Friends, it’s my birthday on Sunday. It’s not just any birthday it’s a big one. It’s my thirtieth! So in celebration of my birthday this week’s two recipes will highlight some of my favorite flavors with one sweet and one savory recipe. Today we’re starting with the sweet – a recipe for strawberry lemon tarts.

Lemon tarts are my absolute favorite dessert and I’m still searching for my perfect tart. I love the combination of sweet and tart and I like that it feels light but is still sort of silky and decadent. Although I’m sometimes swayed by intense chocolate concoctions, when I go out I try to order lemon tarts because I find it so satisfying for my sweet tooth. And since I don’t have the perfect recipe for lemon tarts or a go-to bakery where I can buy some, I never get tired of eating them. Constantly seeking the epitome of deliciousness has its benefits. 

But lemon tarts alone aren’t enough to be my birthday celebration food – I had to add strawberries. Strawberries are my absolute favorite fruit and I could eat a whole bowl full in one sitting. In fact, I have eaten a whole bowl by myself but often times I feel guilty for not sharing. I love strawberries because they are a symbol of summer and hot sunny weather (and my birthday is the first day of summer so it feels in perfect alignment). Sure, you can get strawberries throughout the year but off-peak strawberries are all looks and no substance. Summer time strawberries on the other hand are sweet, juicy, and bursting with flavor.

So, when you make this recipe make sure you have some extra strawberries for snacking. You know you’re going to want to eat a few.

Adapted from Macaroni and Cheesecake

Messy level: I find the preparation for this fairly messy because there’s a lot of cutting, juicing, blending and food processing that you have to do. But, when it comes to assembly it’s straightforward and mess-free.

Strawberry Lemon Tarts

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

40 mins

Total time

55 mins

 

Ingredients

Crust:

• ¼ cup granulated sugar
• ½ cup/113 grams unsalted butter, softened
• 1½ cups all purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Filling:

• ½ cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (about 3-4 lemons)
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest (about 2 lemons)
• 1½ cup strawberries
• 1½ cups granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• ¼ cup all purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• Confectioner’s sugar for dusting

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C degrees.
2. Line a 9 x 13 pan with aluminum foil. Grease the foil with butter or cooking spray.
3. Start with the crust. In a large bowl using an electric mixer cream together the butter and sugar.
4. Add the flour and salt to the butter mixture. Mix until it looks like crumbs.
5. Press the crumbly mixture into the prepared pan.
6. Bake for about 15-18 minutes, or until lightly golden on the edges.
7. Remove from the oven and set aside.
8. Now for the filling. Put the strawberries and lemon juice in a blender. Blend until smooth (or as smooth as your blender can get it)
9. Either in the blender, or in a bowl with an electric mixer, add the lemon zest, sugar, an eggs to the strawberry puree. Blend until smooth.
10. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the strawberry mix. Mix until completely smooth.
11. Pour the filling over top of the crust once.
12. Bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the filling is set with just a bit of a jiggle.
13. Remove from oven and let cool completely.
14. Dust lightly with confectioner’s sugar.
15. Cut and serve. Store extra in the refrigerator.

3.3.3077

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I’ve become obsessed with these apple and elderflower gummies from Candy Kittens that are shaped like cats (update as of March 2016 they don’t make this flavor anymore but everything else they make is amazing!). They are delicious and juicy, but slightly too expensive and the bag is slightly too big for me to be eating on my own. Regardless, they are delicious and I’ve been eating a ton. I’ve become so enamored with this flavor combination that I had to see what else was out there that I could make at home.

The choices seemed to be either drinks or desserts. I’ve been making a lot o beverages recently and I have a crazy sweet tooth so I chose dessert. I decide to throw in strawberries too after Tesco made a substitution in my grocery delivery and gave me a large container of strawberries than I had order. It was perfection, and the apples, strawberry and elderflower cobbler was born. It might not be beautiful to look at, but it’s so darn good. 

I wasn’t familiar with elderflower before I moved here, but it’s a flavor I see on drink menus at restaurants and in the juice or tea aisles of the super market. Specifically, what’s being used is elderflower cordial, which is made from the elderberry. This plant is native to Europe and parts of northwest Africa and southwest Asia. So, since it’s not from the Americas it might be why I’m not familiar with it. Anyway, the cordial is made from the flowers of the elderberry, water, sugar, and a bit of lemon. It’s sweet and just a bit tart and floral. All in all, it’s very nice.

