LITMIR.BIZ

      12 egg whites, at room temperature

      ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

      ½ teaspoon fresh lemon juice

      1½ teaspoons cream of tartar

      1½ cups cake flour

      1½ cups superfine sugar

      ½ teaspoon kosher salt

      1 cup heavy cream

      ¼ cup granulated sugar

      2 cups strawberries, hulled and quartered

      Preheat the oven to 350°.

      In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, combine the egg whites, vanilla, lemon juice and cream of tartar. Beat at medium-high speed until the egg whites hold medium to stiff peaks.

      In a bowl, sift together the flour, superfine sugar and salt. Sift a small amount of the flour mixture over the egg whites and fold gently with a rubber spatula. Continue to fold in the rest of the dry ingredients, taking care not to deflate the egg whites. Once the batter has been combined, pour it into an ungreased tube pan with a removable bottom, spreading the batter evenly with a rubber spatula. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Place the pan upside down on a wire rack and let cool for at least 1 hour and 30 minutes before removing the pan. (If your tube pan doesn’t have feet, suspend the pan on a wine bottle.)

      While the cake cools, combine the cream and 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar in the bowl of the stand mixer and beat at medium speed until soft peaks form. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

      In a small bowl, combine the strawberries with the remaining 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar. Let the berries sit for at least 10 minutes.

      Once the cake has cooled completely, run a long knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the cake. Place the cake, right side up, on a cake stand or serving plate. Slice the cake, top with the whipped cream and strawberries and serve.

       Rita: “Don’t you worry about cholesterol, lung cancer, love handles?”

       Phil: “I don’t worry about anything, anymore … I don’t even have to floss.”

ASPARAGUS WITH HOLLANDAISE

       INSPIRED BY

      AMERICAN BEAUTY

      In an incredibly tense dinner scene in Sam Mendes’s directorial debut, American Beauty, a family’s roiling tensions come to a head over a plate of un-passed asparagus. Lester Burnham, the patriarch played by Kevin Spacey, then theatrically gets up from the table and hurls the plate at the wall, making the poor asparagus collateral damage on his new path of not giving a bleep anymore. Here is a redeeming version of this dish with a rich hollandaise sauce and a luxuriously runny egg—please pass gently.

       Makes 4 servings

       Ingredients

      1 whole egg plus 4 large egg yolks

      3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

      ½ teaspoon kosher salt

      ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

      ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

      1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

      1 bay leaf

      1 pound asparagus, trimmed

      Freshly ground black pepper

      Make the hollandaise: In a metal bowl, whisk together 4 egg yolks, 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice, salt and cayenne until combined. In a medium saucepan, bring 1 inch of water to a simmer and place the bowl over the water, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Whisk the egg mixture until the yolks are pale yellow and thickened, about 2 minutes. Remove the bowl from the heat. Very slowly drizzle the butter down the side of the bowl, whisking constantly, until the hollandaise becomes thick and creamy, about 1 to 2 minutes.

      Poach the egg: Fill a wide saucepan with a few inches of water and bring to a simmer. Add the vinegar. Crack the whole egg into a fine-mesh sieve and swirl to remove the thin liquid around the egg white (this is optional). Swirl a spoon in the boiling water to create a whirlpool. Quickly but gently roll the egg into the simmering water and continue to swirl the water in one direction to help the egg white wrap around itself. Poach the egg until the white is just set and the yolk is still runny, about 3 minutes.

      Meanwhile, place the bay leaf and the remaining 2 tablespoons of lemon juice in a large saucepan and fill with enough water to just reach the bottom of a steamer basket. Steam the asparagus until crisp-tender, about 6 to 10 minutes, depending on their size. Transfer the asparagus to a platter or serving dish, top with the hollandaise sauce and the poached egg. Grind some fresh pepper over the top and break the yolk before serving.

       “Then I told my boss to go fuck himself, and then I blackmailed him for almost $60,000. Pass the asparagus.”

       —Lester Burnham

BIRTHDAY CAKE

       INSPIRED BY

      SIXTEEN CANDLES

      This simple-but-delicious layer cake is inspired by the climactic final moments in John Hughes’s beloved 1980s Brat Pack–filled flick. Few on-screen foods are as memorable as the birthday cake at the end of Sixteen Candles, which is impressive considering that it goes uneaten while two star-crossed teenage

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