The totally foolproof, quick to make dessert...

[FireandBrimstone]

... please tell me it does exist.

My track record for any kind of cooking is honestly the pits. I've committed to bringing something for dessert for an upcoming, small dinner with friends and would welcome suggestions please?

Either something super super simple but elegant, or even something I can shop-buy and then spruce up a bit for serving.

Complicated by the fact that at least two of the other guests are extremely competent, confident cooks (but they rarely think about dessert and I'm the one with the sweet tooth hence the offer to contribute!)

TIA!

Fruit tarts can look amazing and can be assembled -

Buy a sweet pastry case or sponge case (usually next to the jellies, custard etc) a pot of marscapone spread across the pastry. Finely cut fruits and put into the case in a decorative pattern. You could leave it there but you can go one further and either set with quick setting jelly (usually right by the pastry cases though the mango one from world food aisles works really well too) or make Prosecco jelly which is easy - you will need gelatine leaves, follow instructions on box to soften in a little boiling water and add sparking wine of choice, wait until cooled but not set and spoon over the fruit. You alternatively can glaze with a sugar syrup, which you make buy dissolving sugar in a little boiling water, I like to add the juice of a lemon, cool then spoon over the fruit

Semolina. Add milk and sugar and dessicated coconut and stir whilst heating. Add more milk to get it to your preferred consistency and the out in a dish and eat. Add jam or a bit of honey on top.

Baked apples. You'll need an apple cover, other than that it's dead simple. One baking apple per person. Peel and remove the core but leave the apple intact (don't worry if you don't get the core out straight at first try, that just gives you more space to fill it.) Mix a filling from ground hazelnuts, honey and heavy cream. Set apples on a tray, fill in cores with the nut mass and bake for 30 min (?) at 200.

An apple and cinnamon crumble is very easy. Serve with vanilla ice cream a pot of custard or some cream. Just follow any recipe

Poach some plums and put into a dish. Meringue over and into oven.

The pink juice spills over the meringue and looks glorious when you put a spoon into it.

You can’t go wrong with grilled peaches or nectarines, sprinkle some brown sugar on them, under the grill and serve with yoghurt or something similar. So good and delicious after a big meal.

Cheesecake

Ingredients

1 200g tub Philadelphia cheese (or supermarket own brand cream cheese, or mascarpone for a special occasion)
1 small tub (75 ml) double cream
½ packet digestive biscuits
½ pack butter
75g caster sugar (can use any sugar for taste but caster is smoother)

Flavouring – fruit syrup, lemon juice, cocoa powder, or pureed fruit

Utensils

Mixing bowl and whisk or a food processor
Loose bottom baking tin
Plastic bag (freezer bags are good) and rolling pin
Microwavable bowl or small pan
1 desert spoon

Method

Put the biscuits in the bag and bash with the rolling pin until they are crumbs, put these in the tin. Melt the butter and pour over the crumb and then use the spoon to press the base in to the tin.

Put the cream in the bowl and whisk until stiff.

Add the sugar and cream cheese. You could also use artificial sweetener.

Add any flavouring and mix until you get a smooth mixture.

Pour (actually it is more of a dollop) on to the base and put in the fridge overnight

Thanks again for the abundance of delicious ideas. Not quite sure what I'm landing on, it might be determined by what's first available when I run into the supermarket - but v grateful to all you clever and creative cooks

I don’t know if it’s just me, but all these tarts that M&S seem to do are really not my favourite. It’s always hard pastry and lacklustre lemon or citrus something. I much prefer proper puddings, like sticky toffe or a simple roulade with jam and cream. My vote is for no pre-bought tarts.

A Basque cheesecake....it's so easy and delicious....just a case of mixing everything together and baking. Stew down some berries with a little sugar to serve alongside.

No cooking at all:

Empty large tub of Greek yoghurt into glass serving bowl. Carefully stir through some good quality lemon curd. How much you use depends on how sweet you like it. Don’t stir vigorously - you don’t want it mixed in, just white with yellow streaks running all the way through. It looks lovely (hence glass bowl).

You can make it fancier by putting e.g. raspberries or crystallised lemon slices or nuts or glacé cherries on top. Yum.

Crumble.

Tinned peaches or apricots in juice, drained.
Packet of crumble mix
1 x dessert spoon porridge oats
Pinch ground nutmeg (if you have any, otherwise don't bother)

Tip the tinned fruit in a dish, and in a separate bowl combine the crumble mix, oats & nutmeg together, then tip on top of the peaches.

Into a warm oven for 25 minutes, and serve with cream, creme fraiche or custard.

Ooooh the Carnation recipe for Key Lime Pie

Exactly what I was going to say, though I usually use a mix of lemon and lime and add the shredded zest to the cream for a more intense flavour. Add a few raspberries to the pot, shortbread on the side (decent shop bought) and you’re done.

Mulled wine (with or without alcohol) is in the shops now, and makes fantastic poached pears. Might be worth a try if you have no use for the rest of the pack of cinnamon sticks, star anise etc from making it yourself?

Foolproof to cook - crumble. Zero effort - Eton mess and just buy all the ingredients, including pre-whipped cream!!

Panna cotta. You just heat up some milk cream, sugar, vanilla essence. Stir in some gelatine sheets and leave it to set in the fridge

Marking for the future.

I would make this in advance: Josceline Dimbleby's Iced lemon souffle in a chocolate case. Looks spectacular, has plenty of chocolate but is light, easy to eat and very yummy.
This is the recipe
www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk/recipes/frozen-lemon-souffle-in-a-chocolate-shell/
You can make it in advance and leave it in the freezer (it's what I do)

If you don't want to cook at all, I always think that fruit salad is a very underrated dessert.

I always do a huge one for get togethers or parties. Couple of tins of peaches chopped, couple of tins of pineapple chopped, a few apples, tangerines, berries. Nice bowl to make it look pretty.

Sometimes there's some cake or cheesecake or whatever left but the fruit salad ALWAYS goes. People don't eat it often enough to be bored of it, they often go for it first ime.

my favourite recently was melting some dark chocolate and pouring it over a flat tray with a selection of fancy dried fruit and nuts and some little toffees - leave to harden and then break into big pieces. Very posh fruit and nut. There was none left.....

You're not alone @JaneFondue

A fool, with whatever fruit or berries you have. Takes minutes to pull together and can then chill in the fridge for a while. I like to mix some Greek yogurt in with the whipped cream. It's a bit healthier and gives a nicer taste and texture IMO.

And another vote for Eton mess (plus all variations, for example try it with mangoes if strawberries are out of season).

Buy a sweet pastry case. Brush melted dark chocolate all over the inside. Fill with a can of good sweetened chestnut puree. Top with whipped cream sweetened with a little sugar and about half a tea spoon of sugar. Scatter some candied nuts on top.

yoghurt cake - foolproof. I make one similar to this but using Almond flour as I'm gluten intolerant. Easy to wing it, yoghurt, lemon, almond flour (or ground almonds) eggs, vanilla essence, sugar....... https://cnz.to/recipes/cakes-tarts/yogurt-cake-recipe/