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My Fantastic Father’s Day Feast Finale: A Guaranteed Win with Dad!

June 17, 2021

I’m planning a Father’s Day feast with a big finish this year. And by “big finish” I mean a fabulous dessert.

My dad considers any meal without a dessert unfinished. He even eats  dessert at breakfast (toast with jelly!). But he has some stipulations. It should be cake.

Well, he’ll consider a Coconut Cream Pie, Blackberry Cobbler, or Strawberry Shortcake. Then, there’s always fresh peaches…no skin, sliced and sugared with Coffeemate over all. Yes. Coffeemate. He can practically drink it straight.

But you put a cake of any kind in front of him and you’re guaranteed a five-star rating for the entire meal. Even a boxed yellow cake with plain vanilla icing. I’m not kidding.

Today I’m sharing some sweet recipes I’m considering making for Father’s Day.

Peach-Blueberry Crisp

Ingredients
2 pounds firm, ripe peaches (6-8 peaches)
2 t grated lemon zest
2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 C granulated sugar
1/4 C all-purpose flour
1 C fresh blueberries (1/2 pint)

Crumble Topping
1 C cold butter
1 C all-purpose flour
1 C brown sugar
1 C oats
1 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t salt

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Immerse the peaches in boiling water for 30 seconds to 1 minute, until their skins peel off easily. Place them immediately in cold water.

Peel the peaches, slice them into thick wedges, and place them in a large bowl.

Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar, and flour. Toss well.

Gently mix in the blueberries. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes.

Spoon the mixture into a 9×13 casserole dish. Or, you can use ramekins.

For the topping, combine the flour, brown sugar, oats, cinnamon, salt, and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the butter is the size of peas.

Rub the mixture with your fingertips until it’s in big crumbles, then sprinkle evenly over the fruit.

Bake for 40-45 minutes, until the top is browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Serve warm or at room temperature. 

(Tip: I have used 1 pound of peaches and 2 cups of blueberries with tasty results!)

I can highly recommend serving this warm with a scoop of Breyer’s Vanilla Ice Cream!

Coconut Cream Pie

Ingredients
1 unbaked pie crust (I prefer PetRitz or Marie Callender, but here’s a great recipe if you want to make a crust from scratch)
4 large egg yolks
1/4 C cornstarch
1 (14-ounce) can full fat coconut milk
1 C half-and-half
2/3 C granulated sugar
1/4 t salt
1 C sweetened shredded coconut
2 T unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 t pure vanilla extract
optional: 1/2 t coconut extract

Instructions
Whisk the egg yolks and cornstarch together. Set aside.

Whisk the coconut milk, half-and-half, granulated sugar, and salt together in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisking occasionally, bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes, then reduce temperature to medium-low heat.

Once boiling, remove about 1/2 cup of the mixture and, in a slow and steady stream, whisk into the egg yolk and cornstarch mixture. Keep those egg yolks moving so they don’t scramble.

Slowly pour and whisk the egg yolk mixture into the pot. The pudding will immediately begin to bubble and thicken.

Whisk and cook for 90 seconds. Remove from heat and stir in the coconut, butter, vanilla, and coconut extract (if using).

Pour warm filling into cooled pie crust. Cover tightly with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding (to prevent a skin from forming) and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight until chilled and thickened.

You can top with whichever you prefer–meringue or whipped cream. Here’s an easy recipe for meringue with lots of tips for making it perfectly! And here’s one for a delicious whipped cream topping.

Aunt Metta’s Bread Pudding

Ingredients
6-8 large slices of cinnamon bread (or raisin bread; see the tip below)
2 C sugar
1 C buttermilk
1 T vanilla
6 eggs
1 1/2 C evaporated milk
1 stick butter, melted

Sauce
1 C sugar
1/2 C flour
2 C water
1 egg
Dash of salt
1 T butter

Instructions for Pudding
Layer bread in a 9×13 inch pan. Mix sugar, vanilla, buttermilk together and pour over bread. 

Refrigerate overnight

In the morning, beat eggs, evaporated milk, melted butter, and pecans together. Then stir into the bread mixture.

Bake at 300 degrees F until it’s brown and firm; then bake an additional 10 minutes at 450 degrees F.

Instructions for Sauce
Mix sugar, flour, water, egg, salt, and butter in a saucepan and cook until it’s thick. Add a dash of rum or rum flavoring, according to your taste preference.

If you dislike the taste of rum, you can use bourbon (that makes it very Kentucky!) or plain ol’ vanilla (but use the real stuff–none of that imitation flavor. No-no-no.)

This is an old family recipe from my great-grandfather’s sister. I never knew Aunt Metta, but she unknowingly passed on a killer bread pudding recipe! I feel sure, being a carb addict, I would have loved her.

Tip: Use homemade sourdough bread. To die for!

Italian Cream Cake

(I remember the woman who gave me this recipe, but darned if I can’t remember her name. It started with an A…or a D? Are y’all like that?!)

Ingredients
5 eggs, separated
1 C oil
1 stick butter
2 C sugar
2 C all-purpose flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1/4 t almond extract (optional)
1 C buttermilk
1 t vanilla
1 C coconut
1 C chopped pecans

Icing
1 stick butter
1 8-ounce cream cheese block
1 box confectioner’s sugar (about 3 1/2 cups)
1 t vanilla
1/2 t almond extract (optional)
1 C chopped pecans

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Beat egg whites until stiff, set aside. Cream oil, butter, buttermilk, and vanilla. 

Stir in coconut and nuts. Fold in beaten egg whites.

Bake in three 8-inch cake pans on a large sheet pan for 30 minutes.

Combine the ingredients for the icing. Spread on a cooled cake.

Alternatives: You can substitute walnuts for pecans. And, you can leave out the coconut (But, oh! why would you?!)

Tip: Use eggs at room temperature. Egg whites at room temperature whip better.

Since I loooove the icing, I make about 1/3 recipe more. It’s easier for me to cover the cake with more icing.

Cast your vote!

So, which fantastic finale to his Father’s Day feast do you think I should make for Dad? (And, Dad, if you’re reading this, feel free to vote! I think your vote will be the most important one!)

Happy, Happy, Happy Father’s Day to all the wonderful dads out there, especially my husband, sons, and of course my own Dad. You guys are all amazing!

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