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Just as promised here I am today with Ten easy and elegant dessert parfaits! Oh, I do so love to make dessert parfaits in the summer time!
For one thing they make great use of all of the fresh fruit that we have available and coming into season, especially berries!
Our strawberries are finished now, but you can still get good local ones in the shops. There are also plenty of blueberries, raspberries and the blackberries are just beginning!
These Raspberry, Ice Cream and Brownie Parfaits are a real favourite and so easy to do. Especially if you have some ready made brownies about.
The berries are sweetened with a bit of sugar and then layered in pretty glasses along with softened vanilla ice cream, crumbled brownies and milk chocolate chips!
What's not to like about that? Nothing! These are so simple to make and oh so tasty!
If you don't have brownies, you could use chocolate cookies, or pound cake . . . crumbled vanilla sandwich cookies, etc. The world is your oyster!
You can let your imagination go wild with these!
If you wanted to you could even macerate your raspberries with a bit of Chambord raspberry liqueur, or drizzle with a bit of Mozart Dark Chocolate liqueur for something really special, especially if you are entertaining!
Raspberry, Ice Cream & Chocolate Brownie Parfait
Yield: 4
A little taste of Heaven on Earth I believe.
ingredients:
- 250g fresh raspberries (2 cups)
- 2 TBS sugar
- 450g vanilla ice cream (2 cups)
- 4 brownies, crumbled
- 2 TBS milk chocolate chips
instructions:
How to cook Raspberry, Ice Cream & Chocolate Brownie Parfait
- Sprinkle the sugar over the raspberries and let sit for a few minutes to macerate. Stir the ice cream until a bit soft and then begin layering the ingredients into four parfait or decorative glasses, beginning with a bit of ice cream, half a crumbled brownie, some of the berries, some more ice cream, more crumbled brownie, more berries and some chocolate chips to finish. Serve immediately.
One of my absolute favourite combinations however has to be these Mixed Berry and Lemon Cream parfaits!
A mix of berries is macerated in orange juice and sugar (you could use Cointreau or Gran Marnier if you wanted to.) You whip some cream and fold in lemon curd.
And then layer the berries and some crumbled shortbread biscuits along with the cream in pretty glasses. Oh boy, so yummy!
Summer Berry & Lemon Cream Parfaits
Yield: 4
So delicious you won't be able to resist!
ingredients:
- 450g mixed summer berries (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries) (2 cups)
- 2 TBS sugar
- the juice of 1/2 orange
- 240ml double cream (1 cup)
- 2 heaped dessertspoons of lemon curd (1/4 cup)
- a few crumbled shortbread biscuits
instructions:
How to cook Summer Berry & Lemon Cream Parfaits
- Sprinkle the sugar and the orange juice over the berries in a bowl. Leave to macerate while you make the lemon cream.
- Whip the cream until soft peaks form. Fold in the lemon curd.
- Crumble the biscuits. How many you will need will depend on how many biscuit crumbs you want in your parfaits. I would calculate one biscuit per parfait.
- Have ready four decorative glasses or parfait cups. Beginning with the cream, layer in the fruit, biscuit crumbs and lemon cream, ending with a dollop of the cream on top, plus a few berries and some biscuit crumbs to garnish. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
*Eight Easy & Elegant Dessert Parfaits*
Each serves four
Parfaits
are perfect, quick, easy and delicious desserts to serve! They take
advantage of the natural flavours of fresh fruit and they don't require
baking. A plus in the summer when fresh fruit is readily available!
Here are some suggestions for some delicious combinations!
Strawberry Parfaits:
Sprinkle 450g (2 cups) sliced strawberries with 95g (1 cup) of sugar,
the grated zest and juice of one orange and 1 TBS Balsamic vinegar. Set
aside for 15 minutes. Whip 240ml heavy cream (1 cup) with 95g sugar
(1/2 cup) until soft peaks form. Starting with the fruit and ending
with the cream, make 3 layers in each of 4 dessert glasses.
Ricotta Cheese, Walnut & Honey Parfaits:
Stir enough heavy cream into 250g ricotta cheese (2 cups) to obtain a
soft consistency. Starting with the cheese building the parfaits in 3
layers, drizzling each layer with some nicely flavoured honey (Greek is
lovely) and a sprinkling with portion of chopped toasted walnuts.
Finish with honey and nuts.
