Ready for Dessert (45 page)

In a small saucepan, warm the cream or half-and-half over low heat. When it just begins to boil, remove from the heat and add the white chocolate. Let stand for 1 minute, then whisk until the chocolate is melted and the sauce is smooth. Serve the sauce warm.

STORAGE:
This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Rewarm before serving.

MAKES 2 CUPS (500 ML)

One day while cooking some blueberries, it occurred to me that the sharp taste of a sizable shot of gin would nicely complement the berries, so I reached for the bottle and poured some in. Gin’s herbaceous flavor does indeed marry nicely with blueberries—it can hardly be tasted once cooked, but somehow it just rounds out the blueberry notes. Now, whenever I cook with blueberries, a bit of gin finds its way into the mix.

2½ cups (12 ounces/340 g) fresh or frozen blueberries

¼ cup (50 g) sugar, plus more to taste

2 tablespoons (30 ml) gin

In a medium saucepan, combine the blueberries, sugar, and gin. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the berries soften and release their juices.

Remove from the heat and let stand, uncovered, and let cool to room temperature. Taste for sweetness and add more sugar, if desired.

STORAGE:
This compote can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. It’s actually better when prepared a day in advance, which gives it time to thicken nicely.

VARIATION:
If you don’t wish to use gin, you can substitute water and a good squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

MAKES ABOUT 1 CUP (250 ML)

Although fresh raspberries are terrific in this sauce, frozen raspberries also work very well—especially good news when the berries aren’t in season. I can’t think of a lemony dessert that this sauce doesn’t complement.

2½ cups (12 ounces/340 g) fresh raspberries, or 12 ounces (340 g) frozen raspberries, thawed

1½ tablespoons sugar, or more to taste

¼ cup (60 ml) water

½ teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 teaspoon kirsch (optional)

Purée the berries and remove the seeds by passing them through a food mill fitted with a fine disk into a medium bowl. Or, process the berries in a food processor fitted with the metal blade, then, using a rubber spatula, press the purée through a fine-mesh strainer set over a medium bowl.

Whisk in the sugar, water, lemon juice, and kirsch or framboise until the sugar dissolves. Taste for sweetness and add more sugar, if desired.

STORAGE:
This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

MAKES ABOUT 1¼ CUPS (310 ML)

Mangoes, like most tropical fruits, will tip you off to their ripeness with their aroma. A good, ripe mango has a heady, syrupy scent, and when you hold it in your hand, it should feel slightly soft and a bit too heavy for its size. Although the plump, sweeter varieties, such as Hayden and Tommy Atkins, are the most tempting, slender and wrinkly Champagne or Manila mangoes that you might come across will surprise you with their gentle nuances. Depending on which variety you choose to use in this sauce, start with the smaller amount of sugar and add more if necessary.

A spoonful of mango sauce is a nice complement to
Coconut and Tropical Fruit Trifle
or scoops of
Toasted Coconut Sherbet
nestled in cookie cups made with
Sesame-Orange Almond Tuiles
.

1 large or 2 small mangoes (about 8 ounces/240 g total weight), peeled, pitted, and cut into pieces

1 tablespoon water

2 to 4 tablespoons (30 to 60 g) sugar

2 teaspoons rum

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice

In a food processor fitted with the metal blade or in a blender, purée the mango pieces with the water, 2 tablespoons of the sugar, the rum, and lime juice. Taste for sweetness and add more sugar, if desired.

STORAGE:
This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

MAKES 1 CUP (250 ML)

The best strawberry sauce is made from the ripest strawberries. Look for ones that are red from top to bottom and all the way through to the core. If you take a sniff, they should smell like, well, ripe, sweet, strawberries. I don’t always strain out all the seeds since I sometimes like their texture and appearance in the sauce.

2½ cups (1 pound/450 g) strawberries

2 tablespoons (30 g) sugar, or more to taste

1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice or kirsch

In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, pureé the berries along with the sugar and lemon juice or kirsch. If you wish to remove the seeds, using a rubber spatula, press the purée through a fine-mesh strainer set over a medium bowl.

Taste for sweetness and add more sugar, if desired.

STORAGE:
This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

MAKES 1 CUP (250 ML)

This very glossy, deeply colored sauce is especially good with
Vanilla Ice Cream
but it also shines brightly alongside a fruit tart or a summer fruit galette.

2½ cups (12 ounces/340 g) blackberries

3 tablespoons (45 g) sugar, or more to taste

¼ teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

Purée the berries and remove the seeds by passing them through a food mill fitted with a fine disk into a medium bowl. Or, process the berries in a food processor fitted with the metal blade, then, using a rubber spatula, press the purée through a fine-mesh strainer set over a medium bowl.

