You’re legally obligated to bake this cakeWhen it comes to ice cream, I tend to be a creature of habit: coffee Haagen-Dazs at the bodega, whatever variation of “espresso chip” is on offer at the scoops shop. So I was surprised by my own impulses at a specialty grocery store on Monday, when I grabbed a pint of Red Flag, sweet cream rippled with strawberry jam and graham crackers, from the New York creamery Caffè Panna. But that swirl of strawberry called to me. It’s April, after all, and the fruit is about to get really good. Good enough for Jerrelle Guy’s beloved strawberry spoon cake — but if you can’t get your hands on the fresh stuff, you can still indulge your own strawberry impulses with frozen and thawed fruit. (Another great use for frozen strawberries? Zaynab Issa’s strawberry lassi, which is creamy, refreshing and tangy.) When served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, Jerrelle’s simple cake delightfully resembles that pint of Red Flag. If you make any dessert this season, let it be this one, for it requires only the berries, butter, brown sugar, flour, milk, salt and baking powder. Strawberry Spoon CakeHere’s a great litmus test for a must-bake cake: Search “one sitting” in the recipe comments. “I ate half in one sitting,” wrote a commenter. “I managed, barely, not to eat this all in one sitting,” wrote another. “My family inhaled this in one sitting!” wrote another. Yeah, that good. Jerrelle has the strawberry beat covered with her strawberry drop biscuits, in case you’re of the mind that cake is not a breakfast food. But these are no more complicated. There’s no rolling nor cutting, and they come together in one bowl with about the same number of ingredients. Or make some seasonal muffins, squarely in the middle. Lidey Heuck’s strawberry-rhubarb muffins are spring in the palm of your hand, sweet and tangy. To account for the berries’ wateriness when baked, she macerates them and the rhubarb first, and then drains the liquid before mixing them into the batter. But before we bake up that early season fruit, how about a late-season vegetable? Peak season for broccoli and broccoli rabe runs through early spring, so it’s the perfect time for Alexa Weibel’s spicy broccoli rabe pasta. This vegan recipe leans on miso as the base for its silky sauce, a purée of sautéed onions, garlic, crushed red pepper, pasta water and the savory paste. Or perhaps you’d like to preface your sweet moment with Christian Reynoso’s super-savory broccoli Cheddar beans. It is hard for me to hear “broccoli Cheddar” and not think “bread bowl,” but the cheesy croutons that top this lively stew are an infinitely more delicious use of bread. Though if you already have broccoli and white beans, you could also riff on Kristina Felix’s broccoli and white bean Caesar, which is not vegetarian as written (hello, anchovies). Do not let that deter you! A number of readers in the comments have had swap success when making the dressing. In place of the fish, try a tablespoon of capers, though you may want to salt to taste, or prepare the components of the salad and make your own vegan Caesar dressing.
Spicy Broccoli Rabe Pasta
Broccoli Cheddar Beans
Strawberry-Rhubarb MuffinsFor a limited time, you can enjoy free access to the recipes in this newsletter in our app. Download it on your iOS or Android device and create a free account to get started. One More Thing!Bleak: Big money is coming for our bagels. Chic: The kitchen of my dreams. Thanks for reading, and see you next week! Email us at theveggie@nytimes.com. Newsletters are archived here. Reach out to my colleagues at cookingcare@nytimes.com if you have questions about your account. Want to see more of our recipes in your Google search results?
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