These are the ingredients I keep on hand to transform a bowl of oranges into dessert, turn chocolate pudding into company fare, or elevate any number of good things.
BLACK PEPPERCORNS, whole, in a grinder. Pass the pepper grinder when you serve ripe figs with fresh cheese and honey, or strawberries with a splash of balsamic vinegar, or even a chocolate mousse.
FLAKY SEA SALT A tiny pinch of flaky sea salt lifts a dish of chocolate mousse or ice cream with caramel sauce, or the olive oil drizzled over ice cream.
ORANGE BLOSSOM WATER A few drops sprinkled over orange slices turns them into dessert. Or add to whipped cream along with a little grated orange zest to top a chocolate dessert.
ROSE WATER With a drop or two, flavor sweetened whipped cream to serve with strawberries and/or raspberries or cubes of watermelon. Toss sugared strawberries with a few drops.
CINNAMON STICKS Use a Microplane zester to grate a little cinnamon over any dark chocolate dessert, from brownies to chocolate chip cookies to chocolate pudding. Grate over the whipped cream topping on a chocolate or fruit dessert. Grate over orange slices, peach or nectarine slices, or a fruit salad. Or grate over rice pudding or over cocoa-dusted chocolate truffles just before serving.
WHOLE NUTMEG Grate over brownies just before serving, or over the whipped cream topping on any chocolate or fruit dessert, or over rice pudding.
FORTIFIED WINES (such as sherry, port, Marsala, Madeira, or Banyuls). Macerate berries or sliced stone fruit for up to 2 hours before serving plain or with ice cream or cream. Reduce by half and chill, then pour an ounce or so over a scoop of ice cream in an old-fashioned glass, and top off with soda water for a delicious float or soda.
SPIRITS AND LIQUEURS (such as rum, brandy, whiskey, kirsch, framboise, poire Williams, amaretto, Grand Marnier, Frangelico, etc.). Toss with fruit, splash on cakes, pour over ice cream, or use for dunking amaretti.
LIMES Grate the zest over sliced fruit and then drizzle with the juice. Grate the zest over a bowl of cocoa-dusted truffles along with freshly grated cinnamon just before serving. Grate the zest over warm gingerbread.
HONEY Drizzle over yogurt or ricotta cheese, perhaps topped with pistachios, walnuts, or toasted almonds, or over vanilla ice cream. Drizzle over slices of ripe melon and garnish with ricotta and torn basil leaves. Drizzle (especially chestnut honey) over Gorgonzola dolcelatte.
CHOCOLATE See 8 Ideas for a Bar of Chocolate, page 262, for some of my favorite ideas.
JAMS AND PRESERVES Top ricotta cheese or Greek yogurt with a spoonful, smear over crepes before folding them, sandwich with Right-Brain Nutty Butter Cookies (page 238), or make a layer cake with berries and cream (page 229).
SPECIAL SUGARS (muscovado, especially dark, and piloncillo). Eat with sour cream and strawberries. Or simmer with cream to make a quick toffee sauce (see page 25).
EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL Not just for salads anymore. Drizzle extra virgin olive oil over vanilla ice cream with a sprinkle of flaky salt, or over store-bought almond or hazelnut biscotti. Or use it to make a chocolate torte (page 185), pound cake (page 199), dessert croutons (page 29), or crostini (page 16).