Pineapple Caramel Sundae Parfaits: Sprinkle
450g (2 cups) chopped fresh pineapple with a few spoonfuls of soft
light brown sugar, or to taste. Stir 450g (1 pint) of vanilla frozen
yogurt until soft. Starting with the pineapple, layer in the pineapple
and frozen yogurt in four dessert glasses. Drizzle with some prepared
caramel sauce and serve immediately.
Jelly Parfaits: Prepare
a package of cherry or raspberry jelly according to the package
directions and pour into 4 dessert glasses. Add mixed berries, sliced
strawberries, or sliced banana and refrigerate until the jelly is firm.
Top with a dollop of whipped cream or creme fraiche and a scattering of
the fruit you have used in the jelly.
Mixed Berry Creme Fraiche Parfaits:
Sprinkle a few spoonfuls of sugar over 125g (1 cup) of blueberries and
125g (1 cup) of raspberries to sweet them to taste. Add the grated zest
and juice of one lemon. Let sit for about 5 minutes. Whip 120g (1
cup) of creme fraiche with 30g (1/4 cup) sour cream until fluffy.
Starting with the berries, layer the berries and creme fraiche mixture in
four glasses and chill until needed to serve.
Ambrosia Parfaits: Sprinkle
a few spoonfuls of sugar over the peeled segments of 1 orange and 1
grapefruit (with their juices) to sweeten the fruit. Starting with the
fruit, layer wedges with whipped cream and coconut flakes in each of
four glasses. Top with a scoop of marshmallow fluff and a maraschino or
fresh cherry to serve.
Chocolate Sandwich Cookie Parfaits:
Stir a 450g (1 pint) of chocolate ice cream to soften slightly.
Starting with the ice cream, layer the ice cream with crumbled chocolate
sandwich cookies (2 for each parfait) in each of four dessert glasses.
Drizzle each layer of cookie with chocolate sauce. Top with a dollop
of whipped cream and some chocolate chips, chunks or shavings. Serve
immediately.
Its truly amazing what you can do with a bit of imagination and whats in the store cupboard when it comes to creating simple and delicious summer desserts! Happy Weekend!
Up tomorrow: Chocolate Birthday Cake
Its not very often that I can afford to buy a really good steak to eat. Food, especially meat, is becoming more expensive with each day that passes and steak is one of the things that is one of the more expensive items.
Occasionally though I come across a bargain. If you get to the shops early in the day you will often find things marked down that are right on their sell by date and need to be eaten or frozen right on the day.
It was just my luck one day to happen upon a bone in rib eye one day, at 30% off. Although I wasn't planning on cooking steak that day, I snapped it up.
I knew that I could bring it home and, properly wrapped, freeze it for a future date!
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
I decided to cook it the other day. It was a bone-in cap-off rib eye steak. Just the right size for two people to enjoy. One inch thick.
I ended up with a tender and juicy, delicious rib eye steak, cooked to juicy perfection. Seasoned with fresh herbs and cooked to a golden crust with plenty of garlic and butter.
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
Oh boy but it was some good!! Fancy food that I wouldn't normally eat every day. It was a real treat!
You don't have to go out to a fancy restaurant to enjoy a juicy steak dinner. You can cook one perfectly and deliciously in the comfort of your own home.
This can be a bit intimidating to some people, but if you follow my handy tips and suggestions, there is no reason why you can't cook a delicious steak to perfection in your own home as well!
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
It goes without saying that, if you want to enjoy a perfect steak, you have to first start out with the perfect cut of meat.
For panfrying, broiling or grilling, I wouldn't recommend anything less than a good quality sirloin, rib eye or filet steak. Steak that has been properly aged on the bone will give you the best flavor.
I also like to start with my meat being at room temperature. Take your steaks out of the fridge at least half an hour before cooking or longer if possible. Some cooks eschew seasoning the meat prior to cooking.
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
I am a firm believer, however, in salting the meat prior to cooking. The heat helps to seal in the salt, allowing it to penetrate and really flavor the surface of the meat.
That old idea about the salt drawing out the moisture and meat juices doesn't really wash with me.
If pan frying, which is my preferred method, you want to use a really heavy skillet, heated to a hot temperature. Brush your seasoned meat with some butter, and then place it in the hot pan. Alternately you can have a nice knob of butter ready and foaming in the hot pan.
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
Cook for several minutes to sear the first side, and then flip over and finish searing it on the second side.
Don't turn your steak any more than once. Turning it over and over, is what causes the meat juices to release and your steak ends up stewing instead of frying.
