Strawberry season ripe for stuffed fruit

I developed this recipe to take advantage of strawberry season. Some of you are naturally scratching your head. “Strawberry season? Name a time of year that isn’t strawberry season.” And it certainly can feel that way.

Strawberries are grown in all 50 states and, depending on the state, the season can be as short as a few weeks or as long as 11 months. But the heart of the strawberry season — the sweet spot of the year when you can count on finding juicy, delicious and locally grown strawberries at your supermarket or farmers market — is April through June.

Now that the goodies are at hand, here are a few tips about how to buy and store them. Start by selecting the specimens that are unblemished and smooth and, most importantly, bright red from tip to tail. Then, pick one up and take a whiff. It should smell strongly of … strawberries.

What makes this recipe Italian? The filling used to stuff these berries is a twist on the mixture of ricotta cheese, candied orange and chocolate that’s piped into cannoli. The difference is that I substituted Neufchatel for ricotta because it’s tangier and more assertive, and teams up better with the berries.

The result is a simple, elegant dessert that lets the berries shine and doesn’t rely on lots of sugar.

And it only takes 20 minutes to make. You can even prepare the strawberries and stuffing ahead. But don’t stuff them until the last minute. You don’t want the filling to make the berries soggy.