A dessert is the sweet end to any meal. No matter how full you are when the meal finishes, most of us can find that little bit of space, if only for a spoonful of dessert.
Alternatively, dessert can be the mid-morning or mid-afternoon pickup, when we take time to pause from our busy lives to relish the moment and spoil ourselves.
We give you six of the best reasons to make time and space for something sweet; six deserving dessert worth spending your calorie count on.
San Churro Orion Shopping Centre, 1 Main St, Springfield Central Ph: 07 3470 1455
If you’re yet to try them, let us recommend churros to you. Made to an authentic Spanish recipe, San Churro cooks their churros fresh to order. Crispy and golden like a long stick of doughnut, the churros are then dusted in cinnamon or icing sugar ready to be filled or served with a choice of dip-cups or extras. In recognition that some people choose to eat a plant-based menu, San Churros’ churros are vegan-friendly!
We decide to road test the Happy Vegan 2.0 dessert, a handmade churro bowl filled with salted caramel and honeycomb gelato, dark chocolate gelato, vegan milk chocolate, strawberries and an Oreo. It’s unashamedly, decadently, drippingly delicious! Who would have guessed that a vegan dessert could be so much fun!
Indian Tadka 118 Augusta Parkway, Augustine Heights Ph: 07 3814 3483
Although ‘Indian’ and ‘ice cream’ are not words we’d automatically put together, kulfi is a delicious traditional Indian dish. Denser and creamier than ice cream, kulfi usually comes in mango, cardamom, saffron or pistachio flavour.
Chef Sam Siddharath, co-owner of Indian Tadka, has been experimenting with Indian fusion cuisine for several years. He noted that many people were returning to ‘Stone Age’ cuisine (such as keto or paleo) and decided to make charcoal ice cream for its digestive and anti-toxin properties. Finally, after more than fifteen attempts, he succeeded in making a delicious activated charcoal ice cream. Served in the traditional way as a popsicle, Sam’s charcoal kulfi is rich and creamy with caramelized toffee notes and a slightly grainy texture. It’s a ‘must try’ cultural experience.
Little Mode Cupcakery Le Boulevard Arcade, 17 Limestone St, Ipswich Ph: 0413 724 391
When it comes to cupcakes, Irene McCudden really ‘takes the cake’. Not only are her cupcakes pretty, but they’re also the best we’ve tasted. Moist and full of flavour, each cupcake wears its own hat of icing, some with extra decoration on top.
“It took me more than six months to perfect the recipe,” Irene tells us as she hands out mini size cupcakes for free to first-time customers. It’s a great sales tactic. Once they’ve tasted her cupcakes they’ll be hooked!
Turkish Delight, Rocky Road, Iced Vovo, Pink Lemonade and Choc Mint are just a few of the fifty flavours Irene has created. Cupcakes can be bought individually with a cup of tea or coffee, or by the box. There’s also has a range of giant cupcakes available for gifts and parties.
You couldn’t go wrong! After all, “A cupcake is happiness with icing on top.”
Homage Restaurant 617 Grandchester Mount Mort Rd, Grandchester Ph: 1300 179 340
Spicer’s Hidden Vale resort is a landscape that, like much of the Australian bush, suffered from the elements when, in April 2018, the historic 100-year-old homestead that formed the centerpiece of the resort and the site of Homage Restaurant burnt to the ground. However, fire leads to new life and regrowth, including the rebuilding of a more customised homestead and the use of other dining areas across the property.
With the restructuring comes refocus. Fire is now the preferred method of cooking, imbuing flavours impossible to achieve by other methods, including to our dessert: ‘Mandarin, marigold, wood fired slapjack’. In a mandarin skin bowl, a chargrilled mandarin segmented half hides a base of butterless mandarin curd. It’s accompanied by a wood-fired flapjack laced with flower syrup, the chef’s play on a crèpe suzette.
The Cottage Restaurant 108 Limestone St, Ipswich Ph: 07 3143 2644
Inspired by a restaurant they fell in love with in Scotland, hospitality veterans Angela and Mark Naoum returned home to Ipswich and bought Darver Cottage, an 1861 heritage-listed building, to house their first restaurant. Three years later, The Cottage Restaurant is recognized as one of the finest restaurants in town. It’s frequented not only by locals, but also by Brisbane and Toowoomba residents who meet up for family gatherings.
Offering warm hospitality, attentive silver service and an accessible fine dining experience, The Cottage offers a seasonal menu of locally sourced produce. Their Bitter-sweet chocolate velouté with beetroot ice cream and candied ginger is a delight, the short biscuity cinnamon biscuit a great foil for the not-too-sweet molten chocolate of the velouté, sweet beetroot ice cream and a hit of ginger on the side. It’s pure heaven!
Ungermann Brothers 88 Limestone St, Ipswich Ph: 07 3281 4038
When Ben Ungermann finished the finals of Masterchef 2017, he headed back to his hometown. Using the momentum gained from the show, the contestant dubbed ‘the ice cream king’ decided to use the experience gained from the show to start a business. Joining up with his brother Danny, a sales executive, Ungermann Brothers was born.
Situated in the dining precinct of 88 Limestone Street, Ungermann Brothers Ice-cream Parlour is the perfect place for a family treat. The store’s retro powder blue and white booths and vintage memorabilia reference not only their father’s bar but also the value of whole food. Their ice-cream is made with ‘old school’ goodness using local Norco Scenic Rim milk with no artificial additives or stabilisers to make their range of over fifty unique ice cream flavours and milk shakes. The store’s range of six delectable ice-cream-based desserts are all worthy of a place in any top restaurant. Their flavours range from Dark chocolate and orange ice-cream to Lemongrass Vanilla ice cream with tropical fruit, each dessert plate styled as a Masterchef creation.
NOTE: Good Food Gold Coast were on assignment for Discover Ipswich.