Wedding Dessert Buffet

This past Saturday was showtime for a wedding dessert buffet I have been planning for quite some time.

It was way back in February that I promised to make the desserts for the wedding of my daughter Eleanor's beloved middle-school math teacher, Ms. Bennett. Throughout the school year we tested and tasted recipes with Eleanor acting as my dessert delivery girl.

Desserts that made the final menu were sugar cookies, Oreo truffles, tirimisu, coconut and dark chocolate French macarons, berry bars and three kinds of mini cheese cake. All of the desserts except for the berry bars needed to be kept chilled, especially in the summer heat.

Fortunately for me, my friend Cindy and my sister Ursula came to the rescue by letting me keep treats in their refrigerators until the event. During transport in the hot car, I had the air conditioner on high and basically just prayed that things wouldn't melt.

Once at the venue, I had a small kitchen to work in and a fridge in which I just kept alternating keeping the desserts cold until it was time to present them. My daughter Eleanor was such a big help to me.  

When a dessert disappeared from the buffet, Eleanor quickly replaced it so that throughout the event the display was always full and beautiful.

I am so pleased with how things turned out and it was wonderful to be a part of Ms. Bennett's special day. It was hard work but also exciting and something Eleanor and I will always remember tackling together.

Three bowls of macarons.

Macaron close-up.

The sugar cookies packed and ready for transport.

There was a cute little spoon in each cup of tirimisu. Of all the desserts, this was the easiest to make and serve.

I wrapped each berry bar with a strip of natural parchment and baker's twine.

Making the Oreo truffles. This was the dessert that was the most difficult to deal with in the heat. Chocolate doesn't like to be above 70 degrees. When it's hot, it's essential to get them straight into the fridge to set up after a quick dip in melted chocolate.

The three cheesecake flavors were chocolate/peanut butter cup, lemon curd/raspberry and strawberry.

Mini Tirimisu

Over the last few months I've been testing dessert recipes for a summer wedding I am catering.  I say desserts because in lieu of a wedding cake, the couple wants to serve an assortment of mini desserts to their guests. I love the idea of a mini dessert buffet and I have a feeling so will the guests.

Lately, I've been working on a recipe for Mini Tirimisu. Because it's a summer wedding and I'm assuming it will be hot, I need to be conscientious of coming up with desserts that can survive the heat.  For these tirimisus,  I substituted cream cheese for the traditional mascarpone because it will hold up better on a hot day and allows me to make the tirimisus, minus the whipped cream and cocoa powder topping, a full two days in advance.

I found the mini dessert cups I am using online and love that you can see all the layers through the clear hard plastic. I also like that the cups are not throw aways because they are sturdy enough to be washed and reused.

If you don't want to make tirimisu in mini form, just use a bigger glass. The recipe serves four if you use  8-oz wine glasses.

It's also really helpful if you use piping bags to add the cheese and whipping cream layers. That way you can add these layers quickly and neatly. 

This recipe is also great because there is no cooking involved. Truly perfect for a hot summer day.

Mini Tirimisu 
(makes 10 using 2.7-oz cups)
1 cup heavy cream, divided
3/4 cup sugar, divided
1 8-oz. package cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla, divieded
1 7-oz. package ladyfingers
1 cup strong black coffee
2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Make the coffee and let it cool to room temperature.

Whip 3/4 of the cream with 1/4 cup of the sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla. Whip until soft peaks form. Chill the whipping cream until you are ready to use it.

Whip together the cream cheese, remaining 1/2 cup of sugar and remaining teaspoon of vanilla. Whip until smooth then add the remaining 1/4 cup of cream and whip again until it's light and smooth.

To assemble:
Transfer the cream cheese mixture and the whipping cream to piping bags fitted with a #5 tip or if you are using disposable bags, just cut off a 1/4-inch opening.

Cut a ladyfinger in half and dip each half into the coffee. Do this quickly or else the ladyfinger will fall apart. Place the halves in the bottom of a mini cup. Repeat for all 10 cups.

Pipe a layer of the cream cheese mixture into each cup.

Repeat with a layer of ladyfingers in each cup.

Repeat with a layer of the cream cheese mixture in each cup.

Repeat with a layer of ladyfingers in each cup.

Using a piping bag for adding the cheese mixture makes assembling these very easy. And, there's no messy smears on the inside of the cups.

Finally, add a layer of whipped cream to each cup and using a small sieve, add a sprinkling of cocoa powder to the top of the whipped cream.

For a size comparison, I assembled one large tirimisu in an 8-oz. wine glass.

Refrigerate the tirimisu for at least 1 hour before serving.