Fruit Crisps, On The Fly

In praise of spontaneous summer desserts

Issue 34: From Dana

The ability to whip up an impromptu dinner is an important life skill, but being able to do the same with dessert will win you more friends in life. 

I learned this lesson early. In high school I’d often end pizza nights with a treat I picked up at my first restaurant job: Moon Pies, those s’mores-tasting oversized cookies, microwaved until gooey and topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. In college, it was chocolate pudding, whisked up from scratch and served warm when everyone was still chatting around the dinner table. When I moved to New York and spent weekend nights hopscotching from bar to bar (remember those days?), friends would come back to my fifth floor walk-up for Bananas Fosters, a flaming dessert I learned how to make table-side at Commander’s Palace in New Orleans. We’d eat it on my roof, chatting late into the night as the city sparkled all around us. 

Who doesn’t love something sweet when you’re least expecting it? If you’re going to surprise your friends and family with last-minute desserts, it’s good to have a few easy, reliable dishes in your wheelhouse and keep the ingredients needed on hand. (Which I why I always have Moon Pies in my pantry, still to this day.)