Romantic Dessert Garnish

SERVES: 6

Have you ever wondered how restaurants make those fancy schmancy plate decorations? For a truly romantic dessert, serve slices of your favorite cake on plates you decorate yourself with no fuss.

What You'll Need

2 (12-ounce) bags frozen unsweetened raspberries, thawed, divided
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cold water
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 (24-ounce) bottle chocolate flavor syrup
Mint sprigs for garnish

What to Do

Set aside 18 to 24 raspberries for garnish. In a medium saucepan, bring remaining raspberries and sugar to a boil over medium heat. Boil until sugar dissolves.
In a small bowl, combine water and cornstarch. Stir into raspberries and simmer 2 minutes, or until thick enough to lightly coat a spoon.
Push sauce through a sieve to remove seeds; discard seeds.

Notes

Here's the creative part:

Spoon 3 to 4 tablespoons of raspberry sauce onto each of 6 rimmed dessert plates. Tilt each plate so that sauce completely coats its center.
Place small, evenly spaced drops of chocolate sauce in a ring around outer edge of raspberry sauce. (It works best to tip bottle and let chocolate drip out. If you squeeze the bottle, the chocolate comes out too fast.) In a continuous motion, draw the tip of a sharp knife through the center of the drops, shaping each one into a heart.
Place a slice of your sweetheart's favorite pie or cake, or even a big brownie or scoop of ice cream, in the center of your ring of hearts. What a special way to say, "I love you!"