Paper Chef #6: Promised Kiss of Springtime

Strawberry-Rhubarb Compote with Ricotta-White Chocolate Gelato and Scented Madeleines

I love ricotta cheese, especially in desserts.  And I'm very fond of almond paste, having been a marzipan fan from way back.  White chocolate, well...not so much.  I'm definitely a "darker-the-better" girl when it comes to chocolate.  But I can work with it.  Strawberries are all about celebration and the year's entry into summer.  So I was pretty excited about the ingredients for my first go at Paper Chef. 

The only glitch, of course, is that strawberries don't really come into season here in the Northeast until mid to late June.  There are plenty of strawberries in the markets that have taken the long cross-country trek from Watsonville, but they vary greatly in flavor, bouquet and texture.   Owen of Tomatilla, Paper Chef's creator and host, kindly suggested that  those who live in regions where strawberries weren't yet available could use something else.  But I didn't want to take the out, since strawberries actually are available to me, although not yet very delicious.  So I came up with a Strawberry Rhubarb Compote, a preparation that I hoped would coax the non-local strawberry's still hidden scent and flavor out into the open.  I used a supporting cast of ingredients that complement strawberries, and make them taste even more of themselves:  rhubarb, Grand Marnier, and fruit vinegar.  The other trick I used was to cook half of the berries with the rhubarb, which released their luscious taste.  Then the rest of them were added fresh for color and texture, once the compote had cooled. The juices were reduced to a fragrant syrup and drizzled over the whole. 

I thought about floating sweet little ricotta dumplings with almond and white chocolate on top of this compote.  But somehow a warning voice told me that this was a recipe for disaster, as I suddenly envisioned the dumplings either falling apart in the liquid, or being tough and glutinous.  Next I thought of a ricotta custard, but then decided I didn't want anything too cheesecakey.  Then it came to me:  Ricotta Gelato!  This would be a perfect place to incorporate the white chocolate too, giving some body to the gelato.  Now for the almond paste.  A cookie or cake would be just right on this plate -- and what better than my favorite Scented Madeleines, butter-rich, moist with almond paste and perfumed with orange-flower water?

Below I give you the three component recipes, to plate as you wish.  I like them all together.  The ice cream melts lusciously into the fruit and syrup, and the madeleine is delicious dipped in the fruity mix.   G and I decided that this is really a very romantic dessert.  There's something about the creamy subtlety of the ice-cream,  touched with haunting flavors that can't quite be placed (although you, the chef, knows that it's the hint of cinnamon and the lacing of Marsala).  Maybe it's the ruby-toned fruit, redolent with the aroma of strawberries rising from the syrup.  Or perhaps the madeleines are responsible.  It certainly seems so as you watch them innocently cooling on the baking rack, in all their plump, shell-shaped tender sweetness...

Strawberry-Rhubarb Compote

1 lb. rhubarb, untrimmed weight
1 lb. strawberries, clean, hulled and halved or quartered
3 Tbsp. sugar
2 Tbsp. Grand Marnier
1 Tbsp. blood orange vinegar
2 Tbsp. wildflower honey

Preheat the oven to 375 F.  Trim and clean the rhubarb, cut into 1/2 inch lengths, and put into an ovengoing dish.  Sprinkle with the sugar.  Add half the strawberries, reserving the other half.  Mix the Grand Marnier, vinegar and honey, and pour over the fruit.  Mix everything together, cover the dish with aluminum foil, and bake for 1/2 an hour, just until the rhubarb is completely tender.  Let cool.  Drain the fruit carefully, reserving the juice, and put it back in the dish.  In another pan, reduce the  fruit juices by half, until they're thick and syrupy.  Place the remaining strawberries with the cooked fruit, and pour the warm syrup over everything.  Mix lightly, and chill until ready to serve.

