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A fool for Father’s Day: No-cook summer dessert easy enough for kids

Recipe: Fresh raspberry fool with a rosy twist

This cool and pretty dessert is called a "fool" but the ease of making it is no joke.

This cool and pretty dessert is called a "fool" but the ease of making it is no joke. Debbie Arrington

A “fool” is one of the first desserts I learned to make, taught to me by my grandmother. It didn’t involve turning on the stove, so it was a good introduction. (And I got to use the mixer!) Plus I loved the name.

Fruit fools are sort of foody puns; the idea is to create something that looked “special enough for company,” but that could be put together quickly with ingredients on hand.

What better dessert for Father’s Day than a foody pun that kids can make?

Raspberry puree in a measuring cup
Fresh raspberries are gently mashed 
before being folded into the whipped cream.

I still use my grandmother’s parfait glasses, but this layered dessert works in mason jars or juice glasses, too – anything see-through so the colorful layers can be appreciated.

Rose syrup adds a subtle, fragrant note and its light pink color complements the raspberries. Grenadine and simple syrup work just as well as do fruit-flavored syrups.

Remember to gently fold the fruit into the whipped cream to maintain the stripes of pink, red and white.

Fresh raspberry fool

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 cup fresh raspberries

3 tablespoons rose syrup (see note)

1 cup heavy whipping cream

¼ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 sugar cookie or similar, crumbled

Instructions:

Rinse berries; save out a few berries for garnish. In a bowl or large measuring cup, combine berries with rose syrup. (See note.) Set aside.

In a mixing bowl (with a hand mixer on medium speed) or a food processor, combine whipping cream, sugar and vanilla; whip until soft peaks form (only 1 or 2 minutes).

Transfer whipped cream to a medium bowl.

With a fork, mash the raspberries. Gently fold half of the raspberry mixture into the whipped cream. Only stir once or twice.

Creamy fruit mixture in a metal bowl
Gently stir cream mixture and berries so
the colorful stripes remain.

In a parfait glass or similar, scoop 1 tablespoon of the fruit puree. Top with 2 tablespoons of the whipped cream mixture. Then, top with another tablespoon of fruit puree and 2 more tablespoons of the whipped cream mixture.

Top with cookie crumbs and raspberry garnish. Serve cold.

(Dessert may be assembled in advance and refrigerated.)

Note: Grenadine, other fruit syrup or simple syrup may be substituted for rose syrup.

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Flowers in My Back Yard Series

Aug. 25: Crape myrtles, Sacramento's unofficial tree of summer

Aug. 18: Pollinators adore scabiosa, aka pincushion flower

Aug. 11: Hardy hibiscus adds big tropical impact

Aug. 4: Dianthus a deceptively hardy flower

July 28: Naked Ladies put on summer show

July 21: Thank Luther Burbank for these long-lasting beauties (Shasta daisies)

July 14: How to keep hydrangeas happy

July 7: Grow these bright cosmos for bees and butterflies

June 30: Agapanthus adds blue fireworks to the garden

June 23: Easy-care gazanias fill those hot corners

June 16: Daylilies are perfect for water-wise gardens (and a lot more)

June 9: Grow coneflowers for pollinators -- and yourself

June 2: Sunflowers capture Sacramento's summer attitude

May 29: Are your roses going 'blind'?

May 26: Zinnias are the summer flowers every garden needs

May 19: Plant dahlias now for late-summer flower power

May 12: Know your coreopsis from your bidens

May 5: Mums the word on Mother's Day weekend

April 28: Majestic Matilija poppy is worth a look

April 21: Celebrate roses, America's favorite flower

April 14: Small flowers with outsized impact

April 7: Calendulas do double duty

April 3: Make Easter lilies last for years to come

March 31: In praise of a pollinator magnet (small-leaf salvias)

March 24: Azaleas brighten shady spots

March 17: The perfect flower for beginners? Try zonal geraniums

March 10: Keep camellias happy for years to come

March 3: Fruit tree blossoms are a fleeting joy

Feb. 27: Are your roses looking rusty?

