Ojakangas - Petite sweets: bite-size desserts to satisfy every sweet tooth

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e-ISBN: 978-1-4162-0773-3

Petite Sweets text copyright 2011 Beatrice Ojakangas. Photographs copyright 2011 Sellers Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form, by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented without the express written permission of Sellers Publishing, Inc. e-books.

September 2011

Waste not, want not was the mantra of my mother who lived through the Great Depression. As the oldest of ten, this rubbed off on me, too. I learned it was a sin to throw away food, especially dried bread that could be made into bread pudding. I ate so much bread pudding growing up that it has taken me many years to overcome bread pudding fatigue. But lately, bread pudding has crept back into my repertoire because Ive learned that the servings dont have to be big, honking globs of bread cubes, barely softened with tasteless custard. Mini bread puddings soft with cream, fruits, nuts, and a bit of spirit baked in little 2-ounce ramekins and served with a spoonful of rich whiskey sauce have changed my mind.

Downsizing desserts to bite-size servings solves the problem of the one and four syndrome (one dessert and four forks) or the sliver syndrome as Chicago Restaurateur Gale Gand put it (Ill have a sliver of this and a sliver of that) and offers your guests neat little one- or two-bite dessert packages. Restaurateurs, too, have found that many diners are looking for just a little something sweet to satisfy at the end of the meal. In fact, the top dessert trend today is to downsize desserts. Sweet and rich little cupcakes, a spoonful of banana crme brle, a tiny butter-crusted pecan pie or fruit tart, itty-bitty Key lime pies, or a velvety chocolate mousse offered in fun and funky little dishes add to sampling whimsy, and satisfy the desire for a bit of something sweet after a meal.

If restaurants can do it with favorite popular desserts so can we do it at home using our favorite recipes. There is not too much adjusting to be done except that you need to have smaller baking and serving dishes, shorter baking times, and often, it helps to cut a recipe down by half.

Keep your eye out for small dishes that hold less than 4 ounces ( cup). Look around for small ramekins and cups, especially those that are appropriate for baking. On the Internet, I located small 1- and 2-ounce ramekins, ideal for tiny bites of custards and souffls. In my local supermarket, I located miniature muffin tins perfect for miniature desserts like cakes and downsized pies. In local restaurant supply stores, I found inexpensive 2-ounce ( cup) metal and pottery butter and sauce dishes, ideal for chilled mousses and creamy desserts. Check the housewares sections of department stores for little dishes. I have found interesting pieces of glassware, such as shot glasses, liqueur glasses and cups, and even demitasse cups (which are ideal for little mousses and chilled desserts) at estate sales. When you portion desserts into small dishes, they dont have to all be identical, although they should hold approximately the same amount. A variety of shapes and sizes makes the offering all the more interesting.

There are a few other adjustments you will have to make when preparing petite sweets. When you are using your own favorite recipes, often the amounts need to be halved to keep the yield from being unwieldy. This is helpful when making your favorite cakes and pies to keep the yield numbers reasonable. For baked desserts, small sizes will require less baking time. For starters, cut the baking time in half.

When planning the menu, I always like to include something chocolate for the chocoholics. I choose a variety of flavors and textures, from the three basic categories: something chocolate, something pale or white, and some fruit desserts. Always keep in mind that the richer the dessert, the tinier it can be. This saves your guests from having to handle big slices of cakes or pies.

Small bites of dessert are easy to handle, transport, and store. I especially like having lidded containers with square corners to store desserts in the refrigerator or in the freezer. This can be a real bonus when entertaining. With a selection of small desserts carefully packed in freezer containers you can offer a lovely selection quickly with just a last minute garnish or topping. A collection of miniature cream puffs and pastry shells, baked in miniature muffin cups, frozen, can be the basis of a variety of desserts. Most of the desserts in this collection can be frozen with the exception of those that contain gelatin. Gelatin will change in texture when frozen.

Measuring cups, both liquid and dry, and measuring spoons are essential. An electronic or kitchen balance scale is very helpful.

Mixing bowls, both metal and glass, in small, medium, and large sizes are useful if not necessary. A handheld electric mixer is great for small amounts of ingredients, and for its portability; however, a stand mixer is most helpful when extended beating is needed. Other helpful mixing tools include wooden spoons for mixing dough, rubber spatulas, a small whisk for mixing small amounts in a small dish, a medium-sized whisk for stirring mixtures in a saucepan, and a balloon whisk for beating larger amounts of egg whites or cream in a large bowl. A food processor or blender is handy for grating, cutting fat into flour, and mixing certain ingredients, although it is not totally necessary.

Knives for cutting and chopping; scrapers for shaving chocolate; peelers for apples and other fruits; zesters for citrus rinds; reamers for extracting juice from lemons, limes, and oranges; sieves for dusting desserts or removing lumps from cocoa and powdered sugar; rolling pins for dough; and scoops of various sizes for portioning dough are in my cabinet.

Parchment paper, waxed paper, foil, and plastic wrap are necessities.

Miniature muffin tins, fluted tart pans, and miniature metal and ceramic dishes are all useful when downsizing desserts. (Look for the kind of mini dishes that restaurants use for serving sauces and butter.) Miniature shot glasses and little dessert dishes for serving rich little desserts can add variety to your dessert display.