First fruits!!

The strawberries have arrived! Unsurprisingly, harvesting strawberries has skyrocketed to the top of my "favorite farm tasks" list, despite the hot sun and the careful dance that I have to perform while navigating within the confines of our crowded strawberry bed. Strawberries are finicky little fruits--sublime during their window of optimal ripeness but criminally unappealing if harvested too early or too late. So I make a point of conducting regular quality control tests as I squat barefoot in our bed and pluck them for market.

Occasionally, a few berries actually make it off of the farm and into my kitchen, where I have a shelf of recipes waiting. My first strawberry concoction this season was a chilled strawberry dessert soup which really could as easily have been melted ice cream, it was so delicious.

Strawberry and Cardamom Soup

1/3 cup sugar

3/4 cup water

4-6 cardamom pods, crushed

zest of one lime

1 lb 2 oz strawberries

7 ounces creme fraiche or mascarpone

Put the sugar, water, cardamom and lime zest in a a small saucepan and bring it to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside and allow the syrup to cool for 20-30 minutes.

Put the strawberries, syrup, and creme fraiche in a blender and liquidize until smooth. If you want to get rid of the seeds, strain through a fine sieve.