I have a stack of M.F.K Fisher books and short stories that live next to my bed. In between books or even taking a break from what I’m currently reading, I will pick her up and dive in. Reading her is like being with an old friend–no matter how long you’ve been apart, you seem to pick right back up where you left off and part again feeling fulfilled and joyous. I read a short essay of hers the other night called “Hearts and Flowers”–and it happened (so nicely) to be about Valentines Day. In it, she gives the perfect prescription for a Valentine’s Luncheon, including Little Sandwiches in a Boat, Eggs Valentine with Mushrooms, Endives with Violet, Cream Heart, Bacchus Cocktails, and Vin Rose. “The Bacchus cocktail, which properly sets the theme with its evocative name,” she describes, “is delicate, appetizing, and of a rosy color that sings out loud.” Yes, please! I was thinking to myself as I was reading. But when I got to the part about the Cream Heart, I was immediately intrigued. She says, “the dessert, another shock to guests expecting at the least some elaborate mousse, is a flat pat, half “cottage” cheese and half cream cheese put through a sieve with enough cream to moisten, and then molded in a wicker heart or cut into shape when it is well drained on a napkin, with rich gleaming strawberry preserves in a hole in the center. It is served, not with the little cakes so correctly expected, but with crisp, lightly toasted slices of sourdough bread. And coffee.” I love her mischievous way of merry making and menu planning. She thought things through to the very end, including the anticipation of the guests surprise, then delight.

How does one make this Cream Heart or Coeur à la Crème? I found out about the French saying because this exact recipe was posted on Saveur’s website as the Valentines dessert. What luck! They used a nifty coeur a la creme mold which seems like it would come in handy for this particular dessert–however, I just used my hands dipped in a little warm water every few pats I gave the cream to shape it into a heart.

The cream itself is excellent–I love the warm honey undertones with the slightly salty cream cheese and goat cheese flavors. However, the strawberry sauce was OUT OF THIS WORLD. As I was making it, I was transfixed by the seductive aroma as I stirred it in the pot. I literally woke up, as if I was hypnotized, to find myself a few inches from the pot still stirring it, just smelling it in. That’s never happened to me before… And it was love at first smell!

Coeur à la Crème, via Saveur

6 oz. fresh goat cheese
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup honey
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp. confectioners’ sugar

For the strawberries:

1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp. light corn syrup
1/2 cup red wine, preferably pinot noir or zinfandel
3 whole cloves
2 whole black peppercorns
1 2″ cinnamon stick
1/2 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise
and scraped, seeds reserved
3 cups strawberries (about 1 1/2
pints), hulled and halved
lengthwise

1. Make the coeur à la crème: Soak two 12″ x 12″ pieces of cheesecloth in cold water and squeeze dry. Put a 7″ heart-shaped coeur à la crème mold into a baking dish or set a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl; line mold or sieve with the cheesecloth, allowing the corners to drape over the side. Set aside.

2. With a whisk or hand-held mixer, whisk together the goat cheese, cream cheese, and honey until very smooth. In another bowl, whisk together the cream and confectioners’ sugar until soft peaks form. Gently fold the cream into the cheese mixture until evenly combined. Spoon the mixture into the prepared mold or sieve and fold the corners of cheesecloth over the top. Allow the mixture to drain for at least 2 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator.

3. Make the strawberries: In a 12″ skillet, stir together the sugar, corn syrup, and 1/4 cup water over medium-high heat. Cook, swirling pan occasionally, until syrup is light golden, about 4 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and add wine, cloves, peppercorns, cinnamon, and vanilla bean with seeds. Return pan to heat and cook, stirring constantly, until sugar is completely dissolved, about 3 minutes. Add strawberries, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer, occasionally stirring gently, until softened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

4. To serve, fold back the cheesecloth corners and invert the coeur à la crème onto a serving platter; remove mold and cheesecloth. Arrange the strawberries and sauce around the rim of the plate.

SERVES 4–6

Bon Apetit!