Tag: strawberries

Chilled Strawberry Soup

I have always remembered this soup from my adolescent years for some reason. I was looking for something different for dinner with friends in place of a salad. Too warm for regular hot soup and we happened to have a box of strawberries in the fridge. Pinterest showed me this wonderful and simple recipe!

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TIP – Whether it’s a salad or cold soup, I always freeze my bowls before serving time!

Chilled Strawberry Soup

Author: This Mess Is Ours         Prep time:  2 hours 15 mins

Total time:  2 hours 15 mins     Serves: 4 cups

This soup only takes about 15 minutes of time to prepare but be sure to let it chill for 2 hours before serving so that the flavors intensify.

Ingredients

  • 3 cups sliced fresh strawberries, preferably organic
  • 1 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • ½ cup white grape juice (or white wine)
  • 3 tablespoons raw honey (one tablespoon was sufficient)

 

To garnish

  • freshly ground black pepper
  • sliced fresh strawberries
  • 1 or 2 radishes, cut into thin shreds with a grater or mandoline
  • fresh mint

Instructions

  1. In a food processor or high powered blender process the 3 cups of sliced strawberries, Greek yogurt, white grape juice, and honey until smooth. Stopping periodically to scrape the sides. Cover and chill for 1½- 2 hours. Garnish with freshly ground pepper, sliced strawberries, shredded radishes, and bits of mint. Serve immediately. NB…dont skip the radishes, they were awesome!

 

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Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Ice Cream

Been back in Canada and still too early for rhubarb, but fortunately we have been able to find it here for the first time, as I stated in the previous blog. If you thought the pie sounded great you should definitely keep this in mind when rhubarb is in season up north. Of course you need an ice cream machine which our friends Kathie, Holly, Michelle and Dez had previously given to Larry several years ago for his birthday…lucky guy. It is indeed awesome and definitely a flavour for Ben and Jerry to consider!!! Ready, set, go!

STRAWBERRY RHUBARB PIE ICE CREAM Adapted from Jeni’s Splendid Ice Cream

For the Roasted Strawberry Ice Cream Base you will need an ice cream machine, sorry…

  • 1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 1/2 cups whole milk
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 3 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 cup heavy cream or 1  box of Media Crema (Mexico)
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
  • 1/2  of your crumbled pie crust (homemade) but you can also just bake a pre-made crust and crumble that. Either way, before baking, brush the crust with milk and sprinkle with sugar.)

First, roast the strawberries. To do so, combine strawberries with 1/4 cup sugar in an 8-inch glass dish (do not spray or oil the glass). Roast at 375 degrees F for 8 minutes, or until just soft. Cool slightly, then puree the berries in a blender. Measure 1/2 cup of the puree and set the rest aside to top the ice cream or for another use. Our preference is not to puree as we like chunky!

In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons milk to form a slurry. Set aside. In another small bowl, mix the cream cheese and salt together. Set aside. Put the rest of the milk, cream, sugar, and corn syrup in a large, heavy bottomed pot (like a stock pot). Bring to a boil and boil for exactly four minutes (I set my phone’s timer to make sure it was accurate). It will boil and foam like crazy.

 

After four minutes, take the pot off the heat and add the cornstarch slurry. Return to a boil for one minute, take off the heat again. Add the cream cheese to the boiled milk and whisk any clumps out.

 

Submerge the pan and its contents in an ice bath. If you’re making the ice cream the same day, just make sure the base is very cold before adding it to the machine. Add the base to your frozen ice cream barrel and spin for 15 minutes. The base should be frozen, a little more liquid than soft serve.

 

At this point, pour in the strawberry puree* and let it mix in completely, until the ice cream is a pretty pink color. Add half of the pie crust crumbles and swirl until incorporated. From here you can assemble the rest of the ice cream.

 

For the Rhubarb Compote Adapted from Epicurious 

  • 2 cups fresh rhubarb, chopped in 1/2-inch pieces
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • Grated ginger (optional to taste)

Combine rhubarb and sugar in a medium saucepan. Simmer over medium-high heat for 10 minutes, stirring every so often, until the rhubarb is syrupy (the sugar will liquefy over the heat and the rhubarb will break down). Strain through a sieve and chill until you are ready to assemble the ice cream. (You don’t want it too thick)

 

To Assemble the Ice Cream

Line a bread pan with parchment (or wax) paper. OR use a silicone loaf pan and skip the parchment/wax paper. Drizzle some rhubarb compote on the bottom, then layer with 1/3 of the Roasted Strawberry Ice Cream Base. Sprinkle with pie crust crumbles and drizzle with more compote. Continue layering, ending with a layer of compote and pie crumbles. Drag a knife through the compote to create a marbling effect.