Feb. 24: Treasure spring daffodils now and for years to come

Feb. 17: How and why to grow wildflowers

Feb. 10: Let's talk Valentine's Day roses

Feb. 3: Why grow flowers?

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Find our summer recipes here!

Garden checklist for week of Aug. 16

During this break in the heat, feed your garden. Make sure to water before and after applying fertilizer.

* In the garden, direct seed beets, carrots, leaf lettuce and turnips.

* Plant potatoes.

* Harvest tomatoes, beans, squash, pepper and eggplants to prompt plants to keep producing. Give your plants a deep watering twice a week, more if planted in containers. Also, give them a boost with phosphate-rich fertilizer to help fruiting.

* Watch out for caterpillars and hornworms in the vegetable garden. They can strip a plant bare in one day. Pick them off plants by hand in early morning or late afternoon.

* Feed citrus trees their last round of fertilizer for the year. This will give a boost to the fruit that’s still small.

* Mulch can be your garden’s best friend – it conserves moisture while blocking out weeds. But don't let mulch mound around stalks, stems or trunks. That can promote rot.

* Camellia leaves looking a little yellow? Give them some chelated iron. That goes for azaleas and gardenias, too.

* Pick up after your fruit trees. Clean up debris and dropped fruit; this cuts down on insects and prevents the spread of brown rot. Then feed fruit trees with slow-release fertilizer for better production for next year.

* To prolong bloom into fall, feed begonias, fuchsias and container plants. Always water before fertilizing.

* Fertilize fall-blooming perennials, too. Chrysanthemums can be fed until the buds start to open.

* Prepare for a fall full of flowers by paying a little extra attention to your garden. Cut off spent blooms from roses, annuals and perennials, then give them a boost of fertilizer. Make sure to water plants before feeding. Roses will rebloom about six to eight weeks after deadheading.

* Indoors, start seedlings for fall vegetable planting, including bunching onion, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, radicchio and lettuce.

* Sow seeds of perennials in pots for fall planting including yarrow, coneflower and salvia.

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Food in My Back Yard (FIMBY) Series

Lessons learned during a year of edible gardening

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Hints for choosing tomato seeds

Starting in seed starting

Why winter is the perfect time to plant fruit trees

When to plant? Consider staggering your transplants

How to squeeze more food into less space

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Plant a fruit tree now -- for later

Win the weed war by tackling them in winter

Tips for planting bare-root trees, shrubs and vegetables

Time to give vegetable seedlings some more space

Ways to win the fight against weeds

FALL

Add asparagus to your edible garden

Soggy soil and what to do about it

Plant artichokes now; enjoy for years to come

It's late November, and your peach tree needs spraying

What to do with all those fallen leaves?

Prepare now for colder weather in the edible garden

Plant a pea patch for you and your garden

As citrus season begins, advice for backyard growers

Change is in the autumn air 

We don't talk (enough) about beets

Fava beans do double duty

Seeds or transplants for cool-season veggies?

How to prolong the fall tomato harvest 

SUMMER

Time to shut it down? 

How to get the most out of your pumpkin patch

Summer-to-fall transition time for evaluation, planning

To pick or not to pick those tomatoes?

: Put worms to work for you

Grow food while saving water

Enhance your food with edible flowers

Why won't my tomatoes turn red?

A squash plant has mosaic virus, and it's not pretty

Does this plant need water?

 Tear out that sad plant or baby it? Midsummer decisions

How to grow summer salad greens

 Weird stuff that's perfectly normal

SPRING

Help pollinators help your garden

Battling early-season tomato pests

Make your own compost

Where are the bees when you need them?

How to help tomatoes thrive on hot days

Your plants can tell you more than any calendar can

Maintain soil moisture with mulch for garden success

What's (already) wrong with my tomato plants?

Should you stock up on fertilizer? (Yes!)

Grow culinary herbs in containers

When to plant summer vegetables

Don't be fooled by these garden myths

Fertilizer tips: How to 'feed' your vegetables for healthy growth