DESSERT OPTIONS

CHILLED AND FROZEN DESSERTS ..... These include jellies, ice -cream, gelato, granita and sorbet. These can be desserts in themselves, used as a base or filling for other frozen desserts or served as a side to a host of many other sweets. FRIED DESSERTS ...... While pan frying and deep frying are not usually associated with desserts, we can't forget that crepe and fritter batters form the base for many desserts. Crepes or pancakes can be wrapped aroound fillings, or simply eaten with lemon juice and sugar, stacked and drenched with sauces, infused with flavourings or layered. Sweet fritters are deep fried batter, sometimes containing fruit or nuts. Fried desserts are best eaten hot and served dusted with sugar. ACCOMPANIMENTS..... For a change from serving ice-cream or cream with desserts try ...creme fraiche, mascarpone or sour cream. Mascarpone, a rich heavy cream cheese served in Italy with pastries, cakes and fruit. Yoghurt makes a great foil for very sweet desserts. You can also add honey to Greek yoghurt and serve with fresh fruit. Sorbet makes a light and refreshing change to ice-cream. Creme anglaise is a thin pouring custard, perfect served with baked desserts and puddings. Fruit coulis ( pureed fruit with sugar ) should be light and not too sweet allowing the taste of the fruit to shine. Try a berry coulis with a rich chocolate cake.