Final Course

Palate Pleasers

The on-campus Park River Bakery was founded in 2014 as part of an enhanced dining experience resulting from renovations to the University Commons. The desire was to place a scratch bakery on campus, and ever since, the baked goods have become a hit—not just at the Commons, but at many other campus and alumni events, during the holidays, and everything in between.

Head baker and pastry chef Deanna Ford shares four of the more popular desserts that students, faculty, and staff request.

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

At Park River Bakery, we take our chocolate chip cookies seriously. Always a crowd pleaser, our chocolate chip cookies are made from scratch, with real butter, semi-sweet chocolate chips, and baked to ooey gooey perfection. Want to know the secret to making the best chocolate chip cookies? It’s all about using salted butter, kosher salt, and quality chocolate.

SAMOA CUPCAKES

A play on the classic Girl Scout cookie, our Samoa cupcakes are an original staple at the bakery. These are one of the first items we made at the bakery. Chocolate cupcakes are topped with a salted caramel buttercream, dipped in toasted coconut, and drizzled with chocolate. The combination is out of this world.

PEANUT BUTTER BARS

Our take on a Reese’s Cup, our peanut butter bars are rich, buttery, nutty, and smooth. We take melted butter, graham cracker crumbs, peanut butter, powdered sugar, and chocolate to make these delectable treats. If you’re a peanut butter lover, these are a must-try!

Peanut Butter Bars

S’MORES BARS

Buttery, gooey, soft, and chewy. Need I say more? Our S’mores Bars are one of our most popular items at the bakery and for good reason. The S’mores Bars made an appearance a few years back and have flown off the shelves ever since. To create our S’mores Bars, you’ll layer graham cracker cookie dough, spread on a generous layer of marshmallow fluff and chocolate chips, and top them with another layer of graham cracker cookie dough. The key to these bar cookies is to underbake them so they stay soft and chewy.

ABOUT DEANNA

Deanna Ford came to UHart eight years ago, after graduating with a degree in baking and pastry from Johnson & Wales University (Rhode Island). In addition, she spent three months at a pastry school in France to learn new techniques. She is a Certified Pastry Chef through The American Culinary Federation. See Deanna in action making her favorite desserts at hartford.edu/h-mag-56.

SAYS DEANNA:

Since the very beginning, I’ve brought all my innovation and passion to this role and haven’t stopped since. Starting at the bakery when I was just 20 years old really gave me an advantage when it came to tailoring our menus and products for college-age students, because, well, I was one! I created items that I know I would want to eat myself and I based our entire program on student feedback. We have tweaked items that needed improvement, pulled off items that didn’t sell well, and have continuously added new items for innovation, excitement, and customer experience. I have loved being able to make students smile with something as simple as dessert, and I have loved being a part of the culture on campus.