Berries with Cocoa Whipped Cream

 2/14/2022 unfortunately lands on a Monday. I know I am working late and cooking an elaborate dinner is definitely out of the picture. Although I compromised by making a big dinner with my fiancé on Sunday, I believe it is still important to celebrate on the day of. I decided to look through my collection of cookbooks to find a super quick & delicious dessert recipe that ANYONE can make in 5 minutes. Now & Again by Julia Turshen is in the top 3 of all my cookbooks. The recipes are brilliant and she organizes them in multi-course fashion. This makes it very easy for us readers to get a sense of what dishes/flavors pair well together. The book also inspires us to cook with ingredients that are in season. This dessert is from the Spring chapter and although much of the United States is still experiencing winter storms, Los Angeles has been near 80°F for at least a week. This recipe uses raspberries but I used strawberries since I had some at home already.

serves 4

Ingredients:

1/2 cup (120ml) heavy cream
1 tbsp honey (optional)
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp Dutch-processed cocoa powder
pinch of kosher salt
2 cups (240g) rasberries or strawberries

Direction:

In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, com-bine the cream, honey (if using), vanilla, cocoa powder, and salt and beat on medium-high speed until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes (or use a bowl and a whisk and some solid effort). Divide the cream and berries among four small bowls. Serve immediately. The combination is especially nice with a little dark chocolate grated on top.

Excerpt from: Now & Again by Julia Turshen