Cherry and Wild Fennel Clafoutis

Sometimes, a word for a dish or a food preparation method I have never used will come to me and I will not rest until I have experienced it. That is what happened with "clafoutis" - I have no idea where I was introduced to the word, but after we picked up some cherries on our way back from a wedding in beautiful Los Olivos, all I could think about was making a cherry clafoutis, while at the same time asking myself, "cherry clafoutis is a thing, right?" This is where the internet came in, helpfully proving that cherry clafoutis is, indeed, a thing and although I don't necessary need a reason to make special desserts, my mother was serendipitously visiting for Mother's Day. Using a recipe from Saveur as a base, I decided to decrease the egg because some comments complained of eggy-ness and I tend to shy away from really eggy desserts and include wild fennel (more on wild fennel including foraging here), as cherry and fennel go together in a delightful way.

There are a few great things about this dessert. The first is that it's easy - really easy. It's also visually impressive in the cast-iron pan and versatile in ingredient options (apricot + almond? pear + bergamot?) and, because it's not super sweet, it's also versatile in potential eating occasion. We enjoyed it with fennel whipped cream as dessert and again the next day with coffee for brunch and I'm pretty sure no one would turn their nose up to a clafoutis at tea time. So, now you have no excuse - get out there, forage some fennel (which is all over the bay area), buy some cherries, and make this deliciously easy puffed crepe-like cake! Recipe below serves 8.

“Cherries can also be unpitted, which provides a more rustic flavor and texture, but I did not this time, as I knew my mom wouldn’t like it!”

• 1 cup chopped wild fennel fronds, plus a few fronds for garnish

• 1/2-1 cup whipping cream, depending on how much your group likes whipped cream (optional)

• 7-8 tablespoons sugar, divided

• 1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, divided

• 1/2 tablespoon butter

• 1-1/4 cups whole milk (can be substituted for a combination of 3 parts reduced fat and 1 part whipping cream, if you happen to have these around like I did)

• 2 tablespoons kirsch or Luxardo (I had Luxardo, but think it would be better with kirsch)

• 5 eggs

• 1/2 teaspoon medium coarse Kosher salt, divided

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

• 3 cups black or sour cherries, pitted (see post on how to pit cherries like a boss)

• Confectioner's sugar, for dusting

Infuse whipped cream with wild fennel by allowing whipping cream to impart fennel flavor overnight.

To make fennel whipped cream: Place 1/2 cup chopped fennel in a mason jar, pour whipped cream over top, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Remove fennel then beat cream until whipped, adding 1-2 tablespoons of sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla toward the end of beating. Refrigerate until used.

Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Grease a 9'' cast-iron skillet and set aside. Whisk milk, sugar, kirsch or Luxardo, vanilla, eggs, and 1/4 teaspoon salt until combined. Add flour and whisk until smooth, about 30 seconds.

Pour batter into buttered skillet, then distribute cherries evenly over top. Bake until a skewer inserted into batter comes out clean and a golden brown crust has formed on top and bottom of clafoutis, about 25 minutes. Dust with confectioners' sugar and serve with a dollop of fennel whipped cream, if desired.

Spring Frittata with Asparagus, Leeks, and Chèvre

Celebrate spring by including asparagus and the bright flavors of goat cheese and tarragon in this elegant and satisfying meal. Frittata is a very easy way to whip up a stylish breakfast that’s also very durable and adaptable to a variety of dietary needs (well, apart from vegan that is, as eggs are necessary). This will solve your weekend brunch needs - don't worry, next weekend is just around the corner! Serves 6.

• 10 eggs

• 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 medium leek, trimmed and thinly sliced (use whites and greens)

• 16 asparagus spears, ends trimmed and chopped into 1.5-inch pieces

• 4-6 ounces chèvre (fresh goat cheese), crumbled

Preheat the broiler to high. Whisk eggs with thyme, salt, and pepper. Set aside.

Heat butter and oil in a large oven-proof pan over medium-high heat. Add leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Mix in asparagus and continue to cook another 2-3 minutes until asparagus is slightly softened but still bright green.

Pour egg mixture over asparagus, stir once just to ensure even distribution of ingredients, and cook about 2 minutes, until almost set. Sprinkle with crumbled chèvre and broil frittata in the pan until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes (check and rotate if one side is cooking faster). Remove from oven and serve from pan or slide frittata onto a plate.

Nine Ways to Angel Food

I teach the food science application lecture and laboratory at UC Berkeley and one of my favorite weeks is the week where we investigate eggs using angel food cake. Not only because I absolutely love angel food and honestly, even the cakes with recipes that are intentionally messed up still taste good to me, but because I think eggs are amazing. They are amazing for their incredible nutrient density (what other food gives you so much protein, vitamins, and minerals in 75 calories?), but also because they perform such a diverse array of culinary tasks, from aroma to structure. Also, I love the fact that, once out of the shell, they are so fragile and sensitive - just a few degrees can create a completely different product. Unfortunately, not everyone shares this fascination with eggs, be it because of the way they smell or unfounded worries about saturated fat (an average of 1 egg per day is completely fine, the benefits outweigh the saturated fat content). Oh well - more for me!

Angel food cake is the perfect vehicle for evaluating the properties of egg white foams. In lab, we conduct this evaluation with nine different variations in addition to the classic “gold standard” recipe. 

Variations include (beginning with arrow and moving counter clockwise). Some worked as they were supposed to and others did not. See below for descriptions of what would theoretically happen to the cake, given the variation:

Cake 1, Classic: Gold Standard

Cake 2, Beat a longer time, until Stage IV: Proteins are overcoagulated, leaving cake "brittle" and stiff.

Cake 3, Beat foam a shorter time, until Stage I: Proteins not denatured/coagulated enough, no structure, does not rise.

Cake 4, Increased manipulation/folding of batter: Collapsed air cells that were created in beating the foam. Cake is dense and flat.

Cake 5, baked at a lower temperature for a longer period of time: Does not rise as high because no initial hot air.

Cake 6, cream of tartar omitted: COT is an acid that helps stabilize the proteins and bleaches anthocyanin, a yellow pigment. Cake without COT has a poorer structure, coarser crumb, and yellower color.

Cake 7, use of hand beaters in place of electric: Totally depends on the skill of the chef! May actually lead to a better, more delicate product because hand blenders often have more blades.

Cake 8, only 1/2 the amount of sugar used: Sugar helps prevent the eggs proteins from denaturing, making it take longer to create a foam and leading to finer air cells and a stronger structure. Without sugar, structure is weak and may not be high in volume, crumb is coarser, and cake is bbviously not as sweet. The lack of sugar also leads to more developed gluten because there's no sugar to draw the water away from the gluten to develop it, which means a tougher cake with less sugar.

Cake 9, lemon juice used in place of cream of tartar: Lemony tasting and structure is weaker, less consistent.