Springtime: When the Cooking Is Easy

If you don’t consider yourself a good cook, you can become better by simply buying freshly harvested produce. And you don’t have to learn lots of tricky cooking skills and techniques.

The best sources for these fruits and vegetables are places where you can buy directly from the farmers. Roadside stands can be found along many rural roads; U-Pick farms allow you to pick the fruits or vegetables yourself (ideal if you do a lot of canning and preserving). Of course, farmers markets can now be found in almost every town or city in California.

Buying from farmers not only gives you the best available fruits and vegetables, it is a fine excuse to get away from the usual routine of shopping. Nothing beats a leisurely drive along rural country roads or a stroll outdoors at the farmers market.

In order to buy the best of the best, you need to learn how to pick out prime produce. Look and feel are the best guides. Most vegetables should have good color and a firm feel. Potatoes, for example, should be very firm to the touch. String beans should be crisp and bright-green. Garlic should feel heavy. Asparagus should have firm tops and not be soft and droopy.

Stone fruits should yield when pressed gently but should not be soft. Cherries should always feel very firm. The best rule at farmers markets is to watch for stalls with lots of customers. Regular shoppers quickly figure out who raises the best fruits and produce.

Cook vegetables by gently boiling or steaming. Serve vegetables with very little dressing, as in the following recipe for asparagus with a modest amount of sesame mayonnaise. Good vegetables never suffer when served plain, lightly salted, with a touch of butter or olive oil.

The strawberry angel pie is certainly not simple, but it is a wonderful way to welcome the early strawberries of the season. If you want to serve strawberries that take very little preparation, try this: Hull them, slice them if you like, sugar lightly and pour freshly squeezed orange juice over them with a little grated orange zest. Toss lightly and chill until serving time.

COLD ASPARAGUS WITH SESAME MAYONNAISE

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/2 to 1 teaspoon sesame oil

2 pounds asparagus, rinsed and trimmed

Place mayonnaise in bowl and stir in 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil. Taste and add more, if desired.

Cook asparagus in large pot of salted, boiling water until just done, about 2 to 5 minutes, depending on how thick stalks are. With tongs remove asparagus from water and let cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until serving time. Serve each portion with scant tablespoon of sesame mayonnaise. Makes 6 servings.

Each serving contains about:

87 calories; 95 mg sodium; 3 mg cholesterol; 5 grams fat; 9 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams protein; 1.23 grams fiber.

*

Meringues are temperamental. Don’t be alarmed when the crust collapses a bit and cracks as it cools. This is as it should be--the cracks won’t show when the pie is filled.

STRAWBERRY ANGEL PIE

4 eggs, separated, at room temperature

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

Butter

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 tablespoon grated lemon zest

1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/3 cup powdered sugar

2 cups strawberries, rinsed, hulled, sliced

Combine egg whites, salt and cream of tartar in large mixing bowl. Beat with electric beater until soft peaks form. Slowly add 1 cup granulated sugar and beat until shiny peaks form. Spread mixture over bottom of buttered 9-inch pie pan, building meringue up around rim about 1 inch higher than edge of pan. Bake at 275 degrees until lightly golden and firm to touch, about 1 hour. Turn off heat and let cool in oven with door open.

While crust cools, beat egg yolks in pan until thick and pale. Slowly beat in remaining 1/2 cup sugar. Add lemon juice and zest. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens, about 5 minutes. Be careful not to let custard stick or scorch. Remove from heat and let cool.

Beat cream in mixing bowl until stiff enough to hold peaks. There should be about 3 cups. Refrigerate until time to assemble pie.

Sprinkle powdered sugar over strawberries in bowl and gently toss to sweeten evenly.

Gently stir 1 cup whipped cream into cooled lemon custard, mixing only until well blended. Spread mixture over bottom of meringue shell. Fold strawberries into remaining 2 cups whipped cream and pile on top of lemon layer. Decorate surface of whipped cream with whole berries or bit of reserved strawberry juice. Makes 6 servings.

Each serving contains about:

492 calories; 172 mg sodium; 224 mg cholesterol; 26 grams fat; 63 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams protein; 0.26 gram fiber.

Background rug in strawberry pie photo from Bristol Farms Cook ‘N’ Things, South Pasadena. caption