Something else I wasn’t so familiar with before I moved here is cordial. Also called squash. Basically it’s concentrated syrup – usually fruit juice though sometimes herbal or floral. It’s everywhere here and you buy squash/cordial and then dilute it with water. I like it because then I feel like I’m getting more beverage for my money because one bottle of squash is about the size of one bottle of juice. The closest thing I ever had to it in the U.S., was when I was a kid we sometimes had frozen juice concentrate and I always liked to make pink lemonade. But I digress.

The cordial is lovely and as it simmers together with the apples and strawberries it is delightfully sweet and bright. Apple pie is my absolute favorite food, but this version is like summer time apple pie. I like the addition of strawberries because it makes everything a gorgeous blush pink. The strawberries then lose their color a bit, but it’s ok because it makes the juice have a jammy flavor. I was worried that this is a little too liquidy and juicy – and maybe it is as I haven’t made cobbler before – but I like it because it helps moisten the biscuit on top. Everything becomes appropriately soft and chewy.

The vanilla cream on top is also really gorgeous. I was tempted to forgo making it, but it’s worth it. I’ve never used a vanilla pod before and the flavor the comes through is the most luscious vanilla I’ve ever tasted. It’s better than store bought, better than extract. It was so good, I’m tempted to try and make my own extract. Finally one of the ingredients is for a cheese! I thought it would be so weird but the flavor is mild and once it cooks it’s just creamy. Don’t ever let cheese throw you off because it only makes things better.

Adapted from BBC Food Recipes

Messy level: I am sure a person can do this and not make a gigantic mess, but that person isn’t me. Basically you’re making three small recipes for this one whole recipe – which means lots of dishes and lots of spills and mess.

Apple, Strawberry and Elderflower Cobbler

 

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Ingredients

Filling

• 5 medium Pink Lady apples, peeled and cut into wedges
• 2 cups quartered strawberries
• 1 cup elderflower cordial
• ¾ cup granulated sugar

Topping

• 1 cup flour
• 3 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 tablespoons demerara sugar
• 100g/3½oz/7 tablespoons cold butter, cut into cubes
• ¾ cup buttermilk
• less than ½ cup crumbled wensleydale cheese

Cream

• 1¼ cup milk
• 1 vanilla pod, split, seeds scraped out
• 4 free-range egg yolks
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• ½ cup double cream

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F.
2. In a large sauce pan, mix together the apples, cordial and sugar. Place the pan over medium heat and bring to a simmer cook for 4 minutes. Then add the strawberries and cook for another 3-5 minutes or until the apples and strawberries are just beginning to soften, but are still holding their shape.
3. Pour the apple-strawberry mixture into an oven proof dish. I used one that is 10x10".
4. Now start on the topping. Place the flour, baking powder, salt, sugar and butter into a food processor and blend until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
5. Add the buttermilk to the food processor. Pulse the mixture, until it comes together as a thick batter/dough.
6. Spoon the batter over the apple-strawberry mixture. I used my fingers to spread it evenly, but you can leave gaps if you'd like the fruit to bubble through.
7. Sprinkle the cheese over the top of the dough.
8. Transfer to the oven to bake for 25 minutes, or until the top is a bit puffed and golden.
9. While the cobbler is baking, start on the custard. In a medium saucepan, place the milk, vanilla pod, and seeds. Heat to scalding point (when it's starting to show steam and is just about to boil). Remove from the heat and set aside for two minutes. This is to infuse the vanilla flavor.
10. Place the eggs and sugar into a clean bowl and whisk together to make a thick paste.
11. Gradually pour the vanilla milk onto the egg mixture, whisking constantly.
12. Once it's all mixed return the custard to the saucepan. Place the pan over a low heat. Simmer and stir until the custard thickens.
13. Once it's thick stir in the cream.
14. Spoon cobbler into bowls and then pour cream over the top.

3.2.2925

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My lovely friend Charlotte, who is so supportive and helpful with my blog, suggested I post my first-ever salad recipe. When I read her email, I thought, “ugh, salad.” I seriously dislike making salads and I prefer what I can buy at a restaurant. I don’t have all the diverse and exotic ingredients they have. And I’m just incapable of coating my salads in dressing like restaurants do. I always have a dressing puddle at the bottom of my plate. But if the purpose of my blog is to push myself to expand my cooking horizons, then I should get over my aversion to salad-making and just make a darn salad!

Today’s recipe I call, “Lisa’s Mom’s Strawberry Salad.” Now Lisa, is one of my oldest and best friends, and I’ve known her for literally over twenty years. Her mom’s name is Ellen, and Ellen calls this recipe “Strawberry Poppy Seed Salad,” and we’ll go with that since it sounds more elegant. This recipe is one of the three or four staples (along with veggie pizza and 7-layer dip) that I associate with parties at Lisa’s house, and it’s become one of the dishes I look forward to. And I’ll admit it, I’m nostalgic. I like this recipe because it reminds me of my friends and all the great parties we went to at Lisa’s house when I was growing up.

