Strawberry Coulis Yogurt Pops

 

After making the delicious buttermilk panna cotta I found myself with some leftover strawberry coulis.   What to make with the fruit-intense sauce?  Immediately I thought it would make a great base for a homemade popsicle.  All I needed was to mix in some Greek yogurt and pour it into silicone ice pop molds.  Voila...the best summer treat!

Buttermilk Panna Cotta with Strawberry Coulis and Fresh Berries

 

This is the third post on my blog featuring panna cotta but I think it might be the best tasting one yet.  My friend Maria recently hosted a pre-4th of July bbq at her house and I volunteered to bring the dessert.  Knowing that the main lunch was going to be heavy on proteins, think steak and sausages, I wanted to end the meal with something that was delicious, light and refreshing.    Cue this Buttermilk Panna Cotta with Strawberry Coulis and Fresh Berries.

 

 

The recipe comes from Cook's Illustrated and couldn't be simpler to make with heavy cream, buttermilk and unflavored gelatin.  My favorite way to serve panna cotta is in mini Weck jars, a dessert presentation I first learned from Ad Hoc restaurant.   Sometimes panna cotta can have a rubber-y texture if there's too much gelatin used, but you won't have that issue with this version.  The cooked cream is silky smooth with just the right amount of firmness.   Delicioso!

 

The recommended way to finish off the dessert is to drizzle the top with honey before topping with fresh berries.   Since I had an abundance of San Joaquin Valley strawberries from my hometown on hand I decided to make a coulis instead.   The strawberry sauce tasted absolutely delicious with the panna cotta and berries.   I'm planning to bring the mini panna cotta to a 4th of July outdoor concert and picnic.  

Strawberry Shortcake

 

Recently Kitchn did a taste test of four Strawberry Shortcake recipes and the winner came from culinary icon James Beard.  The recipe was actually his mother's and uses finely crumbled hard-boiled egg yolks to give the shortcake a rich and tender crumb.  I had a few baskets of freshly picked berries from my hometown in the San Joaquin Valley that were itching to be consumed.  No better time than the present to see if these shortcakes lived up to the hype.  

 

 

While the recipe calls for making the dough by hand I always find it's easiest to let a food processor do the hard work.  In my opinion the less you handle biscuit or pie dough the better.   As I was making the shortcakes I was reminded of British style scones.  The ingredients and techniques were actually quite similar, except the shortcakes used heavy cream instead of whole milk as the liquid.

One thing I could have done without was the hour long chill in the fridge once the dough rounds were cut.  I'm an impatient baker and would have preferred putting them in the oven straightaway.  [Maybe I'll try that next time.]  After fifteen minutes in a very hot oven the shortcakes came out beautifully golden brown.  Once cooled I split one open to have a taste.  I have to admit they did live up to their reputation.   The shortcake was rich in flavor and tender in texture.  I generous spoonful of lightly sweetened strawberry slices and a dollop of whipped cream was all that was needed for a delightful summertime dessert.

Strawberry Mascarpone Tea Cake

 

Strawberry season is finally here and I am loving it!  There's a farm stand up the road from where my parents live in the San Joaquin Valley that sells, in my opinion, the best strawberries. The ruby red, sweet fruit is picked fresh daily and sold to eagerly awaiting customers.  On a recent trip home I picked up a few baskets with the intent of making this Strawberry Mascarpone Tea Cake.  I'd seen it featured on King Arthur's website a while ago and bookmarked it to make when strawberries were in season. 

In appearance the cake looks very similar to the French fraisier.  What I particularly liked about this version was the use of sour cream in the cake batter and mascarpone cream in the whipped cream filling.  The slight tang from both these ingredients is a nice counterbalance to the sweetness from the strawberries.  

 The next time you have access to sweet berries I highly recommend you make this cake.  It's absolutely delicious!

 

Freeze-Dried Berry No-Bake Cheesecake

 

I love the idea of no-bake desserts especially when it's hot outside because the last thing I want to do is turn on an oven.  When I saw this post on Serious Eats for a no-bake cheesecake that used freeze-dried fruit I was definitely intrigued.  I've made an icebox cheesecake before but I liked this recipe from Stella Parks because it used the freeze-dried fruits to infuse a fruity flavor, but sans the additional moisture that fresh fruit would bring. 

 

 

Luckily I had a bag of freeze-dried raspberries from Trader Joe's sitting in my pantry along with the other cheesecake ingredients to make half the recipe.  The recipe scaled down easily to fit a 9x5" loaf pan.  Since I'm trying to limit the number of trips I make to the grocery store it's always a plus when I have everything on hand.   

