Berry Delicious Desserts

I would never describe myself as a lover of desserts or chocolate. I hardly ever make desserts. I could count the number of times I have made a dessert on both hands in the past year. And most of those times were due to party planning. But that does not mean I don't like desserts. They are especially appealing to me when fruit is somehow incorporated. So here are some beautifully delicious fruit inspired desserts.

Berry Trifle

My client gave me the idea to do a trifle bar for the bridal shower I threw over the weekend. It was fun and I think everyone really enjoyed it... because many of them went back for seconds! It was easy to pull together, which is always a plus when serving food for a party. Here is how you can do it!

Cake

• 1 box of cake mix of your choice (I used Betty Crocker's Golden Vanilla)
  
• wet ingredients in the amounts the box suggests
  

Instead of taking the time to make a cake from scratch, I used a cake mix. Several hours before your event, bake cake in a cookie sheet so it isn't as thick as a regular cake. Make sure you reduce the cooking time. Use a toothpick to determine when it is done (when it comes out clean). Mine was done in about 15 minutes. Let the cake sit out uncovered for several hours. This will help keep it from sticking together when you cut it into little pieces. About 20-30 minutes before serving, cut the cake into 1 inch square pieces and serve them on a platter.

Custard

• 2 small boxes of pudding of your choice (I used White Chocolate)

Once again, I could have made the custard from scratch. But I had cleaning and other things to get done. You can make the pudding ahead of time as well and let it chill in the refrigerator.

Toppings

• Fruit- I used strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, and bananas.
• Sauces- caramel, strawberry, chocolate
• Ready whip

My client also let me borrow an assortment of fun glasses. Everyone had fun picking their own cute glass and what ingredients they wanted to include.

Berry Chocolate Panini

Since I had left over berries from the trifles, I made these treats just for fun. I would highly recommend them. Even my husband, who doesn't get excited about dessert, thought they were scrumptious.

• 8 slices of day-old-bread (or 2 day, in my case)- I used a baguette
• A couple of strawberries, sliced thin
• 8 or so raspberries
• chocolate chips or chocolate sauce
• strawberry or raspberry jam (optional)
• 1 Tbs. olive oil

1. Put olive oil in a small prep bowl. Using a pastry brush, or an unused paint brush, brush a small amount of olive oil on one side of 4 bread slices. Place on heated panini grill, oil side down.
2. Place a few chocolate chips on top of bread. This allows the heat to start melting the chocolate while you slice the strawberries and prepare the rest.
3. If using jam, spread a small amount on one side of the other 4 slices.
4. Place strawberry slices and raspberries on top of the chocolate chips.
5. Place the remaining slices on top of the berries. Brush olive oil on top. Smash with grill top and heat until chocolate is completely melted. Serve and enjoy!
   

I would recommend using a baguette for these because of the small size. These are rich, and in my opinion, good things come in small packages. Plus, they look cute when they are small. I made 4 for the two of us, but we thought 1 each was just enough. If you don't have a panini grill, you can heat them in a pan on the stove. They just won't have the attractive grill marks. Once again, these were fabulous.