It's strawberry season and we were having dinner guests so I wanted to make a strawberry shortcake. But not just the regular ol' thing. First of all, it had to be gluten free so I could eat it, and I wanted it to have a little twist. After all, when this couple comes over they expect really good food from my kitchen.
The first thing I tried to search out was a good from scratch shortcake recipe, but to no avail. I ended up buying a mix at Whole Foods, a gluten free muffin mix. I spiffed it up with some lemon zest and juice and made muffins which I then cut in half and used as the shortcake.
I put half the muffin on the plate, then piled on some of the cream, then the strawberries, and then topped it with the other half of the muffin. It looked pretty cute! Please excuse this picture. I forgot to take a picture when I plated it so my husband took a shot with his phone before he demolished it.
For the strawberries I washed and cleaned them, cut them into slices, added a little sugar, I mean a little. Then I smashed just a few to get the juices going and allowed it to sit for a an hour.
For the cream I took 1 cup of organic whipping cream and whipped it until stiff. Then I added one jar or my homemade Meyer Lemon Curd, gave a little mix. I did not mix it completely because I wanted it to have ribbons of cream and curd going through it.
And that was all it took. It was quite good. My dinner guests liked it so much they asked if they could take the rest of it home to eat the next day. Mission accomplished!
This recipe is so simple that you might think it doesn't have much flavor, but think again. The flavors are somewhat supple but when you taste the combination of flavors you realize it all comes together in a beautiful way.
Ingredients:
1 cup vegetable broth
1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed
1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
large handful of cilantro, chopped
2 tbsp green olives, chopped
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tbsp lemon olive oil
Sea Salt
Rinse the quinoa well. In a small saucepan heat the broth, add the quinoa, bring to a boil, cover with lid slightly askew, then reduce to very low and cook for 12 minutes. Remove from heat. Keep cover on and allow to sit for 10 minutes. (This cooks similarly to rice.)
Put the quinoa into a mixing bowl. Toast pine nuts in a hot skillet until just slightly toasted. Add to bowl. Chop the cilantro and add to the bowl. Cut each olive into 4 pieces, add to the bowl. Squeeze the lemon juice over the quinoa, catching any seeds. Add the salt and approximately 2 tbsp of lemon olive oil. Mix well. Cover and refrigerate until needed. Allow to come to room temp before eating. If it gets somewhat dry, add a little more olive oil.
You can easily double this if you are serving more people or want to add this to a buffet. I like it for summer picnics. But then I like everything for summer picnics.
Pudding. It's a dessert from my childhood and I have fond memories of it. My grandmother taught me how to make homemade pudding when I was quite young, and I fell in love with it. Much as I would love to eat it as an adult I don't because it is usually made with milk which is a problem for both me and my husband. Over the years I've tried various recipes with other products like soy or rice milk but they leave a lot to be desired.
This recipe is made with almond milk which is what we use in our house on a regular basis. It is also made with the best quality cocoa powder, which results in a surprisingly rich end product. I was quite surprised at how good this was so it is now has a permanent place in my recipe book.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
2 cups unsweetened almond milk
1 1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small dice
1/2 tsp vanilla
Topping: freshly whipped cream
In a medium saucepan combine brown sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, cinnamon, and salt, whisk to combine, then add almond milk. Bring to a boil, continue whisking and cook for 1 minute until thick. Remove from heat then whisk in the butter and vanilla. Cool and chill well. Cover with plastic wrap to prevent skin from forming. You can leave it all in one bowl, or spoon into individual bowls or cups for single serving sizes. Makes 4 servings.
To serve, whip whipping cream, add a touch of vanilla and top the pudding. You could also top with some sliced almonds.
Spinach. I always have it in the house. I use it in omelets for breakfast and in smoothies. I make salads a lot so sometimes I use half spinach and half other greens. Gotta get my greens in every day. It contains fiber, protein, lots of vitamins and minerals, including vitamin K which is hard to come by, and calcium. Buy it. Wash it. Eat it.
Ingredient amounts for salad are always tricky for me. I eye ball it. How much do I need to serve two people? Four people? This recipe will serve four so I make approximately half of it for the two of us. You have to be exact. Just through in however much of each ingredient you want.
If you want this to be vegetarian simply omit the bacon.
Ingredients:
4 beets
1 green apple
8 strips bacon
4 cups raw spinach
Walnuts, a handfull
4 tbsp Goat Cheese
Dressing:
2 tbsp Sherry vinegar
1 tbsp maple syrup
5 olive oil
Sea Salt
Pepper, freshly ground
Make sure the spinach has been washed, de-stemed, and chilled well. You do not want the spinach to wilt when you add the dressing. It needs to be cold and crunchy.
Wash the beets well, dry and place on a baking sheet. Roast in the oven on 400 degrees for 1 hour. Allow to cool. Peel and cut into wedges.
Cook the bacon. Cool and cut into small pieces.
Toast the walnuts in a saute pan until slightly brown. Cool and cut into small pieces
Make the dressing: combine all the ingredients in a small bowl and whisk well. Add enough salt and pepper to season the entire salad.
When ready to assemble cut the green apple into very thin slices.
Dress the spinach and plate it. Then sprinkle on walnuts and bacon, then pile on the beets and green apple. Top with approximately a tablespoons of goat cheese for each serving.
