Overview

Dishes from the dessert menu can be the perfect compliment to a successful meal or may be enjoyed as a sweet snack in their own right. Either way, hot and cold sweets and desserts are a well-established and popular section of any menu.

For those with a ‘sweet tooth’, the dessert course is typically regarded as the climax to the entire dining experience. For everyone else, the sweet course provides a welcome contrast to the savoury flavours experienced in previous dishes.

Your customers often regard dessert as a treat or indulgence, making them just that little bit naughty. In many ways, the quality of desserts on offer plays a significant and influencing role on their decision to return in the future as well as their ‘word of mouth’ recommendations to family, friends and associates.

For this reason, sweets and desserts should be given a little extra attention to create delicate flavours and textures and an artistic presentation. Remember the flavour of the dessert is still on your customer’s tongue as they discuss their meal experience leaving the establishment.

Producing quality desserts with flair and imagination is a key skill required by all professional cooks. The dessert dishes in this unit involve a wide variety of methods, techniques, fillings, bases, sauces and presentation styles. These skills act as a basic starting point from which to expand your knowledge and experience in this area.

In this unit you will learn how to:

• Prepare and produce desserts and sweets
• Decorate, portion and present desserts and sweets
• Prepare sweet sauces
• Prepare accompaniments, garnishes and decorations
• Store desserts and sweets.