Ricotta-White Chocolate Gelato

1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup cool water
2 oz. white chocolate, broken into small pieces
1 pound whole-milk ricotta
1 and 1/3 cups heavy cream, not ultrapasteurized
A generous pinch (about 1/8 teaspoon) of grated cinnamon
1 teaspoon Madagascar vanilla extract
2 tablespoons dry Marsala
1 tablespoon wildflower honey
pinch of salt

Place the sugar and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook until the sugar is dissolved, about 3 minutes.   Remove from the heat, and add the chocolate.  Whisk lightly until the chocolate is melted and incorporated into the syrup. 

Process the ricotta in a food processor fitted with the steel blade until very smooth. Add the white chocolate syrup and all the other ingredients and pulse the machine a few times to blend well.  Refrigerate until the mixture is very cold.

Pour into an ice cream freezer, and freeze according to the freezer's directions.

Scented Madeleines
This recipe was given to me by my lovely friend Ernestine, who assured me that these are the best madeleines ever.  They've certainly become my favorite.  She also told me that they stay fresh longer than the plain kind, especially if well wrapped and put in airtight packaging.  I found that they freeze beautifully, too.  Ernie got the original recipe from The Silver Palate Good Times Cookbook.

7 ounces almond paste, cut into small pieces
1 cup granulated sugar
5 eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 teaspoons orange-flower water
1 cup sifted unbleached all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
10 tablespoons(1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1. Cream the almond paste and sugar in a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Transfer to a large mixer bowl and add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the almond extract and the orange-flower water and beat until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Sift the flour and baking powder together and fold lightly into the almond mixture. Gently fold in the melted butter just until combined. Refrigerate the batter for at least 1 hour.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Brush madeleine molds with melted butter and dust lightly with flour.
4. Spoon the batter into the molds, filling them three-fourths full. Bake until lightly colored, 8 to 10 minutes.
5. Let cool for 5 minutes, and then gently remove to wire racks to cool completely. Allow the molds to cool before rebrushing with melted butter and repeating the process with the remaining batter.

36 to 40 madeleines

Comments

[Zarah Maria]

Wow Julie, that looks delish!

[rowena]

Brava, brava, brava! It is always so...WEIRD whenever I hop on over here and you've posted something on what I've been recently thinking about. This time it's rhubarb, a thing that I just cannot find here or have ever found for that matter. Ricotta and almond paste also get an enthusiastic thumbs up!

I'm glad (envious) that you are getting involved in these cooking events! I think those days for me are dwindling fast...hehe, with the dog to arrive soon. I'm trying to get through all of the food post ideas before she comes home with us and the stuff that I'm concerned with now are more along the lines of.... Hmmm honey, you think that upscale eatery that we were planning to go to will accept dogs in their restaurant? {rolls eyeballs here} Have a good one!!

[Julie]

Hey Zarah -- you have to try those madeleines, baker girl!

And so do you, Rowena -- if you like almond paste, you're going to adore these madeleines. Do you have a good recipe for ricotta gelato? I sort of made this one up based on a bunch of other recipes, but I'd love to see an authentic one. Believe me, even here it's hard to get rhubarb, because of the competition! I got the very last stalk at the store the other day. I'm so excited for you about the new puppy -- she's gorgeous! And you're right -- it's crazy for me to try to do these events, considering the insane demands of my work/family life. But it's pretty satisfying too, I have to admit.

[Owen]

Julie - I can't believe you made all that! I am seriously impressed. The full list is up now at www.tomatilla.com

[rowena]

Nope, unfortunately, no recipe for a ricotta gelato as I'm still looking to get a gelato maker before the summer. it's a toss-up between Gaggia and Simac [didn't realize how price-y they are]. Still, given the amount of gelato that I could wallow in [hehe], no doubt the machine will pay off after one summer! I must place the blame on Keiko of Nordljus. SHE started me on wanting to make my own, and whenever I go to her site, I brace myself for the calorie intake that her posts bring about. I wonder if there's an AA type of shelter for those addicted to foodie pics? :-P

[Biscuit Girl]

Congrats on winning the Paper Chef contest!

[Barbara]

Congratulations. I'm going to try those madelaines.

[Julie]

Thanks so much, Owen, Biscuit Girl and Barbara.

