Desserts

Strawberry Conserve

If early summer could be captured in a jar, Strawberry Conserve is how it would taste.

Conserve is a fancy way of saying a jam made of fruit stewed in sugar. This one has just three ingredients: strawberries, superfine sugar and lemon. Pretty perfect for summer.With such few ingredients, it’s important to use the highest quality you can find, and not to make substitutes. Don’t fall for the large, watery berries from the grocery store (even at peak season). Get to a garden, farmer’s market, or pick-your-own farm. Superfine (caster) sugar is available at grocery stores, but if you can’t find it, you make it with granulated sugar and a food processor.

Garden or farm-fresh strawberries are low in acid and pectin, which makes it tricky to preserve. That’s where the lemon comes in: the pith and rind are natural sources of pectin, which helps the jam to set.

What does one do with a jar of summer? Why, just about anything you can think of. Spooned over ice cream or yogurt. Drizzled over pancakes. Spread on a biscuit or toast. On a picnic with crusty bread, Serrano ham and a little aged balsamic vinegar. Mixed into a cocktail. Folded into whipped cream. Eaten straight out of the jar.

Where did I leave my spoon?

Strawberry Conserve

From Bon Appetit

Yield: 2 cups

4 cups fresh strawberries (about 1 pound), hulled, halved
3/4 cup superfine sugar
Peel (with white pith) of 1/2 lemon

Combine all ingredients in a heavy, wide pot. Cover; let sit at room temperature, stirring occasionally, for 2 hours. (The berries will ooze and sugar will dissolve.)

Bring strawberry mixture to a simmer over medium heat. Cook, stirring gently, until strawberries are just tender, about 3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer strawberries to 1 pint jar. Continue simmering liquid until it thickens into a syrupy consistency, 1-2 minutes. Discard lemon peel and pour syrup over strawberries; seal and let cool to room temperature. Chill for up to 1 month.

Apple Bread Pudding with Salted Caramel Sauce

Do you like bread pudding? It’s a popular dessert, but I was never a fan.

Am I allowed to say that? Is it sacrilegious?

When I think “pudding,” I think… well, PUDDING. A creamy, dairy-based dessert, ideally involving chocolate. Bread has nothing to do with it.

The bread puddings I had tried were either dry, mushy, or both. It was like eating stuffing (which for me, isn’t a compliment), only sweet. The flavors weren’t anything special. With so many great desserts out there, bread pudding never entered my mind as something worth making.

And then a year ago, my best friend made this recipe for one of our Sunday suppers.

All that animosity between me and bread pudding? Gone.

The combination of tangy apples, slightly caramelized pieces of bread from the bottom of the pan, and salted caramel sauce are a nice balance of flavors. The dish stays moist as long as you don’t overbake it.

When I decided to restart my Sunday Suppers, I knew this was a great recipe to kick it off. Assemble it in the morning before you leave for brunch, let the flavors mingle all day, then put it in the oven about 30 minutes before you sit down for supper.

Apple Bread Pudding with Salted Caramel Sauce

Adapted from The Apple Lover’s Cookbook, by Amy Traverso

Makes 6-8 servings

Butter for greasing pan
1 loaf (1 pound) crusty white bread, such as Pullman style or Italian
1 1/2 cups caramelized apples (1/2 batch)
3 large eggs
2 cups half and half
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 Tbs vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 cup salted caramel sauce

Butter an 11″ x 7″ baking pan. Set aside. Trim the crusts off the sides and ends of the bread, leaving top and bottom intact. Cut the loaf into 1 1/2-inch pieces. Arrange the pieces evenly in the prepared pan. Tuck the caramelized apples down among the bread pieces.

In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, half and half, sugars, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Pour over the bread. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, and up to 8 hours.

Set the oven rack to the middle position and preheat to 350 degrees. Toss the bread cubes and apples with your hands so that all the pieces are moistened. Bake the pudding until the top is golden brown and the custard is set, about 50 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the salted caramel sauce. Serve the pudding hot in individual bowls, with caramel poured over top.

Caramelized Apples

Apples are one of my favorite foods. They have a long shelf life, and you can find good ones year-round (though they’re still best in season, September-October, and pick them if you can!). They are versatile for cooking, and also great by themselves. Pretty fantastic.

This dish is great as a filling for crepes, used in bread pudding, paired with bacon, sausage, pancakes or biscuits, or by itself.

Caramelized Apples

From The Apple Lover’s Cookbook, by Amy Traverso

Makes about 3 cups

3 Tbs salted butter
2 1/2 pounds (about 5) firm-sweet apples (such as Braeburn, Honeycrisp, Jazz, or Jonagold), peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 cup fresh apple cider
1/2 cup maple syrup, divided
2 Tbs granulated sugar

Melt the butter in a 12- to 14-inch skillet or saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the apples and spices. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are softened and lightly browned in spots, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in the apple cider and cook, stirring often, until the cider reduces to a glaze, about 3 minutes. Add half the maple syrup and the sugar and cook, stirring often, until the sauce is thickened and glossy and the apples are tender, 4 to 6 minutes. Finish with the remaining maple syrup, stir, and serve.

Caramelized apples will keep, covered, for several days in the refrigerator.