Grand Finales
Seasonal items, smaller bites and concept-driven options keep pastry chefs’ creative juices flowing
By Allison Perlik, Senior Editor -- Restaurants & Institutions, November 15, 2004
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| Southern Red Velvet Cake sparks nostalgia at Disney's Wolfgang Puck Cafe. |
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| At Brasserie Jo, tableside touches attract guests to classics such as floating island. |
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| The Dessert Tower draws attention for Delaware North’s Well Bread division. |
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| Damon’s Grill taps the savory side of desserts with Sweet Potato Crisp. |
Sweet treats, both homespun and high falutin’, weave in and out of favor, but the pastry chef’s ability to dazzle remains constant. Often, the secret to success is their ability to transform guests’ most indulgent culinary fantasies into edible realities.
Evidence of this theory abounds on dessert menus. At contemporary American restaurant Masck in Deerfield, Ill., diners delight in the Big Dipper, a caramel apple rolled in nuts or chocolate candy and double-dipped in chocolate, or Mini Fresh Hot Donuts: fried to order, sprinkled with confectioners’ sugar and served with hot-fudge sauce for dipping.
“Our desserts are fun and whimsical but also things guests grew up eating that everybody loves,” says Kevin Nierman, executive chef and co-owner.
Old-fashioned favorites, re-created with modern twists, are major players on dessert menus, and for many chefs, hallmarks of New American cuisine. But nostalgia is far from the only factor shaping the pastry arts.
Seasonal ingredients—apples, plums, pears, cranberries, pumpkins, nuts and warm spices in fall and winter—inspire chefs in all segments. At Spazzo Italian Grill in Bellevue, Wash., autumn takes the form of pears poached in cinnamon-scented syrup and served on puff pastry with maple-pecan ice cream and house-made caramel sauce. For Madison, Wis.-based family chain Country Kitchen, the season yields pale-green, caramel-apple-flavored milkshakes.
Lending a different kind of flair, wines, brandies and liqueurs bring warmth to a meal’s end. Pastry Chef Tracy Kamperdyk-Assue adds punch to desserts at City Limits Diner locations in White Plains, N.Y., and Hartford, Conn., with offerings such as Armagnac-soaked raisin mousse, and apple cobbler with bourbon ice cream.
Often it’s the concept itself that drives the creation process. Chef-owner Jeff Weinstein’s casual, burger-themed eatery The Counter in Santa Monica, Calif., needed a dessert both memorable and menu-appropriate. Enter the Chocolate Burger: a glazed doughnut featuring layers of chocolate mousse, sliced strawberries and bananas (à la tomatoes and cheese) between its two slices, drizzled with strawberry sauce (ketchup).
Likewise, Buffalo, N.Y.-based Delaware North Cos. (DNC) tailors desserts at its contract foodservice accounts to diverse audiences. For stadium and arena clients, this means plenty of options for kids: cookies of all shapes and sizes, tall lollipops, chocolate-dipped pretzels and more, says Jon Perrault, vice president of DNC’s Well Bread Restaurant Services Group for Sportservice.
Tour de Force
Mixed with seasonal offerings, audience-driven items and retro-inspired fare, trends of the moment find their way onto pastry menus. The small-plates phenomenon has not escaped notice, announcing its presence in the form of tapas-inspired desserts and sampler-style platings. The idea works well in a menu segment where the abilities to share and experience variety hold appeal.
“When I visit a restaurant, I want the most bang for my buck—not just economically. I really want to tour their menu,” says Marian Getz, pastry chef for Chicago-based Levy Restaurants-managed Wolfgang Puck Cafe in Orlando.
To help her guests get the full experience, Getz designs desserts to be cut easily and portioned without creating waste or spoiling presentation, so patrons can create their own mix-and-match plates.