Whisk in the sugar and lemon juice until the sugar dissolves. Taste for sweetness and add more sugar, if desired.

STORAGE:
This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

MAKES 2½ CUPS (625 ML)

Even when they’re in season, fresh apricots aren’t always easy to find, so I turn dried apricots that are available everywhere and at any time of the year into this delightfully tangy apricot sauce. I always use California dried apricots, which have a much deeper flavor than imported ones, and I highly recommend you do the same.

2¼ cups (560 ml) orange juice (freshly squeezed or store-bought), plus more as needed

2 tablespoons (30 g) sugar

3 ounces (85 g) dried California apricots, cut into quarters

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, combine the orange juice, sugar, and apricot pieces. Bring to a boil, remove from the heat, cover, and let stand 15 minutes.

In a food processor fitted with the metal blade or in a blender, purée the softened apricots and their liquid, along with the vanilla, until smooth. If necessary, thin with a bit more orange juice.

STORAGE:
This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

MAKES 2 CUPS (500 ML)

This sauce bridges two seasons—it marries the citrus fruit of winter and spring’s rhubarb. Its delicate color and bright flavor makes it the ideal accompaniment to
Ricotta Cheesecake with Orange and Aniseed
.

1 cup (250 ml) orange juice (freshly squeezed or store-bought)

½ cup (100 g) sugar, or more to taste

¾ pound (340 g) rhubarb, leaves trimmed, and stems cut into ¼-inch (6-mm) slices (about 3 cups)

In a medium saucepan, combine the orange juice, sugar, and rhubarb pieces. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, then remove from the heat, cover, and let stand until the rhubarb is tender, about 10 minutes.

In a food processor fitted with the metal blade, or in a blender, purée the rhubarb and its cooking liquid until smooth. Taste for sweetness and add more sugar, if desired.

STORAGE:
This sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

MAKES ABOUT 2 CUPS (250 ML)

During the brief cherry season when fresh cherries are abundant (and inexpensive), I make as many batches of candied cherries as I can, as they keep beautifully in their syrup for months in the refrigerator. I’ll add a handful of candied cherries to a fruit crisp before baking, or drain them well and fold them into a batch of just-churned ice cream. They are particularly good spooned over lemon desserts, such as
Tangy Lemon Frozen Yogurt
and
Lemon Semifreddo
and are delicious used in place of the chocolate-covered peanuts in
White Chocolate-Ginger Ice Cream
. Or, if no one’s looking, I just pluck one from the jar and pop it into my mouth.

2 cups (12 ounces/340 g) sweet cherries, pitted

1 cup (250 ml) water or apple juice

1 cup (200 g) sugar

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

In a large saucepan, combine the cherries, water or apple juice, sugar, and lemon juice. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the juices are quite syrupy and thickened to the consistency of warm honey, 15 to 20 minutes. If you like, you can use a candy thermometer to gauge doneness; the mixture should register about 220°F (105°C).

Transfer the cherries to a jar. Let cool, then cover and refrigerate.

STORAGE:
The cherries in their syrup will keep for at least 6 months in the refrigerator.

VARIATION:
To boost the cherry flavor, stir ⅛ teaspoon almond extract or 1 teaspoon amaretto liqueur into the cherries just before placing them in the jar.

MAKES ABOUT ½ POUND (225 G)

If I have a jar of candied ginger within arm’s reach, there’s an excellent chance that you’ll find my hand reaching into it. Yes, you can buy candied ginger, but it’s not at all difficult to make your own. From one good-size knob of fresh ginger, you can make enough so that even if you are caught with your hand in the ginger jar as much as I am, you’ll have some left to toss with fruit dessert, such as the
Nectarine-Berry Cobbler with Fluffy Biscuits
or to add to a batch of
Nonfat Gingersnaps
.

Take time to cut the ginger across the grain into thin slices no thicker than a coin because you want to make sure that any fibers in the ginger are minimized. If you can find young giner in the spring, you should definitely use it.

½ pound (225 g) fresh ginger

3 cups (750 ml) water

3 cups (600 g) sugar, plus 1 cup (200 g) for coating the ginger slices

Pinch of salt

1 tablespoon light corn syrup (optional; see Tip)

Peel the fresh ginger and slice it as thinly as possible, cutting crosswise against the fibers. Put the ginger slices in a large saucepan, add water to cover, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Decrease the heat to medium-low and simmer for 3 minutes. Drain the ginger and repeat this step twice more. You will have blanched the ginger slices a total of 3 times.