....of all time is Key Lime Pie, IMO. I only post this because I've yet to ever enjoy a key lime pie from ANY restaurant despite many places exlaiming "the KLP is to die for".

A close second for me is Creme Brulee. Yawn. I love dessert, just not these two.

Any desserts you just don't "get"?

i kinda really do not care for dessert at all. i have no sweet tooth, i guess.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE!

OMG, Kimber that is sacralage! I absolutely love key lime pie! Really I do! I'm a sucker for it whenever it is on the menu.

I think I would have to go with Profiteroles, just can't get into 'em.

I love creme brulee -- I've had all sorts from the classic to endless variations. Sorry it doesn't do it for you, dude.

Key Lime pie has to be the real deal or it just sucks. IMO, I think there are two main variations of the real deal -- namely, just the key lime filling in a pir crust shell and the same thing with meringue (sp?) on top of it. Pair some amazing coffee with that and oooooooyah.

Strawberry shortcake can be sublime. For me, this is a very simple shortcake recipe (hell, even a Bisquick variation will do in a pinch) with strawberries draped and drizzled over top. The strawberries need to be really fresh, capped, sliced and toss on some sugar to get the juices flowing (maybe for an hour or so) and you're good to go. Dee-lish.

Now for me, the most generally overrated desserts are the overly chocolate cakes. Now, don't get me wrong, I LOVE chocolate cake and variations. But they have to be done well, not be overly sweet or overly dense or have chocolate everything served in it and with it.

Any sort of bread pudding.

kimber,

I gotta agree with you except that I would list the creme brule as the most overated and the klp second most overated.

Bread pudding & any dessert with pumpkin in it.

I hate pumpkin. I really hate coconut.

I love caramel even better than chocolate. And a smooth marshmellow sauce is heavenly. Merengue (sp?) is pretty good too.

Anything with coconut or raisins in it. Bleah!!!

The reason why you always see these custard type desserts on most restaurants dessert menus is because they're easy to make, and people will order them.

Most restaurants can't afford to have an Exec. Chef and a Pastry Chef. Usually an Exec. Chef will not have the know how of being able to come up with the insane desserts that you can come across in the extremely high end joints, so you get the line cooks dessert menu when you're looking at Creme Brulee, Tarte Tatin, Bread Pudding, whatnot.

A quality line cook should know how to make at least 9 desserts.

My most overrated dessert? Souffle.

You are right, DJHombre. Restaurants that have a Dessert chef usually have the best (creative, exotic) desserts. Not all restaurants do have their own Dessert chef.

Anything with bananas or coconut is revolting!!!!

I make the best bread pudding in the world. White Chocolate Carmel Rum Bread Pudding with Dried Cherries. It's tough to make carmel, but I have a much higher succes rate than I used to. Bread pudding is delicious.

jb

How can something be considered dessert unless it has chocolate in it?

Man ... thanks for taking shots at some of my favourite desserts!

I love creme brulee and souffle - chocolate souffle in particular.

I think pumpkin pie is just about the only dessert I'm not terribly fond of.

Creme brulee, imo, is a great dessert that pairs extremely well with Sauternes. This past August, with Bressler, latour67, GATC, and others at Madrona Manor, we had a great one and I saved some of my '67 d'Yquem to have with it. Magnificent.

Yay Board_0 and Futronic- defenders of creme brulee. It is my favorite dessert. It's great with the Aussie stickies and sauternes as Board_O notes.

Most overrated dessert for me - Death by Chocolate cake. It's just a big rock of chocolate. Bleh. Unfortunately I see a lot of it as it is Mr. Winetex's favorite.