You do not need to be a gourmet cook or slave all day in the kitchen to make a fabulous great-tasting dessert for your family or to wow your guests at your next dinner party, potluck, or social gathering.

Desserts that wow don't need to be made completely from scratch (homemade) either. You simply need to use a little ingenuity and be creative with the ingredient combinations.

Here are some ideas for fabulous desserts that can be made in approximately 5 minutes using readily available ingredients from your grocery's deli-bakery, frozen food section, and produce section or your own pantry.

Ingredients:

Chocolate pudding

Coconut Macaroons

Whipped Topping (Cool Whip)

Directions:

1. Crumble the coconut macaroons.

2. Layer the chocolate pudding and the crumbled macaroons in a parfait glass or a dessert glass.

3. Top with whipped topping.

**You may also add shaved dark or milk chocolate to the top of the parfait to give it that extra special touch.**

Ingredients:

1 chocolate cake, store-bought

1 can mandarin oranges

orange marmalade

orange liqueur (optional)

Directions:

Melt orange marmalade with orange-flavor liqueur or water.

Drizzle over chocolate cake topped with mandarin orange slices.

Ingredients:

1 can (16 oz.) pear slices, drained

8 Nilla Wafers, crushed OR 4 graham crackers, crushed

1/2 cup thawed Whipped Topping (Cool Whip)

1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions:

1. Evenly divide the pears among four dessert bowls.

2. Sprinkle the pears with the wafer crumbs.

3. Combine the whipped topping and cinnamon; spoon evenly over desserts just before serving.

Ingredients:

Angel Food Cake, store bought, sliced

Fruit Yogurt (your choice of flavors to compliment your fruit and berry selection)

Whipped topping Fresh

mixed berries or fresh peaches and nectarines

Directions:

1. Mix together equal parts fruit yogurt and whipped topping.

2. Spoon the yogurt mixture over slices of angel food cake.

3. Sprinkle with your choice of mixed berries or fresh peach and nectarine slices.

Options:

Another way to make a fabulous dessert with Angel Food Cake is to stir some ground cinnamon into the whipped topping (instead of the yogurt) and serve with sliced bananas.