11 Desserts You Can Make in Just 10 Minutes
Unexpected sweets to end a meal, whether you're planning dinner for company or just need instant gratification on a Tuesday night.
By Lynn Andriani
Toasted Chocolate Bread with Cream Cheese Crème Fraîche
This dessert, from the new book
Plum: Gratifying Vegan Dishes from Seattle's Plum Bistro, hits all the pleasure centers: It's bread; it's chocolate; it's cream—it's got to be good. It's also a snap to make. Just butter and toast slices of bread in a pan, pour chocolate sauce on top and then spoon on a dollop of faux crème fraîche (a dairy-free version that's surprisingly easy to make) and garnish with a sprig of rosemary.
Get the recipe: Toasted Chocolate Bread with Cream Cheese Crème Fraîche
"Baked" Apples
This microwavable dessert isn't just super speedy; it's also healthy. Top the softened, spiced apples with a spoonful of plain yogurt for a cool counterpoint.
Get the recipe: "Baked" Apples
Warm Chocolate Pudding
Author and Food Network chef Kathleen Daelemans says this pudding—which you can whip up with pantry ingredients including sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch, bittersweet chocolate and vanilla extract—is best eaten just five minutes after it comes off the stove, when it's barely set.
Get the recipe: Warm Chocolate Pudding
Photo: Guerilla Culinary Brigade
Quick Biscuit Strawberry Shortcake
You could spend an hour making classic American strawberry shortcake, but John Keller, chef at Co-Op Food & Drink in New York, has figured out a way to cut the process down to 10 minutes. His secret ingredient: store-bought biscuit dough that comes in a tube. Strawberries, sugar, heavy cream and vanilla help transform any brand of the humble supermarket product into a treat worthy of any guest.
Get the recipe: Quick Biscuit Strawberry Shortcake
Nutella and Caramelized Banana Crepes
This dish may sound complicated, but Sabina and Lorraine Belkin, sisters and chefs/owners of Duo Restaurant & Lounge in New York, promise it comes together quickly: You can brown the bananas in just two minutes and cook the crepes in two more. In less than 10 minutes, you'll have the classic late-night Parisian street food right in your own kitchen.
Get the recipe: Nutella and Caramelized Banana Crepes
Sautéed Peaches
If you're stuck with peaches that aren't quite ripe, this is a fast and delicious way to turn them into a dessert you can eat within minutes. Sautéing the fruit with lemon juice and sugar helps tenderize and sweeten it. The peaches are terrific on their own or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a few plain graham crackers.
Get the recipe: Sautéed Peaches
Lemon Ricotta Bowls
Follow a rich meal with this unexpected choice, where ricotta—which usually only shows up on the dessert menu in cheesecake—gets the spotlight. Though it only takes a minute to stir 2 cups of cheese with 1 teaspoon each of lemon zest and juice, 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla, and sugar to taste, it's best if you make it before dinner so the cheese can absorb the bright flavors.
Citrus Salad with Brandy Sabayon
At La Silhouette restaurant in New York, pastry chef Jeff Sytsma serves a peanut butter sabayon (a light, foamy Italian mousse) with warm chocolate cake. This more traditional version—made with just brandy, water, egg yolks and sugar—is a lovely complement to bright pink and orange winter fruits such as blood oranges, Cara Cara navels and grapefruit.
Get the recipe: Citrus Salad with Brandy Sabayon
Ice Cream Sandwiches
The trick to making these standbys perfect is to use soft cookies.
Pepperidge Farm Soft Baked cookies are ideal and come in oatmeal raisin, dark chocolate brownie and dark chocolate flavors. The fun is in dreaming up the perfect sandwich combination: Try chocolate chip with
Häagen-Dazs salted caramel truffle, snickerdoodles with
Three Twins cardamom ice cream, or chocolate cookies with any peanut butter ice cream.
Banana Ginger Parfait
Chef Anthony Stewart of the Pritikin Longevity Center & Spa in Miami transforms one of our go-to quick desserts—a parfait—by using unconventional ingredients, like apple juice concentrate and ginger root. Follow Stewart's recipe to keep it healthy or make it with vanilla bean ice cream instead of Greek-style nonfat plain yogurt for a richer dessert.
Get the recipe: Banana Ginger Parfait
Sparkling Lemon-Strawberry Floats
Puckery lemon sherbet, crushed frozen strawberries and sparkling wine all poured into a single glass make for a gorgeous palate cleanser that falls somewhere between a slushy and a smoothie. A champagne flute or coupe is perfect for this dessert; top it with a sprig of mint.
Next: Quick and easy midnight snacks for any craving
Published 03/20/2013
