Dessert

Entertaining: Cocktails & Crème Brûlée

~ Paris

It always feels a little disappointing a few days into January, once the holidays have officially ended, festive lights and pretty ornaments have been packed away for the next eleven months, and even the excitement of the new year has begun to fade away and the year has simply turned into this year. To find a way of keeping the month feeling fresh and special, I always try to either travel someplace new or entertain at home. This year I decided to kick off January with a girls night paired with cocktails and crème brûlée. This was one of my favorite traditions in college – enjoying rosewater cardamom crème brûlée and girly cocktails at the local lounge, for a ridiculously fun and very feminine night out. 

To recreate this, I purchased crème brûlée from our local bakery and chose to make the ultimate, girly drink – a cosmopolitan – using this recipe {except I’d suggest half the amount of booze and double the cranberry juice since this was a rather potent drink, or with no booze at all like I had it.} The tartness of the drink paired perfectly with the rich dessert, and catching up on our favorite TV shows, as well as one another, made the evening feel that much more special. 



x Paris

Vanilla Persimmon Cupcakes with Candied Persimmons + Persimmon Buttercream

~ Paris

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I first discovered persimmons back in college and have been obsessed with them ever since. While summer is the season best known for fruits {berries, mangos, passion fruit}, I’ve always had an equal passion for winter’s version of nature’s candy, such as pomegranates and the aforementioned persimmons. I recently decided to combine my two favorite aspects of winter – baking on chilly mornings & the fresh, seasonal produce – to create these vanilla persimmon cupcakes. Using a vanilla cake recipe with one cup persimmons + a fresh vanilla bean, it made for a buttery cake with just the subtlest hint of fruit. And to add to the fruit flavor, I cored the cupcakes and filled them with candied persimmons before topping them off with a persimmon buttercream. The end result was something sweet, fruity, and the perfect indulgence on the coldest of days.

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Candied Persimmons
Ingredients
1 Persimmon, chopped
3 Tablespoons Granulated Brown Sugar
1 Tablespoons Butter

Recipe
1. Over a low flame, melt the butter.
2. Next, add the chopped persimmons and mix it into the butter until it fruit softens.
3. Finally, add in the brown sugar and coat it over the fruit.
4. Allow the fruit to simmer in the butter and sugar for five minutes, or until it’s softened and golden in color.
5. Enjoy!

Persimmon Buttercream
Ingredients
1 Cup Butter, room temperature
1 Cup Powdered Sugar
1 Persimmon, chopped
1 Vanilla Bean

Recipe
1. Blend the butter, sugar, vanilla bean, and persimmons on high until whipped into a frosting.
2. Top over cupcakes.
3. Enjoy!

x Paris