A Mardi Gras celebration isn’t much of a party without a piece of King Cake. Often containing a filling or surprise (such as a coin or small trinket), this tasty sweet yeast bread is a traditional Mardi Gras treat. The dough for King Cake is braided and shaped into a circle to represent a crown. White icing and colored sugar decorates the cake in the time-honored colors of Mardi Gras – gold (power), purple (justice), and green (faith).

Local bakeries stock up on King Cake to satisfy Mardi Gras celebrators, but nothing beats a homemade creation. The dough usually contains eggs, flour, powdered milk, butter, salt, warm water, and yeast. Sugar, egg, and softened cream cheese serve as a typical filling. A streusel topping of cinnamon, sugar, and toasted pecans may cover the cake. Glazes often contain softened butter, powdered sugar, and milk. Beyond the colorful display of King Cake, awaken your kitchen with the tantalizing scents of other Mardi Gras desserts, such as:

Pain Perdu

This deep-fried version of French toast involves softening hard bread by dipping it in a mixture of eggs, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and milk, and then deep-frying or pan-frying in butter. New Orleans Pain Perdu is typically made with leftover New Orleans-style French bread – similar to a French baguette, but with a crunchier exterior and lighter interior. Pain Perdu is either served with powdered sugar, jam, or flavored syrups.

Bananas Foster

Topping ripe bananas with a warm, syrupy topping consisting of brown sugar, butter, cinnamon, rum, and banana liqueur over scoops of vanilla ice cream, Bananas Foster originated in New Orleans. Often times, the dessert is set afire after the addition of alcohol – a cooking technique known as flambé.

Pralines

This New Orleans confection is comprised of chopped pecans, heavy cream, and sugar. Louisiana first enjoyed this sweet treat when French settlers took full advantage of the local sugar cane and pecan trees. During the 19^th century, chefs in New Orleans used pecans instead of the European preference of almonds and added cream to thicken the dessert.

Whether you’re using a box of banana Jell-O filling for a cream pie or whipping up parfaits for dessert, the world of pudding includes much more than just the basic varieties of chocolate and vanilla. In the past, the most common way to prepare pudding was to mix ingredients with a grain product or other binding material (like flour, butter, eggs or cereal) to create a solid product. Nowadays, people boil, steam or bake creamy and thickened puddings from scratch.

A couple of ways to step outside of your pudding comfort zone include:

1) Fruit Bread Puddings

To create a new pudding, you may add tropical juices and other fruits to elevate the taste and texture of your recipes. For example, Fruity Bread Mango Pudding may contain Rubicon mango exotic juice drink paired with dried cranberries and mango.

2) Yam (or Sweet Potato) Pudding

Around the holidays, candied yams and sweet potato pie are popular desserts. You probably don’t think of yams and sweet potatoes as creating satisfying puddings, but these healthy starches offer quite a taste and consistency with common ingredients, such as butter, brown sugar, lemon juice, grated lemon peel, and slivered almonds.

3) Steamed Fruit Puddings

Boiling water is used as a method of preparing steamed puddings, where cranberries, plums and apples serve as common ingredients. Known as a popular sweet treat in England, Devon’s Georgie Porgies Puddings offers two tempting steamed fruit selections: Orange & Cointreau (an orange flavored triple sec liquor) and Cider & Apple (contains West Country cider and apples). For a holiday twist, use canned or fresh pumpkin puree to create a steamed pumpkin pudding, which tastes heavenly with a whipped cream or brandy sauce topping.

4) Latin American Rice Pudding

Take a page from Latin American and Caribbean cookbooks by preparing a rice pudding called “arroz con leche” (rice with milk). When preparing this sweet treat, the typical list of ingredients differ per country. In Chile and Mexico, the pudding contains raisins soaked in sherry wine or tequila. Colombians soak their raisins in red wine, rum or pisco – Peruvian liquor distilled from grapes. Anise seed adds a touch of licorice to the Cuban version of arroz con leche. In Peru, it is not uncommon to find shredded coconut or walnuts added to the pudding.

Another yummy-licious recipe courtesy of our friends at Del Monte: Holiday Peach Upside Down Cake!

