Editing Dessert (section)

==Varieties and elements==
{{See also|List of desserts}}
Desserts consist of variations of tastes, textures, and appearances. Desserts can be defined as a usually sweeter course that concludes a meal.{{efn| name = dictionaries}} This definition includes a range of courses ranging from fruits or dried nuts to multi-ingredient cakes and pies. Many cultures have different variations of dessert. In modern times the variations of desserts have usually been passed down or come from geographical regions. This is one cause for the variation of desserts. These are some major categories in which desserts can be placed.{{sfn|Drzal|2011}}

===Cakes===
{{Main|Cake}}
[[File:GermanChocolateCake.jpg|thumb|upright|[[German chocolate cake]], a layered cake filled and topped with a coconut-pecan frosting]]
Cakes are sweet tender breads made with sugar and delicate flour. Cakes can vary from light, airy sponge cakes to dense cakes with less flour. Common flavorings include [[Dried fruit|dried]], [[candied fruit|candied]] or fresh [[fruit]], [[nut (fruit)|nuts]], [[cocoa powder|cocoa]] or [[extract]]s. They may be filled with [[fruit preserves]] or [[dessert sauce]]s (like [[custard|pastry cream]]), iced with [[buttercream]] or other icings, and decorated with [[marzipan]], piped borders, or candied fruit. Cake is often served as a celebratory dish on ceremonial occasions, for example [[wedding cake|weddings]], [[Anniversary|anniversaries]], and [[birthday cake|birthdays]]. Small-sized cakes have become popular, in the form of [[cupcake]]s and [[Petit four|petits fours]], an example of which can be the [[Bolo de arroz|Portuguese "bolo de arroz"]].

===Puddings===
[[Pudding]]s are similar to [[Custard|custards]] in that their base is cream or milk. However, their primary difference is that puddings are thickened with starches such as [[corn starch]] or [[tapioca pudding|tapioca]]. On the other hand, custards are thickened using only eggs and are usually more firm.{{sfn|Bloom|2006|p=12}}

===Small cakes and pastries===
{{Main|Biscuits}}
'''Biscuits''' or '''cookies''' are small disks of sweetened dough, similar in composition to a cake. The term "''biscuit''" is a derivation of Latin for ''twice-baked'',<ref>{{cite encyclopedia|title = Biscuit| encyclopedia = [[Oxford English Dictionary]]| publisher = Oxford University Press|year=2009}}</ref>{{Efn| name = Shakespeare}} while the term "''cookie''" is a Dutch diminutive for ''koek'', meaning cake. Some examples of this dessert include a [[ginger nut]], [[shortbread biscuit]] and [[chocolate chip cookie]]. In [[Commonwealth English]], the term "biscuit" refers to this type of dessert in general, with "cookie" reserved for a specific type of [[drop cookie]]; in [[North America]], the term "cookie" typically refers to all forms of this dessert, with "biscuit" more commonly referring to a [[biscuit (bread)|type of bread]].

Other small cakes and pastries can also be counted as under these terms, due to their size and relative similarity to cookies and biscuits, such as [[jaffa cakes]] and [[Eccles cake]]s.

===Confection===
{{Main|Chocolate|Candy}}
[[File:Valentines Day Chocolates from 2005.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Valentine's Day]] chocolates]]
[[Confection]], also called [[candy]], sweets or lollies, features [[sugar]] or [[honey]] as a principal ingredient.

Many involve sugar heated into crystals with subtle differences. Dairy and sugar based include [[caramel]], [[fudge]] and [[toffee]] or [[taffy (candy)|taffy]]. There are multiple forms of egg and sugar [[meringue]]s and similar confections. Unheated sugar dissolves into icings, preservatives and sauces with other ingredients.

====Chocolate====
''[[Theobroma cacao]] beans'' are commonly mixed with sugar to form chocolate. Pure, unsweetened dark chocolate contains primarily cocoa solids. Cocoa butter is also added in varying proportions. Much of the chocolate currently consumed is in the form of sweet chocolate, combining chocolate with sugar. Milk chocolate is sweet chocolate that additionally contains milk powder or condensed milk. White chocolate contains cocoa butter, sugar, and milk, but no cocoa solids. Dark chocolate is produced by adding fat and sugar to the cacao mixture, with no milk or much less than milk chocolate.
{{See also|Types of chocolate}}

=== Mithai (sweets) ===
Mithai, derived from the Sanskrit word '''sharkara','' represents the range of Indian desserts.<ref>{{Cite web |last=AHLUWALIA |first=DEEPI |date=December 26, 2018 |title=Bone Deep: Sweet India A Cultural Infatuation with Sugar and Spice |url=https://lifeandthyme.com/food/bone-deep-sweet-india/#:~:text=Mithai%20comes%20from%20mithas%2C%20meaning,the%20wonderous%20world%20of%20mithai. |website=life and thyme |access-date=7 November 2022 |archive-date=7 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221107111348/https://lifeandthyme.com/food/bone-deep-sweet-india/#:~:text=Mithai%20comes%20from%20mithas%2C%20meaning,the%20wonderous%20world%20of%20mithai. |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Custards===
{{Main|Custard|Pudding}}
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These kinds of desserts usually include a thickened dairy base. Custards are cooked and thickened with eggs. Baked custards include [[crème brûlée]] and [[Flan (pie)|flan]]. They are often used as ingredients in other desserts, for instance as a filling for pastries or pies.
{{Clear}}

