized apples and toasted bread cubes sing in a warm cinnamon-laced custard. The cider caramel sauce itself is divine, but particularly so when generously poured over the voluptuous pudding.

Recipe: Champagne Apricot Sorbet

Sorbet is the French name for sherbet, long popular as a cooling sweet made from fruit juice, liqueur or wine. Sorbets are so versatile, they can be served as a first course, between courses as an intermezzo, or as dessert. The Champagne added before freezing creates an interestingly flavored sorbet. Use about 1 cup alcohol to 1 pound of fruit or two cups of fruit juice. Note: In some regions apricots may not be ready until later in the Spring, so feel free to substitute with a locally available fruit that is in season.

Recipe: Apricot Ginger Flan

Flan can be tricky — or not; but this recipe is worth your time to try. The soft silky texture of the sweet custard melting on the tongue with a bewitching hint of bitterness from the caramelized sugar, and then the fullness of the ginger perfuming the mouth, is worth the exercising of mastering the heat of your stove and oven.

Recipe: Cardamom Scented Rice Pudding

This indulgent twist on rice pudding highlights the heady combination of coconut milk and cardamom, accented with the jasmine undertones of basmati rice.


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Recipe: Chestnut Caramel Pound Cake

Rich with caramel flavor, aroma and color, this moist and dense pound cake is accented with chestnuts. The nuttiness and perfume of the winter nut perfectly complements the deep caramel flavor. Here we use chestnuts in three forms -- sweetened cream, flour and chestnut pieces -- to blissfully savor their buttery sweet, yet savory flavor. Enjoyed solo or with whipped cream, this cake is definitely worthy of the finest festive spread for both Thanksgiving and the Yuletide season.

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Recipe: Rosemary and Honey Roasted Pears

When it comes to simple desserts, there are few things as comforting and satisfying as warm pears. Don't be deceived by the simplicity of this recipe; treated to a simple roasting, this is an elegant and flavorful way to enjoy them. Fragrant sprigs of sweet rosemary add a wonderful, yet unusually aromatic and peppery flavor to an otherwise ordinary dessert. This is also a perfect dessert for effortless entertaining -- just prepare ahead of time and pop into the oven to roast while enjoying your main course. Buy firm pears, as they maintain their shape best with heat.


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Recipe: Lavender Pound Cake with Lemon Glaze

It’s amazing how a single food possesses the power to transport a person to ecstasy, and this luxurious recipe is one such example of this sweet bliss. Traditionally made with one pound each of flour, sugar, butter and eggs, pound cakes are among the the simplest of cakes; but they require precision and careful technique to achieve a dense richness, yet remain light and fluffy. Balancing just the right sweetness to the perfect tartness, lavender and lemon together are pure heaven. We love the bolt of lavender that sweetly surprises your senses in this refreshing cake.

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Recipe: Lemon Upside-Down Cake

This fragrant cake is a variation on the culinary classic upside-down cake. Lightly bursting with the rich flavors and aromas of lemon and extra virgin olive oil, this barely sweet, complex and supple cake is a nostalgic, yet contemporary dessert. The tartness of the lovely caramelized lemon complements the fruitiness of olive oil, making this a simply elegant and truly sophisticated end to any meal.

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Recipe: White Chocolate Lemon Napoleon

White chocolate, lemon, raspberries… these are sexy foods. This dessert is simple in construction, comprising merely a lemon cream, white chocolate, sweet lemons and fresh raspberries, but its taste is anything but. This napoleon presents sensuous textures with everyday flavors; a sublimely silky cream contrasts perfectly with crisp white chocolate. Tart and tangy paired with sweet and creamy makes for a bright and utterly refreshing dessert.

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Recipe: Raspberry Soufflé

This recipe was adapted from the Pastry Princess’ jaunt in the kitchen with Jacques Capsouto of Capsouto Frères in Tribeca, NYC, and complements our special tutorial, The Art of Soufflé. Light, delicate and oh-so-delicious, this decadent dessert is one that is less difficult to craft than one might think. Remember the five essential steps in our tutorial, and you too can become a master of the soufflé.


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Recipe: Pumpkin Flan with Ancho Chile Brittle

Incredibly delicious and intriguing, this caramel-glazed custard, reminiscent of pumpkin pie, makes an elegant alternative to the holiday favorite. A hint of Ancho chile surprises your taste buds with an unusual burst of heat and flavor. We used canned pumpkin in crafting this recipe, but feel free to explore and indulge in autumn’s bounty.

