Goddess Magazine Stories/Articles

Desserts For You and Your Man (June/July 2012)

It's Saturday night. The kids are at grandma and grandpa's overnight, and you and your man are having some quality time to yourselves. You cook dinner, watch a couple movies, but what about dessert? Below, I'm going to give you some of the sexiest, tasty, aphrodisiac-filled, fun desserts you and your man can feed to one another.

Get ready to have your socks blown off!

Alcohol-Infused Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

(serve with or without whipped cream)

Ingredients:

16 large fresh strawberries with leaves

1/2 cup brandy-based orange liqueur (such as Grand Marnier)

*I usually use Blackhouse blueberry schnapps, but you can use Vodka, Jack Daniels, champagne or wine)

1 pound bittersweet chocolate, chopped

2 tablespoons shortening

2 tablespoon heavy cream

1 (1 ounce) square chopped white chocolate Directions: Rinse strawberries and dry thoroughly. Use a syringe or clean marinade injector to inject about 2 teaspoons of brandy into each berry. Place them on a baking sheet, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes. In a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, combine bittersweet chocolate and shortening. Stir occasionally until melted and smooth. Stir in heavy cream and 1/4 cup of brandy. Place white chocolate in a separate bowl, and when the dark chocolate has melted, place the bowl of white chocolate over the pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. Be sure to remove from heat as soon as it is mostly melted, white chocolate can be sensitive. Dip strawberries into chocolate, and let the excess drip off into the bowl before placing on waxed paper to set. When the strawberries have all been dipped in chocolate, dip a fork into the white chocolate, and drizzle back and forth over berries to stripe.

Fun fact: You can even infuse other fruits, such as watermelon, cantaloupe or other citrus fruits, leave out the chocolate and top them with whipped cream.

Fresh Raspberries with Champagne Sabayon

(Makes 6 Servings)

Ingredients:

6 egg yolks

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 cup champagne

Pinch of salt

3/4 cup cream, lightly whipped

Fresh raspberries

Directions:

Fill a large pot with one inch of water, and bring the water to a simmer. Whisk the egg yolks with the sugar in a medium stainless-steel bowl that will fit over the simmering water (this will function as a double boiler). Whisk in champagne and salt, and place the bowl over the large pot. Whisk briskly for about 5 to 10 minutes, until the mixture has thickened, tripled in volume, and you start to see the lines from the whisk when you move it through the liquid.

2. Remove the bowl from the heat and allow the sabayon to come to room temperature. Fold in the whipped cream and chill for 30 minutes.

3. Serve the sabayon over raspberries.

Red-Wine-Poached Pears with Streusel

(Makes 4 Servings)

Ingredients (For the pears):

1 bottle port wine or sweet red wine

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 Tbsp honey

2 cups water

1/2 cup raspberry preserves

Pinch of salt

Pinch of black pepper

1 Tbsp orange juice

1 splash of lemon juice

2 ripe sweet, juicy pears such as Bartlett

Ingredients (For the streusel):

1/2 cup (1 stick) cold butter, cubed

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup almonds, walnuts, or pecans (optional)

Directions:

To make the pears:

1. In a heavy-duty saucepan, combine all liquid ingredients except the pears. Bring to a boil and reduce by one quarter.

2. Meanwhile peel, halve, and core the pears. Add the skins of the pears to the poaching liquid.

3. Taste the poaching liquid and adjust the flavor to desired sweetness. Then strain the liquid and return it to the pot. Add pears and adjust the heat to medium. Completely submerge the pears by placing a plate on top of the pears to weigh them down. Simmer until tender.

4. Place the pears and the liquid in a container, and leave this out overnight.

To make the streusel:

5. Combine all the ingredients in a mixer with a paddle attachment until the mixture “crumbles.” Refrigerate the streusel for at least one hour.

Combine:

6. Place the pears backside down on a baking sheet lined with foil and sprinkle them with the streusel. Bake about 15 minutes in a 350-degree oven or until the pears are completely warm. Serve in a bowl with a high quality vanilla ice cream and a splash of the poaching liquid warmed up.

Chocolate Bete Noire

Ingedients:

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

9 oz dark chocolate (65-70% cocoa)

3 eggs, at room temperature

1 egg yolk, at room temperature

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, at room temperature

Directions:

1. Grease and sugar an 8-inch pan. Preheat your oven to 325.

2. Combine the sugar, salt, vanilla extract, and one half cup plus 2 tablespoons of water in a one-quart sauce pot. Bring to a rolling boil, then remove pot from heat.

3. Chop the chocolate into half-inch pieces and place them in a medium size bowl. Pour half of the hot vanilla syrup over the chocolate and begin whisking the mixture gently. Add the remaining sugar syrup and continue whisking the chocolate until you have a shiny, thick chocolate sauce.

4. Add the eggs and egg yolk, one at a time, whisking after each addition. Then add the butter, 2 tablespoons at a time. Continue whisking the batter until all the butter has blended into the chocolate. The finished chocolate cake batter should be shiny. Can be refrigerated for up to 3 days, or you can bake it right away.

These desserts are guaranteed to make the best of your date night, and maybe, just maybe, lead to a sexy interlude before you go to sleep and have to pick the kids up the next day!