Friday, February 3, 2012

Love


A full decade ago my Middle Son at the age of 4 declared that "Julia & Mommy are my two best girls". Those days are long gone as he is a 14 year old now & really prefers I disappear, except when cooking, doling out allowance, or driving to some very important destination. Still, I like to remember the sweetness & hope it will someday return. He & THE Julia Child wrote letters to one another as he consistently invited her to all his birthday parties until she passed on to the Grand Buffet in the Sky. I have kept these missives as I hope, someday, to present them to my Grown Boy. We spent many hours looking at cookbooks, recipes, and watching our beloved Julia on PBS. All this to say, if Julia Child happens to rank up there as someone you'd send a Valentine to, then I am fairly certain she might enjoy this recipe. She was always gracious, generous, & curious when asking a 4, 5, 6, or 7 year old what he had made for birthday dinners, & was often particularly interested in dessert.

I have no idea if Pink Slip Jam would pass muster, yet I am willing to bet some of the flavors would work really nicely in this classic French dessert. You do not have to wait until February 14. Julia wouldn't. If you make this, please leave a comment to let me know how it turns out.

Coeur de Creme:


Coeur à la Crèmevia Saveur
6 oz. fresh goat cheese
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup honey
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp. confectioners’ sugar
For the strawberries:
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp. light corn syrup
1/2 cup red wine, preferably pinot noir or zinfandel
3 whole cloves
2 whole black peppercorns
1 2″ cinnamon stick
1/2 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise
and scraped, seeds reserved
3 cups strawberries (about 1 1/2
pints), hulled and halved
lengthwise
1. Make the coeur à la crème: Soak two 12″ x 12″ pieces of cheesecloth in cold water and squeeze dry. Put a 7″ heart-shaped coeur à la crème mold into a baking dish or set a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl; line mold or sieve with the cheesecloth, allowing the corners to drape over the side. Set aside.
2. With a whisk or hand-held mixer, whisk together the goat cheese, cream cheese, and honey until very smooth. In another bowl, whisk together the cream and confectioners’ sugar until soft peaks form. Gently fold the cream into the cheese mixture until evenly combined. Spoon the mixture into the prepared mold or sieve and fold the corners of cheesecloth over the top. Allow the mixture to drain for at least 2 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator.
3. Make the strawberries: In a 12″ skillet, stir together the sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup water over medium-high heat. Cook, swirling pan occasionally, until syrup is light golden, about 4 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and add wine, cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon, and vanilla bean with seeds. Return pan to heat and cook, stirring constantly, until sugar is completely dissolved, about 3 minutes. Add strawberries, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, occasionally stirring gently, until softened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
4. To serve, fold back the cheesecloth corners and invert the coeur à la crème onto a serving platter; remove mold and cheesecloth. Arrange the strawberries and sauce around the rim of the plate.
SERVES 4–6













































































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7 Comments


  1. Fresh Local and Best
    Coeur à la Crème looks amazing. I'm impressed that you crafted the heart with your hands.
  2. Ha, thanks :) –it wasn't too hard to shape by hand, just make sure you have a little bowl of warmish water near by to continuously dip your fingers into, otherwise, the cheese will stick to them and make it hard to smooth out the edges…
  3. This is really beautiful and your story just intensifies the amazingness that much more. :)
  4. Happy Finnish Friend's Day to You!
  5. That looks utterly beautiful and delicious – I'm drolling :)
  6. Happy Friends Day to you too, Minttu! And thank you for your kind words, Abbey :) .
    Ms. Frock and Fork–when you make the strawberry sauce, that is when the REAL drool will happen–you won't regret it!

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