 

 

I had a taste of the filling as I was making the cheesecake and the intense raspberry flavor from the freeze-dried fruit was incredible.  It was literally a berry explosion.  Is it strange that it reminded me of fruit-flavored Starburst candies?  As a self-professed lover of the color pink this cheesecake also appealed to me aesthetically.  I could easily picture this dessert gracing the table at a baby shower or birthday party.  

Triple Berry Brita Cake

Rarely does a dessert exceed my expectations but I have to admit that this Triple Berry Brita Cake had me smitten at first bite.  I initially spotted this cake on Jenn Yee's Instagram and was immediately obsessed with the combination of cake and pavlova.   The recipe for this beauty comes from Susan Spungen's Open Kitchen: Inspired Food for Casual Gatherings and can be found online here.

Apparently brita cake has Nordic origins but in all the years I've visited Norway I don't think I've ever tasted it.  I can't believe what I was missing!  Pavlovas are one of my favorite summertime desserts so how excited was I find discover a dessert that added cake to the mix?  

This cake is so good that I actually made it twice in two days.  The first cake I brought along to a 4th of July BBQ and the second cake was to photograph for the blog, but I only made half the recipe which fit a loaf pan perfectly.  

I strayed slightly from the original recipe when it came to the cream toppings  I didn't have any creme fraiche so I increased the amount of heavy cream to a total of 2 cups and added some vanilje-sukker (vanilla sugar) that I picked up on previous trips to Norway.

 

The combination of moist, yellow cake and crispy meringue topped with fresh vanilla whipped cream and strawberries, blueberries and raspberries is absolutely amazing.  It's pure symphony I tell you!  It couldn't be easier to make so I highly encourage you to make this fruity dessert to really showcase summer's best berries.

Strawberries & Cream Chiffon Cake

This is the second time I've made this Strawberries & Cream Chiffon Cake.  Yes, it's that good. The first time was on the occasion of my friend A's birthday at the end of January.  When I asked him what treat he wanted I was expecting his usual favorite, tiramisu, but not this time!  Last year his wife had gotten him a cake similar to this one from a local bakery so I took that as a challenge to make it myself.  I was so happy with how it turned out that I had to make another one for this blog. 

The chiffon cake is the real star of this dessert and one of the best that I've ever tasted.  One bite and the first thing that came to mind were the cakes you find in Chinese bakeries here in San Francisco, i.e., not too sweet, but soft, light and fluffy.  I got the recipe from my baking guru Stella Parks on Serious Eats.  If you haven't already tried one of Stella's recipes I highly encourage you to.  They are as close to baking perfection as you can get.

I couldn't think of a better companion to the chiffon cake than whipped cream.  Now this isn't your typical whipped cream; this one is mixed with cream cheese which provides stability to the frosting as well as a beautiful tang.   Perfection!

Triple Berry Cake

Full disclosure: I totally and completely copied the idea for this Triple Berry Cake from Sweet Lady Jane Bakery in Southern California.  I'd seen this particular  layer cake countless times in magazines and the internet because it seemed to be the birthday cake of choice by the likes of Taylor Swift and Gigi Hadid.  Celebrities aside, I was mainly drawn to the cake for its aesthetics.  I just love the beautiful fruit flowers and leaves set against the whipped cream background.  Absolutely gorgeous!

I did a google search and found a few YouTube videos that showed how the cake is made. What I especially loved was that it wasn't too sweet since the frosting was whipped cream.  Unfortunately Sweet Lady Jane's hasn't disclosed the cake recipe but if you break it down to its components it didn't seem that difficult: yellow cake, whipped cream and lots of fresh berries (strawberries, blackberries and raspberries).

Here's what I made my cake with:

Classic Yellow Cake from Stella Parks

Cream Cheese Whipped Cream from Cook's Illustrated  

Tips for next time: 

1. Make at least 6 cups of sweetened whipped cream (using about 3 cups heavy cream) because I ran out at the end, thus the "naked" look on the sides of my cake.
2. When applying the fresh berries between each cake layer fill the entire surface with tightly packed fruit!  I left gaps and when you cut in to the cake you have gaps...not pretty.

Happy Bee-Day Cake

How cute is this Happy Bee-Day Cake?  I really love how it turned out.  The occasion was for Laura's birthday party and her mom Julia had sent over some ideas with a bee theme.  I've been making celebration cakes for Laura even before she was born so I was happy to continue the tradition and make one for her second birthday.  Here's what baby shower and first birthday cakes looked like.

