Thanks to a super tweet-tip from The Thomas Shepherd Inn, we’ve developed berry fever!  As reported by innkeepers Jeanne Muir and Jim Ford, local  Ridgefield Farms opened Saturday and you can join them in harvesting this year’s juicy crop of strawberries.  As any local produce snob knows, “real” strawberries taste nothing like their supermarket counterparts.  Local, fresh strawberries take on an almost sublime perfume-y quality that leave you as refreshed as if you had just sipped a mellow floral tea.  They are perfect “as is” but if you have a good quantity from pickin’ and you have already made a yummy chutney or jam, we highly recommend this rustic yet refined strawberry galette recipe from Martha Stewart’s collection.  We make it each year.  It combines rich pastry and strawberries with basil, in the form of basil-infused cream (YUM!) and sugared fried basil leaves (DOUBLE YUM!)   

STRAWBERRY GALETTE serves 6-8

For the Basil Cream:  3/4 cup heavy cream, 1/3 cup fresh basil, chopped, 2 tbsp sugar, 3/4 cup mascarpone cheese

For the Fried Basil: 2 cups veggie oil, 18 - 24 large fresh basil leaves, sugar for sprinkling

For the Dough:  2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface, 1 1/8 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar, 8 oz. (1 cup) cold, unsalted butter cut into small pieces, 1/3 cup plus 2 tbsp cold water

For the Galette:  1 pound hulled strawberries, 1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp sugar, 2 tsp cornstarch, 1 large egg yolk, 1 tbsp water, 1 tbsp cold unsalted butter pieces cut into small pieces

Make It:  

1. Make the basil cream: Combine cream, basil & sugar in a heatproof bowl.  Set bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water, & stir until sugar dissolves.  Cover with plastic wrap, & refrigerate for 2 hours.  Strain through a fine sieve into a bowl.  Add mascarpone & whisk until medium peaks form.  Cover & refrigerate until ready to serve, up to 2 hours.
2. Make the fried basil: Heat oil in a deep skillet to 325 degrees.  Fry basil a few leaves at a time, for 12 seconds.  Drain leaves on paper towels & let cool completely.  Sprinkle both sides of the leaves with sugar.
3. Make the dough: Pulse flour, salt, and sugar in food processor (or if in Shepherdstown - by hand) to combine.  Add butter, and pulse until mixture forms coarse crumbs.  Add ice water and pulse until combined (dough will still be crumbly).  Shape dough in a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  On a floured surface, roll dough to 1/4” thickness.  Cut out a 10” round, and transfer to a parchment lined rimmed baking sheet.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
5. Make the galette: Cut strawberries lengthwise into 1/4” thick slices.  Reserve end pieces for another use (especially if you live in Shepherdstown). Toss slices with 1/4 cup sugar & the corn starch & then immediately arrange them in concentric circles on dough.  Start 1 inch from the edge, overlapping slices slightly.  Fold edge of dough over berries.  Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
6. Whisk together yolk and water.  Brush dough with the egg wash, and sprinkle with remaining 1 tbsp of sugar.  Dot berries with butter.  Bake until crust is golden brown, 40 - 45 minutes.
7. Transfer to serving plate & serve warm with basil cream and fried basil.
8. Enjoy!

*Recipe originally published in the May 2008 issue of Martha Stewart Living magazine.