Peach Upside Down Cake. photo and recipe courtesy of Del Monte “Stretch Your Dollar” Campaign

Prep Time: 15 Minutes
Cooking Time: 30 Minutes
Servings: 10+

Ingredients

· 2 cans (15-1/4 oz. each) DEL MONTE® Sliced Peaches
· 1 stick (4 oz.) unsalted butter plus 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
· 1/2 cup brown sugar
· 1/4 cup evaporated milk
· 2 tsp. ground cinnamon
· 1 cup chopped pecans
· 1 pkg. yellow cake mix

Directions

1. Drain peaches reserving syrup for sauce.

2. Combine 4 oz. unsalted butter, brown sugar, reserved syrup from peaches, and
evaporated milk; cook over medium heat until syrupy, about 5 minutes; set aside.

3. Preheat oven to 325°F. Use remaining 2 Tbsp. butter to grease 13x9x2 inch baking
pan. Pour caramel sauce in pan, and arrange peaches over bottom; sprinkle with cinnamon and chopped pecans.

5. Prepare cake mix according to package directions; pour over fruit. Bake 30 minutes.

6. Cool completely before serving.

Pumpkins not only play a significant role in Halloween décor and flavored coffee and creamers, but also provide families with a traditional dessert for the holidays. Pumpkin pie is one of the most popular sweets at a Thanksgiving feast. However, the gourd-like squash that’s been around for centuries offers a versatile assortment of treats often overlooked by the average holiday baker. This season, step outside of your comfort zone and explore the following pumpkin dessert ideas:

Pumpkin Ice Cream Pie

Create a frozen delight by combining vanilla ice cream with a cooked pumpkin spice mixture after it has cooled, and then spreading into a baked cooled crust before setting in the freezer.

Pumpkin Tart With Streusel Topping

With a thick cookie crust, serve pumpkin tarts with a streusel topping consisting of flour, brown sugar, softened butter, and pecan pieces for rave reviews. For the incurable sweet tooth, try out a Chocolate Pumpkin Tart, which adds a rich layer of melted semisweet chocolate – the perfect complement to the sweetness of pumpkin. Another perk of using chocolate in pumpkin tarts: protecting the crispiness of the crust.

Spiced Pumpkin Custard

Relying on milk and eggs for its unique texture, spiced pumpkin custard not only serves as a stand-alone dessert for the holidays, but also blends well with pies, cakes, and other sweet creations. Pumpkin custard recipes usually contain brown sugar, molasses, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves and of course, pumpkin puree.

Pumpkin Bread

Pumpkins create delicious seasonal breads that allow bakers to explore a wide range of ingredients, including pecans, cranberries, walnuts and dried fruits. Try offering a surprise inside your pumpkin bread by incorporating a cream cheese filling.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Whether you enjoy baked or frozen cheesecakes, the limit to creative variations of this popular cream cheese dessert is endless. Blending the creaminess of cheesecake with the spiciness of pumpkin pie is a match made in heaven. It’s also a challenge, as cheesecake naturally falls victim to overcooking, cracking, and baking in an oven that’s too hot. If you’re ready to take on the challenge, consider additional enhancements, such as a ginger-flavored graham cracker crust or vanilla-flavored sour cream topping.

Pumpkin Brownies

When you’re pressed for time, pumpkin brownies are usually a quick alternative to cakes and pies. Combine canned pumpkin with ingredients, such as cinnamon, allspice, cocoa, chocolate chips and nutmeg, to create unforgettable holiday brownies.

Uplift Your Classic Pumpkin Pie Recipe

If you’re having a hard time abandoning your traditional pumpkin pie recipe, at least consider a few enhancements to create a new-and-improved version of your favorite dessert to wow friends and family.

• Bake your pie filling in a flavored crust. Try nutty variations, like using hazelnut or experiment with a Spiced Oat Crust, which combines ingredients, such as oats, oil and pecans.
• Enhance the flavor of your pumpkin pie filling by adding up to 1 cup of orange juice.
• Add finely chopped nuts, like pecans and walnuts, for an aromatic dessert that delivers a little something special to the flavor and texture of your pie.
• Replace your regular whipped cream as a topping with a flavored selection, like one made with bourbon or chocolate.
• Mix shredded coconut and two tablespoons of rum in your pie filling for an exotic twist.