Blackberry soup with juniper cream and candied lemon peel

Total time: 20 minutes, plus 1 hour steeping and overnight chilling

Servings: 6

4 cups fresh blackberries

1/2 cup sugar

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1. In a large pot, combine the blackberries, 1 cup water, the sugar and lemon juice. Bring to a boil, remove from the heat and let steep, covered, for about an hour.

2. In a blender, purée the mixture in batches. Strain the mixture, mashing the berries against the strainer. Chill the strained soup until cold, preferably overnight.

1 tablespoon juniper berries

1 cup heavy cream

2 tablespoons sugar

1. The night before, crush the juniper berries with a spoon and add them with the cream to a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, remove from the heat, let cool until ready to refrigerate and then chill overnight.

2. Strain the cream, add the sugar and whip in a mixer until fluffy. Reserve, chilled, until ready for use.

4 lemons

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups club soda

1. Zest the 4 lemons with a zester (not a grater or microplane). The lemons should yield about one-half cup of zest, loosely packed.

2. Put the lemon zest, 2 cups of water and the sugar into a saucepan, bring to a boil and simmer on low heat for about 30 minutes. Remove the peel, cool on a rack or waxed paper and reserve. This can be done the day before; store the candied lemon peel in a plastic bag or container in the refrigerator.

3. Ladle the soup into bowls, pour one-quarter cup of club soda into each bowl, and top with a large spoonful of the juniper cream and a generous pinch of the lemon peel. Serve immediately.

Each serving: 296 calories; 2 grams protein; 41 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams fiber; 15 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 54 mg. cholesterol; 29 mg. sodium.