The Scent of Strawberries

Sometimes, when we were kids, my sister and I would stay at my grandparent's house when my parents went out of town. This didn't happen that often, so it was a little like a mini-adventure each time we went to stay. Once there and settled in, I had a ritual of making a slow circuit of the house, looking at all of my grandmother's shelves and cabinets to see if any of the knick-knacks and doo-dads had changed or moved. I don't remember that anything ever did. And there was something oddly soothing in the fact that things were always in their place, just where I remembered seeing them the last time. My grandma's house was not very big, and the entire journey around the house probably took less than ten minutes, but it always ended in one place...in front of the china cabinet that held a special candle. The candle was a small white teacup resting on a matching saucer, and the two pieces were decorated with strawberries and blossoms. But the best part was the strawberry scented candle that filled that teacup. Each time I went to Grandma's, I asked her to take the candle down off the shelf so I could hold it, and then I'd slowly take a big whiff of the intoxicating strawberry scent.

A few years ago, it was time to move Grandma into a retirement home, and as we packed up her house, and she decided what to keep and what to give away, we came across the strawberry teacup candle. She smiled when she handed it over to me, remembering how much I had always loved it as a child. Today, the candle sits on my bookshelf in my living room, reminding me of my grandmother and her life-long love of everything strawberry. I decided that when my grandmother passes on, I am going to burn the strawberry candle in her honor, and let the heavenly scent of strawberries float with her on her journey. I have not told my grandmother that this is what I plan to do, but somehow I know that it would make her tremendously happy to be remembered with our favorite strawberry candle.

I thought of my grandmother this weekend, as I went strawberry picking out on Sauvie Island with my mom and sister. I know that in her younger years, she would have loved to have been out there with us. There is something magical about being in a field of strawberry plants and breathing in the sweet smell of freshly ripe strawberries. And eating them as you pluck them off the stem is simply divine (after carefully inspecting them for dirt and bugs, of course!). This is something we do every year, at least once during strawberry season, and Saturday was a beautiful day for it - plenty of sunshine and cool breezes. After meticulously selecting the most perfectly ripened, plumpest strawberries I could find, I couldn't wait to get home and try a new recipe that I had found in The Oregonian. The recipe is by Deborah Madison and is called a Right-Side-Up Cake. It can be made with any kind of fruit, from apricots, to peaches, to blueberries, to pitted cherries, or any combination that suits your fancy. I had planned to make the cake with strawberries, nectarines and apricots, but after forgetting my apricots and nectarines at my mom's house, I decided I was too impatient to wait and went ahead and made the cake with only the strawberries. It came out very tasty and doesn't dirty a lot of dishes... a win-win after being in the strawberry fields for a couple of hours!

*Note- I ate this cake the first day I made it and again the following two days (hey, somebody had to taste-test the cake!) and the almond flavor definitely intensified over time. I will post the original recipe but note that I would reduce the almond extract to 1/8 tsp, and might even experiment with removing it altogether to give a more subtle almond flavor. Also, though the cake was delicious with only one type of fruit, I think it would be even better with two or three varieties in combination.

Right-Side-Up Cake

Topping:

• 1 1/2 cups fruit (chopped to small pieces)
• 2 Tbs granulated sugar

Cake:

• 3 1/2 oz almond paste (not marzipan)
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 eggs, room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 tsp almond extract (again, I would probably use 1/8 tsp next time)
• 1/2 cup sour cream or plain yogurt
• 2/3 cup corn flour (not cornmeal, I used Bob's Red Mill)
• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• powdered sugar, for dusting top of cake

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Coat a 5-by-8-inch springform pan with butter. Line the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment paper and butter this as well.
   
2. For the topping, toss the fruit and sugar in a medium bowl and set aside.
   
3. In a food processor, combine the almond paste and sugar and pulse until evenly combined. Add the butter and pulse until well combined. With the machine running, add the eggs, one at a time, until well-blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the vanilla and almond extracts and the sour cream. Blend until smooth.
   
4. In a medium bowl (or on a large piece of wax paper, so as not to dirty another bowl!), mix the corn flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder and salt. Add half of the dry ingredients to the mixer and pulse 3 times. Add the second half and pulse another 3 times. Scrape the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated and then pulse 3-4 more times.
   
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Pile the fruit over the top. Bake in the center of the oven until lightly browned and springy when pressed with a fingertip, about 1 hour or slightly longer.
6. Let stand for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Dust with powdered sugar. Let cool to room temperature before slicing. Can be served with whipped cream and fresh fruit if desired.
   

Enjoy!
-Colleen