Bread Puddings:

Bread Pudding with Bourbon Sauce (New Orleans
This recipe is from my first cookbook called What's Cooking America. This wonderful bread pudding always brings back memories of my visits to New Orleans.
 

Capirotada (Mexican Bread Pudding)
Capirotada is a Mexican Bread Pudding and is probably like nothing you have ever had before. Even if you have had Capirotada almost every cook makes theirs just a little different. It has an interesting combination of fruits, nuts, spices, and cheese. Cheese - yes cheese! Usually when I think of cheese in a dessert it is a cheesecake. In this dessert the one defining ingredient is the cheese! Remember, most Mexican desserts are not extremely sweet. Capirotada is a traditional and popular Lenten dessert, but it can be served at any time, especially when you have some nice crusty bread that needs to be used. 

Figgy Bread Pudding
This fantastic Figgy Bread Pudding recipe and photos was shared with me by my sister-in-law, Shirley Roth. Shirley says, "Joe's favorite dessert is bread pudding. I found a recipe using croissants that called for prunes. Since I still have dried figs (from our fig tree) in the freezer, I decided to try them instead. It was a big hit with Joe!"

White Chocolate Bread Pudding
From The Palace Cafe - The Palace Cafe, located on New Orleans' Canal Street, is the newest restaurant from the Brennan family, who also operate some of the City's finest restaurants. This dessert has become extremely popular, and has practically become The Palace Cafe's signature dessert.
 

Roasted Beet Bread Pudding
This was an interesting experiment with using roasted beets. I had an over-abundance of beets to use this year that I had roasted them in my oven. Now, what to do with all these roasted beets? When I came upon this recipe, I just had to try it and, of course, I couldn't just make the recipe as it was written, but had to experiment! My husband really likes it and I hope you will also.
 
 

Creme Brulees:

Creme Brulee - How To Make Perfect Creme Brulee
Very few desserts are more delicious to eat and to look at. Translated from the French, this popular dessert means "burnt cream," referring to the caramelized finish. A classic finale to a meal, creme brulee can be served slightly warm or chilled. This is one of my favorite desserts to serve at my dinner parties.

Chocolate Creme Brulee
I adapted this recipe from a recipe by Karen Krasne, creator of Extraordinary Desserts in San Diego, California. This very elegant dessert is sure to cure your "chocolate craving."


 

Ginger Creme Brulee
Very few desserts are more delicious to eat and to look at as creme brulee!

Kona Coffee Crème Brulee
These desserts are perfect for company - just bake them ahead and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve!

Lavender Creme Brulee
If you love lavender and love creme brulee, this dessert will instantly WOW you! I've served this wonderful creme brulee at many dinner parties.

Raspberry Creme Brulee
Fresh raspberries in a delicious creme brulee! What could be better?

Custards:

Baked Custard (Old Fashion)
To me, baked custard is definitely a "comfort food." I can eat these custards anytime of the day. I especially like them for breakfast - it's a quick breakfast that provides your protein and calcium.

Pumpkin Custard (low fat, low calorie)
To me, baked custard is definitely a "comfort food." I can eat these custards anytime of the day. I especially like them for breakfast - it's a quick breakfast that provides your protein and calcium.

Rebecca's Crustless Custard Pie
Remember the Impossible Pies of the 1970s? The flour settles to the bottom and makes it's own crust. This is healthy, wholesome, and nourishing dessert with a smooth custard filling and a crunchy golden top. Your family will definitely love this gluten-free pie!
 

Flans:

Chocolate Flan
A perfect Flan with dark chocolate - what could be better for a chocolate lover?
 

Orange Flan
This Orange Flan is so smooth and so delicious! Flan may be prepared in a large flan dish or in individual ramekins. In Mexico, flans are usually served in small ramekins (custard cups).


 

Tres Leches Mexican Flan
Tres leches means "3 milks" in Spanish. This recipe is not low fat or low calorie - it is just delicious! Please don't be intimidated by the looks of this recipe. It is easier than you think. This dessert is so amazing - so rich and custardy! Mexican flan is slightly denser than Spanish Flan.

Vanilla Soy Flan with Butterscotch Sauce
I wanted to use the Vanilla Soy Milk that I had purchased in this recipe. Forget about having to caramelizing sugar, and simply press the brown sugar in the bottom of the baking dish. The brown sugar dissolves into a sauce as the flan bakes and chills. What could be easier?

Panna Cottas:

Chocolate Panna Cotta with Port-Balsamic Cherries
These softly set and creamy Italian puddings are so silky-smooth they slip down beautifully at the end of a meal. They are also perfect for dinner parties because they can be made a day or two in advance and kept refrigerated until ready to be served.

Coffee Panna Cotta with Chocolate Cream
Flavored with coffee and served with a chocolate cream adds a new look to this popular Italian dessert. They are also perfect for dinner parties because they can be made a day or two in advance and kept refrigerated until ready to be served.
 

Puddings:

Chocolate Caramel Amaretto Budino
This pudding is incredibly rich and creamy, filled with almonds, chocolate, and Amaretti cookie crumbs.

Chocolate Pots de Creme
A chocolate lover's delight! This is a very rich and delicious dessert. It is so easy to make. I used to demonstrate this recipe on television shows around the United States during my first cookbook tour. Everyone loves it!


Chocolate Pots de Creme (low fat)
This is a very rich and delicious dessert that gives you a wonderful blast of chocolate without all the fat and calories. This chocolate pots de creme will cure your chocolate craving and delight your guests.

Chocolate Pudding with Cinnamon and Chile (Pudin de Chocolate, Canela y Chile)
This recipe and photos are courtesy of Cynthia Detterick-Pineda of Andrews, TX. Any recipe that involves separating eggs seems always to be a hit with younger chefs, and this one is safe if they are not very experienced in the kitchen. It does still require the use of the stove, so be cautious about burns. 

