I’m usually terrible at desserts, unless it’s something insanely simple, like strawberry shortcake. Luckily, simple doesn’t mean unimpressive. All you need to make these cute, instagram-worthy little strawberry shortcake stacks are a few pantry staples and the season’s best strawberries. So skip the over sugared candy-bar-stuffed-into-cake-topped-with-ice-cream-and-drizzled-with-chocolate-syrup type of over the top desserts that are all the rage right now, grab a pound of fresh strawberries, and make a dessert that is truly worth bragging about. Let those gorgeous strawberries do their thing and enjoy them while they’re here!

For the cake part of these shortcakes I actually just took my favorite 5-ingredient freezer biscuits, added a bit more sugar to make them dessert-like, and shaped them into a more rustic round shape. They worked perfectly for the strawberry shortcakes because of their super tender crumb that absorbed the strawberry syrup like a champ.

And since I already had heavy whipping cream to make the biscuits, I decided to go ahead and make my own whipped cream, too. If you’ve never make your own whipped cream, you’ve got to give it a try. It’s surprisingly easy and tastes so much better than what you get in the tub or can. You can do it by hand with a whisk, or use a mixer if you don’t feel like working your triceps. Either way it takes all but three minutes.

This recipe did make 8 biscuits and I think the strawberries and cream are only enough for about six, so save the extra two biscuits to top with butter and jam for breakfast. You can thank me later.

Strawberry Shortcake

Step by Step Photos

Start by rinsing one pound of fresh strawberries. Remove the stem and leaves by scooping them out with a spoon (this wastes less than just slicing off the top of the strawberries). Slice each strawberry into about four slices.

Place the sliced strawberries in a bowl and add 2 Tbsp sugar. Stir them together, then set them aside. The sugar will draw the juice out of the strawberries as they sit and create a strawberry syrup. You’ll want to stir the strawberries occasionally as you are preparing the rest of the dish.

Next, start making the biscuits. Begin preheating the oven to 400ºF. In a bowl, stir together 2.5 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp salt, 2 Tbsp sugar, and baking powder. Once they’re evenly combined, pour in 2 cups heavy whipping cream.

Stir until a sticky ball of dough forms and there is no more dry flour left on the bottom of the bowl.

Dust your hands with flour, then divide the dough into eight pieces. Roughly shape the dough into rounds. You want them to be fairly thick. Place them on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper.

Bake them in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes, or until they are lightly golden brown. Let them sit for a few minutes, or until they are cool enough to handle.

While the biscuits are baking, make the vanilla whipped cream. In a glass or metal bowl, combine 1 cup heavy whipping cream with 2 Tbsp sugar and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Vigorously whisk by hand or use a mixer to whisk until soft peaks form. Soft peaks are when you pull the whisk out and it forms a peak that slouches over to the side instead of standing straight up. It is possible to over whisk the cream and make it “break” or separate, so don’t go too far. 

Carefully slice the biscuits in half (they’re very tender and crumbly, so take care).

See how much juice has come out of the strawberries as they sat? That syrupy juice is key.

Place a layer of strawberry slices and some of that delicious strawberry syrup on the bottom of each biscuit.

Next, add a generous dollop of that vanilla whipped cream…

Add the top half of the biscuit, another dollop of whipped cream, maybe another strawberry slice or two, and one last spoonful of that strawberry syrup. And NOW you can dive in. ;)

 

The post Strawberry Shortcake appeared first on Budget Bytes.

*This post was created in partnership with DeLallo Foods. They began as a small Italian grocery store in Pennsylvania and now they carry hundreds of beautiful products that inspired my recipe today.

 

The town where my parents live is so small I tell people not to blink while they drive through. It’s just over an hour outside of Seattle but it feels a world away, yet somehow in this small strip of a town it is a food lovers paradise. There’s a bread baker at the end of the street who makes the fluffiest loaf of potato bread and a cocoa nib shortbread crusted in turbinado sugar. Next to that a specialty food store with picnic tables out back for sipping rosè in the sun.

My first stop in town is at Tweets. A small eclectic building with hundreds of potted plants scattered outside and a dark wood interior with the front wall completely open if the sun is shining. They are only open on the weekends so I have to plan my visits to my parent’s house accordingly. Every time I visit I always order the Torta Rustica. It’s a towering stack of meats, cheeses, potatoes, roasted peppers and herbs all held together by a buttery puff pastry crust. It’s indulgent and special and definitely not a bad idea to cut the richness with a piquant green salad on the side. One slice of that tart is worth the drive.

This pizza is my homage to this special dish. Not nearly as complicated or time consuming to make at the classic Torta Rustica as I use mostly packaged ingredients to make a dish that comes together quickly. To make this even more over-the-top you could layer the toppings even more to build up its thickness. I imagine this would bake quite well in a springform pan as well.