The cake is comprised of Stella Parks' White Mountain Layer Cake and Swiss Buttercream in vanilla and strawberry flavors.  Stella's white cake recipe is one of my absolute favorites.  The crumb is so moist and tender.  If you haven't already bought her cookbook you need to!  The buttercream is a traditional Swiss meringue style.  I flavored half of the frosting with ground up freeze-dried strawberries which gives you an intense fruit flavor without the additional moisture.  The perfect balance of sweet and tart. 

Happy Birthday Laurita!

White Lily Buttermilk Biscuits with Strawberry Rerigerator Jam

Last month I found myself in Florida with the primary purpose of going to Universal Orlando.  I'm a Harry Potter fan and had been wanting to check out the two HP themed attractions there.  I was especially excited about Harry Potter and the Escape from Gringotts ride since the California location didn't have it.  You would think that as an enthusiast I would have brought back a wand or similar as a memento, right?  Wrong!

What was my Floridian souvenir you may ask?  Flour!  Yes, way, flour.  More specifically, White Lily flour.  [Don't be too surprised though, I am a baker after all.]  I'd heard a lot about how amazing White Lily flour was, especially for biscuits, but unfortunately it's accessibility was mainly limited to the South.  [Yes, I know you can find it online, but I'm too cheap to pay shipping fees for flour!]   

 

During some down time in Orlando I made a beeline to the closest supermarket I could find which happened to be Publix.  Call me strange, but checking out local grocery stores is one of my favorite things to do whenever I travel.  The store was your typical market, but as I was strolling the baking aisle I suddenly remembered about the White Lily flour.  I can't tell you excited I was to see it on the shelf!  I promptly bought four 5 lb bags to bring back to San Francisco with me.  Three of the bags were self-rising flour and the remaining one was all-purpose.  Luckily I managed to fit this haul in to my carry on suitcase.

I finally got around to making the buttermilk biscuits today and I have to say I am blown away by how light, fluffy and utterly delicious they are.  All the hype around White Lily flour is most well deserved in my opinion.  Who would have thought that just three ingredients (self-rising flour, shortening and buttermilk) could create something so delicious?  I give it the highest compliment I know by saying they are just as good, or even better, than KFC's buttermilk biscuits, which until now were my benchmark.

To accompany the biscuits I made a quick strawberry refrigerator jam using a recipe from Cook's Illustrated and local organic strawberries I bought at the farmer's market.  The jam is super easy to make and tastes fantastic with the buttermilk biscuits.  Pure heaven I tell you!

Snickerdoodle Strawberry Ice Cream Sandwich

I was inspired to make these ice cream sandwiches after a recent work event where treats from CREAM were brought in.  They weren't the typical sandwiches you'd find pre-packaged in the ice cream aisle at your local market.  Rather, they sandwiched ice cream between two fresh-baked cookies.   I loved the concept and had to try and make them at home for myself.   

I posted the recipes for the snickerdoodles and strawberry ice cream on my blog earlier this week.  Don't feel limited to these flavors.  The cookie/ice cream combinations are endless: e.g., chocolate chip cookie with vanilla ice cream, peanut butter cookie with chocolate ice cream, etc.   Let your imagination run wild!

Strawberry Ice Cream

After making these yummy strawberry cupcakes recently I still had quite a lot of fresh fruit left over that I didn't want to go waste.  What better use for it than in some ice cream?  You'd be amazed at how easy it is to make really delicious ice cream at home.  I do use an electric machine - I have a Cuisinart similar to this model - and it works like a dream. 

It literally only took the machine about twenty minutes to transform the custard base in to soft serve.  After a couple of hours in the freezer to firm up I had premium quality ice cream that would rival any from Haagen-Dazs or Ben & Jerry's.   Give it a try for yourself...you won't regret it!

Stay tuned to see how I use this delicious ice cream for a yummy summertime treat!

Strawberry Cupcakes 2.0

I've featured strawberry cupcakes on this blog before but I found a new recipe that takes it up another level, hence the post title "2.0".   I have no shame in admitting that I love supermarket/bakery cupcakes and frosting.   People are normally surprised by this because of my passion for baking, but it's the texture that really draws me in - nothing beats a moist and tender crumb - and it's hard to replicate at home.  Until now!

A few years ago I stumbled upon a great blog for Woodland Bakery in New Jersey, which at the time was owned by pastry chef Gretchen Price.   Gretchen was one of the first people I've seen that actually posted recipes from her bakery on the web AND for free.   Professional quality results at home?  Sign me up!  Recently she sold the bakery and started her own blog called what else, Gretchen's Bakery.   Check it out because she has excellent recipes and instructional YouTube videos.

