Celebrity Chefs

Dessert Recipes by Sandra Lee, Todd English and Cat Cora

Celebrity chefs share some of their favorite desserts

-The Bettys

We're always searching for great dessert recipes. So we went to some of our favorite celebrity chefs - Sandra Lee, Todd English, and Cat Cora - for some of their best sweet endings.

Sandra Lee

Courtesy of Sandra Lee Semi-Homemade magazine; reprinted with permission from Hoffman Media, LLC.

Here are a couple of great dessert recipes that look impressive, but are quick and easy to whip up anytime.

Honey-Pistachio Mini Cheesecakes

makes 30 mini cheesecakes

Ingredients:

1 (24.2-ounce) container ready-to-eat cheesecake filling, Philadelphia®
2 (1.9-ounce) packages mini fillo shells, thawed and toasted, Athens®
1 cup chopped pistachios
1/4 cup honey
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Place 1 teaspoon of cheesecake filling into each fillo shell.

2. In a medium bowl, combine pistachios, honey, and cinnamon. Place a small amount of pistachio mixture on top of each cheesecake. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Fruit Kabobs with Sour Cream-Lime Dip

makes about 6 servings

Ingredients:

6 (6-inch) wooden skewers
9 pieces pineapple, cut 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick
9 strawberries, hulled and sliced in half lengthwise
9 white chocolate-coconut truffles, such as Ferrero Raffaello®
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar, Domino®
2 tablespoons lime zest (about 2 limes)
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (about 1 lime)

Directions:

1. Skewer pineapple, strawberries, and truffles as desired, alternating to make designs.

2. In a medium bowl, combine sour cream, brown sugar, lime zest, and lime juice, whisking well to combine. Serve dip with fruit kabobs.

TIP: Slice and hull your fruit pieces the day before and your kabobs will come together quickly right before brunch.

Todd English

Soy Milk Panna Cotta

serves 8

Adapted from Great Chefs ^TM Cook Vegan by Linda Long. Reprinted with permission of Gibbs Smith, gibbs-smith.com

This sensuously smooth and delicious vegetarian dessert is by celebrity chef Todd English, one of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People. His television credits include Cooking Under Fire, Cooking with Todd English, Iron Chef USA, Good Morning America, and a thirteen-episode PBS series - Food Trip with Todd English.

Ingredients for Panna Cotta:

4 cups soy milk
1⁄3 cup white beet sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean
31⁄2 teaspoons agar-agar powder or gelatin powder

Ingredients for the Blackberry Sauce:

1 pint fresh blackberries
2 tablespoons white beet sugar
Pinch of salt

Ingredients for the Vanilla Sauce:

2 cups Muscat or sweet wine
1⁄4 cup apricot jam
2 teaspoons vanilla extract, or 1⁄2 vanilla bean

Ingredients for the Garnish:

Finely ground pepper
Fresh red raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, red seedless grapes
Micro greens

Directions:

1. To make the Panna Cotta: Combine soy milk, sugar, and vanilla. Bring to a simmer, add the agar-agar powder and stir well. Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes. Remove the vanilla bean, and then pour the milk into 2-ounce ramekins; chill for 1 hour.

2. To make the Blackberry Sauce: Place the blackberries, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Gently crush the blackberries with a fork until they start releasing their juices. Marinate for 10 minutes. In a small sauté pan over medium-high heat, cook berries for 5 minutes, or until juices start to thicken; cool.

Cat Cora

Kiwi Parfait

serves 6

Adapted from Great Chefs ^TM Cook Vegan by Linda Long. Reprinted with permission of Gibbs Smith, gibbs-smith.com

This light vegan delight is from Cat Cora who made her television debut as co-hot of Food Network's Melting Pot with Rocco Di Spirito. In 2005 Cora made television history as the first and only female Iron Chef on Food Network's Iron Chef.

Ingredients:

5 kiwis, peeled and cut into bite-size pieces
1 pint soy yogurt
1 cup crushed graham crackers
Curried Cashews (recipe below)

Curried Cashews:

1 cup raw cashews
1⁄2 teaspoon canola oil
1⁄2 teaspoon curry powder
Salt to taste

Directions:

1. Place a spoonful of kiwi pieces in the bottom of a martini glass. Top with soy yogurt to cover, and then add a layer of graham crackers.
Repeat layers of kiwi and yogurt. Top with Curried Cashews and a few kiwi pieces.

2. To make the Curried Cashews: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place cashews on an unlined baking sheet and bake for 12 minutes, or until fragrant and slightly browned. Toss nuts with canola oil and curry powder in a bowl. Add salt, if desired, and then cool.