It is summer! Did I mention how much I love this time of year? It is warm weather, backyard barbecues, and of course fresh produce from the farmers market and garden. This adds up good times and of course, fresh fruits. Finger staining blueberries, juicy crunchy watermelon, sweet sweet strawberries. One can simply never have enough fruit.
Earlier this week, I purchased six pounds of strawberries at the local market because they were $.99 per pound and I could not pass them up. I am a sucker for good deals. I let them age in the fridge to perfection (whatever that means), and yesterday I put them to use, making three different strawberry dishes. For this reason, I am calling it “Dia de las fresas” (Day of the strawberries in Spanish).
Even though it is summer, I rarely sleep past 6:30. I am a bit of an oddball in that sense, but when the sun is up my body likes to be up as well, even if my brain says sleep. As soon as wake up I do a Bible Quiet Time and then meander into the kitchen. On this particularly sunny morning, I had a strong urge to bake or cook, and use the strawberries in some recipes. The idea of warm freshly baked scones popped into my head as I sipped on my coffee. And what goes better with scones than jam and cream? I knew I wanted to make scones and jam, so I got to work...
For the scones, I always love a nut or some other flavoring like chocolate added in with fruit. With the caffeine pulsing through my system and the anticipation in my stomach for delicious baked goods, I quickly paged through a few of my favorite cookbooks for ideas. I settled on a strawberry and almond scone. It the soft sweetness of strawberries and that added crunch of nutiness.
Earlier this week, I purchased six pounds of strawberries at the local market because they were $.99 per pound and I could not pass them up. I am a sucker for good deals. I let them age in the fridge to perfection (whatever that means), and yesterday I put them to use, making three different strawberry dishes. For this reason, I am calling it “Dia de las fresas” (Day of the strawberries in Spanish).
Even though it is summer, I rarely sleep past 6:30. I am a bit of an oddball in that sense, but when the sun is up my body likes to be up as well, even if my brain says sleep. As soon as wake up I do a Bible Quiet Time and then meander into the kitchen. On this particularly sunny morning, I had a strong urge to bake or cook, and use the strawberries in some recipes. The idea of warm freshly baked scones popped into my head as I sipped on my coffee. And what goes better with scones than jam and cream? I knew I wanted to make scones and jam, so I got to work...
For the scones, I always love a nut or some other flavoring like chocolate added in with fruit. With the caffeine pulsing through my system and the anticipation in my stomach for delicious baked goods, I quickly paged through a few of my favorite cookbooks for ideas. I settled on a strawberry and almond scone. It the soft sweetness of strawberries and that added crunch of nutiness.
I decided on recipe from Food and Wine for Strawberry- Almond Scones. I liked this recipe because it used a whole wheat pastry flour and regular flour. This adds a more earthy flavor profile to the scone instead of just bleached from regular all purpose flavor. I did not use the glaze that accompanied with the original recipe as I planned on accompanying mine with jam and I as I did not want my scones to be uber uber sweet. I added honey roasted almond slivers, which added the perfect crunch and sweetness. I also increased the amount of strawberries which is risky as it creates more moisture in the dough, but this actually helped to counter balance the use of whole wheat pastry flour and its relative dryness.
They should be enjoyed warm with a side of creme fraiche and strawberry jam. Speaking of strawberry jam.
They should be enjoyed warm with a side of creme fraiche and strawberry jam. Speaking of strawberry jam.
I haven’t preserved or canned anything in probably two years, just because of time, being out of the country and numerous other excuses. An excuse is still an excuse, and I do miss fresh jam. Thinking of ideas for the jam, I wanted to create something not easily found at the market. Rhubarb and strawberries go together great in pies, so I thought why not place them together in a jam. So for my second strawberry recipe of the day, I decided on fresh strawberry rhubarb jam.
I ended up editing a recipe posted by A Pretty Life blog. I took her version of Easy Strawberry Rhubarb Jam and doubled the amount of strawberries using two pounds. This increased the flavor of strawberry and decreased the ratio of white sugar sweetener to natural sugars in the strawberries.