 

Press some parchment or wax paper onto the ice cream’s surface and freeze for at least four hours. Before serving, let it rest on the counter for 10 minutes. Serve hearty scoops atop (totally optional) mini strawberry rhubarb pies and enjoy! Makes 1 quart.

 

 

Rhubarb Strawberry Custard Pie

After 12 years of searching we finally found rhubarb here in Yucatan!! In the last month we have bought up almost all of it, washed it, cut into chunks and frozen in 4 cup quantities for later use. The only problem is that we seem to be using it all up now…LOL. When there’s a glut…??? This pie is incredible, as is the Strawberry Rhubarb Pie Ice Cream!!!

Let us know if you make it and what you thought…

Rhubarb / Strawberry Custard Pie (Makes one 9 inch pie)

* Pinterest recipe adapted from the English Kitchen (Marie) whose recipe I found too sweet for my taste and too juicy and I wanted cream in the recipe.

1 short crust pastry to fill a 9 inch diameter, deep style pie dish or just buy one at your supermarket!
4 cups of diced rhubarb / sliced strawberries
¼ cup of caster sugar (icing sugar)
3 TBS cornstarch
2 TBS flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
½ cup golden syrup
½ cup heavy cream
1 TBS butter, melted

Preheat the oven to 230*C/450*F

Place the chopped rhubarb into a large mixing bowl.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, corn starch, flour and salt.
Mix in the egg, beating it in well, and then stir in the golden syrup, cream and the melted butter. Mix well.
Pour this evenly over top of the rhubarb and mix well to coat the fruit.
Transfer mixture into the prepared shell.
Bake in the heated 450F/230C oven, covered lightly with foil, for 15 minutes.
Decrease the oven heat to 180*C/350*F Remove foil and bake for 30 to 40 more minutes, until the crust is nicely browned and the rhubarb is tender.
Remove from the oven to a wire rack and cool until the pie is firmed up, about 45 minutes, before serving.
Delicious!!

 

Strawberry & Avocado Spinach Salad in Raspberry Balsamic Vinaigrette

A truly summer salad! If you are not into making your own dressings, buy a similar raspberry balsamic one at the store. This salad both looks and tastes great!!

Strawberry and Avocado Spinach Salad in Raspberry Balsamic Vinaigrette
Prep Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 10 minutes Servings: 2

ingredients
• 1 (5 ounce) package baby spinach
• 2 cups strawberries, sliced
• 1 avocado, diced
• 4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 1/4 cup blue cheese, crumbled
• 1/4 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 cup raspberry white balsamic vinaigrette (* see below)
directions
1. Assemble salad, toss in dressing and enjoy!

Option: Goat cheese or feta also work well in place of the blue cheese.
Option: I like to throw in some fresh peas when available in spring.

  • Raspberry White Balsamic Vinaigrette
    Prep Time: 5 minutes Total Time: 5 minutes Servings: 1cup

ingredients
• 1/2 cup raspberries fresh (or thawed frozen)
• 1/4 cup white balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon honey
• 1 large clove garlic, minced
• salt and pepper to taste
1. Mash the raspberries and mix everything. 2. Pour over your favourite summer salad…

Vegan Watermelon Pizza

Just bring a dessert..don’t you just hate that comment from a hostess? Just kidding, but that was the invite last week where we were meeting up with our dear vegan friend and a few others for cocktails and drinks. What to bring? Uhm…we had a watermelon.  We use Pinterest… Do we have any berries and coconut? Do we have peaches or mangoes? This sounds perfect…and it was so good we have made it twice since!!!

