Strawberry Cake

You guys hear me talking about making a recipe your own all the time, about how if you don't like something in a recipe you can always change it. Or, even if you do like all of the ingredients in a recipe, you can still change it up a little and make something different but equally good! You might not always have the same ingredients for a dish in your pantry and/or refrigerator, but that doesn't mean you can't still make something good.
This recipe is a perfect example of what I'm always talking about! A few months ago, after a visit from some friends who brought yummy cranberry treats with them, I made a yummy cranberry cake, which was very much like a coffee cake. It's really very delicious! So, while rummaging through my freezer one night, I found some strawberries that I had forgotten about and decided to make the cake again only a little differently, using the strawberries instead of cranberries. Heck, you could even mix the cranberries and strawberries, if you really want to, and that would be yummy as well! Other than changing the cranberries to strawberries, I also decided to do a streusel topping for this one instead of the nut topping. And I made a strawberry butter to go with, which was also quite tasty!! The basic recipe for the cake stayed the same, however the changes made it an entirely different treat. See how easy it is to make it your own?! :-D


Printable Recipe

3 eggs
2 c. sugar
¾ c. unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. almond extract
2 c. flour
16. oz. frozen chopped strawberries

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9x13 pan or a 10" springform pan and cut the butter into chunks.
Beat eggs and sugar together for 5-7 minutes; the eggs will increase in volume quite a bit, streaming into ribbons when you lift the beaters. They will also turn pale yellow. Add butter and flavorings and beat for 2 minutes. Stir in flour and fold in cranberries (especially if using frozen cranberries, the batter will not be thin or soft at this time). Spread into a greased pan and sprinkle with the streusel topping (recipe below).
Bake 45-50 minutes for a 9x13, or a little over an hour for the springform. You may need to tent the cake with foil in the last 15 minutes or so to keep the top from browning too much. Cool completely before serving (Or not!) and serve with strawberry butter, if you'd like.


Streusel Topping:
1 c. (packed) golden brown sugar
1 c. old-fashioned oats
¾ c. all purpose flour
¼ tsp. salt
½ c. (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Combine brown sugar, oats, flour, and salt in large bowl; toss to blend. Add butter and rub in with fingertips until mixture comes together in moist clumps. Cover; chill while preparing cake. (Topping can be prepared 1 day ahead; keep chilled.) Sprinkle streusel mixture over the top of the cake and bake as directed above.

Strawberry Shortcake with Moscato Whipped Cream

If you know anything about me at all, you know that I rarely do anything the way everyone else does, especially when it comes to cooking. The first time I ever made strawberry shortcake myself, I didn't really know how anyone else had done it and so I just made up my own way of doing it! Basically, it was just a matter of pureeing one quart of strawberries and slicing another, adding a little bit of sugar, then maybe adding some orange juice or other form of beverage, and serving it over sponge or angel food cake with some whipped cream. It's yummy!
I had bought a two-pound container of strawberries when I went to Sam's Club with a friend the other day, and I've been so anxious for spring to get here that nothing sounded better than making this yummy treat! So, I went about cleaning the strawberries, slicing some of them, and then preparing the others for the blender when I had an idea. I immediately switched gears and went this way instead, which I must say is quite divine!
So, what I did was keep the sliced strawberries as I had them, but the other ones, which had been ready for the blender, I diced into smaller pieces. Then, sprinkled them with some sugar to get all the juices flowing and all that good stuff, and macerated them in my favorite, yummy Moscato d'Asti wine! The wine (I recommend using either the Cupcake or Luccio brand of Moscato d'Asti, but a fruity champagne would work too) goes exceptionally well with strawberries, so it sounded like a match made in heaven. Then, I had the idea to whip up some fresh cream and add some of the wine to that as well. What a brilliant idea!! :-D


Printable Recipe

2 lb. fresh strawberries
3 Tbsp. confectioners' sugar
¼ c. Moscato d'Asti
Angel food cake

Moscato Whipped Cream:
2 c. heavy whipping cream
4 Tbsp. confectioners' sugar
½ c. Moscato d'Asti

For the strawberry sauce: Wash the strawberries and drain them on paper towels; cut off the stem end. Slice half of the strawberries and dice the other half, place them in a medium-sized bowl, sprinkle with the confectioners' sugar, and stir to combine. Cover the bowl and set it in the refrigerator, letting the sugar macerate the strawberries. After a couple of hours, remove the strawberries from the refrigerator and stir them lightly; add in the Moscato d'Asti, cover the bowl again, and place back in the refrigerator for a couple of hours again, allowing the wine and strawberry flavors to marry.
For the Moscato Whipped Cream: Place a metal mixing bowl and metal whisk into the freezer for at least 10 to 15 minutes. Place the sugar into the mixing bowl and add the whipping cream. Whisk just until the cream reaches stiff peaks and then stir in the wine. Store any unused portion in an airtight container for up to 10 hours. When ready to use, rewhisk for 10 to 15 seconds.
Slice the angel food cake, spoon the strawberry mixture over the top, and then serve with a dollop of the whipped cream. Enjoy!! :-)

Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Chips

Nothing says summer like fresh, vibrant flavors. Nothing says summer like fruit. I love when summer finally gets here, because that means all of the fruits and vegetables will be at their peak for freshness and flavor. And I could live on fruits and vegetables!
This is another one of those recipes in my collection that I found somewhere, and it wasn't exactly/entirely what I wanted, so I added some stuff and changed it until it was my own. I had liked the original idea, that of making a sweet salsa instead of a savory, but it just didn't have enough fruits in it for me. So, more of the fruits I like were bought and added to the mix! The first time I made this was with my best friend, Steph, and I can't even remember what exactly we were cooking for. I only remember that we were cooking a lot of food for some kind of party, and this was to be our snack while we were preparing all of this other food. We doubled the recipe, and there was still very little left over at the end of the night!


Printable Recipe

1 qt. finely chopped fresh strawberries
½ pint blueberries, halved
1 (15 oz.) can mandarin oranges, drained and chopped
1 lb. fresh bing cherries, pitted and chopped
3 medium kiwifruit, peeled and finely chopped
16 oz. unsweetened crushed pineapple, drained
1½ tsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. lemon juice

Cinnamon Chips:
10 (8-in.) flour tortillas
¼ c. butter, melted or butter-flavored cooking spray
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
⅓ c. sugar

In a medium bowl, combine the first eight ingredients. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
For the chips, brush tortillas with butter; cut each into eight wedges. Combine sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle over tortillas. Place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 5-10 minutes or just until crisp. To prepare the chips in less time, and with more calories, you can also deep fry the tortillas in hot oil until they are golden brown and crisp. When they are done, remove them from the hot oil to a paper towel lined plate, and immediately sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Serve with fruit salsa. Yield: approximately 5 cups salsa (80 chips).