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Recipe: Almond Tarragon Cake

Superb tasting desserts don’t have to be complicated, and this simple cake exceeds all expectations. Rich with the flavors of almonds, sweet butter and vanilla and studded with tiny green leaves, these are beautiful golden cakes full of tantalizing, complex flavor. The almond paste gives a velvety fine crumb, and tarragon imparts a subtle but extraordinary hint of spice. The cakes also taste refreshing when served with the tarragon cream from our tropical fruit salad recipe; this combination of warm cake and cool cream creates an earthy and striking dessert perfect for spring. Although perfectly acceptable when prepared in a larger pan, small individual desserts always take the cake, although they require slightly more effort.

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Recipe: Tropical Fruit Salad with Tarragon Cream

A colorfully seductive dish, this light, yet alluring dessert of soft, juicy fruits is perfect for a spring or summer refresher. In this simple salad, we capture distinctly different flavors – sweet, tart and savory – and wrap them together in a subtle tarragon and honey cream. We also provide a variation for presentation – a sexy timbale of fruits – so have fun and experiment with whatever variation suits your style and comfort level.

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Recipe: Avocado Coconut Pudding

This silky, citrus-spiked pudding was inspired by an avocado coconut sorbet once served with a piña colada soufflé at Gotham Bar and Grill. With a creamy, luscious texture and sharp, refreshing flavor, it’s an indulgent treat for all avocado lovers.

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Recipe: Green Tea & Orange Mousse Cake

Tender cake, light mousse and creamy frosting. This intriguing cake is delicately flavored and full of a captivating rich green hue. If you’ve never experienced matcha green tea powder in anything other than hot tea, this dessert is easy to fall in love with. Though the recipe appears daunting, each step can be broken down into smaller jobs that can easily be prepared ahead. While we highly recommend the matcha powder, the cake and buttercream can both be simply prepared without them and served as a vanilla cake.

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Recipe: Vanilla Citrus Crème

What can be more refreshing on a hot summer night than a rich vanilla crème sauce flecked with vanilla specks? Our version is infused with the bright citrus flavors of orange, lemon and lime with a splash of Tuaca, an Italian liqueur. This impressive but simple recipe will wow your dinner guests, and is sure to become a staple in your repertoire to serve over many different dessert bases.

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Recipe: Chilly Drunken Orange "Creamsicle"

As children, we loved those creamy orange frozen treats on a stick, and often ended up with sticky orange faces, never mind the unnaturally bright orange color. As warmer weather approaches, it’s time to bring back that childhood delight, but with a slightly tipsy adult option: a splash of orange liqueur. This creamy dessert, with both mascarpone and whipped cream to balance the sweetness of the orange, is a sophisticated way to finish a spring meal.

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Recipe: Chai Pots de Crème

This rich little bite of creaminess is an indulgent conclusion to an elegant meal. The pots can be prepared ahead of time, and the effort required delivers amazing results.

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Recipe: Honey Soufflé with Earl Gray Anglaise

Ethereally delicate, soufflés carry a dramatic mystique that marvels and captivates just about any diner. As temperamental as they seem, soufflés are actually quite a simple, forgiving and playful pursuit. Consisting of only two components – a base (most often a pastry cream, purée or béchamel) suspended in a stiff meringue – a soufflé rises into an impossibly light, fluffy custard with a melting texture as it bakes. Warm and uniquely comforting, this honey soufflé alone is breathtaking, but the Earl Gray anglaise is a charming match for it. Contrary to the popular assumption that soufflés are an à la minute affair, the mystifying dessert can actually be prepared fully in advance, refrigerated and just baked to order.

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Recipe: Apricot Ginger Flan

Flan can be tricky — or not; but this recipe is worth your time to try. The soft silky texture of the sweet custard melting on the tongue with a bewitching hint of bitterness from the caramelized sugar, and then the fullness of the ginger perfuming the mouth, is worth the exercising of mastering the heat of your stove and oven.


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Recipe: Caramelized Apple Bread Pudding

A simple dessert to warm you up on chilly nights, there is no better way to celebrate the comforting flavors of fall than with this bread pudding. Sweet caramelized apples and toasted bread cubes sing in a warm cinnamon-laced custard. The cider caramel sauce itself is divine, but particularly so when generously poured over the voluptuous pudding.


gilded fork, food, food writing, recipes, dessert, Pastry Princess, apples, bread pudding

Recipe: Cherry Port Sauce

Sweet dark cherries simmered in ruby port wine with a hint of star anise and cinnamon is the ideal topping for a perfect ending dessert. Serve over ice cream, as a filling for éclairs, or a spread for cheesecake.

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Recipe: Pear Panna Cotta with Port Wine Gelée

What better way to have your drink than to eat it for dessert? And with a wiggle this seductive, you can’t resist this pear panna cotta: Cool and creamy, soft and silky, the pear panna cotta is wonderfully delicate, and the covering of port gelée is the perfect flavor accent, intensifying the refreshing dessert. The beauty of panna cotta lies in its ease of preparation and the pure, simple flavor of cream. Since there are so few ingredients, it is important to only use the best and purest.

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