One of the perks of 2020 was all those hours spent at home. This gave me the opportunity to cook more, making me a better cook. Before this time, I might have never thought of making desserts for a special occasion by myself. Now, I feel comfortable putting together simple meals with a few but great ingredients.
So if like me, an inexperienced chef but loves to bake, here are my five go-to desserts for Valentine’s Day or any other special occasion.
- Truffles
You can’t go wrong with truffles. This is probably the first dessert I ever made when I was six years old. It doesn’t get much easier than that.
Any biscuit blended into a paste can be considered a truffle. So technically, you could make a delicious bite out of two ingredients and a food processor. For example, Oreos and peanut butter, or my favorite, dulce de leche and ladyfingers. Just make sure that the dough is thick enough to be molded into balls or heart shapes.
My favorite truffles for Valentine’s Day would have to be the spicy dark chocolate with a hint of cognac. Put one cup of crushed chocolate cookies, one tablespoon of cognac, one teaspoon of vanilla, and some melted dark chocolate in the food processor.
The fun is on the coating, so choose a variety of textures and colors to roll your truffles on, like shredded coconut, pink sugar, or white chocolate sparkles.
- Frozen mint chocolate bites
For this one, you need to go out and get your favorite brand of mint ice cream, a popsicle silicone mold, and some ice cream sticks.
Put the ice cream in the blender, add three or four tablespoons of condensed milk, and some grated or finely chopped dark chocolate. Put the mixture into the mold, add the sticks, and freeze until solid.
- Peaches & cream popsicles
I like this one because it’s light and fresh. It pairs really well if you’ve had a heavy meal. Plus, it’s safe for vegans, vegetarians, and gluten-free preferences.
You can follow this recipe if you don’t feel like winging it: add one cup of coconut cream, half a cup of coconut yogurt, and three tablespoons of sugar to a blender. In a separate bowl, dice one or two small peaches. Mix them all together and add them to a silicone popsicle mold. Freeze them until they solidify.
- Parfait
A parfait always looks fancy. There are thousands of combinations to choose from on the Internet. Just follow the golden rule of layering in a nice glass: a crunchy mixture, a silky cream or meringue, and some nice topics like chopped fruit or nuts.
