Fruit Fools

Fruit fools is a dessert that originated in England but one that is becoming more and more popular now in America. Fruit fools is really a simple dessert. Fruit Fools originated in the 1500s, and its popularity has ebbed and flowed over the years.

Fruit fools are made with either cooked or raw fruit that has been mashed or pureed, then sweetened and chilled. The chilled fruit is then folded into heavy cream that has been beaten until it is stiff (whipped cream — the REAL thing, and not Cool Whip). A Fruit fool that has been made correctly will not have any white streaks in it, but may have dark swirls of the fruit color.

Traditional fruit fools are made with tart fruits like raspberries, gooseberries, blackberries, loganberries, and rhubarb, but any fruit can be used. Strawberries are a favorite, as well as peaches. Fresh fruit or unsweetened frozen fruit can be used with equally good results.

It is important to get the puree as fine as possible. The fewer fruit lumps there are, the easier it is to fold the fruit into the whipped cream. Actually, the fruit should be prepared the day (or night) before so that it has ample time to chill all the way through. If the fruit is not as cool as or cooler than the whipped cream, the cream will "melt" and you'll end up with nothing more than flavored cream.

I've found that it works better if you use a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon to fold the fruit into the whipped cream. The correct way to serve fruit fool is in parfait or wine glasses. Garnish each serving with a piece of the fruit used to make the fruit fool. Fruit fools make a very nice hot-weather dessert.