Vegan Watermelon Pizza Dessert

• 1 watermelon (we used the round seedless ones)
• 1 peach or mango
• Cherries (about 10) (you could skip these if you don’t have any fresh ones)
• Fresh mint
• Toasted coconut
• Sauce:
• 5 strawberries or a combination of berries
• Squeeze of fresh lime juice
• Couple of mint leaves

raspberry sambucca or possible coconut rum?
Instructions
1. To make the sauce, place the strawberries or mixed berries, a squeeze of lime juice, and some mint into a blender. Puree until smooth. Taste and adjust flavors accordingly.
2. For the watermelon pizza, slice your watermelon in half (not lengthwise!) Cut out 2 1-inch thick “wheels” from the watermelon. Lay the watermelon circles down and cut into pizza slices. Spread desired amount of sauce onto the “pizza.” Arrange your toppings onto the watermelon and serve.

Since we had no peaches, we used some frozen mango slices we had, along with some frozen sliced strawberries. The second time around we used fresh raspberries. Oh yeah…one more thing. The second time around we used a few drops of raspberry sambucca in the sauce….great for an adult party!

Fresh Strawberry Muffins

‘Tis the season to enjoy the bounties of summer strawberries!

Fresh Strawberry Muffins

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter, melted

3/4 cup sugar

1 egg

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups fresh strawberries, chopped

CINNAMON SUGAR TOPPING

3 teaspoons sugar + 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg and mix well.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl. Add flour mixture and milk alternately to butter mixture. Add vanilla. Gently stir in the strawberries.

Spoon batter into muffin pans.

Combine sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over muffins in pan.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.

Panna Cota with Strawberries

This recipe comes from my friend Karen in Maine. It is a very simple and light dessert. For other great recipes, please visit Karen’s site… www.backroadjournal.wordpress.com

Panna Cotta BYJ

Serves 4 to 6

  • 1 pkg. of Knox gelatin powder (1/4 oz.)
  • 1/4 c. milk plus an additional 1/4 c. milk
  • 2 c. heavy cream
  • 1/2 c. powdered (icing) sugar
  • 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp. lemon extract (optional)

Place 1/4 cup of milk in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin over it and let soften for about 10 minutes. Place the remaining 1/4 cup of milk and heavy cream into a pot and add the sugar, stirring well. Simmer over low heat until the mixture just starts to get small bubbles around the edge. Add the softened gelatin to the mixture and stir until the gelatin dissolves. (Do not let the mixture boil.) Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into a container with a pouring spout. Stir in the vanilla and lemon extract.

Pour into small cups* and refrigerate for at least four hours. (If making the day before, once the mixture has gotten firm place a piece of plastic on top so that a thick skin doesn’t form.)

*If you plan to unmold the panna cotta, run cold water on the inside of the molds, rinse but do not dry. A thin film of non flavored oil can be wiped on the inside of the molds instead, which will also help when unmolding.  To unmold, dip the container into hot water for a few seconds and then run a knife around the edge.

Balsamic Strawberry Sauce

  • 1 c. sliced strawberries
  • 1/2 c. sugar
  • 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar (Don’t skip this!)

Place all the ingredients in a small pan and bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer and cook for ten minutes. Mash the strawberries a little if necessary and then pour through a fine sieve, mashing with the back of a spoon to extract all the sauce. Refrigerate until ready to serve. May be prepared a day ahead.

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Nutty Strawberry Banana Breakfast Quinoa

Nutty Strawberry Banana Breakfast Quinoa {Vegan & Gluten-Free}

Source: Ambitious Kitchen and re-blogged from www.learnnutritionwithme.com

As always, words inserted in red are my changes to the recipe.

Serves 2

1 cup of water

1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 1/2 cups milk of your choice (to make vegan use coconut or almond milk), or yogurt, divided

1 banana, sliced

1/2 cup strawberries, diced

1/ 4 cup toasted nuts of choice, chopped

2 tablespoons unsweetened toasted coconut

Directions

  1. Place water and rinsed quinoa in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil over high heat. Add cinnamon and vanilla and reduce heat to low, cover, and let simmer for 15 minutes or until all of the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and let stand another 5-10 minutes. Fluff the quinoa with a fork.
  2. Divide into two bowls, adding 3/4 cup of milk. Top each bowl with bananas, strawberries, toasted nuts, and unsweetened coconut. Serve immediately.

Notes

  • Optional add-ins: honey, agave nectar, peanut or almond butter, berry variety, mango, pineapple, apples, applesauce or toasted nuts
  • If you’d like you can double the recipe and store the extra quinoa (without milk and toppings) in a container and place in fridge. Take out portions during the week, reheat, and add toppings.
  • Save yourself some time and make a big batch the night before for dinner and have the rest for breakfast.