An unbelievably light and refreshing raspberry fool layered with cubes of pound cake and drizzles of caramelized honey.
Spring is one of my favorite seasons. I love seeing all the plants come back to life and nurture little seedlings as I harvest the first of my rhubarb that usually comes in early April. There is no better feeling than putting away all the sweaters and bulky clothing in favor of paper thin tops and flowy dresses. With spring, I also need to lighten everything. I hate feeling weighed down as the weather warms. I crave fruit and airiness.
I think “fool” is an interesting name for a dessert. A few have speculated that the word derived from the French verb fouler which means “to crush [grapes for wine,” but this has been dismissed for being inconsistent with the early use of the word. Regardless, this raspberry fool is the perfect light spring and summer treat.
For this raspberry fool use a touch of raspberry liqueur to give an extra punch of flavor, but you can replace it with water if you do not have any available or want something without alcohol. I wanted something that could soak up the flavors of the raspberry, honey, and whipped cream, and pound cake seemed like the perfect addition. I found lemon marzipan pound cake at my local grocery store, but any pound cake would do really well. I would love to try it with a coconut pound cake to emphasize the toasted coconut I added to the raspberry fool for some texture. And ever since making my chamomile macarons with caramelized honey buttercream, I’ve been obsessed and had to add more caramelized honey for some depth of flavor.
The best part about this raspberry fool is that it is so quick to put together. The longest part of making the fool is waiting for the raspberries to macerate. So if you need a last minute dessert to serve a group of people, this is the perfect option. You can easily double or triple the recipe to serve as many people as you need.