Chilled Strawberry Soup with Mint Cream and Vanilla Crisps
Slowly stewing chopped strawberries over simmering water concentrates the flavor beautifully; the minty cream topping makes the soup even more elegant, as do the layered vanilla phyllo crisps served alongside. Known as feuille de brique in French, these crisps can also be used as the pastry base for a napoleon, or as an accompaniment to a savory soup if you substitute olive oil for the butter and salt for the vanilla sugar. They're worth the extra effort, but if you're short on time, you can use store-bought tuiles or other delicate buttery cookies instead. Beautiful Desserts
August 2005