Expedition 002: Roasted Strawberry Jam

Roasting fruit is apparently one of my favorite past-times—roasted bananas have long been a favorite, but when strawberry season rolls around, I start having roasted strawberry dreams. Roasting fruit of any kind concentrates the fruit juices and caramelizes the fruit sugars, greatly intensifying and deepening their natural flavor. Roasted fruit can stand up to more robust flavor combinations, and in the case of strawberries, allows you to control the moisture level of your dessert.

To quell my recent insurgence of roasted strawberry mania, I made up a big batch of roasted strawberry jam—a simple and great way to put early-season (i.e. not the sweetest or ripest) strawberries to work—and created a handful of recipes that highlight the beautiful ingredient. You can always make the jam in a smaller batch so you’re not eating roasted strawberry jam for days if you’re not quite as obsessive as I am.

Until next time,

The Culinary Darwinist

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Species in this expedition

1. Roasted Strawberry and Coconut Crumb Bars — Roasted strawberry was born to pair with toasted coconut and shortbread, and these crumb bars are proof.

2. Roasted Strawberry Jam Filled Corn Muffins — Corn muffins and jam are a wonderful combination, and this jam has the perfect amount of sweetness to complement the barely sweet corn meal.

3. Orange & Brown Sugar Cake with Roasted Strawberry Buttercream — Roasted strawberries have a deep, homey flavor that goes beautifully well with this rustic yet bright cake.

4. Roasted Strawberry, Balsamic, and Mascarpone Hand Pies — Balsamic vinegar adds a delightful sharpness and lightly sweetened adds a rich creaminess to these flaky little hand pies.

Other species

1. Roasted Strawberry Galette with Pistachio Mascarpone Whipped Cream — Part of my Culinary Expedition of Pistachio Paste, roasted strawberry pairs beautifully with the bright nuttiness of pistachios.

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Basic Roasted Strawberry Jam

Makes about 2.5 cups of jam

Ingredients

4 pints of strawberries, washed, dried, and hulled
Note: Leave the strawberries whole, or they will release too much juice while roasting.
1 tsp vegetable oil
3 cups sugar
1 cup brown sugar
Pinch of salt

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 425º. Toss the strawberries with the vegetable oil and roast for about 25 minutes, or until the strawberries are browned and some of their juices have released and thickened up slightly.
2. Transfer the strawberries and all their juices to a pot with the sugars and salt. Stir to combine. Cook over medium heat until a candy thermometer reads 220º, or until a couple droplets of the jam dripped onto a plate sets up nicely. For most of the recipes below, you'll want a jam that isn't too thick, as it will get baked again or whipped into another component. ∎

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Roasted Strawberry & Coconut Crumb Bars

Makes 16 square crumb bars

Ingredients

4 T butter
4 T prepared pistachio paste
¼ tsp almond extract
⅛ tsp fine sea salt
One 10oz bag of marshmallows
5 cups rice krispies

Method

1. Grease a 9x9" cake pan with butter or cooking spray. (No shame, I use the latter.) If you want thinner, smaller, and more numerous rice krispies, use a 9x13" pan.
2. In a medium-large pot (I use a stockpot), melt the butter on medium-high heat. After it melts, it will start to sputter and foam—keep it going until it turns a medium golden brown and smells nutty. Immediately add the pistachio paste and stir to combine. Turn the heat down to medium, and add the almond extract, sea salt, and marshmallows.
3. Stir the mixture together until the marshmallows are completely melted. Add in the rice krispies and stir together until homogenous. Pour into the greased pan and let cool completely before slicing into large squares. ∎

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Pistachio Olive Oil Cake with Orange Pistachio Glaze

Makes one 8" cake

Ingredients

For the cake

3 large eggs
¾ cup sugar
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup whole milk
½ tsp vanilla
¼ tsp almond extract
¼ cup pistachio paste

1¼ cup flour
½ cup shelled pistachios, measured then processed into a medium-fine flour
1½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt

For the glaze

1½ cups powdered sugar
Zest of ½ an orange
1 T pistachio paste
3-4 T hot water

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 350º and grease an 8" cake pan. In a medium-large bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar until light in color—about 3 minutes at a vigorous whisking pace. Slowly pour in the olive oil while continuing to whisk. Whisk for 2 minutes or so after all the oil has been added. Add in the milk, vanilla, almond extract, and pistachio paste, and whisk to combine.
2. Add the flour, pistachios, baking powder, and salt, and fold into the wet mixture using a spatula until fully combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean but glistening slightly. Let the cake cool completely before glazing.
3. To make the glaze, combine all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth. If you like a thicker glaze, use less water—if you like a thinner coating, use more. Strain the glaze through a fine-mesh sieve to remove the zest and pistachio granules, then pour over the cooled cake. ∎

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Roasted Strawberry Galette with Pistachio Mascarpone Whipped Cream

Makes one 8" galette. The pie crust is written using weight because you'll get a more consistent result.