Chocolate Rum Cream
This dessert requires no cooking apart from warming the cream, and is extremely east to make. It is particularly good served with crisp cookies and makes a superb finale to a dinner party menu.

Coffee Jelly
I found this delicious coffee dessert in an older 1968 Gourmet Magazine. 
 

Dulce de Leche (Arequipe and Manjar Blanco)
Dulce de leche, pronounced DOOL-say duh LAY-chay) is a luscious sweetened milk sauce that is literally finger-linking good! The name means "milk sweet," "milk jam," and "sweet milk sauce." This oven method is easy-to-do and very safe. The oven version also eliminates the need for stirring. Just check the water level halfway through cooking.


 

Parfait au Café et à L'Armagnac
This icy dessert combines the pleasure of strong coffee with a shot of good brandy. For an authentic presentation serve it in traditional fluted parfait glasses.

Salted Caramel Cheesecake Pudding
This recipe is by Michael Moorhouse and appeared in the October, 2004 issue of Food and Wine magazine. I slightly adapted this recipe. This dessert will be one of your favorites from now on!

Tea-Infused Orange Cream Pudding
Recipe by Ellen Easton from her Victorian Tea Menu. Also includes a recipe for Candied Edible Flowers.

Misc. Pudding-Type Desserts:

Chocolate Soufflé - Cheaters Chocolate Soufflé
I slightly adapted this recipe from Good Housekeeping. The traditional chocolate soufflé recipes scares me as they sound too complicated and can be a challenge! This version is foolproof and very easy to make. You can even make this soufflé batter ahead of time and refrigerate until ready to bake. The secret to this soufflé is using sweetened condensed milk. Be prepared, as this soufflé is very rich and will definitely satisfy any chocolate craving. Give it a try!

Clotted Cream
This is a homemade or mock version of clotted cream. Excellent to use for your tea parties.

Devonshire Cream
Originally from Devonshire County, England, it is a thick, buttery cream often used as a topping for desserts. It is still a specialty of Devon, Cornwall, and Somerset as this is where the right breed of cattle are raised with a high enough cream content to produce clotted cream. It is also known as Devon cream and clotted cream. Clotted cream has a consistency similar to soft butter.
 

Fried Cream
I adapted this recipe from the 1952 West Coast Cook Book by Helen Evans Brown. Helen Brown was considered the culinary authority of the West Coast during the 1950s and 1960s. Helen says in her book, "Gourmets who visit San Francisco enthuse about this dessert, which is to be found at a few of the best hotels and restaurants. It's not often served at home, apparently because most cooks don't dare risk it, but it's really very simple to make." This is a spectacular dessert that is well worth the effort for the impressive results.
 

Frozen Orange Soufflé
Recipe from the cookbook From the Earth to the Table, John Ash's Wine Country Cuisine, by John Ash. This simple dessert always seems to capture people's attention. It can be made a day ahead of time, if desired.
 

Hasty Pudding/Indian Pudding
Despite the name Indian Pudding, it is not a traditional native dish. Native Americans had neither milk nor molasses to use in their cooking. They did mix ground corn with berries, and may have had maple syrup. Hasty Pudding and Indian Pudding are basically the same pudding, as Hasty Pudding was an English tradition for centuries. Printed references to hasty pudding in England date to 1599, while Indian pudding recipes start appearing in American cookbooks in 1796.

 

Lemon Curd
A British teatime favorite. This sweet, yet tart, velvety spread is heavenly on freshly baked scones, muffins, and tea breads. Another favorite is serving lemon curd on gingerbread or used as a filling for tarts and cakes. Lemon curd is so easy-to-make as all it contains is eggs, sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, and butter.

 

Mango with Sticky Rice
A very sweet treat you'll absolutely love! In Northern Thailand and Northeastern Thailand, sticky rice is a staple. This Thai dish takes some time to prepare, but it is worth the wait!
 

Mango Zabaglione - Food Processor Method
I love Zabaglione, but using the normal method of whisking the egg yolks in a bowl over simmering water can be tricky. If you are not careful, you will end up with scrambled eggs! For me, making it in the food processor is much easier. I use whole eggs instead of just the yolks and more cream to give it stability.

Peaches and Cream Custard
This is so good and so easy to make! This is a take-off from my Peaches and Cream Pie recipe. I didn't want to take the time to make pie crust, and I didn't have any store-brought crusts in the freezer. This would be great for either breakfast or a dessert.

Pumpkin Curd
Everyone seems to know about the delicious lemon curd which is a British teatime favorite. How about pumpkin curd? This sweet, yet tart, velvety pumpkin spread is heavenly on freshly baked scones, muffins, and tea breads. This is a definite "must try."
 

Pumpkin Parfait
This recipe is by Betty Ray of Vancouver, WA. The recipe and photo appeared in Sunset magazine's 2004 Recipe Annual. According to the Sunset article, Betty Ray, she created this creamy parfait as a light alternative to pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving dinner.

Tiramisu in a Martini Glass
Also known as Tuscan Trifle and Zuppa Inglese. Tradition tiramisu is a pudding-like dessert that usually consists of sponge cake or ladyfingers dipped in a liqueur, then layered with grated chocolate and rich custard. Tirasmisu was originally made as a loose custard, it is only in recent years that using mascarpone cheese has come into fashion.

Zabaglione with Fresh Berries
Zabaglione [zah-bahl-YOH-nay], is a famous Italian dessert that is usually served with sliced fresh fruit or berries. The French refer to this as Sabayon and it is used as a dessert or a sauce. It is light and refreshing and perfect as warm weather dessert.