At Oceana in New York City, Executive Pastry Chef David Carmichael used to offer dessert samplers as an option for diners looking to sample multiple flavors. He recently shifted that strategy to three-course tasting menus, each composed of a small palate cleanser, a fruit-based offering and a chocolate finish. A current selection includes pear soup, huckleberry crème brûlée and banana-hot fudge sundae.
“We decided that if people want the tasting, it is nicer to do each flavor experience one by one,” Carmichael says.
For diners who can’t find a partner with whom to share or who want just a small taste, many menus offer miniature versions of single desserts. Pastry Chef Kate Honeyman’s creations at global tapas spot Continental Midtown in Philadelphia include such whimsical items as cotton candy on a stick, and a root-beer float with cherry sorbet and root-beer ice cream.
Slim and Trim?
In the case of desserts, chalk up some of small plates’ appeal to the still-prevalent consumer shift toward healthful eating.
“I have worked in restaurants where the portions generally were large so people shied away from dessert,” Honeyman says. “Because desserts are so small here, guests don’t feel they’re being quite as indulgent.”
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| Simple favorites such as doughtnuts are back in vogue, taking on modern incarnations at restaurants including Chicago’s Japonais (top) and The Counter in Santa Monica, Calif. (above). |
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| A cinnamon-tinged pear tart brings a taste of fall to Spazzo Italian Grill. |
Smaller portions and shared items likely will remain among health-minded customers’ top dessert choices, offering opportunities to taste without going overboard. Though some pastry chefs have experimented with sugar substitutes and low-carb options, most agree that their domain remains by nature an indulgence.
“If you’re going to have dessert, have dessert. If you start altering the experience, it’s not what it’s supposed to be,” says Tim Soufan, senior vice president of food and beverage at Not Your Average Joe’s, an eight-unit casual-dining chain based in Dartmouth, Mass.
Some chefs point to chilled fruit soups, currently enjoying a revival on many menus—especially at Asian concepts—as light, refreshing options. Chef Gene Kato of Japonais in Chicago includes watermelon soup with house-made sorbet in his Asian-influenced, American-style dessert lineup, while Executive Pastry Chef Patrice Caillot’s Exotic Martini features tropical fruit soup with coconut tapioca and passion-fruit-mint sorbet at The Ritz-Carlton, Lake Las Vegas in Henderson, Nev.
The Show Must Go On
Big or small, low-calorie or pure splurge, dessert presentation rarely takes a backseat. Details such as tableside finishes, extravagant garnishes and unique serving ware go a long way toward concluding the guest experience on a high note.
“Table showmanship is critical for desserts. The more drama you put in, the better,” says Soufan. At Not Your Average Joe’s, caramel and chocolate sauces are poured tableside for a theatrical splash.
At Brasserie Jo in Boston and Chicago, dining-room drama is a hallmark of dessert service. Servers top profiteroles and floating islands with signature sauces tableside and scoop chocolate mousse from a sizeable ceramic container before topping it with chocolate shavings and crème fraîche.
Getting guests involved in a different way, a popular option at Fairfax, Va.-based contractor Guest Services’ AARP account, is the caramel apple bar, where cooks core and section apples in front of customers before drizzling on house-made caramel sauce and adding gelato to the finished bowl.
Fun and unusual accoutrements also add to dessert’s allure. Mini-pitchers that hold bourbon-caramel sauce for banana-chocolate bread pudding are a customer favorite at the three locations of Schwartz Brothers’ Daniel’s Broiler, while martini and rocks glasses showcase the layers and textures of Caillot’s selections at The Ritz-Carlton.
Perhaps the most labor intensive are the ice bowls Carmichael crafts to serve cold fruit soups at Oceana (and plans to fill with fresh fruit at the newly opened Abboccato). The chef fills bowls with hot water and adds orange-mint leaves, various herbs and a drop of food coloring. He then places smaller bowls inside to add the necessary weight before freezing.
