April Fools, A Bit Late

One of the best April Fool's pranks that I've ever seen was done by my husband. My 10 year old son wanted to do something funny to one of his buddies, so my husband called up his friend, David, and identified himself as a disc jockey from Radio Disney. My husband has a fabulous announcer voice and he really sold it.

With his suave patter, he told David that he could win a trip to Disneyland if he could correctly answer all the questions he asked. David was excited at this opportunity. First my husband asked him to name all the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. David was into the Turtles in a big way and had no problem with this one. Then several other softball questions followed to build David's confidence and excitement.

When he could almost taste and touch that trip to Disneyland, my husband hit him with the final question, the one that would clinch the trip for him. "David," he asked him, "what is the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle and how does it impact the orbit of sub-atomic quantum particles using non-Newtonian physics?" In the silence that followed we could almost hear David's face falling.



My husband, still in d.j. mode, said, "Oh, that's too bad, David. So close, so close! Just one more thing, David. April Fools!"

This April I had a Fool that was much nicer. It had fresh strawberries and cream. Mmmm. It was creamy, dreamy delicious. I only felt like a fool for not having tried this sooner.

Berry Fool
- adapted from Williams-Sonoma Desserts

9 strawberries (small to medium in size)
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup frozen blueberries
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
Pinch of kosher salt
1/4 cup heavy cream

1- Place a mixing bowl and beaters into the freezer.

2- Rinse, stem, and hull 7 strawberries, then quarter them lengthwise.

3- In a small bowl, toss together the quartered strawberries and the 1/3 cup sugar. Then using a fork, smash the berries until they are jamlike and mostly puréed. Add the blueberries and crush lightly with the fork. Stir in the lemon juice and salt. Taste and add 1-2 more tablespoons sugar, if desired.

4- In the chilled bowl, with a mixer on medium to medium-high speed, whip the cream until firm peaks form when the beaters are lifted. Scoop the chilled fruit onto the cream and with a rubber spatula gently fold the fruit into the cream, just until incorporated.

5- Spoon into dessert bowls or glasses and serve immediately or cover and refrigerate overnight.

6- To garnish, cut the remaining 2 strawberries in half and put a half on top of each fool.