The '60s were a time for flaming desserts

Try one of these to light up any old evening.

The 1960s have some sweet recipes you can dust off if you want to bring more excitement to your dessert table this year. Flambeing has been a method of cooking since the 1800s, but these desserts experienced a resurgence in the 1960s when they became some of the most popular treats of the era. 

In order to flambe your dessert, you must use some sort of alcoholic beverage, heated up just enough to ignite. Usually, something flavorful like rum or cognac that complements the rest of the dish is used. Here are four of the most popular flaming desserts and how you can make them yourself! Just make sure you’re safe! Don't use any liquor that is more than 40 percent alcohol.

Cherries jubilee

Cherries jubilee consists of a warm cherry sauce poured over ice cream. You can use chocolate, vanilla or any other variety that your sweet tooth calls to. It’s pretty easy as well!  According to All Recipes, all you need to do is mix sugar and corn starch on the stove, along with water and orange juice. Once it’s boiled, add your pitted cherries and some orange zest for flavor. When sauce is done, pour in some brandy and set it ablaze! 

Image: Flickr

Bananas Foster

Bananas foster is one of the most popular flambed desserts. Like cherries jubilee, it's served alongiside ice cream. The Food Network suggests melting butter along with brown sugar and heavy cream before adding sliced bananas and whatever and dark rum and lighting it on fire. You can add other accents like chopped nuts, cinnamon or coconut flakes for a tropical twist too!

Image: Flickr

Bombe Alaska

Bombe Alaska can be made without the alcohol - known as a baked Alaska, but why would you choose do go without? Heating the liquor up to this level actually burns a lot of the alcohol off, leaving you with just the flavor. Bombe Alaska can be made in just about any flavor, with meringue, ice cream and pudding. While Delicious suggests drizzling orange liqueur over the top before browning the meringue with the flame, dark rum works as well.

Image: Wikipedia

Crêpes Suzette

There isn't much better than a good crêpe on a Sunday morning. Unless, of course, crêpe Suzette is an option. These crêpes typically don't have a filling, or have a light one like ricotta cheese. What sets crêpe Suzette apart, though is that they're topped with orange zest, sugar and butter, along with an orange liqueur and Cognac. The liquor is set on fire until the alcohol burns off, so a thick, caramelized sauce is left behind.

Image: Flickr

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2 Comments

JimSeely 30 months ago
I remember my grandmother would serve vanilla ice cream with a flaming vanilla-extract-soaked sugar cube on top.
Sunshine50 JimSeely 21 months ago
Sounds like fun
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