Innovating the contemporary dessert menu

Given today’s shortage of skilled staff, plus the ever tighter profit margins squeezing the foodservice market, it’s no surprise to see ‘from scratch’ desserts disappearing from our menus, being replaced by innovative pre-prepared products.

 With back of house staff freed up from labour-intensive prep, they can focus instead on adding finishing touches and garnishes, ensuring that distinctive signature touch which can help deliver significantly better margin per serve.

To find out more about what’s trending in this category, we spoke to Ken Hartley, CEO of leading Australian dessert supplier Priestley’s Gourmet Delights.

Nostalgia still resonating with customers

Ken says nostalgia is a buzzword currently resonating with customers. “Our lives are busy and complicated, we’re all experiencing the rising cost of living, and our surveys show people are seeking a reminder of simpler times and part of that is seeking familiar food favourites, but with a modern twist.

“Nostalgia has been trending for the past five years or so and it’s certainly continuing. Consequently we’ve been redesigning our classic cakes like Hummingbird and Banana Caramel Gateau, giving them a bit of a revamp, tapping into that consumer desire for a nostalgic food experience. We’re also putting out a range of products inspired by classic chocolate bars, so watch for those soon.”

With snacking now commonplace in daily life, bite-sized treats are playing a more prominent role in the dessert category. “Our research shows 70 per cent of Australians admit to snacking at least once daily – and consumers want that snack to be guilt-free,” Ken emphasises. “We have about 63 per cent of people telling us they want healthier snack options, so that represents a unique chance for foodservice businesses to tap into that market by providing healthier options.

“We know Gen-Zs and millennials are looking for smaller serve treats that won’t break the bank but will deliver satisfying flavours. We see this in the dessert category in individual tarts and smaller portioned cakes rather than a large slice.”

Satisfy the desire for indulgence while conforming to dietary requirements

Another important trend is the ability to satisfy the consumer desire for indulgence while simultaneously conforming to dietary requirements. “The public are becoming more and more health-conscious, there’s increasing education on what’s good for you, and we have the new PEAL (Plain English Allergen Labelling) coming into effect this month, which will give higher visibility to common allergen and food intolerance ingredients,” Ken points out.

“We know Australians are still looking to indulge, but with treats with wholesome ingredients which are better for them. Gluten free and plant based are more in demand than ever – our research and insights tell us that although indulgence is in high demand, it should also satisfy dietary requirements. People are wanting both, you can't just deliver on one anymore.

“Linked to that is the trend of ‘better for you’. Consumers are moving away from highly processed, manufactured foods and instead demanding meals, including desserts, where ingredients are clearly visible in the product presentation. This is tied to the growth in health consciousness, in that consumers are demanding transparency in their food – they want to understand and see what goes into it.

“For example, in our muffins today all the ingredients need to be visible chunks, not just a puree mixed in. By the same token, a cake which has raspberry as a key flavour should be topped with fresh raspberries – you can’t just say a cake is raspberry flavoured and make it red, it needs plenty of the actual fruit on top as an indicator.”

Ken says textural innovation is one of the major new trends set to make an impact on desserts. “Consumers are seeking to be excited by the food they eat – especially when buying from foodservice venues, they’re looking for an eating experience that engages the senses. Textural variety is a great way to deliver this, which we’ve done by adding crisp chocolate pearls to our Chocolate Salted Caramel Tarts so you have two distinct textures, the oozy caramel contrasting with the crispness of the pearls on top.

“Fillings and injections are also on the rise – from filled donuts to injected cupcakes, which have a high-brix filling like a jam, to add a surprise element to the experience. You might have up to three or four different textures within the one dessert to provide that textural contrast in the mouth.”

Each year Priestley’s sends a team to Iba, the world’s leading trade fair for baking and confectionery held annually in Munich, Germany. “Our head of marketing recently returned from the 2023 show and brought back some insights around vibrant displays – foodservice venues internationally are embracing colours, from fruit and vegetable extracts to coloured doughs and cakes to give bright ‘pops’ – think pink, yellow and green donuts, cakes, breads – bearing in mind that we all eat with our eyes first!

“That trend is borne out by our own surveys of customers and end-users, who always say it’s really important to be visually appealing – but of course you have to deliver on flavour and quality too. Otherwise when the customer buys it they get that disappointing dissonance between how it looks and how it tastes. So the message is, if it’s a nice bright colour it has to have a corresponding strong flavour.”

Retro desserts on the rise

We also asked Chef Adam Moore, well known to TV viewers from Channel 10’s The Project, for his thoughts on emerging trends in the dessert category. Adam gave us several interesting concepts which dovetail with much of what Ken said above.

“Retro desserts, which we first saw during Covid, is seeing great innovation right now,” Adam tells us. “People like Dylan Hollis, who is a rising TikTok star and whose Baking Yesteryear cookbook is a number one seller right now,  are putting forward lots of influential ideas from the seventies, eighties and nineties, and there’s a big following out there for them.

“A lot of prominent chefs have also jumped on this trend – from people like Anna Polyviou to the guys from Masterchef, we’re seeing plenty of retro dessert styles and flavours. A few weeks ago I showcased a musk stick tart recipe on Channel 10 and so many people requested a copy it was amazing.”

Another trend Adam has identified is ‘mochi madness’ – these Japanese rice cakes are fast becoming popular in all different sizes and flavours. “You can fill them with everything from red bean paste to green tea, and I’m seeing them on so many menus right now, with all manner of interpretations from different chefs,” Adam reports.

“Artisanal gelato is another big one – and we’re not just talking about traditional fruit flavours but contemporary spins like limoncello, tiramisu and sticky date pudding versions. It’s become a dessert occasion not just on the menu but in its own right, with lots of new iterations in the retail space.”

Adam says chefs are also turning to beverage flavours for inspiration on the dessert menu – “we’re seeing a lot of use of coffee in place of the salted caramel of the past, we’re seeing Earl Grey Panna Cotta, even herbal teas like chamomile are being used in dessert menus.”

He adds that there’s also a return to what he terms the ‘old school’ approach of chefs not being afraid to use animal fats in desserts. “This is a new trend which is still in its early days, but I was recently at Reine & La Rue  in Melbourne, which just won Best New Restaurant in the 2024 Age Good Food Guide, and they are serving a caramel tart made with duck fat, which imparts a really rich creaminess. I’ve since seen three places with duck fat caramel desserts on the menu, and I’ve experienced a beautiful plum tarte Tatin made with beef fat, which was pretty amazing to see. And I think we will be seeing more of this as prominent chefs get on board with this movement.”