Red Wine and Raspberry Sorbet

In the midst of a heat wave, what can I do but make sorbet? Much too hot to fire up the oven, that's for sure. And with fresh raspberries making a welcome appearance in so many markets this week, it’s time to enjoy their lusciousness without making too much fuss.

I decided to make a cool and quenching Raspberry Sorbet and dress it up a bit with the sophistication of a great red wine. David Lebovitz shares his recipe for just this thing in Room for Dessert and it’s really delicious. It’s a simple sorbet that really showcases the tartness of fresh raspberries and the depth of a good fruity wine all in one lovely dish. A cup of sugar lends just the right level of sweetness that does not overwhelm the clean bright burst of fruit. It’s a terrific way to enjoy a super light dessert that will definitely bring on a bit of cool in this very lovely moment of Spring. Just the sheer beauty of its rich color is enough to stop you right in your tracks. Exquisite.



Bench notes:
- Be sure to use a very fruity wine to enhance the flavor of the raspberries.
- If your berries are extremely tart, you may want to increase the sugar by a tablespoon or so.
- There is also a recipe for a Sangria Sorbet recipe in this book. Similar idea but it uses orange or tangerine juice instead of raspberries. We’ll have to try that one sometime soon.

Red Wine and Raspberry Sorbet
adapted from Room for Dessert by David Lebovitz
Makes about 1 quart

1 C sugar
3/4 C water
3 C red wine, a fruity Merlot, Zinfandel or Beaujolais
3 C raspberries

Place sugar, water and wine in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Continue to boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and add the raspberries. Cover and steep for at least 1 hour.

Using a rubber spatula, push the mixture through a fine sieve into a container. Chill thoroughly.

Freeze in your ice cream maker.

Goat Cheese Cake with Berries

One of my greatest pleasures is slowly mulling through my cookbooks and all those stacks of recipes rescued from magazines and newspapers of another time, finding inspiration again and again. Even greater is discovering a previously unknown and absolutely fabulous recipe in my midst. Today's incredible treasure is this Goat Cheese Cake from Emily Luchetti.

Have you ever wanted to eat a piece of cheesecake without feeling like you’ve just eaten a piece of cheesecake? This is your dessert. The recipe calls for goat cheese without the usual addition of cream cheese, so it's quite a different experience. Because goat cheese has a lower fat content and is a pure product without any gums or emulsifiers, it brings an incredible lightness to this beautiful dessert. That lightness is also emphasized by the addition of whipped egg whites gently folded into the batter. The slight tang is balanced by the sugar and rounded out by a bit of lemon juice and zest and the lovely perfume of vanilla. The cake tastes bright, fresh and absolutely delectable. The texture is bolstered by 3 tablespoons of flour that give it just enough body to allow a wonderful comparison to a New York Cheesecake, yet there is no fatty taste or heaviness left behind. I could go on and on. Are you with me?

The preparation is easy and quick and it’s ready in under an hour. Try this for your next dinner party or celebration and you will be amazed by the results. Thank you, Emily Luchetti!


Bench notes:
- Bring the goat cheese or chévre to room temperature to ensure an easy and complete combining of ingredients. Eggs must also be at room temp.
- I served this with blackberries that I sprinkled with sugar, a bit of Crème de Cassis and an equal splash of lemon juice to taste. Really delicious.
- This cake will keep for a few days, but the texture changes dramatically. When eaten fresh, it has a very light and airy texture. After refrigeration, it becomes more dense.
- I used an 8" cake pan because I wanted more height for presentation. It baked in 25 minutes in my hot oven.



Goat Cheese Cake with Berries
adapted from Classic Stars Desserts Emily Luchetti
Serves 8 to 10

Butter and granulated sugar for the cake pan
11 ounces fresh goat cheese @ room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Grated zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
6 large eggs @ room temperature, separated
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 pint blackberries
sugar, to taste
lemon juice, to taste
Crème de Cassis, to taste (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9-inch round cake pan with butter and dust it thoroughly with granulated sugar. Tap out the excess.

Mix the goat cheese, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice with the paddle attachment and beat until smooth. Add the egg yolks two at a time, beating well after each addition. Add in the flour and mix until incorporated.

Place the egg whites in a clean bowl and whip to soft peak. Gently fold the egg whites into the goat cheese mixture with a spatula. Be careful not to overmix or you will deflate the batter. Pour into the prepared pan.

Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Let cool to room temperature.

Toss the berries with sugar and lemon juice (and Crème de Cassis, if using), to taste.

Run a thin knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the cake and turn out onto a platter. Go ahead and swoon.

Orange Allspice Cake

I absolutely love citrus fruits. In pastries or desserts, a bit of citrus is always a vital element even when it is not the star. Citrus will always perk up flavor but when it’s the central ingredient, it’s nearly irresistible.

Looking to put a large juicy orange to good use, I recalled a cake that someone made for me a couple of years ago. It was a very orangey spicy cake with a tender texture I can still remember. It came from a cookbook by David Lebovitz and was gifted to me by someone who had done some recipe testing for him. So as I was contemplating that orange sitting on my table, I flashed on that cake and decided this is how I would fashion it.

The cake is bursting with the essence of orange flavor and infused with the complexity of allspice. It incorporates a whole orange that has been simmered to remove any bitterness of the pith. It’s not complicated in an way, but requires a little bit of preparation before you set about to mix the cake together. The glaze is easy and adds a nice note of buttery caramel that really dresses it up. If you love orange flavored pastries, you will certainly love this cake.



Bench notes:
- I happened to have one lemon half that had been used for its zest, so I decided to throw that into the simmering water along with the orange and I’m very glad I did. It enhanced the flavor perfectly. The resulting fruit mixture came to 1 C.
- Taste the glaze as you go and add salt until you have the right balance. I love salty caramel, so I went with a few grains more.
- I couldn’t put my hands on some currants easily enough when the mood struck me to make this cake, so I omitted them.



Totally Orange Allspice Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze
adapted from Ripe for Dessert by David Leibovitz
serves 8 to 10

1 medium navel orange (about 1/2 lb)
1/2 lemon (optional)
1/4 t salt

1 1/3 C flour
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
2 t ground allspice
4 oz (1 stick) butter @ room temperature
1 1/2 C sugar
2 eggs @ room temperature
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 C milk
3/4 C currants, tossed in 1 t flour

Glaze
1 oz (2 T) butter
1/3 C firmly packed dark brown sugar
3 T heavy cream
1/8 t salt
1/4 t vanilla extract

Cut the orange in half and place in a saucepan with the salt and enough water to cover (add the lemon half too, if you’re using). Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and continue to cook on a low simmer for about 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until the fruit is limp and easily pierced with a knife. Drain and finely chop in a food processor. Do not puree. The resulting mixture should come to 1 C. Set aside.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9” x 2” cake pan.

Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and allspice.
Beat the butter and granulated sugar for approximately 3 minutes or until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time. Add vanilla and mix until the ingredients are fully incorporated.

Add half the dry ingredients and mix for a few seconds. Add the milk, chopped orange and currants and blend. Add the remaining flour mixture and just as it starts to come together, pull it off the mixer and finish it by hand to prevent over mixing. Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 – 50 minutes or until it tests done. Cool for at least 10 minutes before turning out.

To prepare the glaze, melt the butter in a saucepan and add the sugar. Cook without stirring for 2 minutes. Then, stirring constantly, add the cream and salt and continue cooking and for another 2 minutes. Remove from heat and add the vanilla. Cool for just a few minutes to lukewarm. Pour quickly over the center of the cake. Use a small metal spatula or a butter knife to spread the glaze if necessary. Serve with your favorite spot of tea.