Testing recipes and my first cooking demo at the Inwood Greenmarket

Strawberry basil smoothie

Saturday, I did my first cooking demo at the Inwood Greenmarket in the Manhattan neighborhood where I live. I made a simple syrup of sugar and water and infused it with basil. I flavored strawberries with the basil syrup, and soaked nectarines and plums in mint simple syrup. I whipped heavy cream with the huge balloon whisk I have and piped dollops of the cream on nectarine samples.

Simple syrups are basically equal portions of sugar and water brought to a boil. You can add simple syrups to lemonade, iced tea, mixed drinks and other beverages and desserts. For the demo, I tested recipes for strawberry basil smoothies and fruit parfaits with mint simple syrup. Residents could take home copies of recipes if they wanted to.


Basil simple syrup

We didn't have a generator to use a blender to make smoothies. But it didn't matter because all my fruit samples were gone by the end of the demo. I'd never done a culinary demo before, and I had so much fun assembling samples for market goers. I loved the look of surprise on people's faces when they tried the fruit and tasted a hint of basil or mint.

GrowNYC organizes the farmers' markets in New York City. It's a nonprofit focused on improving the quality of life for residents through environmental initiatives. I signed up to volunteer to do cooking demonstrations.


 Strawberries in basil syrup

I first heard about the combination of basil-infused simple syrups and fruit from Russ Parsons who wrote How to Pick a Peach. After basil is strained out of the simple syrup, it leaves a refreshing cinnamon taste in the syrup.

Strawberries in basil syrup
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup loosely packed basil, chopped
1 pint strawberries, hulled and quartered

Mix water and sugar in a small saucepan and heat on high. While you wait for the mixture to boil, chop your basil. When the sugar and water boil and the mixture is clear, shut off the heat. Let the bubbles die down. Add the chopped basil and cover the saucepan. Let steep for 10-15 minutes. Strain and discard the basil.

Pour simple syrup over strawberries.

Print recipe

Strawberry basil smoothie
Serves 2
2 cups plain yogurt
2 cups whole strawberries, frozen
2/3 cup simple syrup infused with basil, or add syrup to taste

To freeze strawberries or any other fruit:
Wash strawberries and hull them. Lay on a cookie sheet in a single layer and put the strawberries in the freezer. They will be solid in about 40-45 minutes.

Tip: Freezing fruit is a great way to preserve it and have some ready whenever you want to make a smoothie or make some other dessert.

For the simple syrup:
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup loosely packed basil, chopped

Mix water and sugar in a small saucepan and heat on high. While you wait for the mixture to boil, chop your basil. When the sugar and water boil and the mixture is clear, shut off the heat. Let the bubbles die down. Add the chopped basil and cover the saucepan. Let steep for 10-15 minutes. Strain and discard the basil.

Double the recipe for simple syrup if you know you’ll make more smoothies later. Store any leftover simple syrup in the refrigerator.

To make the smoothie:
Pour the yogurt into a blender. Drop in the strawberries. Add the basil syrup. Then blend until smooth. Serve in tall glasses.

Print recipe




Fruit parfait with mint simple syrup
Serves 4

4 peaches
1 cup strawberries, hulled and quartered
1/2 cup blueberries
(Use any fruit you want.)
1 lemon

For the simple syrup:
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1/4 cup loosely packed mint (You can also use basil or tarragon.)

For the whipped cream:
2 cups heavy cream
6-8 teaspoons sugar, or to taste
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the simple syrup:
Mix sugar and water in a small saucepan and heat on high. While you wait for the mixture to boil, chop the mint. After the simple syrup comes to a boil and the mixture is clear, shut off the heat. Let the bubbles die down. Then add the herb. Let steep for 10-15 minutes. Strain and discard the herb.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to boil. Blanch the peaches in the boiling water for 30-45 seconds and then shock in ice water. Peel the peaches and squeeze lemon juice over them so they don’t turn brown. Hull and quarter the strawberries. Keep each fruit in separate bowls.

Pour the simple syrup over each fruit. Allow them to marinate in the syrup, while you make the whipped cream.

To make the whipped cream:
Using a stand mixer with a wire whip attachment or a handheld mixer, mix heavy cream, sugar and vanilla extract until soft peaks form. (You can also use a balloon whisk.) Add more or less sugar if you like.

Layer a small glass with strawberries, whipped cream, peaches, whipped cream again and blueberries. Repeat until you have enough space to dollop the top with whipped cream. Save any leftover whipped cream for another dessert. Garnish each parfait with mint.

Print recipe


Inwood Greenmarket