As a professional Jew, there are two things you never do. One is email on Shabbat. The other is serve strawberries at a board meeting.
I know this because once I served strawberries at a board meeting. They were vibrant red berries, not at all puffy and artificially perfect like the vast commercial variety. I washed them in a colander in the sink. By myself. No mashgiach (kosher supervisor) in sight. After the meeting, our rabbi kindly took me aside for a little kosher 101 on why berries did not make the cut.
This was prior to May 2009, when strawberries were declared all-good by Sephardic Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar. Basically, the Torah isn’t down with bug and insect eating, but Rabbi Amar said that’s only the case if the insects are visible to the eye. No one holy said boo about forbidding the consumption of insects seen through a microscope.
So guess what, people? Strawberries are cool now —
at least for Rabbi Amar. Although I would still advise against serving them at board meetings.
To prepare berries, soak them in water, rinse them off and remove the leafy greens. As we near the end of strawberry season, if you have strawberries remaining in your fruit bowl, mix them up with one of these recipes. The Fiery Strawberry Chicken Satay in particular is perfect for berries a little past their peak.
I developed and submitted both of these recipes to the Naturipe Farms Strawberry Contest. The grand prize was six months of free housecleaning, which my chaotic home could have really used. Alas, I didn’t win that, but did score a nice little runner-up prize that will help me buy … more strawberries!
Fiery Strawberry Chicken Satay
Serves 4
1 basket (8 oz.) strawberries
1⁄4 cup olive oil
3 Tbs. balsamic vinegar
1 Tbs. tomato paste
1 Tbs. brown sugar
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. salt
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 small chipotle chile pepper in adobo sauce (from a can)
2 lbs. skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into strips
16 wooden skewers, soaked in water 30 minutes
Blend all ingredients except chicken in food processor until smooth.
Thread the chicken on the skewers (work skewers in and out of meat so it stays in place when you cook), 1-2 tenders per skewer. Arrange skewers in a 9×12-inch baking dish and pour all but 3⁄4 cup of sauce over chicken. Marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight.
Prepare your charcoal or gas grill for cooking over medium heat. Cook chicken skewers (preferably on an oiled grill pan) 3-4 minutes per side until cooked through. Serve with reserved 3⁄4 cup strawberry sauce with a side of greens if you have them on hand. If not, serve just plain chicken and sauce.
Sweet Summer Strawberry and Basil Cake
Serves 6-8
1 stick (8 oz.) unsalted butter, softened
3⁄4 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 cup flour
1 tsp. garam masala spice mix
1 tsp. cardamom, divided
1 tsp. baking powder
pinch of salt
1⁄4 cup fresh basil, julienned
8 oz. strawberries, cut in half
1 Tbs. brown sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar till smooth. Stir in eggs. Mix in flour, garam masala, 1⁄2 tsp. cardamom (reserve remainder for top of cake), baking powder and salt until just combined. Fold in basil.
Pour into greased 8-inch round cake pan. Arrange halved fruit, cut side up, on top of cake. Sprinkle with sugar and remaining 1⁄2 tsp. teaspoon of cardamom.
Bake for 35-40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.
Josie A.G. Shapiro won the 2013 Man-O Manischewitz Cook-Off, is the co-author of “The Lazy Gourmet” and works at Jewish LearningWorks. Her columns alternate with those of Faith Kramer. Her website is www.thechickencontests.com