Raspberries vibrant in summer dessert

The busier you become, the more you appreciate simple things such as knowing what’s for dinner. Better yet is having dinner at the ready in your refrigerator, just waiting for you to heat and eat.

I don’t mean frozen entrees. I mean leftovers or meals you have planned ahead and made, such as lasagna, that just need a simple baking or reheat when you arrive home.

My mother loved to entertain, and she was known for her creative meals. Our freezer in the basement was filled with frozen parfaits and other desserts that were ready when she was.

These were just simple desserts, layers of cake, ice cream, liqueur and chocolate sauce, or fruit, cake and whipped cream. Often my mother assembled them in pretty glass dishes, and other times she just made simple desserts in a muffin tin.

Here is one such recipe, much like a cheesecake, much like a frozen dessert, and in the summertime it is both refreshing and vibrant to behold. Serve this after one of those great planned-ahead meals including lasagna and a green salad.

Five time-shaving ways to savor fresh raspberries

• Pile into a refrigerated pie crust, top with a little sugar to taste, dot with butter, and bake until the berries begin to lose their juice and the crust has browned 25 to 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

• Puree with raspberry yogurt into a fresh smoothie.

• Puree with sugar to taste and serve over frozen and thawed pound cake slices.

• Top your favorite green salad with raspberries, toasted almonds and crumbled feta. Toss with a sesame vinaigrette.

• Layer in a trifle dish with pound cake slices and whipped cream.

Fresh raspberry cream cakes

The preparation time is 20 minutes, the freezing time is at least 3 hours, and the assembly time is 5 minutes.

12 foil liners for cupcake pans (2½-inch size)

3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

Story Continues →