Yes, I've tried organic; yes, I've tried farmstands, pick-your-own, and CSAs. I vividly remember the last time I went strawberry picking. Kneeling in the dirt in the brutally hot sun, half-heartedly filling baskets with fruit. Every once in a while I'd pick one that looked especially promising and pop it in my mouth. And then I'd pause and reflect and think to myself, "Seriously. What the fuck?"
Strawberries cooked with sugar are, of course, an entirely different ballgame.So when I saw the following recipe in the May/June 2011 issue of Cook's Illustrated, I was intrigued. Combining a quick-cooked sweetened strawberry puree with fresh whole berries sounded promising.
The resulting pie was beautiful. The lightly thickened puree united the berries together had a fantastic flavor, and in a good crust, with a decadent slather of lightly sweetened whipped cream, it was definitely edible. Even enjoyable.
However.Since the uncooked berries feature so prominently, they have to be good ones. And that thing I said before about thinking they are possibly mythical fruit? Yeah, that. Even the organic berries were still supermarket berries, which impacted the flavor and texture of the pie. Maybe local, farm market berries would merge more melodiously with the cooked puree.
I have another, similar recipe that I will have to try again for a fresh comparison.
But for all my complaining? Yes, we totally ate it. All of it.
You'll need a prebaked pie shell for this recipe. I don't need to 'splain that part. Right? Right.
Strawberry Pie
serves 8
