Category: Desserts

Chocolate Mousse Parfaits by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan

I am not sure that this recipe is ‘politically correct ‘at the moment, given the cost of eggs…..but I wanted to make a chocolate mousse, and I wanted a recipe that used cooked, not raw eggs.

Back 50 years ago when Julia Child was teasing the country with French Cuisine, salmonella was NOT a household name and chocolate mousse was made with both raw yolks and whites. And this was indeed how we made it at The Modern Gourmet, Madeleine Kamman’s French cooking school and eponymous restaurant in Newton Centre, MA.

And, it turns out, that what you don’t know might, just indeed, hurt you. And so, in 2025, I make chocolate mousse with a ‘Crème Anglaise’, a cooked egg yolk and cream custard, and NO raw egg whites. The finished mousse is not as ‘airy’ as the original French versions (my apologies, Madeleine and Julia), but it is ‘food safe’ and delicious.

PUMPKIN CARAMEL FLAN by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan

Our Foodie’s marketing and design Guru (just two of her many roles) asked me about Thanksgiving recipes a few weeks back and I had already been contemplating pumpkin pie. That led me down the path of thinking what my least favorite part of this revered dessert was… and it is the soggy crust holding the delicious pumpkin filling. Even the best made, most delicious,
shatteringly crisp crust appeals less to me than the filling. It was then a no-brainer to make a ‘pumpkin flan’ with a caramel base added for a touch of ‘fancy’ as my Thanksgiving recipe. This is a classic French ‘crème renversee’ in which the
bottom of the baking dish is coated in caramel and the pumpkin custard is poured over and baked in a water bath. When set and chilled the custard/flan is turned upside-down (reversed) onto a larger plate with the caramel having both been absorbed into the flan and forming a delicious sauce.

And here it is: Pumpkin Pie. No Crust. Just filling. Chilled. Creamy & Delicious.

Lemon-Almond-Cake ‘Parfaits’ with Lemon Curd and Candied Almonds by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan

This is an update and remake of my Flourless Almond Cake recipe. The cake has more grated lemon rind and is baked in a loaf pan, ensuring that even-sized squares of cake can be cut for the parfaits. Fresh-made lemon curd, toasted candied almonds and dollops of whipped cream complete the desserts. AND......NO judgement here: you could also, of course, make this dessert with a purchased pound cake.

What is lemon curd? It’s a fruit spread, jam-like in consistency and made with fresh citrus juice, eggs, sugar and butter. It’s very easy to make and very delicious. The British historically serve it with scones ( think ‘Downton Abbey’.)

Flourless Almond Cake by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan

This is a very quick and easy cake to make and has only 3 main ingredients: eggs, sugar and almond flour. Use a 9-inch springform pan for best results.

Parfait…. Your Way by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan

The genesis of this recipe began with a couple of very ripe ‘Hachiya’ persimmons. (The ‘Hachiya’ variety is heart-shaped. The ‘Fuyu’ variety is squat and looks like a tomato) I scooped out the flesh and pureed it in the food processor and this thick and delicious puree became the base of my multi-layered parfait.
My alternating layers were: homemade vanilla pudding (recipe below), sliced toasted almonds,
blackberries, granola, crushed cookie crumbs and dark chocolate chips.

Pumpkin Pecan Spice Bread by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan

This is a ‘quick’ bread; so named because it’s chemically leavened with baking soda and/or baking powder instead of yeast or a sourdough starter. ‘Quick’ breads include biscuits, muffins and loaf breads like banana, zucchini and this pumpkin bread. It comes together very quickly; the dry ingredients are combined with the wet ingredients. Add toasted nuts if you like (I used pecans, but walnuts would work as well.) Bake the batter in a prepared (buttered & floured) loaf pan and drizzle with a confectioner’s glaze when the loaf has cooled a bit.

PUMPKIN PECAN CRANBERRY COBBLER by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan

It’s October…. time for all good things pumpkin and pumpkin spice. This recipe was inspired by Chef Jasper White’s Apple Crunch Recipe. Chef Jasper, now retired, was a major player on the Boston fine-dining scene for many decades. His cobbler recipe used 3 different varieties of apples and an oat & toasted pecan topping. His recipe is classic New England and a winner. I pondered his recipe for a few days and thought: what about pumpkin instead of apple cobbler?? I started researching recipes and discovered that pumpkin cobblers were all made with canned pumpkin puree. Easier, but texturally blah. Why not use fresh pumpkin, or in this case, fresh butternut squash? I have cut the squash into cubes and partially roasted the squash before building and baking the cobbler. This ingredient change yields a cobbler that teases your palate with texture and flavor.

Watermelon ‘Pizza-Pie’ by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan

No crust.  No dough.  No cooking.  And no baking is required.  Festive and Impressive.  Quick and easy. It’s all you need as part of a summer dessert tableau. I took a slice from a whole, small watermelon and cut it into 6 wedges, but you could easily buy pre-cut wedges of watermelon and put 6 or 8 wedges together to form a circle.  The toppings will cover any variations in the shape/size of the ‘pie’.   And feel free to vary and/or augment the toppings—add shaved chocolate, different fruits (like sliced peaches), toasted coconut, crushed meringue cookies or toasted marshmallows (yummy).

A Double Chocolate Pudding for you & your Valentine by Chef Laura Brennan

This is an old-fashioned pudding, stirred on the stove, but for only 10 minutes or less. The ingredients are few: sugar, cocoa powder, bittersweet chocolate, milk, cornstarch, and a bit of vanilla extract. Feel free to add a tablespoon or two of your favorite spirit: maybe rum or Kahlua…
Or, if you are feeling very French, a splash of Chartreuse or Cognac would be very Ooh La La!

Cherry Balsamic Caramel Sauce by Foodie’s Chef Laura Brennan

Bags of cherries that are now appearing in the markets inspired this sauce. You might think that caramel would be too sweet with the cherries, but when tempered with a bit of balsamic vinegar, the result is a ‘super-delicious’, ‘super-sophisticated’ dessert sauce.

I piled the sauce on the top of a (store-bought) cheesecake and can think of a few other tempting uses: Served with a fresh & soft ‘white-cloud’ angel food cake or with slices of toasted pound cake or simply spooned over vanilla ice cream.

And my advice: If you have not yet made caramelized sugar, watching a few web-posted videos will help you along.