Decorate with Desserts
With festivities, holidays, and celebrations in the air, it is the season of good times, the perfect time for grand parties and get-togethers—and, of course, the most striking of table centrepieces.
On celebratory occasions, an aesthetically pleasing centrepiece is always the best draw to your buffet table. It enhances the ambience, sets the mood, and is a great conversation starter. And while, traditional floral arrangements with candles and other decorative assortments make stunning centrepieces, and are timeless too, this season try out something innovative with an edible centrepiece—a dessert that is both the sweet ending to a meal or even an ‘in-between’. However,
- Choose a dessert that does not need to be kept frozen
- Make sure it looks good from all sides
- Use tiered serving trays and platters of varying sizes, shapes, and heights.
- Ensure serving trays and cake stands are stable and within easy
Cakes, especially tiered ones, look brilliant and make great centrepieces as the scope for decorating and accessorising them is endless. Moreover, cakes can be easily customised to the theme and purpose of your celebration and immediately set the mood of the gathering. Opt for cakes with buttercream icing as they are typically served at room temperature.
Classic Vanilla Cake with American Buttercream Frosting (Serves 50)
Ingredients for vanilla cake
3 cups all-purpose flour; 1½ cups granulated sugar; 2/3 cups unsalted butter, softened; 4 large eggs at room temperature; 2½ tsp baking powder; 1 tsp salt; 1 cup whole milk, at room temperature; 1 tbsp vanilla essence
Ingredients for American buttercream frosting
3 cups unsalted butter, softened; 6 cups icing sugar; 1 pinch salt; 3 tbsp milk; 2 tsp vanilla essence
Process
Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Grease and flour two 9-inch (23 cm) round cake pans. In a medium-sized bowl whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer beat the butter until creamy. Add eggs one at a time beating well after each addition. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, alternating with milk, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Beat just until combined. Stir in vanilla essence.
Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in pans for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Meanwhile, beat the softened butter until creamy. Gradually add the sugar, beating until smooth and creamy. Beat in salt, milk and vanilla extract until combined.
Meanwhile, let the cakes cool completely. Cut each cake into two or three layers depending on how thick you want your layers.
Place a cake layer on a serving plate or a cake stand. Spread a layer of frosting on top of the cake layer. Repeat with the remaining layers, creating a stacked cake. Frost the outside of the cake with the remaining frosting.
Note: You may need to adjust the baking time and temperature based on your oven and the frosting consistency according to your preferences.
If you are serving Indian food, your dessert centrepiece should ideally be Indian. You may choose sweets like barfi, halwa or even laddoos. Arrange them on cake stands, tiered trays or ornate metal trays of different shapes and designs. Add a touch of shimmer with edible silver or golden leaves and glitter or garnish with rose petals and dry fruits.
Channa Dal (Chick Pea) Barfi (Serves 50)
Ingredients
10-12 cups chana dal; 24-30 strands of saffron; 16-20 cups milk; 8-10 tsp powdered green cardamom; 4 cups ghee; 4 cups sugar; 30-40 tbsp raisins; water as required; chopped almonds or raisins to garnish
Process
Roughly chop the raisins and keep them aside. Wash and soak the chana dal for 2 hours. Drain and keep aside. Grind the soaked dal into a paste (don't make it too fine). A slightly coarse paste adds a lovely texture to the barfi. Heat ghee in a deep-bottomed pan and cook the chana dal paste for 10 minutes. Add milk, raisins and hot water to the mixture. Cook on high flame, stirring continuously. Add the cardamom powder, sugar and saffron to the mixture. Cook for 5 minutes. Pour the mixture onto a greased plate or tray, flatten it and garnish it with chopped almonds or raisins. Cut into desired shapes and let the burfi settle for 60 minutes before serving.
Note: You may need to adjust the cooking time and heat accordingly due to the large quantity, also make sure to use a large enough pan to accommodate the mixture.
