Mini Desserts - Creating Dessert Fun in Miniature Sizes!

Are you planning a dinner party in the near future? Or, how about hosting an appetizer and dessert buffet to celebrate a special birthday or a holiday? If any of these gatherings are on your calendar, here is a fun way to serve dessert.

Dessert samplers are essentially mini desserts, smaller portions that provide the opportunity to try several things (such as the Vanilla Bean Custard Samplers pictured above). If you want to try making a dessert sampler for your next dinner part, consider matching dessert flavors to the theme of the dinner. For example , for a Caribbean-themed dinner, you might create a sampler with flavors such as coconut and citrus; fresh fruits such as strawberries, pineapple and mangos; praline; rum cakes; chocolate and a variety of spices, including ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves and more.

For variety or for a dessert buffet, make two to three samplers. And, here's a little secret: everything you serve doesn’t have to be homemade. Let the grocery store or local candy shop help you out.

Think about serving dishes for your miniature desserts, too. Serve something like the Vanilla Bean Custard Samplers in little 2-oz. shot glasses.

For a second dessert sampler recipe, try an all-time favorite: homemade Buttery Pound Cake using rum extract instead of vanilla in the recipe. Spoon Rich Buttery Caramel Sauce over the top of the cake, again adding rum extract to the sauce instead of the vanilla. Try adding purchased honey-roasted pecans (¾ cup) to the sauce.

Small-sized plastic serving dishes and utensils that will work especially well for samplers can be found at your local party supplies store.

Remember the tip about letting your local grocery or candy store give you a hand? Add chocolate covered candies or nuts placed in mini foil baking cups to your dessert buffet. 

Your dinner guests will love the dessert sampler idea. Give this a try and join in the fun!