Meridian Magazine: “Life is Short: Start with Dessert”

“Life is Short: Start with Dessert”
By Janet Peterson

I first heard the statement, “Life is Short: Start with Dessert” years ago from a friend — probably one of the most conservative and commandment-abiding women I know. It was delightful to hear her approach to eating that particular night, when the main course we were served wasn’t particularly enticing and the desserts looked marvelous. Her choosing chocolate over too-done chicken also conveyed her joie de vivre and her anticipating the best things of life.

Although eating dessert first is not really a recommended routine for feeding one’s family because most of us would fill up on the sweets and not leave much room for healthier meats, vegetables, and fruits, the topic of dessert is a fun one to explore.

Desserts are usually (and best) served after the main meal as a sweet finale, as a reason to stay around the dinner table and converse, as a reward for “eating all your veggies.” Desserts do not necessarily have to be part of dinner every night; perhaps, offering desserts less frequently makes them even more special (and diners more slender).

Desserts are the ultimate comfort food, each bite kindling memories of special times at home with family and friends. Dessert is often the reason we eat dinner in the first place! The simple pleasures that come from tasting something sweet and rich and the memories made while sharing it really are worth the indulgence every now and then.

From the time Mark, Andrew, Aaron, and Ben Menlove were little boys, they have enjoyed eating pie — the specialty of their mother, Pat.

Most families claim favorite desserts — maybe cherry pie, cheesecake, homemade peach ice cream, or their unique version of chocolate chip cookies. Sometimes certain occasions require certain desserts, such as a particular kind of birthday cake or hot fudge-topped peppermint ice cream dessert at Christmas. One woman noted that for her husband’s birthday, she always has to make Oreo ice cream pie, and another woman reported that their family celebrates all birthdays with a particular lemon cake. Those desserts come to stand for good family times together and sweet remembrances of family occasions.

Although some desserts are part of family tradition, desserts, nevertheless, provide rich opportunities for creativity and experimentation. Who doesn’t love poring over the dessert section of several cookbooks — especially those with artful photographs — and salivating over such enticements as Hawaiian Coconut Cake with White Chocolate Ganache, Baked Apples with Walnut-Orange Stuffing, or Death by Chocolate.

Many a home cook has gained a prized reputation and a pleased following with signature desserts. Children are more likely to ask “What’s for dessert?” than “What’s for dinner?”

Here are several “sweet” quotes about dessert:

Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.
      Robert Fulghum, quoted in Kate Rowinski, ed. The Quotable Cook (New York: The Lyons Press, 2000), 209.

Cookies are made of butter and love.
      Norwegian proverb quoted in Kate Rowinski, ed. The Quotable Cook (New York: The Lyons Press, 2000), 204.

Great desserts are like great works of art — they remind us that there’s more to life than just rice and beans. They tap into those taste buds that highlight what it means to be human. We who are served the handiwork of the gifted are grateful for our capacity to savor and the capacity of others to create.
      Joseph Brickey, quoted in Elaine Cannon, Five-Star Recipes (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2002), 207.

We looked forward eagerly to baking days, when we could come home from school to the tempting aroma of fresh bread and cinnamon rolls, dough spread thin, filled generously with raisins, cinnamon, and brown sugar. No one has ever made them better than my mother. I hear such pastries called ‘sticky buns,’ but in my lexicon that would demean them. They're properly ‘cinnamon rolls.’ Grandfather was right; those who sat at my mother's table enjoyed truly salubrious eating.
      Edward L. Kimball, “In Camilla’s Kitchen,” in Saints Well Seasoned (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1998), 7-8, 10.

