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Remember how I mention in my last post that Cascade has teamed up with Gail Simmons to showcase how food presentation is a huge part of creating the perfect dish?  I think of that every time the hubby and I are watching Hell’s Kitchen or Master Chef and Chef Ramsey gets all bent out of shape if the dish the food is presented on isn’t spectacularly clean. 

More often we ‘eat with our eyes’ before even putting a bite on our mouths, so having dishes and silverware sparkling and clean goes a long way to giving a good impression.  Have you ever been to a restaurant and had to have the plate or silverware replaced because it wasn’t spotless?  Or is that just me?  Just think if you’re having friends over for a nice meal and your dishes and silverware look hazy and dull – not the kind of impression I’d want to be going for.

Thank goodness for Cascade Platinum – now I not only don’t have to waste time pre-washing my dishes before letting my dishwasher take over, but I can be confident that each and every plate, glass, silverware – and even my pots and pans – will come out of the dishwasher impressively shiny.

The mere fact that the dishes all come out spotless and looking better than ever is one thing – but the elimination of any pre-rinsing or pre-washing (or post-washing for that matter) has been such a relief.  Now I have more time to spend with my family, or you know, hang out online.  Ahem.

I hadn’t tested my new dishwasher’s claim to be gentle enough to wash my favorite wine glasses, and I thought I’d go for broke and try it out for this particular assigment.  I was not disappointed.  Now when I have a dinner party and want to make sure all my glassware is ready for our guests, I can be confident that not only does my dishwasher handle the gentle mode like a pro, but Cascade Platinum didn’t mar, scratch or cloud up my glassware.  I am a happy camper.

Since it’s Father’s Day, I decided I’d make the hubby a special dessert on this humid day – Gail Simmons Bumbleberry Pie Sundae looks delicious, so I thought I’d give it a shot.  It. Was. Delicious.   Even Princess Nagger was in seventh heaven as we devoured our treats – and I was quite happy my glasses were a brilliant supporting star in the presentation:

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Doesn’t that look yummy?  It was.  It was even good to the last bite:

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I bet you’d like the recipe now, wouldn’t you?  Ask and ye shall receive:

Bumbleberry Pie Sundae

Serving Size: 6

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups plus 3/4 cup mixed berries, well washed and divided (any combination of strawberries hulled and quartered, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries halved)
  • 4 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
  • 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 pinch coarse salt
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 pint vanilla ice cream
  • 1 pint raspberry sorbet
  • 6 graham crackers, crushed
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon zest

Directions:

  1. In a medium saucepan heat one cup of mixed berries, 2 tablespoons sugar and lemon juice over medium heat, until the blueberries begin to burst and the other berries break down, about 10 minutes. Remove from off heat and stir in the pinch of salt.
  2. Place half the berry mixture in a blender and puree until smooth. Return the sauce to the saucepan and stir well to combine with remaining fruit. Allow to cool slightly.
  3. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl crush 3/4 cup of mixed berries with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar using a fork, until slightly chunky and loose. In a large bowl or stand mixer, using a balloon whisk or hand-held mixer, beat the cream at medium speed until soft peaks form. Gently fold the crushed berries into the whipped cream. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
  4. To serve: spoon 2 tablespoons of the sauce into each of 6 parfait or rocks glasses. Top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a sprinkling of crushed graham crackers, and a pinch of lemon zest. Then add a scoop of the raspberry sorbet and another 2 tablespoons of the sauce. Top with a dollop of whipped cream and finish with a sprinkling of the graham crackers and another pinch of zest. Serve immediately.

Source:  Gail Simmons

I have to be honest, I was a little confused by the measurements and the directions, because even Princess Nagger was doing the math, and somehow that 3-3/4 cup of mixed berries only utilizes 1-3/4 cups. 

And it doesn’t specify what to do with the remaining fruit, nor specifically when to add the fruit that has been folded into the whipped cream (unless that’s the whipped cream you’re adding a dollop of).  So I searched online and discovered Gail’s recipe with slightly different directions:

  1. In a medium saucepan, heat 2 cups of mixed berries, 2 tablespoons sugar and lemon juice over medium heat, until the blueberries begin to burst and the other berries break down, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat, and stir in the pinch of salt.
  2. Puree half the berry mixture in a blender until smooth. Return the puree to the saucepan, and stir well to combine with remaining fruit. Allow to cool slightly.
  3. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, crush remaining 1¾ cups of mixed berries with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar using a fork, until slightly chunky and loose. In a large bowl or stand mixer, using a balloon whisk or hand-held mixer, beat the cream at medium speed until soft peaks form. Gently fold the crushed berries into the whipped cream. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
  4. To serve: spoon 2 tablespoons of the sauce into each of 6 parfait or rocks glasses. Top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a sprinkling of crushed graham crackers, and a pinch of lemon zest. Add a scoop of the raspberry sorbet, and another 2 tablespoons of the sauce. Top with a dollop of whipped cream, and finish with another sprinkling of the graham crackers and another pinch of zest. Serve immediately.

So it still doesn’t specify about the berries folded into the whipped cream, but at least it covers most of the 3-3/4 cups of berries.  Since I had a Blonde Moment and forgot to pick up graham crackers for this recipe, I crushed some vanilla Oreo cookies instead – Princess Nagger thought it was the perfect substitution (as did I).  I also left out the raspberry sorbet (since I couldn’t find any – imagine that!) so I layered it thusly:

2+ Tablespoons of sauce, a scoop of vanilla bean frozen yogurt, a sprinkle of crushed vanilla Oreo cookies, a pinch of lemon zest, a scoop of the berries folded into whipped cream, 2+ tablespoons of the sauce, topped with whipped cream and sprinkled with crushed Oreo cookies and pinch of lemon zest.

I know, I’m a rebel.  I tend not to follow directions of a recipe to the letter.  The important part was that it was absolutely delicious – and everyone gobbled up their share in record time. 

Don’t forget about the My Cascade Instagram contest going on – be sure to show “My Platinum Bite” with your sparkling clean silverware – and don’t forget to tag it with @MyCascade and #MyPlatinum so you can be entered to win some amazing prizes!

Do you make sure your dishes and silverware are ‘presentation worthy’?  Have you tried Cascade Platinum yet?

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Note: I participated in a campaign on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for Cascade.  I received a product sample to facilitate my review and a promotional item as a thank you for participating.  As usual, all opinions are my own and not influenced by outside sources.  See my disclosure policy here.

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