I like to use the finger test when judging the doneness of my meat. It works perfectly every time. This is a simple way to judge how done your meat is. The further your thumb has to move across your hand, the more resilient the ball of muscle in your hand becomes.
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
The amount of resistance felt by your opposing finger when compared against the same finger pressed onto your meat is an excellent gauge in guessing as to how done your meat is.
First finger stage: for blue meat and lightly cooked fish.
Touch your thumb to it's opposing first finger and press the ball of your thumb with the tip of a finger of the other hand, the ball will offer no resistance.
The surface should be seared in steak, and firm, and the beads of meat juice not yet risen to the surface. The meat is rare to almost blue when cut with a mild flavor.
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
Second finger stage: for rare meat.
Touch your second finger to your thumb and press the ball of your thumb. The ball will feel spongy. The meat should be well browned and spongy when pressed in the center.
It should be firm at the sides and any beads of juice on the surface should be deep pink. The meat when cut is read, juicy and aromatic.
Third finger stage: For medium cooked meat, game or duck, or well done fish.
Touch your third finger to your thumb and press the ball of your thumb. The ball will feel resilient.
The surface should be crusty brown and the meat should resist when the center is pressed. Firm at the side, the juices on the surface should be pink, and when cut the meat is juicy, deep pink and well flavored.
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
Fourth finger stage: For well done meat, or poultry.
Touch your fourth finger to your thumb and press the ball of your thumb. The ball will feel firm.
The surface of the meat will be crusty brown and dry and the meat will feel quite firm when touched in the centre. Beads of juice on the surface of the meat will be clear and when cut no pink juices will be visible.
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
I like my steaks medium rare. This is something I learned not to ask for in France. It always came raw, or blue. 😖 Apparently the term medium rare takes on a whole new context on the continent!
Anyways, I really enjoyed my steak the other day, cooked simply in the garlic and butter, with those lovely flavored herbs pressed into its surface. It was beautiful.
I enjoyed it with some of the Broken Potatoes Recipe I shared the other day and some fresh steamed green beans. It went down a real treat!
.JPG "Rib Eye Steak")
Here are a few more steak recipes you might be interested in!
GARLIC STEAK BITES AND POTATOES - Quick, easy and delicious, the steak is sliced and marinated in a soy/sriracha marinade while you cook the potatoes.
This content (written and photography) is the sole property of The English Kitchen. Any reposting or misuse is not permitted. If you are reading this elsewhere, please know that it is stolen content and you may report it to me at mariealicejoan at aol dot com.
This is a tiny bit spicy and a tiny bit salty. In short, incredibly tasty!!
GRILLED STEAK SANDWICH - This pub style steak sandwich is an open faced sandwich that even a lady can feel comfortable eating. Light enough to please a delicate palate, but hearty enough to please a man, especially if you add some chips (fries) on the side!
Rib Eye Steak
Yield: 2
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 10 MinInactive time: 6 MinTotal time: 26 Min
A delicious steak, rubbed with fresh herbs and browned in butter and garlic. Perfectly cooked and delicious!
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound (bone in) rib eye steak (about 1 to 1 1/2 inch thick)
- fine sea salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
- 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1 TBS butter
- 1/2 TBS olive oil
- 2 small cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
- chopped fresh parsley to garnish
Instructions
- Remove the steak from the fridge. Pat it dry with paper towels and season it generously on both sides with salt. Leave it to sit on the counter for 30 minutes.
- Season with black pepper and rub the herbs into the surface of the steak on top and bottom.
- Place a heavy bottomed skillet over medium heat. (Cast iron is ideal if you have it.)
- Add the butter and oil, swirling to coat the bottom of the pan.
- Add the steak to the skillet and cook for 5 minutes on one side, or until browned on the bottom. Turn over and add the garlic to the pan.
- Continue to cook or a further 3 to 5 minutes longer, basting with the butter drippings. (This is easily done by tilting the pan to spoon the butter drippings.)
- Thicker steaks will take longer to cook. Mine was about 1 inch thick and it was perfect at 3 minutes. The steak will continue to cook after you remove it from the pan.
- Remove to a cutting board and leave to rest for 5 to 6 minutes before slicing and serving.
- Serve garnished with chopped parsley and your favorite sides.
Thanks so much for visiting! Do come again!
