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Chocolate, spiced orange sorbet: Luscious, creamy sorbets fill the need for frozen comfort without the fat. (Bill Hogan/Chicago Tribune) |
It's ironic that I was at my thinnest in pastry school. Surrounded by sugar, butter, chocolate, nuts, marzipan and caramel, the hard work kept the weight off effortlessly. Not so much these days.
Because I still love to create (and eat) desserts, and serve them on Valentine's Day to those I love, I look for ways to make them healthier. For years, I've been substituting whole wheat flour for up to 25 percent of the white flour in cakes and cookies. Skim milk stands in beautifully for whole in nearly every baked good. For puddings and custards, generally half the cream can be swapped for skim.
Sugar can always be reduced at least 10 percent with no one the wiser. Applesauce or pureed dried plums offer moistness as a replacement for butter in some cakes. Luscious, creamy sorbets fill the need for frozen comfort without the fat. Miniature cookies taste just as good as the ginormous versions and a well-made meringue cookie always satisfies.
Special touches, such as a creative garnish, help. So I will take time to soak fruit, use the ice cream machine, harvest fresh mint, shave chocolate into thin curls or cook up a little nut brittle. Serving dessert in pretty dishes fills another sense making a smaller portion less sad. I employ tall flutes frequently to hold sweetened berries, puddings, small scoops of frozen yogurt and to assemble stunning parfaits.
Thankfully, parfaits seem to be experiencing a renaissance of sorts. No longer are they relegated to ice cream or gelatin layered with canned fruits. Today, pastry chefs at trendy restaurants embrace the beauty of layering different textures and flavors in a glass.
The apricot and yogurt parfait that follows is inspired by one I enjoyed at Zaytinya restaurant in Washington, made with vanilla yogurt cream, apricot sorbet and pistachio powder. At home, nonfat Greek yogurt and wine-soaked dried apricots form the base of a terrific, good-for-you parfait.
To contrast the tangy flavor and dense texture of the yogurt, I like to add a fluffy top. Admittedly, whipped cream tastes best. When watching fat and calories, I substitute softened frozen vanilla yogurt or a frozen nonfat whipped topping. Just for fun, I'll make a small batch of glossy salted pistachio brittle to garnish.
My husband is the lucky recipient of my sweet experiments to cut the fat and calories. His only complaint: It's difficult to lick a parfait glass clean.
Apricot and yogurt parfait with salted pistachio brittle
Prep: 30 minutes
Chill: 1 hour or more
Servings: 3
Note: Muscat, Beaumes de Venise and Sauterne taste great for soaking the apricots. Sparkling wine or a sweet white wine and a spoonful of sugar work too. If you don't want to make the pistachio brittle, simply sprinkle the tops of the parfaits with chopped pistachios and a little coarse sugar (such as Demerara).
Ingredients:
2 cups plain nonfat Greek yogurt
3/4 cup chopped dried apricots, about 4 ounces
1/2 cup sweet dessert wine, such as muscat
2 tablespoons honey (or sugar substitute to taste)
Whipped cream, softened nonfat frozen vanilla yogurt or nonfat whipped topping, optional
Because I still love to create (and eat) desserts, and serve them on Valentine's Day to those I love, I look for ways to make them healthier. For years, I've been substituting whole wheat flour for up to 25 percent of the white flour in cakes and cookies. Skim milk stands in beautifully for whole in nearly every baked good. For puddings and custards, generally half the cream can be swapped for skim.
Sugar can always be reduced at least 10 percent with no one the wiser. Applesauce or pureed dried plums offer moistness as a replacement for butter in some cakes. Luscious, creamy sorbets fill the need for frozen comfort without the fat. Miniature cookies taste just as good as the ginormous versions and a well-made meringue cookie always satisfies.
Special touches, such as a creative garnish, help. So I will take time to soak fruit, use the ice cream machine, harvest fresh mint, shave chocolate into thin curls or cook up a little nut brittle. Serving dessert in pretty dishes fills another sense making a smaller portion less sad. I employ tall flutes frequently to hold sweetened berries, puddings, small scoops of frozen yogurt and to assemble stunning parfaits.
Thankfully, parfaits seem to be experiencing a renaissance of sorts. No longer are they relegated to ice cream or gelatin layered with canned fruits. Today, pastry chefs at trendy restaurants embrace the beauty of layering different textures and flavors in a glass.
The apricot and yogurt parfait that follows is inspired by one I enjoyed at Zaytinya restaurant in Washington, made with vanilla yogurt cream, apricot sorbet and pistachio powder. At home, nonfat Greek yogurt and wine-soaked dried apricots form the base of a terrific, good-for-you parfait.
To contrast the tangy flavor and dense texture of the yogurt, I like to add a fluffy top. Admittedly, whipped cream tastes best. When watching fat and calories, I substitute softened frozen vanilla yogurt or a frozen nonfat whipped topping. Just for fun, I'll make a small batch of glossy salted pistachio brittle to garnish.
My husband is the lucky recipient of my sweet experiments to cut the fat and calories. His only complaint: It's difficult to lick a parfait glass clean.
Apricot and yogurt parfait with salted pistachio brittle
Prep: 30 minutes
Chill: 1 hour or more
Servings: 3
Note: Muscat, Beaumes de Venise and Sauterne taste great for soaking the apricots. Sparkling wine or a sweet white wine and a spoonful of sugar work too. If you don't want to make the pistachio brittle, simply sprinkle the tops of the parfaits with chopped pistachios and a little coarse sugar (such as Demerara).
Ingredients:
2 cups plain nonfat Greek yogurt
3/4 cup chopped dried apricots, about 4 ounces
1/2 cup sweet dessert wine, such as muscat
2 tablespoons honey (or sugar substitute to taste)
Whipped cream, softened nonfat frozen vanilla yogurt or nonfat whipped topping, optional
