I had never seen—let alone tasted—a tamarillo until I arrived in New Zealand’s Bay of Islands.

A take on my famous LA Strawberry Shortcakes with Lemon Curd and Vanilla Whipped Cream from my cookbook Vanilla Table.

The trifle ‘reveal’ took place on Vava‘u Island, Tonga for Heilala’s First Annual Vanilla Harvest Event.

As a 14-year-old budding dancer, I was obsessed with making steamed pears with Cool Whip topping sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.

Black pepper is a surprising companion to sweet summer berries and here adds an addictively spicy base note to a creamy lemon- and strawberry-infused ice cream.

A bit of spiced decadence, this recipe is nevertheless a leaner style of ice cream containing no egg yolks and only half the amount of double (heavy)/whipping cream.