Strawberries and Vanilla Whipped Cream With Liquid Licorice

This recipe is by Executive Chef Anthony Bombaci from Nana Restaurant, Dallas, Texas.

• Ready In: 50 mins
• Serves: 4

Ingredients

• 12  ounces strawberries, washed, dried and quartered
• 1 1⁄2 ounces sugar
• 1  ounce fresh lime juice
•  zest from one fresh lime
• 5 1⁄2 ounces water
• 2  ounces  black licorice (Panda brand preferred)
• 6  ounces  angel food cake, crumbled

• Vanilla Whipped Cream

• 1  cup heavy cream
• 1 1⁄2 ounces sugar
• 1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1⁄8 vanilla bean, split and scraped

Directions

1. For the Vanilla Whipped Cream, whisk in a well-chilled stainless steel bowl until soft peaks form.
2. For the Strawberries, combine strawberries, sugar, lime juice and lime zest in a non-reactive bowl and marinate for 30 minutes, covered with plastic wrap.
3. For the Licorice Water, boil the water and pour over the licorice, cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place for 30 minutes. Whisk to blend until smooth.
4. For the final plate, paint a line of liquid licorice down the center of the plate. Place a line of cake crumbs just off to one side of the strip of licorice. Place the marinated strawberries on top and along-side the cake crumbs - the cake will soak up some of their juices. Sauce with the lightly whipped vanilla cream.
5. Serve immediately.
6. Optional-serve with coconut ice cream or strawberry sorbet.