I ended up editing a recipe posted by A Pretty Life blog. I took her version of Easy Strawberry Rhubarb Jam and doubled the amount of strawberries using two pounds. This increased the flavor of strawberry and decreased the ratio of white sugar sweetener to natural sugars in the strawberries.
I washed and cut the strawberries and rhubarb as per the directions, added in the sugar and bit of lemon juice,and then allowed time to work its miracles. The added sugar breaks down the fruit causing them to release juices and helps to increase the flavor. After an hour the juices were flowing, so I put them in a large skillet on the stove and cooked on medium heat for about 20 minutes until the liquid was reduced and the simple mixture had turned into a thick jam.
At that point, I decided to preserve them. I placed 4 pint jars and lids in a large pot of boiling water, allowed them to be superheated (cleaned for 5 minutes), and then set them out to dry on a clean kitchen towel. The hot, yet super tasty mixture of strawberries and rhubarb was then placed inside the jars and sealed in with the lids. Of course, I wanted to save the jars for later so I placed the sealed jars in the water bath for 10 minutes to seal the lids. And walla, four little jars of deliciousness.
On a side note, for this amount of jam, you probably will not have to water bath them. In two days my family has consumed 1 half pint jar and I have given two away, so that means we have one left. I am debating whether to open it or save it in the back of the pantry for those long winter months we have ahead here in New Mexico. (Who am I kidding, we are going to open and enjoy it.)
On a side note, for this amount of jam, you probably will not have to water bath them. In two days my family has consumed 1 half pint jar and I have given two away, so that means we have one left. I am debating whether to open it or save it in the back of the pantry for those long winter months we have ahead here in New Mexico. (Who am I kidding, we are going to open and enjoy it.)
Bum Bum Bum, and now the grand finally: the third strawberry recipe of the day. What more would we need to end the day than something sweet? (Yes, scones are sweet and so is the jam, but I love sugar.) Now it is time for a confession, I love ice cream. Like love ice cream! Whenever someone asks me what my favorite dessert is, I say ice cream. What flavors one may ask are my favorite? Well to be honest, that all depends on the time of day and outside temperature. I generally prefer a rich dark chocolate gelato, but on a warm summer day something fruity is quite lovely.
It being a warm summer day, I knew a strawberry frozen dessert would be perfect. I had recently seen a recipe for strawberry frozen yogurt on the blog of one of my favorite dessert chefs, David Lebovitz, and thought I should give that a try. I know, strawberry frozen yogurt is not ice cream, but in my defense, I had a quart of freshly made yogurt in my refrigerator and wanted to use it in a recipe. So I prepped the recipe and prepared it up until the point of placing it in the ice cream maker. Later in the evening, after dinner I placed It in the ice cream maker, and…
It being a warm summer day, I knew a strawberry frozen dessert would be perfect. I had recently seen a recipe for strawberry frozen yogurt on the blog of one of my favorite dessert chefs, David Lebovitz, and thought I should give that a try. I know, strawberry frozen yogurt is not ice cream, but in my defense, I had a quart of freshly made yogurt in my refrigerator and wanted to use it in a recipe. So I prepped the recipe and prepared it up until the point of placing it in the ice cream maker. Later in the evening, after dinner I placed It in the ice cream maker, and…
It worked out perfectly!!! I A few strawberries, a little sugar, a cup or two of yogurt, and a squeeze of lemon. Okay, the recipe was a little more precise than that, but either way my dinner guests loved it, and so did I. Granted it was not as creamy as ice cream, but it didn’t have two cups of heavy cream, so I know why. I highly recommend this recipe for the perfect end to a warm summer day.
There we have it, the way to enjoy 5 pounds of strawberries in three simple recipes. Following my motto, “Life is all about people”: I took some scones to the neighbors, gave two of the jams to friends, and shared ice cream with some fantastic dinner guests. Remember, “Love people, Cook them tasty food.”
The Craving Conn.
There we have it, the way to enjoy 5 pounds of strawberries in three simple recipes. Following my motto, “Life is all about people”: I took some scones to the neighbors, gave two of the jams to friends, and shared ice cream with some fantastic dinner guests. Remember, “Love people, Cook them tasty food.”
The Craving Conn.