These strawberry cupcakes are a variation of her Moist Fluffy White Cake and Buttercream recipes.  For the cupcakes I just replaced about 1/3 cup of the milk with strawberry puree (also found on her blog).   With the frosting you just add some strawberry puree at the end, to taste.   Finally...supermarket/bakery treats from my kitchen! 

Strawberry Cupcakes

We Californians are definitely spoiled, from the beautiful weather to the overabundance of delicious fruit and veg.   I grew up in the central region of the state, specifically the San Joaquin Valley, and my parents continue to make their home there.   On my last two visits I made it a point to stop by the local stand near the house where miles and miles of strawberry fields thrive under the sun.  The strawberries are some of the most amazing that I've ever had, as sweet as candy.  They're picked daily so you know you're getting the fruit at the height of its deliciousness.

With all this luscious fruit I was looking for a recipe to showcase their wonderful flavor.  I remembered seeing a recipe for Strawberry Dream Cake in Cook's Country that would foot the bill.  But since I didn't feel like making a layer cake I converted them to cupcakes.  I used a different recipe for the frosting than the one included in the cake recipe.  I had fantastic results with the Easy Vanilla Frosting in the past so I tweaked it slightly by adding strawberries.  AMAZING!  It tasted exactly like strawberry ice cream.    

Summer Berry Chiffon Cake

This Summer Berry Chiffon Cake instantly called out to me when I saw it in the June/July 2014 issue of Cook's Country, almost as if I was being taunted to make it.  Hahaha...obviously it worked.  Now that we're at the tail end of spring and on the cusp of summer this cake is perfectly apropos to make, especially with all the bountiful berries at the farmer's market.  

What sets this apart from other cakes is the easy to make, homemade jam filling that is spread between the layers of chiffon cake and cream.    The jam gives you an intensive burst of berry goodness which perfectly complements the refreshing whipped cream.   Delicious!  

I dedicate this cake to all the moms in my life - Happy Mother's Day!!!

Gluten-Free Strawberry Tartlets

 

Just a quick post this time!  I spent the weekend trying out more recipes from ATK's How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook.  I don't have a gluten intolerance yet I find myself drawn to these gluten free treats.  Why?  Because you seriously can't tell!!   The chocolate layer cake I made the other week was so unbelievable that I was anxious to give the other recipes a go.  Luckily I had some pastry cream in my fridge and it made absolute sense to try out the tart shell recipe.  I tell you it's spot on...like the kind you'd find at any patisserie.  The perfectly crumbly sablée-like crust is the ideal foundation for the pastry cream and fresh fruit.  Who needs Paris, or gluten for that matter???

Run, don't walk and get this cookbook!   Stay tuned for more testing....

TWD Berry Galette

I was actually "this close" to skipping this week's Tuesdays With Dorie recipe, Berry Galette, which would have been a first for me.   Considering that we tackled Blueberry Nectarine Pie just last week it felt a bit redundant.  Luckily the galette was super easy to put together so I had to put my laziness aside.  

If you attempt this recipe a word of caution that I'm sure you probably already noticed - the berries tend to leak quite a bit during baking.   I used a triple berry combination of strawberries, raspberries and blueberries.  In hindsight I probably should have omitted the strawberries, per the recipes notes, but I had some in my fridge and threw them in.  

Luckily the pastry didn't get soggy from all the juice and actually browned quite nicely.  Next time I'll add a little more sugar to the dough and also the fruit.  Other than that I thought it was a very tasty tart which would undoubtedly be even better with some ice cream!

Lisa of Tomato Thymes in the Kitchen and Andrea of The Kitchen Lioness have posted the recipe on their blog.

TWD French Strawberry Cake

Here's a fabulous dessert that showcases summer's quintessential fruit.  While this week's Tuesdays With Dorie recipe, French Strawberry Cake, may look and feel decidedly American, the French factor comes from the vanilla genoise cake. 

Unlike most of the genoise I've made or encountered this sponge cake was quite delicious and not dry in the slightest.  The whipped cream is out of this world.  I strayed slightly from the cookbook recipe by adding softened cream cheese.  It's a trick I learned from Cook's Illustrated and provides a slight tang and additional stability to the heavy cream that is truly scrumptious. 

For the cake recipe please make your way over to Sophia's Sweets or Think, Love, Sleep, Dine who are this week's hosts.  I've included the whipped cream recipe below if you'd like to try it for yourself...you won't regret it!