Vanilla-Macerated Strawberries with Whipped Crème Fraîche

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Strawberries are the whole dish here. Sugar, lemon zest and a split vanilla bean pull the juice out of the berries in about 45 minutes; that juice then gets reduced on the stove into a glossy syrup and poured back over the fruit, so nothing tastes watery. Spooned over cream whipped with crème fraîche and finished with flaky salt and torn basil, it eats like a restaurant dessert course but takes one bowl and one small saucepan.

Ingredients

• 2 lb ripe strawberries, hulled
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise (or 1 tsp vanilla bean paste)
• 1 lemon, zested and halved
• 1 pinch fine sea salt
• 1/8 tsp freshly cracked black pepper (optional)
• 1 tsp aged balsamic vinegar (optional)

• 3/4 cup cold heavy cream
• 1/2 cup cold crème fraîche (or full-fat sour cream)
• 2 tbsp powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

• 8 fresh basil or mint leaves, torn
• flaky sea salt
• 2 tbsp shelled pistachios, toasted and chopped (optional)

Instructions

1. Sort the strawberries: keep the 8 to 10 prettiest ones whole or halved for the top, and cut the rest into 1/2-inch pieces (quarters for small berries, sixths for large). Uniform pieces macerate evenly.
2. In a large bowl, toss the cut strawberries with the granulated sugar, the seeds scraped from the vanilla bean plus the scraped pod, the lemon zest, the pinch of fine salt, and the black pepper if using. Squeeze in 1 teaspoon juice from a lemon half. Toss gently with a rubber spatula — do not stir hard or you will bruise the fruit.
3. Cover and let stand at room temperature for 45 minutes, tossing once at the halfway point. The sugar will draw out a generous pool of ruby juice at the bottom of the bowl. (Refrigerate if your kitchen is warmer than 78°F, and give it 1 hour.)
4. Set a fine-mesh strainer over a small saucepan and pour off the accumulated juice, letting the fruit drain 2 minutes without pressing. You should have about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of liquid. Return the berries to the bowl and fish the vanilla pod into the saucepan.
5. Bring the juice to a simmer over medium heat and cook 4 to 6 minutes, swirling occasionally, until it has reduced by about half and coats the back of a spoon in a thin, glossy sheet. Watch closely at the end — it goes from syrup to candy fast. Remove from the heat, discard the vanilla pod, and stir in the balsamic vinegar if using.
6. Let the syrup cool for 10 minutes (it should be barely warm, not hot), then pour it over the drained berries along with the reserved whole and halved strawberries. Fold gently and let sit 10 more minutes. Taste and add a squeeze of lemon if the berries were very sweet.
7. While the berries rest, whip the cream: put the heavy cream, crème fraîche, powdered sugar and vanilla extract in a chilled bowl and whip with a hand mixer on medium speed for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, or by hand with a whisk for about 3 minutes, until it holds soft, droopy peaks. Stop while it still slumps — crème fraîche stiffens quickly and you want it spoonable.
8. Spoon a generous pillow of whipped crème fraîche into the bottom of 4 shallow bowls or wide glasses and swoosh it with the back of the spoon. Pile the strawberries on top and spoon over all of the syrup that has pooled in the bowl.
9. Finish each serving with torn basil or mint, a few grains of flaky salt, and the toasted pistachios if using. Serve immediately, while the fruit is still cool and the cream is soft.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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