On a Plate

For many people, dessert isn’t complete without a scoop of something frozen. Desserts that include ice cream or sorbet are twice as popular as those without. Yet while crucial, ice cream or sorbet is just one part of the overall taste of a dessert. In Profiteroles with Orange Custard-Chocolate Chip Ice Cream, the crispy light cream puffs and the warm chocolate sauce enhance the flavor of the ice cream. In Warm, Gooey Chocolate Cakes with Chocolate-Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream, the ice cream tastes more intensely chocolaty when served next to the warm cake. With new flavors of ice cream, classic desserts such as apple-pear crisp and crepes are reborn. Combining ice cream with a flaky crust, as in grape tartlets with cinnamon ice cream, or with a light cake, such as plum cake with plum sorbet, makes for contrasting textures that tease the tongue and the palate. The secret when adding a scoop to a dessert is to select a flavor that heightens the essences in the other components and doesn’t cover them up. The result is irresistible creations greater than the sum of their parts.