Today is my son Zac’s 27th birthday. Happy birthday Zac! I am so proud of the young man he has become. Even though he’s now a grown adult, and has been for quite some time, he will always be my little boy and every year on his birthday, my little boy gets a cake. Well, not always the traditional birthday cake. In fact, most years it has been anything but traditional.  

You see, for many years, I had a home-based specialty cakes business. Zac was my helper in the kitchen and taste tester. He still teases me about the amount of cake scraps and icing I kept in the freezer, because you never know when you might need to make 300 cake pops!  

There really was an exorbitant amount of frozen cake at our house. But hey, you would think that would be a teenage boy’s dream. I bet his high school friends thought it was cool that we had a never-ending supply of cake at our house. 

Anyway, after consuming cake scraps all year long, Zac was not interested in having cake for his birthday. Over the years, he’s had cinnamon rolls, pie, brownies and even a giant candy tower in the shape of a tiered birthday cake. So today I ask that you join me in wishing Zac a happy birthday and celebrate him by enjoying one of my non-traditional birthday dessert recipes.

Strawberry pizza

Macerated strawberries

• 2 tablespoons strawberry preserves
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 pounds strawberries, hulled and halved (or quartered if large)

Pizza

• 1 pound pizza dough, quartered
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 ounce strawberries, hulled
• 1 8-ounce pkg. cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
• 3/4 cup heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks
• Caramel sauce, for serving

1. In a large bowl, microwave preserves in 10-second increments until runny. Stir in sugar and lemon juice. Add strawberries and toss to coat. 
2. Let sit, tossing occasionally, until berries release their juices, at least 30 minutes or up to 4 hours.
3. Position racks in the center and bottom of the oven and heat the oven to 425°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Shape each quarter of dough into a 7-inch round. Place 2 rounds on each prepared pan. Brush tops with melted butter. Mix granulated sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and sprinkle over top. 
4. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through, until bottoms are brown and crisp and dough is cooked through, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool completely on the pans.
5. Meanwhile, pulse strawberries in a food processor until smooth. Add cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt. Pulse until smooth. If mixture is runny, refrigerate until firm enough to spread. 
6. Divide strawberry cream cheese mixture among the cooled pie crusts. Top with macerated strawberries and whipped cream. Serve immediately, drizzled with caramel sauce if desired.

Banoffee ice cream pie

• 14 graham crackers
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons dulce de leche, plus more for serving
• 3 large ripe bananas
• 2 cups heavy cream, cold
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped
• Chocolate curls, for serving

1. In a food processor, pulse graham crackers to form fine crumbs. Add butter and pulse to combine. Transfer to a 9-in. pie plate and press evenly on bottom and up side. Refrigerate until firm, at least 20 minutes. Spread 2 Tbsp dulce de leche on bottom. 
2. Meanwhile, in a bowl, finely mash bananas. Using an electric mixer, beat cream and vanilla in a large bowl on medium speed until medium-stiff peaks form. Fold mashed bananas into cream. Transfer remaining 1/3 cup dulce de leche to a resealable plastic bag and snip off bottom tip of one corner. Spoon 1/3 banana mixture into pie crust, then drizzle some dulce de leche on top (do not fold in). Repeat two more times with remaining banana mixture and dulce de leche. 
3. Freeze 1 hour, then cover with plastic wrap. Continue freezing until set, at least 8 hours or up to 2 days. 
4. When ready to serve, top pie with chopped hazelnuts, chocolate curls, and extra dulce de leche if desired.

About

Lincoln Land Community College offers credit programs in Culinary Arts, Hospitality Management and Baking/Pastry, and non-credit cooking and food classes through LLCC Community Education.

Cooking or food questions? Email epicuriosity101@llcc.edu.