Place strawberries and all their juices into a medium-sized glass (or stainless steel) bowl. Stir in the sugar, vanilla bean and cardamom pods. Place plastic wrap over the top of the bowl and seal well.
Fill a small sauce pan 1/2 inch full of water. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Place the bowl on top of the sauce pan to create a double boiler (make sure the water does not touch the bottom of the bowl). Stew the strawberries for 1 hour. Stir once halfway through.
Carefully remove the bowl from the pan. Place the bowl into an ice bath and stir in the mint leaves into the strawberry mixture. Let the strawberries cool for 15-20 minutes.
Strain the strawberry soup into a container. Continue to let the strawberry soup come to room temperature and then place in the fridge.
Place a small handful of strawberries into a small serving bowls. Top the strawberries with the soup, mint whipped cream and a mint leaf. Serve chilled.
for the Mint Whipped Cream
Place all ingredients into a large bowl.
Using an electric mixer, whip on high until stiff peaks form, about 4-5 minutes.
Serve immediately, or spoon out and place into a container. Store in fridge until ready to serve (up to 24 hours).
Notes
This recipe is a slightly reworked version of a Strawberry Soup I found in Food and Wine Magazine. It is delicate, rich and perfect as a starter or finisher of any luncheon or dinner.