Southern Red Velvet Cake
Chef Marian Getz, Wolfgang Puck Cafe, Orlando
Yield: 8-10 servings
| Vegetable shortening | 1/2 cup |
| Sugar | 1 1/2 cups |
| Eggs | 2 |
| Buttermilk | 1 cup |
| Red food coloring | 2 oz. |
| Vinegar | 1 Tbsp. |
| Vanilla | 1 tsp. |
| All-purpose flour | 2 1/4 cups |
| Unsweetend cocoa powder | 2 Tbsp. |
| Kosher salt | 1 1/2 tsp. |
| Baking soda | 1 tsp. |
| Icing (recipe follows) | |
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Cream shortening and sugar in mixer, about 5 minutes.
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Add eggs, buttermilk, food coloring, vinegar and vanilla; mix for about 3 minutes.
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Sift together flour, cocoa, salt and baking soda; add to mixture on low speed just until blended.
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Bake in 2 greased 10-in. round cake pans at 350F until pick inserted in center comes out mostly clean, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove; let cool.
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Split cooled cake layers; fill and frost with icing.
Icing
| Milk | 2 cups |
| All-purpose flour | 2/3 cup |
| Sugar | 2 cups |
| Unsalted butter, room temperature | 2 cups |
| Vanilla | 1 Tbsp. |
| Kosher salt | 1/4 tsp. |
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Whisk milk and flour in saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until very thick. Let cool; strain out lumps.
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Beat sugar, butter, vanilla and salt for 8 to 10 minutes.
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Add flour mixture and continue beating until no sugar crystals remain.
Modern-Day Retro
Whether their appeal lies in the warm comfort of nostalgia or a revolt against too-fussy food, updated classics connect with customers at venues of all kinds.
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Doughnuts: These hole-some treats have made the break from quick service, from The Counter’s doughnut “burger” creation to Masck’s mini-doughnuts to Japonais’Asian adaptation with green-tea semifreddo and chestnut filling.
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Whoopee Pie: Guest Services’ AARP Chef-Manager Claude Broome turns out a replica of this sandwich-style treat featuring buttercream filling between mini-chocolate cake layers, as does Executive Pastry Chef Melinda Eusantos at ‘wichcraft at the MGM Grand Las Vegas. Regional Chef Brad Dickinson’s version for Bellevue, Wash.-based Schwartz Brothers Restaurants layers chocolate-pistachio semifreddo and toasted marshmallow cream on a chocolate-cookie crust.
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Molten Chocolate Cake: Chef-owner Christian Shaffer’s Hot Chocolate Cake With Toasted Marshmallow Cream at Chloe in Playa del Rey, Calif., arrives in a coffee cup with a dollop of marshmallow cream brûlée on a spoon.
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All-American Apple Pie: At 16-unit, automotive-themed Quaker Steak & Lube, based in Sharon, Pa., Senior Director of Food and Beverage Katy Malaniak turns out Caramel Apple Nachos: sliced, deep-fried pita bread coated with cinnamon and sugar and topped with hot apples, vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce. Not Your Average Joe’s Hot Apple Cinnamon Sticks feature spiced apples in a long, thin pastry shell that is fried and rolled in cinnamon and sugar, served with ice cream.
Finishing Touches
Pastry chefs share favorite tools of the trade.
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Claude Broome at AARP can’t do without removable-bottom tart tins.
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Kristin Ferguson, pastry chef at Firefly Bistro in South Pasadena, Calif., uses her brûlée torch for everything from melting cheese to caramelizing sugar to putting a shine on chocolate glaze.
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Japonais’ Gene Kato and Chloe’s Christian Shaffer both rely on nonstick silicone baking mats.
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Tracy Kamperdyk-Assue loves to use a fine, sharp microplane grater for citrus zests to flavor desserts of all sorts at City Limits Diner.
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Tom Vaccaro’s favorite implement for foaming sauces, lightening fondues and infusing fresh fruits into essences are individual, handheld burr mixers.
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