Champagne Sabayon with Strawberries and Cherry Tomatoes

I should stop complaining about my kitchen being too cramped. In The Little Paris Kitchen, Rachel Khoo explains how she turns out all kinds of French classic dishes from her apartment kitchen with a mini oven and a stove top with only two burners. I recently received a review copy of the book, and it’s full of all the sorts of things you’d expect to find in a cookbook of classic French dishes. But here, the recipes have been given some updates and a little streamlining in places making them simple enough to tackle in a tiny Paris kitchen or anywhere else. There’s Soupe au Pistou, Gratin Dauphinois, and Quiche Lorraine of course. And, there’s also Croque Madame Muffins which are cute, individual servings and Salade Nicoise reinterpreted as lettuce wraps. The Bouillabaisse, Poisson Meuniere, and Poulet au Citron et Lavande are a few dishes that look perfect for company, and the desserts are all dinner-party worthy too. The Chocolate Mousse is made with cocoa nibs and the classic Creme Brulee recipe includes several suggestions for mixing up the flavors with using things like saffron or cinnamon and ginger. Then, I noticed the Champagne Sabayone with Strawberries and Cherry Tomatoes. I mentioned some of the classic recipes have a twist, right? Rachel points out that, scientifically speaking, strawberries and tomatoes have the same flavor components and therefore should go together. I decided to give it a try.

The sabayon was made in the typical way in a heat-proof bowl over simmering water. Four egg yolks and two tablespoons of sugar were whisked while being gently heated in the double-boiler. When the yolks became pale and thick, six and half tablespoons of Champagne was added. In this kind of situation, I go for convenience. Since I was making the sabayon in advance and planned to chill it for a bit before serving, I didn’t really want to open a whole bottle of Champagne. Instead, I popped open a convenient, little can of California sparkling wine for the six and a half tablespoons I needed for this. After adding the sparkling wine, the mixture was whisked for another ten minutes while continuing to gently cook. When thickened, the sabayon was divided among serving bowls and topped with strawberries and quartered and seeded cherry tomatoes. I added a pinch of freshly-ground black pepper because I like it with both strawberries and cherry tomatoes. 

I wasn’t entirely sure the cherry tomatoes wouldn’t seem odd with the sweet sabayon and strawberries, but happily, I was wrong. With the seeds removed from the cherry tomatoes, the flavor of the two fruits is surprisingly similar when eaten together. You can make this a couple of hours in advance and chill it, or it’s so quick to make, you can whisk it together just before serving. It’s a modernized, classic dessert that easy to create in any size of kitchen. 

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