No Thanksgiving meal is complete without dessert and many would say it is probably the best part of the whole dinner, or the course your guests anticipate the most. This year, consider serving a unique and pleasantly surprising end of meal treat – the dessert smoothie. Why just serve the same desserts everyone expects like pecan or apple pie?
By adding a just few simple ingredients the smoothie can be reinvented as a rich and sweet indulgence. So forget spending hours in the kitchen peeling apples, making home-made pie crust and chopping nuts … it is time to get out the blender.
Europe’s Best, a new line of fresh, gourmet frozen fruits available in your supermarket freezer, makes it easier than ever to blend a dessert smoothie. The fruits come in a bounty of varieties from harvest fresh cranberries to raspberries to blueberries, among others. Now that farmer’s markets have packed up for the winter and fresh fruit is harder to find (and the prices have skyrocketed), the price is even something to be thankful for: a 21-ounce bag carries the suggested retail price $2.99 to $3.99. You don’t even have to wash and cut up the fruit, so relax and watch the parade or the football game. With its fresh-picked taste and convenience, Europe’s Best frozen fruits make blending dessert smoothies quick, easy and sinfully indulgent.
What’s Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie? Serve up a tart twist to the autumn staple with frozen cranberries.
Pumpkin Pie Dessert Smoothie (Serves 6)
- 3 cups orange juice
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups partially frozen Europe's Best cranberries
- 3 cups chilled solid pack pumpkin
- 3/4 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
- 6 tablespoons honey
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 3 cups vanilla ice cream
Place all ingredients in blender and mix using the on/off pulse function until the ingredients are mostly blended. Continue blending and increase the speed until smooth. Serve in hallowed mini pumpkins and top with crumbled graham crackers.
For a twist on the after dinner drink, add a swizzle of fun to your Thanksgiving with a dessert smoothie infused with Grand Marnier.
Cranberry and Grand Marnier Smoothie (Serves 6)
- 2 cups milk
- 3/4 cups Grand Marnier or other orange liqueur
- 1 cup vodka
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 1 cup partially frozen Europe’s Best cranberries
- 2 cups partially frozen Europe’s Best raspberries
- 2 cups vanilla or white chocolate ice cream
Follow same instructions as above. Garnish with shaved orange peel and serve in a brandy glass.
For a quick, healthy breakfast before the big meal, try a Breakfast Smoothie (Serves 1)
- 1 cup Europe’s Best Sunburst Mango
- 1 cup Europe’s Best Select Raspberries
- 1 cup plain yogurt
- 1/3 cup honey (or just sweeten to taste)
- Your favorite or multigrain cereal
Mix all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Serve immediately in a small bowl.
About Europe’s Best
Europe’s Best picks all its fruit when fully ripened; the fruit is then washed and individually quick frozen and packaged in convenient, re-sealable pouches within hours after harvest. The company’s proprietary flash freezing process prevents any loss of nutrients and seals in natural flavors and no sugar, preservatives or coloring agents are added. The ten gourmet frozen fruit varieties are now available in select retailers across the country. Log onto www.EuropesBest.com for store locations and additional recipes.
Europe’s Best, headquartered in Montreal, is a new company specializing in the development, packaging and distribution of premium quality frozen products. Through partnerships with major national and international suppliers of fruits and vegetables, they offer consumers the finest frozen food at the best price. The firm distributes its products to the retail market under the Europe’s Best brand.