Fruit Cream | Impressive dessert that is fast, cheap and easy!
Growing up, this was one of my favourite desserts! And I can confidently say that it is still in my top ten. I have fond memories of my aunt whipping up (yes I did) this yummy dessert for special occasions. It’s something I would always look forward to; one of those desserts that is so so good — you just don’t want it to end. Needless to say, there was always a fight for seconds.
It’s quick to do, rather cheap, and with a little bit of prep for your presentation, perfect for company too! Chill a few cocktail glasses in your freezer, and spoon this in with any garnish of your choice — and I promise you’ll wow any crowd.
Oh and in my personal experience, it’s also fitting for those nights when a lonely scoop of ice cream just won’t do.
Ingredients
250 gms Heavy Cream (or Greek Yogurt)
4 tbsp powdered Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1/2 fresh Pineapple /canned Pineapple
2 ripe Bananas
1 Apple
30 gms Grapes (you could use any grapes you can get your hands on)
30 gms Strawberries
1 Orange
1/2 tin canned fruits (optional)
30 gms shaved Almonds for garnishing
You will need a large mixing bowl, a whisk, a chopping board and a knife. In a large mixing bowl add the heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Whisk till the cream becomes thick (you are looking for thick pouring consistency). Chop all the fruits into small bite size pieces and mix them into the whipped cream. Make sure you peel the apple, de-seed the orange and remove the core of the pineapple before you mix them in.
You can buy shaved almonds from the market but I used whole almonds and shaved them with my cleaver. Once you are done with the almonds, throw them into a dry pan and toast on medium heat. Make sure you keep moving the pan so they toast evenly. If you are stirring with a spatula, do it ever so slightly to make sure the almonds don’t break down further. What we want, is a toasty golden colour on the almonds.
Get the bowl or glass you want to serve in and spoon in a couple of tablespoons in and garnish with the toasted almonds shavings. And we’re done! That’s how fast and easy this is.
TIP: Do not spoon the mixture into individual servings until you are ready to serve/eat the dessert. Since the cream is whipped, it tends to set in the refrigerator. So you’ll wanna stir gently before serving. You can throw in all kinds of fruits into the cream, whatever you have at home. I will say this though — do not skip the pineapple (fresh or canned), it’s flavours really round up this dessert. If you’d like to do a healthy version, substitute the heavy cream with greek yogurt. Instead of whipping the cream to make it thicker you will be mixing the yogurt to make it smoother and to incorporate the sugar and vanilla extract. Go on, give it a whirl :)
