Search Results for: strawberry

Pineapple-Infused Sake for the Summer Olympics

Have you been watching the Olympics? We can’t get enough.

Somehow I’m always shocked by the variety of sport. Table Tennis. Taekwondo. Badmitten.

Somehow I’m always clueless about the rules of the game. I actually asked a room full of people if handball was the same thing as dodgeball. Apparently, the answer is no. It is nothing like dodgeball.

And somehow watching all of these fit people exercising makes me want to get in the kitchen.

Pineapple Infused sake. In a 4- to 6-cup widemouthed jar, combine 1 bottle (750 ml.) sake and 1 cup sliced peeled fresh pineapple (or sliced peeled, pitted firm-ripe mango would work too!). Cover and chill until sake has a subtle fruit flavor, about 5 days. Drain sake with a slotted spoon (if you still have fruit floating, try the draining method as described in strawberry vodka recipe). Serve cold ― the sooner, the better. Leftover sake (without fruit) will keep up to 1 week when stored airtight in the refrigerator. Makes about 6 servings.

Want to add some Olympic competition fun into your home? Check out Love Them Madly’s awesome DIY!

Posted on August 1, 2012 at 6:00 am | 2 Comments

TGIF: Five Sweet Sins

I had a rough cooking week. I tried two recipes I was certain would be great. Instead, I burned the batch of baked zucchini and summer squash chips and the other just didn’t taste as good as Brownie Cookies with Salted Caramel Creme Filling should. Not that either of those issues stopped me from eating trays of each.

Here’s a collection of sinful desserts, I wish I had made instead – though my bathing suit is grateful that I didn’t. Try them and report back. Or share your own sweet sins with me.

Raspberry Lemon Whoopie Pies (Martha Stewart)

Cookie Dough Cake Balls (Bakerella)

S’more Pie (Our Lady of Second Helpings) (says it has 200 calories in the whole pie.. hmm)

Cinnamon Roll Waffles (Pass the Sushi)

Polka Dot Marshmallow Strawberry Milkshake (Sweet Paul)

Posted on July 13, 2012 at 6:00 am | 4 Comments

Strawberry Muffins

Lazy weekends are the best, aren’t they? We had very few plans this weekend which was rare and delightful. I barely checked anything off my to-do list. We managed to be at the wrong restaurant for the wrong reservation on Saturday night. Sunday, we were inside when it was sunny and outside when it was pouring rain. And, still, it was a great weekend. We got to the right restaurant and had a delicious meal, sprinted in laughter to our apartment while the rain came down on us, and made these delicious strawberry muffins while inside.

Strawberry Muffins

Source: Sweet Paul, Summer 2012 (he called them cupcakes, i think they’re more muffin-like. sets a better expectation)

1 stick butter, room temp

3/4 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup chopped strawberry

whipped cream

15 strawberry slices

1. Preheat oven to 350F. 2. Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. 3. Add the eggs one at a time and beat well between each. 4. Add vanilla, flour, and baking powder. 5. Mix together until you have smooth batter (batter will be thick). 6. Fold in the strawberries- don’t stir them in. 7. Divide batter in a cupcake pan. I used an ice cream scoop. 8. Bake until firm to the touch about 20 minutes. 9. Cool. Service with a dollop of whipped cream and a sliced strawberry.

For more strawberry love, check out Love Them Madly’s strawberry rhubarb jam and strawberry lemonade!

Posted on June 4, 2012 at 6:00 am | Leave a Comment

I’m Sorry I Yelled at You, Lady Berry Crisp

I yelled at a woman on the subway yesterday after she refused to make room for me when there were two bodies worth of space just behind her and her big ole bag. I gave her one of those can you move puh-lease. And when she didn’t budge, I actually lifted her bag with my hands, pushed my way in and gave her a very sarcastic thankyouverymuch. Fellow passengers gave me nods of bravo which made me feel momentarily proud. Then, after glancing to see her bangs matted to her sweaty forehead and a bit of fear on her face, embarrassed guilt washed over me. Did it matter if I made that train or had to take the next one? Did I really have to use such sarcasm? Did I actually touch her bag? What if my last words were yelling at this woman?
To avoid a guilt-fueled panic attack before 9 am, I told myself to think of a song instead. For some reason the song Keri Russell sings in the movie The Waitresscame to mind.