It won't be long now before they are all gone . . . beautiful English plums. Those lucious ruby coloured gems that taste so sweet and lovely.
We are fortunate enough to have trees filled with several different varieties here on the Estate actually . . . purple Italian, green gages, mirabels and lovely little ordinary ruby coloured ones, whose name escapes me right now . . . they're all lovely and free from pesticides and other chemicals. I guess you could call them organic, except that the orchards that surround us are not pesticide free so . . .
I have frozen bags and bags of them to use up in the winter months ahead. I've made cakes and pies and tarts til they've come out my ears, and lovely they have been too.
I like to keep a bowl of them on the counter and eat them fresh. I leave them until they are just about to go over . . . so soft, sweet and juicy, you need to eat them over the sink . . . that is when they taste the best and the sweetest in my opinion . . . little ruby coloured bites of heaven.
When we have had our fill of fresh, and pies and crumbles, cakes and tarts . . .
I make chutney. Delicious. Sweet. Spicy. Perfect to go with roasted meats or in a very tasty cheese sandwich. Even better in a toasted cheese sandwich, all buttery and crisp on the outside and meltingly cheese and chutney-ee on the insides. Ohh . . . yum, yum . . . I know what I'm having for lunch today . . . wish you could join me, truly I do . . .
*Spicy Plum Chutney*
Makes about 3 pounds
Printable Recipe
This is the perfect time of year to make this delicious chutney. Better do it quick before the plums are all gone!
1.5kg of ripe plums
2 pounds of bramley apples, peeled and chopped
2 fat cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
450g cooking onions, peeled and chopped
200g sultana raisins
2 star anise
4 cardamom pods, bruised with knife
200g granulated sugar
400ml white wine vinegar
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
200ml port
Stone the plums and chop. Put them into a large saucepan with the garlic cloves, onions, apples, sultanas, star anise, cardamom pods, sugar and 300ml of the white wine vinegar. Season with some salt and black pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
Simmer for 25-30 minutes, until tender. Add the remaining white wine vinegar and the port. Cook for a further 30 minutes, stirring often, or until thickened. If it still seems a bit runny, simmer for another 10-15 minutes.
Place into hot sterilized jars, dividing it equally amongst them. Place a disc of waxed paper directly on top of the hot chutney. (Alternately melt some paraffin wax and pour this immediately over top of the hot chutney. I bring mine over from Canada and it is for the express use of sealing jams and preserves.) Seal with airtight lids and store in a cool dark place for at least one month before using. This will keep up to six months if kept out of sunlight. Refrigerate once opened. Will keep for a further 2 months in the refrigerator.
Ham and Cheese Braid. I am in love. Not only is this sandwich bread/ braid use only four ingredients, but it is also incredibly delicious!
Yes, you heard that correctly. ONLY FOUR INGREDIENTS. Four ingredients and about half an hour of your time, and you and your family can be enjoying this tasty hot sandwich too!
I had some leftover ham that needed using up and I had also bought some refrigerated crescent dough, which needed using.
I don't know why I do it, but, every time they put that stuff on offer at the grocery store, I end up bringing home one or two cans! Its inevitable.
I can't remember the last time I actually rolled it into crescent rolls. I most always use it for something else. It is actually a pretty handy store cupboard refrigerated ingredient to have on hand!
I use it for all sorts. I have filled them with just about everything under the sun. My Pumpkin Pie Rollups are really popular around here this time of year. So are my Reuben Roll Ups.
To be honest you can fill refrigerated crescent rolls with just about anything and come up trumps! Seriously!
These Cherry Croissants are a real favorite of mine. Cherry Pie filling stuffed into a crescent roll, baked in a muffin cup and then drizzled with an almond drizzle frosting.
I mean, what's not to LOVE about that!
Today I had a quantity of leftover cooked ham to use up. I went searching online and found this delicious recipe on Plain Chicken.
Not only did it look quick and easy to make, but it included a lot of my favorite things. Ham. Cheese. Honey Mustard. A triune of amazing flavors that go together really well.
I also just happened to have everything I needed in my refrigerator. So it was a go from the start!
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO MAKE HAM & CHEESE BRAID
Not a lot really.
- Refrigerated Crescent Roll Dough
- Cooked baked ham
- Grated cheese
- Honey mustard
Its simple really.
There are other things you could use rather than the crescent roll dough as well. Ready rolled all butter puff pastry would work very well as would your favorite baking powder biscuit recipe.