My wife, Margaret and I like to do thing as a team, and when that doesn’t work, we compete. Each of us specializes in certain desserts. One of my specialties is brownie pudding cake. I’ve made it with and without recipes, on at least two continents. It has turned out different every time. One of Margaret’s specialties is trifle, a traditional English dessert — which actually comes from my side of the family…

We have a large bowl we make trifle in — a trifle bowl, in fact, though we didn’t know at first that that was what it was. It is a clear glass cylindrical container standing on a stem with a base. The stem is about five or six inches high; the container itself is about eight inches deep and about a foot in diameter. We always feel it’s a bit of a shame to eat the trifle because it looks so good. Looking at the trifle bowl from the side, you can see the layers of cake, Jello, pudding, and whipped cream, and especially the colorful bits of fruit…

When we eat trifle, I spend most of my energy simply enjoying it, for it is truly one of the worlds’ great desserts.
      Bruce Young, “Trifle with the Details,” in Saints Well Seasoned (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1998), 32-34, 35.

Click to Buy

The following recipes appear in my new cookbook,
Family Dinners: Easy Ways to Feed Your Kids and Get Them Talking at the Table
Salt Lake City: Gibbs Smith, Publisher.

Chocolate Caramel Bars

2 cups flour
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1 and one-half cups packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
One-half teaspoon salt
1 and one-fourth cups unsalted butter, softened
1 (12.5-ounce) jar caramel topping
3 tablespoons flour
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
One-half cup chopped pecans or walnuts
Heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, and butter. Mix with an electric mixer on low speed until crumbly. Reserve 3 cups mixture.

Spray, grease, or line with parchment paper a 9x13-inch baking pan. Press remaining crumb mixture in pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven.

While crust is baking, stir together caramel topping and flour in a small bowl.

Sprinkle chocolate chips and pecans over crust. Pour caramel on top. Sprinkle 3 cups crumb mixture over caramel. Return pan to oven and bake for 22 to 25 minutes, until golden brown. Cool 1 to 3 hours before cutting.

Makes 2 dozen bars.

Berry Brownie Torte

1 (19.8-ounce) package fudge brownie mix
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
One-half cup water
1 (3.4-ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
1 cup whipping cream, whipped
2 to 3 cups fresh or frozen raspberries or sliced strawberries (without syrup)
Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Spray 2 (9-inch) cake pans with cooking spray. Line with parchment paper or foil, extending sides up. Spray paper or foil also with cooking spray. Prepare brownies according to package directions for cake-like brownies. Divide batter into pans. Bake for 20 minutes; cool. Remove from pans.

In a large bowl, mix sweetened condensed milk with water. Beat in pudding mix; chill for 5 minutes. Fold in whipped cream. Place 1 brownie layer on a serving plate. Top with half of pudding mixture. Arrange raspberries or strawberries on pudding mixture. Repeat layers. Cut in wedges to serve.

Serves 8 to 10.

Ice Cream and Cake Dessert

1 (18.25-ounce) package German chocolate cake mix
Three-fourths cup butter, softened
One-half cup packed brown sugar
1 cup chopped almonds

One-half gallon burnt almond fudge ice cream, softened

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix cake mix, butter, brown sugar, and almonds until well blended. Spread mixture on a 12x17-inch jellyroll pan, pressing down until thin and even. Bake for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool, then break into bite-size pieces.

In a 9x 13-inch baking dish, place a third of cake pieces. Cover with half of very soft ice cream. Layer with another third of cake pieces and then remainder of ice cream. Top with remaining third of cake pieces. Put pan in freezer and freeze until well frozen. Soften dessert 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 9 to 12.

Variation

Use a devil’s food or chocolate cake mix, substituting chopped pecans or walnuts, and strawberry, peppermint, or chocolate mint ice cream.

Lemon Pudding Cake

Try lime juice and lime zest for a different flavor.
2 eggs, separated
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
One-fourth cup fresh lemon juice
Two-thirds cup milk
1 cup sugar
One-fourth cup flour
One-fourth teaspoon salt
Heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a deep bowl, whip egg whites until stiff peaks form. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat egg yolks, then blend in lemon peelt, lemon juice, and milk. Add sugar, flour, and salt. Mix until smooth. Fold egg whites into egg mixture, blending with a spatula.

Spray an 8x 8-inch pan with cooking spray. Pour cake mixture into pan. Place this pan into a larger pan and set on oven rack. Pour enough hot water into large pan, to measure approximately 1 inch. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes. Serve warm.

Recipe can be doubled and baked in a 9x 13-inch pan.