Baby don’t you cry gonna make a pie
Gonna make a pie with a heart in the middle
Baby don’t be blue
Gonna make for you
Gonna make a pie with a heart in the middle
Gonna be a pie from the heaven above
Gonna be filled with strawberry love

And you can guess what the rest of my day went like. All I could think about was pie. I decided to make a simple version of a healthy(ish) berry crisp I had found in Eating Well.

I’m Sorry I Yelled at You Lady Berry Crisp

Makes 4-6 individual pies

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups fresh or frozen fruit, such as blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, peaches, plums
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
3 tablespoons whole-wheat or all-purpose flour, divided
1 tablespoon orange juice (I didn’t have, I just squeezed a little lemon instead)
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup chopped almonds, or pecans (optional)
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons grape-seed oil (original recipe said canola oil, chopped butter is good too)

Preheat oven to 400°F.
Combine fruit with granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon flour and orange/lemon juice. Divide among four 6-ounce ovenproof ramekins (or I used 5 4-ounce jelly jars). Combine oats, nuts, brown sugar, the remaining 2 tablespoons flour and cinnamon. Drizzle with oil and stir to combine. Sprinkle over the fruit mixture. Place the ramekins on a bakingsheet or if using glass jars put them in a casserole dish with 1-2 inches of water.
Bake until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is golden, 25 minutes. Let stand for at least 10 minutes before serving.

And in case you missed Love Them Madly this week:check out my sister’s posts on a perfect baby gift, a placemat DIY, carrot ginger soup, and lava lamps.

Posted on March 30, 2012 at 6:00 am | 1 Comment

Making PB&J… The Little Bit Schmancy Way.

I woke up Sunday morning to my two+ year old nephew tickling my eyes. Then he snuggled with me for an hour. Frankly, there are few things in the world as delicious. We let my sister sleep in a little (much deserved!) and we went downstairs to read (the same book 3 times, of course), play, and most important to both of us – EAT.

Noah is definitely my nephew. His deep appreciation for food makes me beam with pride. Like me, if he likes something he insists you have a bite. Try it, try it. It yummy. When I told Noah I was making a special pb&j for breakfast, his face lit up. Crêpes with peanut butter and jam. Nono eat, he said. And it was so yummy, he made me have a bite of his and I made him have a bite of mine.

Crêpes with Peanut Butter and Jam
Food Network Magazine, April 2012

4 large eggs
1 cup milk (I used Lactaid)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tbs sugar
1/8 tsp fine seasalt
3 tbs of unsalted butter, cut into 10 cubes
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter, at room temp
1/3 cup strawberry, raspberry, or blackberry jam
1/2 cup blueberries
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

1. Combine the eggs, milk, flour, sugar, and salt. Blend until the mixture forms a smooth batter.

2. Heat a 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Melt 1 cube of butter in pan. Add 1/4 cup of batter and quickly tilt the pan to form an even coating of batter on the bottom of the pan. Cook for 1 minute, until set and slightly browned. Using a heat-resistant spatula, carefully loosen the sides and gently flip the crêpes over. Cook for 1 minute. Repeat with the remaining batter and butter, stacking the crêpes on top of each other as they are ready. Should make 8-9 crêpes. (If you have helpers in the kitchen, I’d make and serve them as they come off the pan. The hotter the better.)

3. Add 1 tbs of peanut butter (I eyeballed this) to each crêpes and spread evenly over the crêpes, leaving a 1/2 inch border. Spread 2 teaspoons of jam over pb. Line 6 blueberries along the center of each crêpes. Fold the crêpes in half over the blueberries. Fold the two ends inward and continue to roll into a tube shape.

4. Dust with confectioners’ sugar.