For tips on keeping holiday baking stress low and the wow factor high, we turned to baker and Cooking Pleasures contributor Alice Medrich. She’s written six dessert books, so answering our questions was a piece of cake. All recipes mentioned are from her newest book, Pure Dessert (Artisan, 2007).

CP: The holidays are high on sweets. What sorts of desserts are so good that they’ll stand out against such a background of sweetness?

AM: Thin, crisp, delicate tuile cookies in several amazing flavors, such as vanilla bean, freshly grated cinnamon, lavender, fresh thyme or tarragon, saffron, etc., are very impressive and stunningly good. If your guests are sophisticated, my Saffron and Cardamom Panna Cotta will knock their socks off. I also like simple cakes that are unfrosted and just really good to eat with a cup of tea on a cold day or even for breakfast.

And if something super sweet is necessary, homemade honey caramels made with some lovely local honey or caramels flavored with nutmeg or cardamom are unmatched by anything store-bought. All of these desserts are simple but still showstoppers.

CP: In regards to healthy desserts, there must be some that would be welcomed in the holiday season of rich foods. Which ones can you suggest?

AM: The idea of healthy desserts disappoints some people because they think that healthy food is a compromise, that it’s not as pleasurable as other food. I don’t agree with that in the first place, but at the same time I don’t call anything a dessert unless it’s very pleasurable and delicious. My aim [in my book] wasn’t to offer healthy desserts, just delicious desserts. If some turned out less rich or included some healthy ingredient, then that’s just a bonus!

That said, dessert-lovers will find several recipes that are very low or relatively low in fat. They include stunningly good sorbets and sherbets. You can also try some of the lighter ice creams, such as Nibby Ice Cream, Raw Sugar Ice Cream or Sour Cream Ice Cream.

Many of the desserts in Pure Dessert contain healthy ingredients (nuts, fresh cheeses, and interesting whole grains, for example) because those ingredients have flavors that I love. I used these ingredients in ways that taste like dessert rather than health food—I promise.

CP: How often do you have dessert?

AM: I don’t eat a conventional dessert everyday, but I do eat at least a little piece of very good chocolate daily.  

CP: What one holiday dessert is a staple for you?

AM: My mother’s apple crisp (Bea’s Apple Crisp) is a must for Thanksgiving. And I always make chocolate truffles from my book Bittersweet to serve guests and for hostess gifts, teacher gifts and thank-yous.

CP: You say that your recipes are relaxed, yet in your book you go into quite a bit of detail about things like how to measure flour and cocoa powder, mixing and baking tips, bowls, cake pans, baking sheets, spatulas, etc. Why such emphasis on basic details?

AM: Well, I have to say that everything is relative! As a pastry chef, I made my reputation over 30 years ago with some very complex and involved recipes, which I was able to break down into steps that the ambitious home cook could follow successfully. By comparison, the desserts in Pure Dessert are very simple and relaxed. But relaxed does not mean sloppy! Baking is a craft, after all.

A little knowledge—how to measure, for example—is easy to come by, and it goes a long way toward making a superb dish rather than one that is just pretty good. There’s a lot of pleasure to be had in doing something well, even if it is simple. Some of the best dishes in the world are the simplest, executed with care.

CP: You’ve written five books on desserts before writing Pure Dessert. If you were to write a non-dessert book, what would it be?

AM: I like little, informal dishes that allow me to compose flavors, textures and colors. I like to make salads and appetizers.

CP: You write that you are “fascinated by the effects of small changes.” Can you give an example?

AM: I loved discovering that I could make the most sensational exotic brownies by grating spices (nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom) over them just before serving, rather than blending the spices into the batter.

I was thrilled to find that beating eggs with sugar and salt until pale and thick can produce brownies with a melt-in-your-mouth almost mousse-like texture and a beautiful shiny-crusted surface.

I love how light yet super chocolaty a torte can be if the chocolate is ground up, rather than melted, before it’s folded into the batter.

I’m fascinated that the filling for a cheese tart will curdle if the eggs are whisked into the cheese instead of whisking the cheese into the eggs.

When I wrap crepes around spoonfuls of fresh, tangy cheese and sauté the bundles with sugar, I love how the counterpoint of caramelized sweetness on the outside enhances the flavor of the tangy cheese within.

I love knowing that one can leave the skins on the apples to make an apple crisp and that, when doing so, it’s better to cut the apples in chunks than thin slices.

All of these details and hundred more make creating new desserts endlessly interesting to me. 

CP: What do-ahead tips do you recommend so that people don’t get overwhelmed when they start preparing holiday desserts?

AM: Read the recipes carefully and pick an assortment of desserts that you can wholly or partially make ahead of time. Instead of chilling cookie dough before shaping, freeze it (before or after shaping) until needed. Or pick cookies, cakes or confections that keep for several days to several weeks once they’re baked.

Try tuile cookies in a variety of flavors. Closer to the date, pick cakes that taste best if make 1 or 2 days in advance.

I like serving purchased ice cream with exotic sauces that I can make weeks ahead, such as caramel sauces flavored with nutmeg, cardamom, lavender or honey.

CP: What advice do you give for people who are tackling a dessert buffet for the first time?

AM: Create a bake-ahead plan. Make sure you have a variety of flavors, textures, shapes and colors. Serve exotic, adventuresome items as well as crowd pleasers that everyone, including kids, will enjoy. Tiny servings are good because people like to sample everything. It’s also a good idea to have almost everything self-servable. Cookies are perfect, as are cakes that can be cut into finger food-sized pieces. Panna cotta or chocolate puddings can be in glass or clear plastic shot glasses, flans in 2-ounce ramekins, if you want to serve them, etc.

CP: What three types of desserts should be the base for any holiday dessert buffet or dessert party?

AM: I would always want to include something fabulous that is chocolate. Also, something with seasonal fruit, such as very tangy lime or lemon bars. And then something smooth, creamy and sensuous.

CP: What’s the most important thing to keep in mind when planning your dessert menu?

AM: It’s all going to turn out well, and you’re going to have a wonderful time, along with your guests. In other words, relax and enjoy the process.

For holiday cookie recipes from Alice Medrich, check out “Cookie Treasures” on pg. 42 of the December 2007/January 2008 issue of Cooking Pleasures.

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