Desserts on a grill

What makes Weber barbecues great for grilling desserts?

Michelin star chef Thomas Herman from Arriba Nacional knows his way around desserts. Over the course of an award-studded career, the Danish chef has worked in some of the best kitchens in the world, breathing creativity into the European gastronomic scene along the way.

Now, Herman has taken on a new challenge at Arriba Nacional, an artisan chocolate shop off Copenhagen’s famous pedestrian street Strøget, and which, come evening, transforms into an intimate, eight-person dining club. For those lucky diners, Herman is getting back behind the stove – or the barbecue – and creating special food experiences, both savoury and sweet.

Desserts on a barbecue - Weber accessories make it easy

"Grilling challenges you to be creative with smoke, heat and other exciting factors"

With their unique flavours and aromas, barbecued desserts present a range of exciting possibilities to any chef. “Most people probably don’t even consider cooking desserts on the barbecue. But it challenges you to think out of the box and be creative with smoke aroma, heat control and other exciting factors.” For example, melted chocolate, rich with heady tones, makes a beautiful sauce for strawberries or a topping for a delicious cake, risen to perfection in a Weber Dutch oven and straight off the barbecue. As the chef points out, these barbecued desserts create an experience that goes beyond the obvious.

“When you cook your dessert on a charcoal grill, it adds lots of aroma and gives the dessert a unique organic taste,” he explains. “And the atmosphere of being together with people you care about, hanging out at the grill, is priceless.” So keep the flames on, because barbecued deserts are on the menu: they’re unique, delicious and here to stay.

Herman's take on barbecued pancakes

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Herman particularly likes to make flamed pancakes, gently fried on the grill using the griddle from the Weber Gourmet BBQ System. It’s a creative take on a classic and can be served with any number of toppings, although Chef Herman recommends a luxurious berry and mocha accompaniment, with lightly roasted chopped hazelnuts.

He states, that “The very high, direct heat of the cast iron gives the pancakes a crisper, more caramelised taste compared to an ordinary frying pan.”

Classic pancakes with mocha and blackberry
see this tasty recipe

Ingredients

Serves: 4

Pancakes
200 g plain flour
30 g sugar
1 vanilla pod
1 pinch of salt
½ tsp cardamom
Zest of ½ lemon
3 eggs
300 ml whole milk
50 ml beer Butter for frying
Sauce
80 g sugar
30 g butter
200 ml mild coffee (freshly-brewed)
40 g brown sugar
1 vanilla pod
100 g blackberries
50 g blueberries
50 g chopped hazelnuts, lightly roasted
A handful of red sorrel blooms
Vanilla ice cream
Special Equipment
GBS griddle

Instructions

1. Slice the vanilla pod and scrape out the seeds, saving the vanilla pod for later use.
2. Mix the flour, sugar, vanilla sugar, salt, cardamom and lemon zest in a bowl. Add the milk and beer while stirring.
3. Add one egg at a time while whisking. Whisk the batter thoroughly – there mustn’t be any lumps. Put the batter in the fridge for one hour.
4. Prepare the barbecue for direct heat, 200° C. Place the griddle in the GBS grate and pre-heat.
5. Add butter to the griddle, and fry the pancakes one at a time, turning once. Add more butter as required. When the pancakes are done, fold them into triangles and cover.
6. Caramelize the sugar lightly in the griddle, add butter and the vanilla pod and let the butter sizzle while stirring. Add the coffee and brown sugar and simmer until the sugar is dissolved. Let the caramel reduce for a thicker consistency.
7. Add eight folded pancakes to the caramel sauce and heat them carefully, turning them once. When the pancakes are hot, add blackberries and blueberries, and heat up quickly.
8. Decorate the pancakes with berries and red sorrel on a plate or serve directly in the griddle. Before serving, sprinkle the pancakes with chopped hazelnuts. Serve with ice cream.

All of our recipes are created by our expert chefs at the Weber Grill Academy. View more inspirational recipes or book a course at the Grill Academy now.