National Parfait Day
Did you know that November 25th is National Parfait Day? While parfaits used to be a specialty dessert throughout the world, it is quickly becoming a popular favorite for children and adults looking for a unique dessert or breakfast, depending on what is in the parfait. While some people may assume that parfaits are expensive, they are actually quite the opposite when made at home, making it the perfect treats for families who are hoping to celebrate this fun and unique holiday!
National Parfait Day: What is a Parfait
For years, parfaits have been considered fun and exotic desserts. The first parfait went for sale in France in 1894, and quickly became popular throughout Paris. In Europe, the parfait is a frozen dessert, similar to ice cream, made from sugar, syrup, eggs, and cream. Unlike ice cream, however, the French version can easily be made without an ice cream maker due to it having a very high sugar and alcohol content. This allows it to freeze smoothly without frequent stirring, making it a very popular dessert that many people prefer to make in their own homes throughout Europe.
While French parfaits are very popular in the United States, they are different from what is considered an American parfait. This parfait consists of layers of fruit, syrup, candy, whip cream, granola, and a choice of yogurt, ice cream, or frozen yogurt. Since it is frequently made with yogurt in the United States, the parfait can be considered either a dessert or breakfast here in the states.
National Parfait Day: Decorative Dessert Dishes
If you are planning on making a parfait with your child, we highly recommend getting some fun, deep dishes for your parfait. Traditionally, high, glass dishes are used for making parfaits since you can easily create multiple layers in these cups. To avoid a mess (and risk of accidents) with a large group of children, you can purchase plastic, disposable dishes that allow children to still see the layers without making a mess. Just make sure that they are at least six inches high to allow children to make a good size parfait!
National Parfait Day: Make Your Own Parfait
Unknown to many people, making a parfait is very easy - a fun food to prepare on a whim, or with a group of young children. Since they are very easy to make, we are going to go more with a traditional breakfast parfait. With ice cream being hard to scoop and shape for small children (not to mention a rather odd breakfast food), we highly recommend using yogurt to allow for more involvement in making the breakfast parfait.
Ingredients
- Vanilla Yogurt
- Granola
- Chocolate Chips
- Fresh Fruit
- Whipped Cream
Directions
| 1. Using your preferred dish, put a small scoot of yogurt in the bottom. |
| 2. Place a thin layer of granola on top of the yogurt. |
| 3. On top of the granola, put a thin layer of chocolate chips. |
| 4. Place a thin layer of cut up fresh fruit on top of the chocolate chips. |
| 5. Repeat steps 1-4. There should be about three layers of each in your dish. When finished with the final layer, put a generous amount of whip cream on top of your parfait. |
