Dessert
mid 16th century: from French, past participle of desservir ‘clear the table’, from des- (expressing removal) + servir ‘to serve’.
wiktionary
Borrowed from French dessert, from desservir(“disserve”), from dés-(“dis-”) and servir(“serve”), thus literally meaning “removal of what has been served”.
Note: It was erroneously suggested (e.g. in "Glucose syrups: Technology and Applications" (Peter Hull, 2010)) that the word is derived from the name of Benjamin Delessert, the inventor of beet sugar. However, the term predates him by at least a century.
etymonline
dessert (n.)
"a service of fruits and sweets at the close of a meal," c. 1600, from French dessert (mid-16c.) "last course," literally "removal of what has been served," from desservir "clear the table," literally "un-serve," from des- "remove, undo" (see dis-) + Old French servir "to serve" (see serve (v.)). Dessert-wine is from 1733; dessert-spoon from 1776.
