We’re at the intersection of spring and summer. Just last week, I reacted with dismay when Kim at Lobenstein Farm at Findlay Market told me the strawberries I purchased were the last of the season. But then—hooray!—the Bee Haven had the first summer blueberries for sale.
There’s so much local fruit coming on now that I’m tempted to eat as much of it, in as many preparations, as I can. This recipe for oven-roasted fruit compote is the perfect way to take advantage of the bounty. It’s super easy: just toss the fruit with local honey and a vanilla bean and pop it in the oven. You can use any combination of fruit you’d like, from berries to peeled and chopped stone fruit. For the version pictured above, I used fresh local strawberries and blueberries, plus golden raspberries that I put in the freezer last summer. (I’m clearing those out to make ample room to put up this year’s crop.)
This roasted fruit compote is fantastic in a lot of different applications—I spooned some over vanilla ice cream last night, then enjoyed more on a bowl of cold oatmeal cereal for breakfast this morning. It would be fantastic over slices of citrus olive oil cake, shortcakes or pancakes, or layered with homemade granola and yogurt in a parfait, or as a topping for the old-fashioned Spanish Cream recipe that I shared recently.
This recipe is part of the collection I’m gathering for “The Findlay Market Cookbook,” to be published this fall by Farm Fresh Books. It’s inspired by my conversation with beekeeper Mark Bering, who sells honey and bee pollen at Findlay Market.
Through the summer, I’ll be sharing a few select recipes to preview the book—so stay tuned!
honeyed summer fruit compote recipe
serves 4
4 cups mixed fruit (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, rhubarb, peaches, nectarines)
2–4 Tbsp. local honey
1/2 vanilla bean, halved and seeds scraped
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a small baking dish, toss together the fruit and honey. Scrape the vanilla bean seeds over the mixture, and tuck the bean itself into the fruit. Place the baking dish on a larger rimmed baking sheet (to catch any drips) and bake, uncovered, for 20–25 minutes, until the fruit softens and becomes juicy.