To fight against a soggy bottom crust I preheat my cast iron pan and build the pizza while the crust starts to brown.  

My classic homemade granola recipe gets a fruity twist: with triple blueberry goodness! Blueberry jam, dried blueberries, and freeze-dried blueberries to be exact, plus homemade blueberry yogurt clusters that take this granola from ordinary to extraordinary!

Talk about a unique granola: lightly sweetened with maple syrup and tossed with blueberry jam and ground up freeze-dried blueberries and baked until toasty and golden brown. It’s seriously my new favorite granola, I love sprinkling it on yogurt in the morning or munching on handfuls in the afternoon (where the subtle sweetness is enough to satisfy the afternoon cravings).

I seriously packed all the blueberry flavor I could manage into one flavorful granola. The basic recipe is adapted from my favorite granola recipe (very similar to the one we included in our book as a side recipe for our amazing granola chocolate chip cookies.)

It’s a recipe I’ve modified before, previously transforming it into toasted almond & chocolate granola and spicy gingerbread granola, but this time, I went all in with the fruit.

The granola base is pretty classic, with toasted oats, dried coconut, sunflower seeds, sliced almonds and pecans (though you can mix up the nuts pretty much anyway you like). Toss the oats-n-stuff with a warm mixture of maple syrup, blueberry jam (if you’re using a homemade blueberry jam that’s particularly chunky, I recommend puréeing it first), vegetable oil and a splash of vanilla, then stir until the mixture is completely coated. Oh, and a generous pinch of sea salt!

Bake the granola until it’s golden brown, stirring well every 10 to 15 minutes (the edges tend to cook faster than the middle, and you want it to cook evenly).

But how do I know when it’s done? Well, the granola will have a slight purple tint from the jam when it goes in the oven; when it’s completely toasted the color will have baked out entirely (which bummed me out a bit, but if you think about it, it’s like a color-indicator of doneness, like those toothbrushes that turn white when they need to be replaced). When fully baked, the granola should feel completely dry without any hint of moisture.

I found this particular granola takes a bit longer to bake, I think because of the added moisture from the jam. Whereas the gingerbread granola was done in 30 to 45 minutes, this one took upwards of 50 to 60 minutes. I accidentally underbaked one batch in an effort to preserve some of the purple tint, and it wasn’t very crunchy at all (and let’s face it, less-than-crunchy granola is less-than-ideal). But keep your eyes on it, especially in the last 15 minutes or so – you want it deep golden brown, but it’ll still burn quite easily if you’re not paying attention.

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Last week, I polled my Instagram followers to find out what cocktail they would be most excited about double fisting for the margarita week celebration that is now upon us. The toss up was between fresh ginger margaritas or rosé margaritas, and although the race was tight, it turns out y’all are a bunch of basic, summer water-loving fools like me. Rosé margaritas FTW!

Now I know being “basic” gets a bad rap, but let me clarify by saying that there is no shame in loving things that are universally good. Rosé wine is so delicious and refreshing that I’m fine to chalk it up among the masses of other Americanized favorites. If yoga pants, La Croix, and sharing photos of your coffee on Instagram can continue to find a home in today’s society then certainly we can all make a little room for the most aesthetically pleasing wine of this millennium, right?

As it turns out, rosé and the classic margarita are a match made in heaven. I got the idea for this beverage from another cult favorite, Jeni Britton Bauer’s Jeni’s Ice Creams. She recently sent me one of their newest flavors, “Frosé” sorbet, and she recommended topping a scoop with a tequila floater. Booze and dessert? I was sold.

It only took a few tries and a couple of tipsy Tuesdays to land a recipe for these rosé margaritas. I found that a restrained pour of tequila, a generous amount of lime, and just enough simple syrup could combine with a half serving of rosé to make a beverage that reads equal parts wine and marg. Truly, this combo is one serving at all future summer bashes.

Making rosé margaritas is simple! Combine one ounce each of lime juice and tequila with an ounce and a half of simple syrup in a tall shaker. Fill with ice and shake, shake, shake, until the mixture is seriously icy. Pour the contents of the shaker into a salt-rimmed glass and top with four (yes, four) ounces of your favorite rosé wine. I’d recommend one that isn’t too sweet so that the cocktail is balanced. Give the drink a stir and TA-DA! Rosé margarita heaven. 

This recipe can easily be batched for a crowd. I’d recommend doing the math and shaking the tequila, lime juice, and simple syrup in a large beverage Tupperware. Pour the contents into a large pitcher, stir in the appropriate amount of wine, and serve immediately. I’m not saying you’re going to be everyone’s new BFF, but let’s just assume this to be another universal truth. If you make these rosé margaritas, they will come. 

Happy Margarita Week to you all and special thanks to Kate of Hola Jalapeno! She’s known in these parts for hosting the most KILLER marg party, so be sure to check out her site for a massive amount of other thirsty bloggers who are sharing lime and tequila-infused treats this week. Happy Monday to you and happy drinking!