Jenny Marie, I'd be happy to support the CANS festival by linking to it or even writing about it on the blog, but the comment section of my blog is not an appropriate place for you to notify others of an event. That is why I'm deleting your comment. In future, please email me if you want my help in publicizing a good cause like this one.

[Moira]

Hi Miss Julie!

Gosh, this is an absolutely fantastic dessert...congrats x a million on your much-deserved win! I am going to make those madeleines the first chance I get- they sound amazing! Of course, I need to make your mother's chicken and meatballs first, that's my #1 priority...

[rowena]

I stumbled upon a recipe for ricotta icecream at Traveler's Lunchbox and guess who popped into my mind? Haha...here's the address if you're interested!

http://www.travelerslunchbox.com/

[Julie]

Thanks rowena -- you're the best!

Moi! MOI! You're back! Yay! How are you, how was the trip, yadda yadda yadda...now get crackin', girl. Back to work. If I go to your site and see that twinkie tort one more time...

And to all who want to make these madeleines -- do it! They couldn't be easier, and everyone loves them, even people who profess to hate almond paste. Case in point: G inhales them and gobbles them down. Good thing the recipe makes so much.

[Felicia]

Congratulations on winning the Paper Chief contest!! I got to taste the Madeleines, which as Julie described, are "butter-rich, moist with almond paste and perfumed with orange-flower water." The discerning palate can taste each flavor and sensation. Not to say that my palate is that discerning but I definitely made the connection to marzipan - not my favorite but these cookies far surpass an ordinary marzipan dessert.

There is so much pressure to comment on the special treats that Julie brings to her colleagues at work. You have to make sure your prose is up to the level of the blogger's and all her compatriots or else feel too embarrassed to comment. So, I just spent 10 minutes composing this response instead of doing my letter. What one won't do for the sinful pleasure of indulging in rich, exotic (for the meat and potato eater) foods!

[Joe C]

Yes, congratulations. I have cmoe to claim my fair share of the prize as the provider of her Cuisinart ice-cream machine. I've realized that my role in life is to provide technical enhancements to my sister's cooking and blogging genius. Now as to that gelato, where's mine?

[Ernie]

Julie,

Your dessert sounds wonderful, it's no surprise that you won. I'm glad the madeleines worked out, I love them. Of course anything with almond paste is good in my book.

[Julie]

Felicia, I'm so glad you wrote in -- it's nice to have someone who actually tasted the goods writing about them!

Joe C, as my brother you will always reap the benefits of being the sweet supportive sib that you are! As a matter of fact, I'm thinking about making a little housewarming dinner for you -- what would you like?

Thanks Ernie -- love those madeleines! G inhales them, even though he says they're "kinda girly"...

[bluegina]

Felicia finally has company. I always feel privileged to sample Julie's fab home cooking & it's about danged time I posted my praise.

I love madeleines but am skeptical about almond-flavored anything, since although I like the nuts, marzipan is always way, way too intense for me. These, however, had just the right soupcon of almond aroma & I can only swoon at the thought of them with that luscious-sounding gelato & rhubarb & berry compote. Too yummy.

[growitgreen]

I love gelato, I havent found a shop in my small town in S.C that makes it so I have to make it myself when I get a craving. I appreciate all of the recipes I can get my hands on.
Check out this "cool" article at FOODISTA.COM

[growitgreen]

I love gelato, I havent found a shop in my small town in S.C that makes it so I have to make it myself when I get a craving. I appreciate all of the recipes I can get my hands on.
Check out this "cool" article at FOODISTA.COM

[growitgreen]

I love gelato, I havent found a shop in my small town in S.C that makes it so I have to make it myself when I get a craving. I appreciate all of the recipes I can get my hands on.
Check out this "cool" article at FOODISTA.COM

[growitgreen]

I love gelato, I havent found a shop in my small town in S.C that makes it so I have to make it myself when I get a craving. I appreciate all of the recipes I can get my hands on.
Check out this "cool" article at FOODISTA.COM

[growitgreen]

I love gelato, I havent found a shop in my small town in S.C that makes it so I have to make it myself when I get a craving. I appreciate all of the recipes I can get my hands on.
Check out this "cool" article at FOODISTA.COM

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