dried fruits, jams, marmalades, ground seeds (such as poppy seeds) or even sweetened mild cheeses.

There are two common ways to bake yeast-leavened desserts—in a bundt or other deep fluted pan

so the finished product comes out tall, pretty and appetizing, or in individual portions such as

cinnamon rolls. Because they are high in sugar, their keeping quality is far longer than that of

breads. The sugar helps to retain their moisture and their butter content also contributes to longer

freshness. They stay perfectly delicious for several days under tight cover.

A Danish pastry is the most complex yeast dough. It starts as a yeast dough that the baker

structures into a puff pastry (ordinary puff pastry is not yeast-leavened). Here are the basic steps.

First you prepare a basic sweet yeast dough, then you fold the butter in, rolling and folding six times

while chilling after every two foldings. Finally, after the last chilling, you roll out a thin dough, cut

it into Danish-size pieces, about 4 or 5-inch (10 to 12-cm) squares, fill each, fold seal and bake.

To make Danish is a healthy challenge and fun for some home bakers, others prefer to buy

theirs at a good bakery. Even commercial bakers don't make Danish themselves—they are too labor

intensive. The dough comes ready-made, either frozen or refrigerated, already cut into individual

servings. They warm up the pastry, proof it, fill it and bake it. The filling comes out of cans or large

plastic buckets delivered to the bakery ready-made. So much for fresh home-baked. But don't be

discouraged. If you mastered a simple puff pastry and you are good with yeast breads, a good

Danish is within your reach.

Yeast desserts are not the easiest or fastest desserts to make but one of the most

satisfying. That is why all sweet yeast pastries are so popular everywhere. Just think of donuts,

cinnamon rolls and Danishes.

Ice Creams and other Frozen Goodies

North Americans consume far more ice cream than any other group in the world. The

average consumption is 6 gallons (23 liters) a person per year, far more than the second highest

consumer, New Zealand. Why? Is our ice cream so much better than anywhere else? Is it perhaps

that we have more freezer space both in our markets and in our homes? Is it more reasonably priced,

or offered in more varieties? Is it because it is quick and easy, or do we just simply love ice cream?

Whatever the reason, almost every freezer in the U.S. and Canada contains ice cream, although

frozen yogurt is taking its place in more than a few freezers.

Our ice cream heritage

The French and the English knew frozen desserts as far back as in the 1600s, possibly even

in the 1500s. However, some type of flavored ices were popular with the Romans 2300 years ago.

These were probably not ice creams as we know them today. At the time of Charles I they called

them "cream ices," and a recipe for true ice cream appears in an English cookbook printed in 1760.

Storage may have been a problem in those days and transportation a challenge without modern

refrigeration. Today processors use both chemical substances and technological know-how to create

that lusciously smooth, fine-grained, velvety texture that characterize good premium ice creams.

Ice cream in the U.S. became genuinely popular during World War II. As often as was

feasible, the U.S. troops had ice cream delivered to them to end their meals. It continued gaining

popularity after the war, a growing trend that never lost its momentum. Now even Asian countries

import American ice creams, even though some of these Asian countries people consume barely 4

tablespoons milk (or its equivalent) dairy per person every day. If they have dairy, it might as well

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