A grand trifle, a lesson in meat, creams with Latin culture, and a good wine with a gray name - includes recipes

Sunset, June, 1995 by Jerry Anne Di Vecchio

Per tablespoon: 41 cal. (33 percent from fat); 1.2 g protein; 1.5 g fat (0 g sat.); 6 g carbo.; 179 mg sodium; 0 mg chol.

NEWS NOTE

Delicious Latin creams

When I think of cream I think first of England. The food halls of London's Harrods department store have so many kinds of creams, the selection makes me dizzy. Clearly, cream is not a one-dimensional food. Nor do the English have a monopoly on variety. I first enjoyed Latin-style creams in Mexico, and have since bought many domestically made products in the Los Angeles area, Arizona, and New Mexico. Now I find them in Mexican and other Latino markets in Central California, and producers tell me they are regularly shipping their products to other parts of the West where Latin foods are sold.

Latin-style creams are especially worth looking for at this time of year, when summer fruits beg for such good company. And understanding what you are buying is easier now because of nutrition labeling. Names kept me confused for a long time because they're not standardized (regulations, however, are in the works). Check labels for fat content: 30 to 40 percent, like whipping cream, is needed if you want to whip creams or cook them without having them curdle.

Creams range from sweet to tart and from thin to thick. They come unflavored or salted. Cultures are added to develop specific flavors and textures, as for regular buttermilk and sour cream.

You can expect to find some or all of the following creams in a well-stocked Latino market. They cost from $2.75 to $4.25 (or more where supply is limited) for 15 to 16 ounces, depending on the type of cream. When in doubt, shake the container gently to determine the cream's consistency.

Crema Mexicana has the same amount of butterfat (or more) as whipping cream. It can be sweet and pourable like whipping cream, or delicately tart and very thick like creme fraiche.

Crema Mexicana agria is as thick as sour cream, with similar fat content (15 to 20 percent), has a similar tartness, and is salted.

Crema fresca casera translates loosely as home-style fresh cream. It's a sweet, pourable whipping cream.

Crema Centroamericana is as rich as, or richer than, whipping cream. It can be liquid and sweet, or thick, rich, and tangy. Some brands are labeled soft-ripened cheese. To me, this version is much like mascarpone and can be used in its place - to make the Bolognese Berry Cream Dessert on page 118, for example.

Crema Centroamericana acida has the consistency, tang, and fat content of sour cream; it's also salted.

Jocoque is Mexican-style sour cream, but its fat content may be the same as, or less than, regular sour cream. Some labels describe it as salted buttermilk, but it's thicker; some call it a thin sour cream. The taste of this product ranges from mildly tart to refreshingly sharp.

BOB THOMPSON ON WINE

Grigio or Gris with Pinot means more than gray

The way to make sure you fall in love with Pinot Grigio at first sip is to have a bottle with lemony veal at one of Il Cortile's courtyard tables on a warm evening in Venice. But you need not go to all that trouble and expense. Pinot Grigio - Pinot Gris in France - is one of those wines that are right at home anywhere. All you need is a bucket of steamed clams, a bowl of spaghetti bolognese, a platter of chicken, or, to be sure, a plate of la piccata di vitello.