You can find mine here. It would work beautifully. Just roll it out into a rectangle and proceed as per the recipe states. It is the same with the puff pastry.
Its my mom's baking powder biscuit recipe, which does make rather a lot, so if you decide to use that, shape and cook half of the recipe as biscuits (which you can freeze to enjoy another time) and half as this tasty braid.
HOW DO YOU MAKE HAM & CHEESE BRAID
Its really simple to make these. As simple as one two three. I like to start by making the filling.
You begin with already cooked ham. You can either use leftovers from a ham dinner, or you can start with cooked ham you have bought in the shops. You need to cut it into small cubes or pieces.
If you are using leftover cooked ham, cut the ham into slices about 1/3 of an inch thick. Stack the slices and then cut through the stack into strips. Then cut the stacked strips into smaller pieces crosswise. (I hope that made sense.)
Pop this into a bowl and add the grated cheese and honey mustard, mixing it all together well. Start preheating your oven now.
Now you need to unroll your croissant dough. I do this right on a piece of baking paper on a baking sheet. You will note that there are already cut separations and perforations in the dough.
Press these closed with your finger tips until you have a solid sheet. (They may fall apart a bit anyways when baking, but not to the detriment of the bake.)
Eyeball the rectangle of dough and visually divide it into thirds lengthwise. Spoon the ham filling down the center third of the dough. It will look like a lot.
Personally I took the cue from Plain Chicken and reserved a bit of it to spoon on the top at the end. As you can see from the photos, it looks really scrumptious that way.
The other two thirds of the pastry rectangle is what will be used to braid over top of the filling. Snip the dough almost all the way to the filling on either side of it.
Make about ten strips on each side, ending about 1/2 inch away from the actual filling. You want each strip to be at least 1 inch in width. The next part is the fiddly part, but even that is fairly easy.
I say fiddly, but it really isn't and there is no right or wrong way to do it. Gently pull the strips up and over the filling to cover it, one at a time and criss crossing them with the strips on the other side.
Just as if you were doing a braid, or plait as it is called in the UK. Don't tug on them too hard as you don't want them to tear. The important thing is that you reasonably cover the filling so that it doesn't ooze out all over the place.
That's it. You have shaped it and now it is time to bake it. (Don't worry if you have reserved some for topping, you don't add that until just before the bake is finished.)
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the oven, adding the additional ham cheese mixture (if using) for the last five minutes of the bake.
Its done when the cheese has melted, the filling is hot and the pastry is flaky golden brown.
Oh my but this was some tasty. It would make a fabulous lunch served with hot cups of soup, or as a snack on game nights.
You could also add a bit bits to it if you were really keen, like chopped spring onions. But I can promise you it is pretty tasty just as it is.
I really hope that you will want to make this tasty bake. I can already see all sorts of applications for this idea. Tuna melt. Hot chicken salad. Roast beef and cheese, etc. As you can see my wheels are turning in overtime!
Delicious!
Ham & Cheese Braid
Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 25 MinTotal time: 35 Min
Quick, easy to make and using only 4 ingredients. This is a great way to use up leftover ham. Its delicious!
Ingredients
- 1 can of refrigerated crescent rolls
- 1 1/2 cups (225g) cooked ham, chopped
- 2/3 cup (80g) shredded medium cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup (60g) honey mustard
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 375*F/190*C/gas mark 5. Have ready a baking sheet which you have lined with baking paper.
- Stir the ham, cheese and honey mustard together in a bowl. Set aside.
- Open your can of crescent rolls. Unroll the rolls lengthwise on the baking sheet. Do not separate into individual rolls. Leave whole.
- Press together any seams or perforations so that you have one solid sheet.
- Spoon the ham/cheese/mustard mixture down the center of the sheet of dough. (reserve some to spoon on the top if desired)
- Cut the sheet into strips down each side of the dough, leaving about 1/2 inch clear next to the filling.
- Pull each strip up and over the filling alternately to cover, creating a braided pattern.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. If you reserved some filling to spoon on top, remove from the oven at 20 minutes, spoon the filling over top and return to the oven for a further 5 minutes.
- It is done when the cheese has melted, everything is heated through and the pastry is golden brown.
Notes:
If you don't have crescent roll dough a sheet of all butter puff pastry works well. Also in the UK you can use Ready Rol refrigerated Croissant dough. Alternately you can use your favorite recipe for baking powder biscuits. Use one that makes 8 to 10 biscuits.
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