===Deep-fried===
{{See also|List of doughnut varieties}}
[[File:Gulaab Jamun (homemade!) bright.jpg|upright|thumb|right|[[Gulab jamun]] topped with almond slivers is one of the most popular [[sweets from the Indian subcontinent]].]]
Many cuisines include a dessert made of deep-fried starch-based batter or dough. In many countries, a [[doughnut]] is a flour-based batter that has been deep-fried. It is sometimes filled with custard or jelly. [[Fritter]]s are fruit pieces in a thick batter that have been deep fried. [[Gulab jamun]] is an Indian dessert made of milk solids kneaded into a dough, deep-fried, and soaked in honey. [[Churro]]s are a deep-fried and sugared dough that is eaten as dessert or a snack in many countries.

===Frozen===
{{Main|Ice cream|Gelato|Sorbet|Shave ice}}
[[File:Matkakulfi.jpg|thumb|upright|Kulfi inside a [[Matki (earthen pot)|matka pot]] from India]]
[[Ice cream]], [[gelato]], [[sorbet]] and shaved-ice desserts fit into this category. Ice cream is a cream base that is churned as it is frozen to create a creamy consistency. Gelato uses a milk base and has less air whipped in than ice cream, making it denser. Sorbet is made from churned fruit and is not dairy based. Shaved-ice desserts are made by shaving a block of ice and adding flavored syrup or juice to the ice shavings.

===Gelatin===
{{See also|Gelatin desserts}}
Jellied desserts are made with a sweetened liquid thickened with gelatin or another gelling agent. They are traditional in many cultures. [[Yōkan]] is a Japanese jellied dessert. In English-speaking countries, many dessert recipes are [[gelatin dessert|based on gelatin]] with fruit or whipped cream added. The vegetarian substitute for gelatin is [[agar agar]]. [[Marshmallow]] is also most commonly made with gelatin.

=== Pastries ===
[[File:Croissants au beurre (18953292873).jpg|thumb|upright|Croissants au beurre]]
{{Main|Pastry}} Pastries are sweet baked pastry products. Pastries can either take the form of light and flaky bread with an airy texture, such as a [[croissant]] or unleavened dough with a high fat content and crispy texture, such as [[shortbread]]. Pastries are often flavored or filled with [[fruits]], [[chocolate]], [[nut (fruit)|nuts]], and [[spices]]. Pastries are sometimes eaten with [[tea]] or [[coffee]] as a breakfast food.

====Pies, cobblers, and clafoutis====
{{Main|Pie|Cobbler (food)|Clafouti}}
Pies and cobblers consist of a filling enclosed by a crust, which can be made from either pastry or crumbs. The fillings of pies can vary from fruits to puddings, whereas cobbler fillings are mostly fruit-based. On the other hand, clafoutis is a dessert in which batter is poured over a fruit-based filling before being baked.

=== Sweet soups ===
{{Main|Tong sui}}
[[File:Eggtongsui.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Egg tong sui]]]]
Tong sui, literally translated as "sugar water" and also known as tim tong, is a collective term for any sweet, warm [[soup]] or [[custard]] served as a dessert at the end of a meal in [[Cantonese cuisine]]. ''Tong sui'' are a Cantonese specialty and are rarely found in other [[Chinese cuisine|regional cuisines of China]]. Outside of Cantonese-speaking communities, soupy desserts generally are not recognized as a distinct category, and the term ''tong sui'' is not used.

===Wines===
[[Dessert wine]]s are sweet [[wine]]s typically served with dessert. There is no simple definition of a dessert wine. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a meal, as opposed to the white<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.frenchscout.com/types-of-white-wines|title=The 7 major types of white wines - French Scout|first=Félicien|last=Breton|access-date=21 February 2016|archive-date=27 September 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927154414/http://www.frenchscout.com/types-of-white-wines|url-status=live}}</ref> [[fortified wines]] (fino and amontillado sherry) drunk before the meal, and the red fortified wines ([[port wine|port]] and [[Madeira wine|madeira]]) drunk after it. Thus, most fortified wines are regarded as distinct from dessert wines, but some of the less strong fortified white wines, such as [[Pedro Ximénez]] sherry and [[Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise AOC|Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise]], are regarded as honorary dessert wines. In the United States, by contrast, a dessert wine is legally defined as any wine over 14% [[alcohol by volume]], which includes all fortified wines - and is taxed at higher rates as a result. Examples include [[Sauternes (wine)|Sauternes]] and [[Tokaji|Tokaji Aszú]].