Ingredients

For the pie dough

113 grams butter (1 stick)
184 grams pastry flour, or bleached all-purpose
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
1/8 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp white vinegar
3-4 T ice cold water

1 egg, for the egg wash
Optional: raw or Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling

For the roasted strawberries

1 quart strawberries, washed, dried, and hulled
1 T vegetable oil
3 T brown sugar
1 tsp all-purpose flour

For the pistachio mascarpone whipped cream

3/4 cup heavy cream
3 T prepared pistachio paste
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
2 T confectioner's sugar

Method

1. Cut the butter into 1/4" chunks and freeze for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl. Toss the frozen butter in the flour, and use your hands to work the butter into the flour until you have an irregular mix of mostly coarse grains with some large-pea-sized chunks of butter.
2. Sprinkle the vinegar over the mixture, along with 1 T of ice cold water. Toss to combine, then proceed adding about 1/2 T of water at a time while tossing and gently kneading the dough until it just sticks together when you squeeze it. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes.
3. While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 425º. Toss the strawberries in the vegetable oil and roast for about 15 minutes, or until the strawberries have released some juice and browned a bit. Remove from the oven and toss with the brown sugar and flour. Let the mixture cool to room temp before proceeding. Lower the oven temp to 375º.
4. After the dough has rested, roll it out into a circle that is 1/8" thick. Spread the roasted strawberries in the center of the dough, leaving about a 2" border. Fold the edges over the strawberry mixture. Egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the dough is a deep golden brown.
5. While the tart cools, scald the heavy cream and the pistachio paste in a small saucepan. (Scalding is when you bring milk or cream to the point just before simmering.) Strain the heavy cream through a fine mesh sieve and refigerate until completely cold. Whip the cream, mascarpone cheese, and confectioner's sugar until it forms medium peaks. If you want to serve the galette warm (do it!), serve the mascarpone cream on the side—otherwise it will melt. If serving the galette at room temp, you can spread the cream over the galette. ∎

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Roasted Strawberry, Balsamic, and Mascarpone Hand Pies

Makes one 8" galette. The pie crust is written using weight because you'll get a more consistent result.

Ingredients

For the pie dough

113 grams butter (1 stick)
184 grams pastry flour, or bleached all-purpose
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
1/8 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp white vinegar
3-4 T ice cold water

1 egg, for the egg wash
Optional: raw or Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling

For the roasted strawberries

1 quart strawberries, washed, dried, and hulled
1 T vegetable oil
3 T brown sugar
1 tsp all-purpose flour

For the pistachio mascarpone whipped cream

3/4 cup heavy cream
3 T prepared pistachio paste
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
2 T confectioner's sugar

Method

1. Cut the butter into 1/4" chunks and freeze for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl. Toss the frozen butter in the flour, and use your hands to work the butter into the flour until you have an irregular mix of mostly coarse grains with some large-pea-sized chunks of butter.
2. Sprinkle the vinegar over the mixture, along with 1 T of ice cold water. Toss to combine, then proceed adding about 1/2 T of water at a time while tossing and gently kneading the dough until it just sticks together when you squeeze it. Cover in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes.
3. While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 425º. Toss the strawberries in the vegetable oil and roast for about 15 minutes, or until the strawberries have released some juice and browned a bit. Remove from the oven and toss with the brown sugar and flour. Let the mixture cool to room temp before proceeding. Lower the oven temp to 375º.
4. After the dough has rested, roll it out into a circle that is 1/8" thick. Spread the roasted strawberries in the center of the dough, leaving about a 2" border. Fold the edges over the strawberry mixture. Egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the dough is a deep golden brown.
5. While the tart cools, scald the heavy cream and the pistachio paste in a small saucepan. (Scalding is when you bring milk or cream to the point just before simmering.) Strain the heavy cream through a fine mesh sieve and refigerate until completely cold. Whip the cream, mascarpone cheese, and confectioner's sugar until it forms medium peaks. If you want to serve the galette warm (do it!), serve the mascarpone cream on the side—otherwise it will melt. If serving the galette at room temp, you can spread the cream over the galette. ∎