I love shortcake desserts! You pretty much can’t go wrong with a lightly sweetened biscuit (or in this case, cake) topped with fresh fruit and freshly whipped cream. YUMM! This recipe for Strawberry Shortcake is from Emeril’s Potluck Cookbookand is a perfect way to feed shortcake to a crowd. The sturdy sponge cake stands up nicely to the fruit and it’s juices…and it’s really pretty!

This dessert is best when served shortly after it’s made so if you need something made the day before an event (or even earlier in the day), find a different dessert. You can make the cake a day in advance, and prepare the strawberries and whip the cream (seperately) then assemble the dessert shortly before serving. The longer the dessert sits, however, the higher the risk of having mushy cake. If you don’t want to serve the shortcake in a bowl, you can also layer the berries and cream over the whole cake or just cut pieces of cake and pile the berries and cream on each serving. It’s not rocket science so you can make it how you want it.

Recipe changes I made: For the strawberries, I used less sugar and substituted some orange juice for the Grand Marnier (I didn’t want the pregnant ladies to get liquored up). Also, I added a teaspoon or so of vanilla to the cake.

Strawberry Shortcake
-recipe from Emeril’s Potluck Cookbookby Emeril Lagasse

Ingredients
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled, plus 2 teaspoons, softened
6 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons milk, at room temperature
3 1/3 cups granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 pounds strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and sliced
1/2 cup orange-flavored liqueur, plus a little more for drizzling (recommended: Grand Marnier)
1 1/2 teaspoons orange zest
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
5 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and grease a 9 by 13-inch glass casserole with the 2 teaspoons of butter and set aside.

Combine the eggs and milk in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer until frothy. Add 1 1/3 cups of the sugar and continue to beat at high speed until the mixture is quite thick and pale yellow, about 7 to 10 minutes.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Fold this mixture gently into the egg mixture. Gently stir in the melted butter and then transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan and bake in the center of the oven until risen and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack before proceeding.

Make the strawberry topping by combining the strawberries, remaining 2 cups sugar, 1/2 cup orange liqueur, and orange zest in a large bowl and tossing to combine. Let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until all sugar is dissolved. Refrigerate, covered, until ready to assemble the dessert.

Make the whipped cream by combining the heavy cream with the confectioners’ sugar in a large bowl and beating with an electric mixer or whisk until slightly thickened. Add the vanilla and continue to beat until the mixture nearly forms stiff peaks.

When ready to assemble the dessert, poke holes all over the cake using a cake tester or toothpick. Drizzle cake with a little orange liqueur. Cut the cake into 1 1/2-inch cubes and place half of the cake cubes on the bottom of a deep-sided dessert bowl. Add half of the strawberry mixture over the top of the cake cubes, juices and all, spreading strawberries evenly with a spatula and allowing the juices to absorb into the cake. Top with the remaining cake cubes and then the remaining strawberries. Top with the whipped cream and serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 1 hour in advance before serving.

Blog parties I’m linked to:
Foodie Friday
Finer Things Friday
It’s a Hodgepodge Friday
New Friend Friday
Grocery Cart Challenge
Favorite Things Friday
Friday Favorites
Friendly Friday Follow
Friendly Friday
Blog Hop Friday
Friday-Follow
Follow Friday 40 and Over
I’m Lovin’ It Fridays
4th of July Party at It’s a Blog Party
Sundae Scoop

Tags: Dessert, shortcake, strawberry, trifle, whipped cream

Recently, I bought one of those mongo 6 pound packages of fresh strawberries to use for strawberry shortcake. After making the shortcake, however, I still had 2 pounds of the precious berries. Not wanting the leftover berries to go to waste, I decided to make some strawberry syrup. Not only is it easy to make, but it’s way better than store bought berry syrup and can be used in a variety of ways. For instance, a topping for pancakes or waffles, mixed with plain yogurt, stirred into hot oatmeal, added to club soda or lemonade for a refreshing drink, etc. 

Watch the heat on the boiling berries. I was multitasking while I made the syrup and ended up with a strawberry mess all over my stove. Good times!

Let me know how you use your strawberry syrup. There’s so many possibilities…

Strawberry Syrup
-Recipe from Bon Appétit Magazine

1 pound sliced hulled strawberries
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup corn syrup
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Bring strawberries, water, sugar, corn syrup, and salt to boil in large saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Boil uncovered 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and adjusting heat to prevent mixture from boiling over. Add lemon juice. Strain, pressing on solids. Cover and chill syrup. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 week ahead. Keep chilled.

Parties I’m linked to:
Just Something I Whipped Up Monday
Market Yourself Monday
Motivate Me Monday
Tuesdays at the Table
Tasty Tuesday
Tempt My Tummy Tuesday
Tuesday Tastes
Show Off Your Stuff
Ultimate Recipe Swap

Tags: corn syrup, lemon juice, strawberry, sugar, syrup

Some mornings I just don’t have time to make a big deal about breakfast. That’s why I love smoothies. You make it, slurp it down, then you’re on to the next thing. Husband bought me The Little Black Book of Smoothies several years ago and I’ve enjoyed trying many of it’s smoothie concoctions. The Strawberry Sunrise Smoothie is one of my favorites. The ingredients can be found at just about any grocery store and are easy to keep stocked up on. The recipe calls for wheat germ, which is loaded with vitamins and minerals including folic acid, iron, zinc and vitamin E (among others); while bananas are a good source of potassium and fiber.

Strawberry Sunrise Smoothie
-from The Little Black Book of Smoothies by Ruth Cullen

Buy golden yellow bananas without any visible bruises, and prepare for freezing by removing peel and slicing. A half cup of sliced banana is approximately a half banana.

1 cup chilled orange juice
1/2 cup non-fat vanilla yogurt
1/2 frozen banana
1 tablespoon wheat germ
1 cup frozen strawberries
1 tablespoon honey (optional)

Pour orange juice into blender and add yogurt, banana, wheat germ, and strawberries. Blend at high speed until smooth. For extra sweetness, add 1 tablespoon honey. Makes approximately 2 servings.

Tags: banana, Breakfast, smoothie, snack, strawberry, wheat germ