If you like these rosé margaritas you should check out:

Pinot Ritas

Honey Basil Margaritas

Grapefruit “Tejitos”

Sparkling Margaritas 

Grapefruit Moscow Mules

 

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Buy Clotilde's latest book, The French Market Cookbook!

• We’ve had an eerily summer-like month of April, with cherry blossoms and lilac and wisteria blooming everywhere, unending afternoons at the park, and blissful dinners on sidewalk terraces.

• I have been to see the exhibition Dutch Artists in Paris, which ends on May 13, and L.O.V.E.D. it. My favorite part was seeing the paintings Van Gogh painted of Montmartre when he lived on rue Lepic, behind a handsome blue door I always point out with relish on my Montmartre tours. And now, based on the view he painted from his apartment, I’ve even figured out which window he was looking out from!

• This month, I also want to recommend a little store I love called Sept Cinq, which sells clothing and accessories all created by Paris-based designers. I especially like the jewellery from BDM Studio, and got myself a ring I adore.

Meet me at these events!

I will be presenting my new cookbook Tasting Paris at these two events. Please come meet me if you can!

Paris, France: Tuesday, May 15, 2018, 7:30pm
Talk and book signing at the American Library in Paris, 10 rue du Général Camou, 75007 Paris, M° Ecole Militaire, +33 (0)1 53 59 12 60.
The event is free and public; a suggested donation of 10€ will help support the Library’s programming.
Tasting Paris will be available for purchase.

Dallas, Texas: Saturday, June 2, 2018, 7pm
Book signing at Interabang Books, 10720 Preston Rd. Ste. 1009B, Dallas, TX 75230, (214) 484 4289.
The event is free and public.
Tasting Paris will be available for purchase.

A Montmartre shirt designed by yours truly

Would you like to wear a shirt that celebrates the beauty and charm of Montmartre in a unique, hand-drawn way? I have just the shirt for you, available for men, women, and children, with an illustration I drew inspired by my beloved neighborhood.

Learn French before your next trip!

If you have plans to visit France in the near future (or just daydreaming about it!), working on your French is such a great way to prepare for your trip. I have partnered with Frantastique, a fun and well-crafted online French course, to offer you your first month free, no strings attached.

The courses are delivered by email daily, you can customize them to your level and preferences, and that one free month should give you a good idea of what it would be like to learn or improve your French over a longer period of time. Are you in?

The post Best of April appeared first on Chocolate & Zucchini.

Slow Cooker Mexican Street Corn Dip is a delicious and easy appetizer to serve at a party.

This Mexican Street Corn Dip is cooked entirely in the slow cooker.  The ingredients for the dip are quickly mixed in the blender and then transferred to the slow cooker.

1 1/2 hours on high or 2 to 3 hours on low.  That’s all the time you need to cook the dip and get it all nice and warm and toasty.

You can certainly leave it in the slow cooker and serve it up that way, but I prefer to transfer it to a bowl.  It will cool down if you move it to a bowl, of course, but this dip is super tasty at room temperature too.

It’s suggested that you add some extra goodies to the top of the dip for serving: chopped green onions, crumbled Cotija cheese and a sprinkle of chili powder.  I highly recommend that you follow that suggestion.

Use sturdy chips for dipping because you’ll want to get as much of this good stuff as possible on your chips!  This dip is completely addicting.  It’s rich.  It’s cheesy.  And it has a ton of great flavor.  It’s my new favorite!

This recipe comes from a cookbook called, Holiday Slow Cooker: 100 Incredible and Festive Recipes for Every Celebration by Leigh Anne Wilkes.  Celebrations included in the book are Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day, Chinese New Year, Easter, Cinco de Mayo and 4th of July.  I love to have cookbooks like this at hand since I enjoy entertaining during the holidays.  And using a slow cooker is a bonus- it makes entertaining so much easier!

Here are a few recipes in the book (all slow cooker recipes) that have caught my eye:  Herbed Turkey Breast, Santa Maria Style Pot Roast, Chicken Parmesan Soup, Lemon- Garlic Chicken Pasta, Mongolian Beef, Lemon Pull-Apart Biscuits, Salsa Verde Carnitas, Bacon Mac and Cheese, Overnight Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal and Buffalo Chicken Meatballs.

If you love slow cooker recipes as much as me, you might enjoy my Slow Cooker Carnitas Burritos or my Slow Cooker Cider Ham.  These Slow Cooker Ribs are a good choice for dinner too.

Disclosure:  There are Amazon affiliate links included within this post.  I was given a review copy of this book and was given permission to share a recipe from the book with RecipeGirl readers.  All opinions shared are my own.

The post Slow Cooker Mexican Street Corn Dip appeared first on RecipeGirl.