1. Clash with colour
Contrasting colours can really make your dessert plate pop. The contrast between the deep dark chocolate of our 61295 Vegan mirrored chocolate torte truffle torte paired with bright rich red colours of the fresh berries and raspberry sorbet is a great example.
Equally, take a light colour tart such as 51185 Lemon meringue tartlet and pair it with candied limes or lime rind to keep it looking really simple, fresh and clean while adding to the vibrancy of the dish.
2. Plate the rough with the smooth
Using different textures in a dish creates a real eating experience for the consumer. It not only creates an exciting eat but adds great appeal to the visuals of the dish.
Look at our ice cream cup recipe! In this dish you have the crisp brand snap basket, the smooth ice cream with velvety marshmallow with a delicate flamed edging, topped with crumbled biscuits… Simple elements but combined in a way that creates a dessert which takes you on a real flavour and texture adventure to excite the senses.
3. Hot vs cold
True indulgence is delving into a nice warm dessert and scooping up some creamy ice cream to go with it. Pies and crumbles, custards, creams or ice cream, there is a world of options and preferences with our ever loved favourites – but pairing hot with cold certainly adds another dimension to a dessert.
There a few things to take into consideration though when doing so. Make sure your menu works for you and your service. If you’re serving ice cream alongside a chilled dessert, a slightly chilled plate will ensure it holds while being plated through to service. Or remember to keep your heated elements separate to the cooled up until the final minute, otherwise you’ll have slightly runnier ice cream than anticipated!
4. Highlight the main event
Pick out the focal point of your plate, this will determine what other garnish is needed. If your centre of plate is already a visual showstopper then in this case less is more, add only a small amount of garnish that will enhance the eating of the dish.
If your centre of plate is delish but visually quite simple, here you have more to play with. Sauces are an excellent addition; or try adding chocolate bark, biscuit, nut crumbs or maybe some fresh fruit to add a pop of colour.
Take a look at our range of extras that work great as dessert toppers in our new desserts guide. These added extras can be as simple as you would like but really do add to the finished dish where needed.
5. Fun and functional
Don’t forget about functionality when serving up your delicious desserts. It’s easy to get caught up in the visual of your finished dish but always remain mindful of the format in which you are serving it. Are you building a dessert that is going to tower and look amazing, but when it gets to service could possibly topple over and not look so great when it reaches the customer?
Alternatively, maybe you have some lovely looking plates but they aren’t quite suitable to hold the sauce you are serving alongside your dish. If you serve desserts for on the go, you also need to make sure your carrier is going to withhold the temperature bands, not soak through and allows the consumer to enjoy the eating experience without too much mess.
We have a great range of on the go packaging formats to support you with here. It is equally important that you think past the dessert and ensure it gets to your customer in the perfect way you have presented it.
There’s lots to think about when building your menu & running a kitchen but we hope these simple hints and tips and help you plate up the perfect dessert and end your customer’s meal on a high, leaving a fantastic lasting impression!
Head over to our Desserts page to delve further into the world of desserts with current insights & trends and to view our new desserts guide!
