[Tim S]

I'm doing a big dinner party for NY Eve and I have the menu set for everything except the dessert course. I was thinking about doing some molten chocolate cakes with port soaked cherries but there will be too many people and too much going on to get those to come out right. I was thinking instead to do something incorporating chocolate cake, chocolate pudding and the port soaked cherries but am having problems finding a good way of putting it all together. Anyone here have some suggestions?

Tim

[BobM]

How about some "Tuxedo" (chocolate dipped) strawberries and a bunch of cordials or champagne? You can make them ahead of time. We brought these to a "come as your favorite spy" costume party once. It fit right into the James Bond-like theme. The only restriction was that you had to name a unique spy or villian from history or fantasy (including comics) before you ate one. Lots of unique spy's and villians I learned about that night.

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Tuxedo-Strawberries

[ctviggen]

How many people where there be?  Is this a sit down dinner? 

For Christmas, I did chocolate souffles that were frozen beforehand.  The recipe makes 8, 8 ounce servings, but I did two 8 ounce and eight 6 ounce servings, because I couldn't find enough 8 ounce ramekins. 

[Tim S]

It is a sit-down dinner. There will be about 7-8 at dinner initially and then 2 more people are showing up late so I want to have some still around for them. That's why any of the things that I have to bake-to-order won't work so well.

[StereoNut]

"I was thinking instead to do something incorporating chocolate cake, chocolate pudding and the port soaked cherries"

I think you answered your own question.  Find yourself a good chocolate cake recipe (if you don't already have one) bake 3 layers and let them cool down.  Use the chocolate pudding (maybe made a little thicker than normal) as filling between the layers and stack 'em up.  Whip up some buttercreme frosting (vanilla or chocolate?) to more-or-less "finish" the outside of the cake.  Last but not least; create a simple sugar syrup, throw your port soaked cherries in, reduce it down to create a glaze and top the cake with it.

Viola!

SN

P.S. - Save me a piece!
 

[konut]

Chocolate Tipsy Pudding, similar to English Trifle, can be either layered in a large Trifle bowl or made in individual cups(wine glass, Hurricane glass). Just substitute chocolate cake for yellow cake, chocolate pudding for vanilla pudding, the fruit of choice(cherries), and port(or any other wine/liquor(I like rum))  for sherry.

http://whatscookingamerica.net/Cake/EnglishTrifle.htm

[Tim S]

The layer cake and the trifle approach are the two ways I was thinking of doing it. I can't quite decide which I prefer. Guess I'll flip a coin at some point and make a choice. Either way I think it should taste great!

[StereoNut]

Tim - The suspense is killing me!  What did you decide on?

[Tim S]

Sorry to not have followed up. I decided on this:



It is a three layer cake with a very dark chocolate pudding in between the layers along with about 2 pounds of cherries cooked in a bottle of port that I reduced down to a pretty concentrated syrup. The cherries in the port syrup were simply a sublime thing of wonder. I think all future deserts I make will be XXXX with port soaked cherries regardless of what the XXXX is (seriously, if you've never tried it before I highly recommend it).The rest of the cake was good too (though the picture may not be the prettiest). Thanks all for the suggestions.

Tim

[StereoNut]

Hey Tim!

Where's the piece you were supposed to save for me?    Maybe the UPS guy ate it! 

Actually, I'm glad you tried my idea.  I looks pretty delicious to me! 


SN