Some soft fresh cheeses are easy to make at home. You might want to try making your own mascarpone, a cheese made all over Italy and frequently served mixed with liqueurs or brandy and sugar. Since this is peak berry season in the Pacific Northwest, serve your mascarpone with a bowl of local berries or with wild strawberries if you can find some. The cornmeal cookies are a perfect crunchy addition to this creamy dessert.

Homemade Mascarpone
4 cups whipping cream
1/4 teaspoon tartaric acid
(available at brewing supply stores)


Heat the cream in a saucepan to 180 degrees. Add the tartaric acid and stir briefly. Remove the cream from the heat and stir for a few minutes. Pour the cream through a strainer lined with a triple thickness of cheesecloth and set over a bowl. Chill the bowl over ice. When it is cold, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it in the refrigerator for 12 to 18 hour or until it is very thick.

Cornmeal Butter Cookies
1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 lb. butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract


Combine flour, cornmeal and salt and set aside. Cream butter and sugar until light. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat to combine. Add the flour mixture and mix until well blended. Form dough into logs about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap logs in plastic and chill until firm. When cookie dough is firm, slice cookies at a sharp angle about 1/4 inch. Place cookies on parchment lined cookie sheets and bake at 350 degrees about 15 minutes or until edges are golden. (Makes about 4 dozen cookies.)