Seattle Themed Dessert Ideas?
April 29, 2013 10:59 AM   Subscribe

One of my colleagues is moving away to take a job in Seattle and we're having a going-away party for him in a few weeks. I enjoy baking and I thought it would be pretty neat to have a Seattle-themed recipe for the party. I spent the first two and a half decades of my life in Seattle and used to work at the institution he's going to, actually, but I cannot for the life of me come up with a good idea for a Seattle-themed dessert to bring to the party. I see some things online that are either waaayyy too elaborate for my culinary-artistic skills (like cakes with very, very elaborate Space Needle and Mt. Rainier decorations on them) or that are just kind of ugly. What can an intermediate baker do? (It doesn't HAVE to be a dessert, but I feel like those allow for the most creativity.)
posted by Holygrail2 to Food & Drink (20 answers total) 4 users marked this as a favorite
 
A cake with the Starbucks logo?
posted by seemoreglass at 11:10 AM on April 29, 2013


Best answer: Anything with coffee in it, like Tiramusu. Get the best coffee/espresso you can find.

Alternatively, construct the Fremont Troll out of fondant.
posted by spinifex23 at 11:12 AM on April 29, 2013 [6 favorites]


Bake any old cake you'd like and frost it simply, then cover it with a design (like the space needle) in marshmallow fondant.

Marshmallow fondant is easy to make and use and work with, and if you can create a cut-out picture with construction paper, you can do it in fondant. (I have a few pics in a previous question here--see? Just a simple, flat design.)

Marshmallow fondant recipe.
posted by phunniemee at 11:14 AM on April 29, 2013 [1 favorite]


I always think of all the little islands off the coast up there. How about a floating island? It's basically little meringues floating in creme anglaise.
posted by small_ruminant at 11:15 AM on April 29, 2013 [1 favorite]


Coffee mousse served in chocolate cups with whipped cream "foam."
posted by KathrynT at 11:18 AM on April 29, 2013 [1 favorite]


I also was going to suggest something with the Fremont Troll.
posted by ApathyGirl at 11:19 AM on April 29, 2013


Bake a cake in the resemblance of John Lithgow. (Harry and the Hendersons)
posted by Tanizaki at 11:22 AM on April 29, 2013


Seattle has some iconic ferries and two visually appealing stadia, for some possible shapes. We're famous for apples (which are grown nowhere near Seattle, on the scale of the state at least). Seattle is known as the Emerald City, Washington is the Evergreen State, so apples or green, but not both-- the state is known for red apples! (no doubt greens are also grown here.)

Seattle has a flag!

If you want to go with a frozen dessert, I recommend anything you can call the Seattle Freeze. It's not about, the weather, but the polite-but-not-friendly attitude that is cultivated here. Might as well warn the guy.
posted by Sunburnt at 11:24 AM on April 29, 2013 [2 favorites]


Blackberries! I know, they're not exclusive to Seattle, but I associate them with here -- they grow everywhere. I like cobbler best, but that's probably too New Englandish. Blackberry pie or blackberry ice cream?

If you'll settle for Eastern Washington: apple pie or cherry pie. Or Aplets and Cotlets -- my mother-in-law has made these and I could probably get a recipe for you.

Something involving Frangos.

I want pie.
posted by The corpse in the library at 11:26 AM on April 29, 2013


The Seattle city logo may be a bit arcane, but it would likely be easier to recreate with cake frosting than the Space Needle. Or you could print whatever you want onto an edible cake transfer sheet.

Puyallup Fair scones and Dutch babies seem to be local favorites when it comes to Washington-specific desserts. You could make something with Rainier cherries, salmonberries/cloudberries, huckleberries, apples, or coffee from your favorite Seattle roaster (Victrola <3).

If you want it to be super-easy, just order a giant box of Seattle artisan chocolates (Theo, Fran's, etc.) to share. Yum!
posted by divined by radio at 11:27 AM on April 29, 2013 [1 favorite]


Something with lavender might be nice. They grow a lot of it out there. I was out there a year or two back and my wife came along to sightsee while I attended training. She came back with a load of lavender-scented-and-flavored-everything.
posted by jquinby at 11:31 AM on April 29, 2013


A Mt St Helen themed lava cake?
posted by rmd1023 at 11:32 AM on April 29, 2013 [1 favorite]


Perhaps a little cheesy, but you could combine two Seattle themes in one with a "Sleepless in Seattle" cake or dessert made with mocha or espresso! Espresso brownies, perhaps? Mocha cupcakes topped with an espresso bean?
posted by jetlagaddict at 11:33 AM on April 29, 2013 [1 favorite]


Raindrop sugar cookies?
posted by tan_coul at 11:37 AM on April 29, 2013


Another idea - using fondant, ice a cake in such away that 80% is gray, and then put a wedge of yellow fondant in the remaining sliver. This is to show what he can expect in terms of sunshine for the years to come.

(I kid, sort of - I was just out there last week and it was beautiful. Then on the day I left, it was like being inside of a white sock again).
posted by jquinby at 11:48 AM on April 29, 2013 [2 favorites]


How about a Fremont Troll cake? Probably not too difficult to shape (you could get away with something lumpy), and you could pretty it up with colors...
posted by Gorgik at 11:59 AM on April 29, 2013


omg...if you can make a space needle cake from this cake pan, then you have WON this challenge.
posted by sexyrobot at 12:02 PM on April 29, 2013 [1 favorite]


I would make a sampler plate of Theo Chocolate. The Theo factory is a Seattle icon. The chocolate is delicious, organic, and fair trade.
posted by valannc at 12:02 PM on April 29, 2013


You can put out a pretty gift tin from Chukar Cherries. Yummy stuff.
Or use the cherry candies or sauces to decorate a cake.
posted by valannc at 12:06 PM on April 29, 2013 [1 favorite]


Response by poster: oooh, I think I might combine a couple of the suggestions - maybe coffee-flavored cupcakes with swedish fish. I wonder how much explanation will be needed. I might need to do a diorama with the Public Market and little lego men throwing the fish.
posted by Holygrail2 at 1:13 PM on April 29, 2013


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