Blueberry Parfaits with Pistachio Crumble | Kitchen Recipe

- [Sheri] You know, I brought these blueberries back from the farm yesterday and I cannot wait another minute to dig in.

Now we're not gonna count the ones I ate in the car and every time I've opened the fridge, you know now.

But let me tell you what we're gonna make with these.

An incredible fresh blueberry parfait.

[syncopated riffing] [calming music] Now step one, is to make the filling.

And all I've done is rinse these berries and blot them dry and I'm gonna put them in a bowl.

Now the next thing is one of my magic tricks.

This is a jar of blueberry jam, just good old fashioned blueberry jam.

And I'm going to add just enough of it to coat these berries.

And what we're doing is instantly making a fresh blueberry compote.

Now what this jam is doing is adding plenty of gloss, plenty of shine, and it's adding a little bit of sweetness without these turning sugary.

All we have to do is to put these in some little glass jars, or glasses, or bowls, or whatever you have.

I love the look of these straight sided highball glasses.

But really, you can use what you have, like little mason jars if you wanna take them to a picnic.

So all I'm gonna do is, I'm gonna take my shiny, glossy, sweet, beautiful berries and I'm gonna divide them among my serving pieces.

I have to tell you a little secret.

One time I actually made these parfaits [spoon clanging] in my car on the way from the blueberry farm.

They were party ready by the time I got there.

And that's one of the things that I love about this.

It can be a little formal, it can be a little casual.

And no matter how you serve them, they're always delicious.

Just two more spoons full.

And we are set.

That's it.

So all I have to do now is to pop these in the fridge, and let that jelly set back up.

And while they're chilling, I'm gonna start on the great cookie topping.

So let me tell you about this topping.

It is such a great unexpected combination of ingredients.

What I'm doing here is I am crumbling good, buttery, rich, not-too-sweet shortbread cookies into this bowl.

I love the effect of the shortbread cookies 'cause it reminds me of a well-made pie crust, but far, far easier.

You can break some into small crumbs, some into some larger crumbs.

Anything that'll give some good texture to the top of your parfait.

And then the next thing I'm going to add are pistachio nuts.

Now I love pistachios.

I love how they taste with blueberries.

But you know what I like the most?

I love how this green looks against those brilliant, beautiful, dark, blue blueberries.

Now for just a little bit of spice, I'm using cardamom.

Cardamom is one of my favorite spices in my spice drawer.

Especially for baking and desserts.

And sometimes people say, well when can I use cardamom?

Here's a great tip, if you're thinking about using cinnamon, but want something a little bit more interesting, try cardamom instead.

Now the last bit of this is a tiny drizzle of melted butter.

You don't wanna turn this greasy or overly buttery just enough that when you toss it together, you have a little bit of moisture to hold it together.

Now I am using salted pistachios here because I like that little bit of salt in with the sweet dessert.

But use whatever kind you like.

And believe it or not, that is our topping.

Now it's time to get our blueberry parfaits out of the refrigerator.

[fridge door closing] They've set up beautifully.

They're glossy, they're bright, they're chilled.

And this is our next step.

And then I'm gonna take my clean fingers, and I'm gonna just divide this among these jars.

That's how easy this is.

Now you can do the blueberries ahead.

You wanna do them at least 30 minutes ahead.

You can do this cookie crumble ahead.

But try not to assemble anything until it's shortly before it's time to serve them.

Because you want everything to retain its crunch and its color and its original flavor.

Now, the next part is my favorite part of this whole recipe.

It is this incredibly easy, amazingly delicious topping.

There are only two ingredients, the big reveal.

We have sour cream.

Sour cream is the way to go with this.

Not yogurt, not anything else.

Good old fashioned, full fat sour cream.

And we're gonna put it in the bowl.

And then I'm gonna add raw sugar.

It has lots of great crunch and texture, and that's what makes this sauce so special.

And I'm gonna stir it together.

Now it's important that you stir this together right before you top and serve these blueberries.

Because that contrast of that crunchy, delicious, golden rich sugar with that creamy, slightly tangy, sour cream is part of the magic of this.

But what's really magic about this is how it tastes.

Every time I serve this to my friends, they ask like, what is that topping?

Did you have to pull out a double boiler?

Is this Zabaione?

Do I have to buy this?

No.

All you have to do is stir two things together.

It is so good.

You're gonna love this.

And now these are ready to enjoy.

I cannot resist taking a bite.

There is so much going on here.

You've got the burst of the fresh berries, coated in a little bit of that sweet jam.

Then you get the crunch of the cookie, the saltiness of the pistachios, that little whiff of cardamom.

But I'm telling you, the star is this topping.

It's crunchy, it's cool, it's smooth, it's beautiful.

It'll be a conversation starter, except then when they start eating, they'll all be quiet cause they wanna focus.

It's delicious.