The Dessert - Sebring Sattelite

Deciding what to do for dessert was tough.  I ended up with an amalgamation of three different desserts.  First, Belgian waffles.  They were introduced at the Seattle World's Fair in 1962, not the subsequent New York World's Fair in 1964, as most people think.  I found a recipe that uses pearl sugar.  Maybe not completely authentic, but tasty and crispy. They were traditionally served with strawberries and whipped cream.  Second, was the dessert listed on the 1962 menu, Coupe Tropical.  Ice cream, chocolate mousse, bananas and pineapple.  Third, what has become a signature dessert since 1962 at the Space Needle, the Lunar Orbiter.  All assembled into one dessert.

Belgian Waffles

1 pkg dry yeast  

sugar

3/4 cup milk, heated to lukewarm

 3 eggs

1 cup melted butter

2 teaspoons vanilla

3 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups pearl sugar

Sprinkle yeast over milk in a bowl.  Add a little sugar.  Let sit for about 15 minutes, until yeast 'blooms'.  Mix in eggs, butter and vanilla and stir until blended.  Add flour mixed with salt to form a soft dough.  

Let batter rise in a warm place until double, about 30 minutes.  Stir in pearl sugar and let sit 15 minutes.  Stir gently and make waffles in a Belgian waffle maker.  You can make these ahead and reheat them in the oven.  If you can't find pearl sugar you can make your own by chopping up sugar cubes.  Just crush them with a meat tenderizer, breaking each cube into 4-5 pieces.  

These waffles are so good, you'll probably want to make a double batch.  They reheat very well.

Chocolate Mousse

2 cups chilled heavy cream
4 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
7 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), chopped (I used Callebaut)

Heat 3/4 cup of cream until just below boiling.  Place egg yolks, chocolate, sugar and vanilla in blender.  With blender running, add hot cream.  Blend until smooth.  Cool to room temperature.  Meanwhile, whip the remaining cream to soft peaks.  Do not overwhip.  Fold 1/4 of whipped cream into chocolate mixture to soften, then fold in remaining whipped cream.  Chill until set.

For fruit sauce

1 lb strawberries

1/4 cup sugar

2 bananas, sliced

1 cup fresh pineapple chunks 

Clean and slice strawberries into a bowl.  Sprinkle with sugar and allow to sit for 10 minutes.  Stir in bananas and pineapple chunks.

To assemble the dessert, place half a waffle in each bowl.  Top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a scoop of the chocolate mousse.  Spoon fruit over top.

Now comes the lunar orbiter component!  It's all in the presentation.

Ready for lift-off.  Ten...nine...eight.....

In order to serve this, I ended up building my own bowls.  Unfortunately, the glue I used didn't hold, but most of them made it to the table before they fell apart.  To do this you need a double walled vessel.  I made mine by placing a small bowl inside a larger bowl.  I then placed the dessert bowl in the smaller bowl.  In the bottom large bowl I put chunks of dry ice.  When it was served, I poured hot water over the dry ice, making the smoke effect.  Great fun!

Check out the real thing on Youtube.

With dessert we drank 2011 Cascina del Santuario Moscato d'Asti.

We have lift-off!

This wine was delicious.  It glides over your tongue.  Sweet, but not cloying.  A perfect ending to a great meal!

We then descended back into the living room for coffee and a viewing of my aunt's home movies of Century 21.  She was a pretty good filmographer!

Dessert…beverage…and a friendly talk, then a parting eye to the sweeping view. It has been grand…it’s time to land.

Next party I have planned is in July.  Stay tuned!  I'll be sharing some of my prep work between now and then.