The Sweetness of Cherry Season

One of the first fruit harvests of late Spring and early summer are cherries. They are  abundant right now, in  all their ruby red glory. What is so great about them is that they can be made into a variety of  different desserts. The first stone fruits of the season are perfect for everything and  anything , from ice cream to tarts.

David Tanis thought so and featured them in his column , A City Kitchen , in today's New York Times Food section.On their own, the first  harvests are a proper dessert in themselves. They're both deliciously tart and sweet, without any embellishments.. However he provides three cherry-centric desserts that highlight their flavor  and brightness.Best of all they're easy  to make- a boon in this hot weather. Some of the recipes can be split into two days so prep time is leisurely and relaxed. One of the easiest looks hard to execute but if made  in two days , an easy dessert. It is cherry ice cream sandwiches  rolled in coconut flakes. Make the ice cream the first day, it's simple custard recipe with stewed and pureed cherries added later. The cookies can be made a day later ,leaving the filling to firm up overnight. These are a simple shortbread although if you don't feel like heating up your oven, buy a good shortbread like Walker's  and use those instead.

The other desserts are both elegant ad easy as well.One is a cherry frangipane tart that can be stretched into two days of making too. Start with the tart shell, again relatively easy to whip up.There are only five ingredients with butter being the main one. The filling is classic frangipane,  using cream and almond flavoring. Cherries and slivered almonds are then pressed into the batter .They not only provide decoaration but an extra burst of sweet tartness to cut the pastry's sweetness. Mr. Tanis also puts the fruits of the seaon in one of the most elegant desserts ever - iles flottante. This sophisticated French sweet is basically fluffy meringue clouds  over a crème anglaise base. The traditional recipe calls for a drizzle of caramel but Mr. Tanis adds a sweet-sour cherry compote to give it a spike of color and a punch of flavor.A pound of pitted cherries is cooked  with a cup of sugar. Rose water is added for delicacy and for  scent as well. Pistachios are also sprinkled on top for added color and texture.

Take advantage of the first cherry harvests of June. Yes, they're good, just freshly washed and on their own but they're pure heaven in any dessert. Try them in a fun ice cream sandwich, or an elegant tart or iles flottante.

Julia's Floating Island

Is there nothing more elegant than an ile flottante or floating island dessert?it's a delicate combination of a sweet liquidy custard dotted with meringue puffs. When  it's Julia Child's recipe it's even more special  with a certain Gallic twist to it. It's not only classic but delicious too.
Madame Child's recipe was the subject of A Good Appetite's column in yesterday's New York Times. Melissa Clark gives an homage to her childhood favorite that her parents, huge Julia Child affectionadoess made. As a child it was one of her favorite desserts. An ile flottante is a syrupy kind of custard dotted with mergingue puffs, hence the name floating island.It is the perfect dessert to make not only to impress people (]it's up there with Cherries Jubilee)  but also to finish off a nice roast with the trimmings.You can make it during any time of year.it can end a summer soiree as easily as in a holiday meal.

Since it is a Julia Child recipe , it is a labor intensive one.Floating island requires meringues to be mad which are not always easy. It's a two day prep with a cooling process of one day. The custard for it can be too sweet so Ms. Clark  added apricots to give it the appropriate tartness.It does require one half cup of sugar to balance out the milk and four egg yolks used..You can make it without the fruit or add another kind such as blueberries or cherries. You can also leave it plain as well. However since the meringue is also super sweet , the dessert should have some bite.

Julia Child' s legacy continues to new generations of chefs and home cooks. Her desserts are as elegant now as they were during the Fifties  and Sixties. Iles flottante is evidence of that  of what she gave us   delicate French cooking made for American tastes.