With minimal decoration, fruit pies make simple yet elegant dessert centrepieces. Guests who go easy on calories and sugar can be offered desserts prepared with healthy ingredients and fruit pies can be an easy option. Take pies, preferably three in number (follow the magical Rule of Three) and display them on pretty cake stands of different heights at the centre of the table to get a visually pleasing and balanced look.
Millet Apple Pie (Serves 30)
Ingredients for the crust
10 cups millet flour; 2 cups cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces; ½ cup ice water; ¼ cup jaggery (powdered); ½ tsp salt
Ingredients for the filling
20-25 medium-sized apples (combine sweet and tart varieties), peeled and sliced; 2 cups jaggery; 2 tbsp all-purpose flour; 1 tsp cinnamon; 1/4 tsp salt; ¼ tsp nutmeg; 1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Process
Preheat the oven to 375 F(190C). To make the crust, in a large mixing bowl, combine millet flour, jaggery and salt. Add cold butter and use a pastry blender or fingers to work it into the flour that resembles coarse crumbs. Gradually add ice water, stirring with a fork until the dough comes together. Divide into 2 equal portions. Roll out one portion of the dough to a thickness of about ⅛ inch (3mm). Transfer to a 12-inch (30 cm) pie dish. Trim edges to fit.
To make the filling, combine sliced apples, jaggery, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Mix until apples are evenly coated.
Fill the pie crust with the apple mixture and dot the top with butter pieces.
Roll out the second portion of the dough to a thickness of about ⅛ inch (3mm). Use as a pie lid or cut into strips for a lattice-top crust. To decorate, take a little dough, cut flower and leaf shapes and arrange them on top of the crust. Bake for 40-50 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the apples are tender.
Note: You may need to adjust the baking time based on your oven’s performance. Don't overmix the filling or the crust dough. Keep the crust cold to prevent it from becoming too soft and difficult to work with.
Mini Desserts
Another interesting way to present a centrepiece would be an attractive display of mini desserts stacked aesthetically on dainty display stands. It's quirky and fun and you may choose from cupcakes, macarons, tarts, cake pops, petit fours, chocolate fudge balls to candies. You can go with a single dessert, say a cupcake or a macaron tower, or consider a play of colours and textures with an assorted platter of various mini desserts.
Shrikhand Tart (Serves 30)
Ingredients for the tart
12 cups all-purpose flour; 4 cups unsalted butter, chilled and cubed; 2 cups ice-cold water; 1 tsp salt; 2.5 inch (6.5 cm) tart moulds
Ingredients for Shrikhand filling
400 gm hung curd or Greek yogurt; 3 tbsp powdered sugar; ½ tsp powdered green cardamom; 2 tsp warm milk; A few strands of saffron; Slivered almonds and rose petals for garnish
Process
Preheat oven to 375 F (190C). Mix flour, salt and cubed butter in a large bowl until crumbly. Gradually add ice-cold water stirring with a fork until the dough comes together. Divide dough into small portions depending on the desired tart size. Roll out each portion to a thickness of about ⅛ inch (3mm) and fill each piece in the tart moulds. Trim the edges with a knife for a neat look. Lightly prick the base with a fork.
Bake in a preheated oven on the lowest rack at (170 C) for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Meanwhile, line a strainer with cheesecloth or a clean cotton cloth. Place the strainer over a large bowl. Pour the yogurt into the strainer and let it drain for 2-3 hours or overnight in the refrigerator. Gather the edges of the cheesecloth or cloth and give the yogurt a gentle squeeze to remove excess liquid. Transfer the yogurt to a bowl and add granulated sugar, chopped nuts, cardamom powder and saffron with its soaking liquid. Mix well. Do not mix vigorously, otherwise the Shrikhand will get a runny consistency. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to allow the flavours to blend.
Fill each tart shell with Shrikhand with a piping nozzle. Top with slivered almonds, rose petals, or your choice of topping. Serve.