But, the real reason this is special to me because it is the first recipe I ever asked someone for. Today I’m always asking people how they make something, what ingredients they used, and how they cooked it. But, I asked for this recipe when I was in high school and never cooked anything. Seriously, never. I do recall I made this once or twice at home, but somewhere in the 10+ years since high school I lost the recipe.

When Ellen sent me the recipe this time, my eyes bugged out a little when I saw mayonnaise in the dressing ingredients. Sixteen-year-old Mariel was unbothered by this because she didn’t know what ingredients were in anything, and she could eat whatever she wanted. But twenty-eight-year-old Mariel has a slower metabolism, and is afraid of mayonnaise. And I don’t really know why I’m afraid of mayonnaise. Mayonnaise, when made from scratch is largely oil and if a salad dressing called for lots of oil I wouldn’t bat an eye! So I decide I would make the dressing as Ellen instructed, and I’d also try to make my own oil based vinaigrette. And the winner was the mayo-based dressing! I felt like the oil overpowered the tangy raspberry sweetness I wanted in the dressing. Also, the mayo dressing wasn’t heavy at all. I liked the light sweetness that it added to the salad.

I had the perfect opportunity to make this salad the other day when Ryan was going out with friends to watch a soccer game. Solo-girls-night at home is about the only time a reddish-pink, vegetarian salad is going to be dinner in my house. When Ryan came home a few hours later he found me on the couch watching The Big Bang Theory with our baby-polar-bear-soft blanket pulled up to my nose.

Ryan: How was your salad?

Me: Great!

Ryan: You didn’t watch the game?

Me: No

Because solo-girls night means no sports on TV and a vegetarian dinner. Might sound terrible to you, but it sounds awesome to me.

Anyway, back to the recipe. At the core this salad can be made using just romaine, red onions, and strawberries. I decided to jazz it up a bit and I added goat cheese and crushed almonds. The sharp tang of raw onions, with the creamy cheese, the crunch of the almonds, and bright juiciness of the strawberries makes for a vibrant combination of flavors. I also think it makes the salad more filling. And tastier.

It was so tasty and filling, in fact, that I had this salad for breakfast the next day. For real, I ate salad for breakfast. I guess I don’t hate making salad anymore.

Ingredients

These amounts are if you’re making the salad for 4+ people

Dressing:

1/2  cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup sugar

2 tbsp poppy seeds

1/4 cup milk

2 tbsp raspberry vinegar

Salad:

1 large head of Romaine lettuce (I used a bag of mixed greens)

1 quart strawberries

1 small red onion

1/3 cup almonds (or to taste)

goat cheese (to taste)

Directions

1. In a bowl, mix the mayonnaise and sugar thoroughly. Add the poppy seeds. Mix. Add the milk. Mix. Add the raspberry vinegar. Mix. Set aside.

2. Wash the lettuce and roughly chop. Put in a large bowl.

3. Wash the strawberries. Cut into thin slices. Put them on top of the lettuce.

4. Slice the onion in thin strips. Put them on top of the lettuce.

5. You can crush the almonds in a food processor. Or you can put them in a plastic bag and hit them with a rolling pin. The second way is fun, and you don’t dirty any dishes. Sprinkle crushed almonds on top of the lettuce.

6. Cut the goat cheese into small dime-sized blobs. Place them around on the salad.

7. Serve!

Messy level – 1 spoon! All you need for this is a knife, cutting board, two bowls, and a whisk to mix the dressing. So very easy.

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Rhubarb from Star Hollow Farm

I’ve wanted to bake with rhubarb for awhile. The thing is, I always remember rhubarb in September when the summer is almost over and rhubarb season has long passed. The one time I did notice rhubarb at the farmer’s market it was mostly green and I got nervous because I thought it was supposed to be mostly red. So I’ve let forgetfulness and fear stand between me and rhubarb.

But this year, my lovely friend Anna came to the rescue! She got me some rhubarb from her family farm, Star Hollow Farm, which means I can be sure it’s in season and I didn’t have to worry about choosing which stalks of rhubarb to get.

I’ve been curious about rhubarb in part because I’d never had it before and also because it pairs well with strawberries, which are my absolute favorite fruit. But honestly, I’ve also been drawn to rhubarb because I really like Garrison Keillor and A Prairie Home Companion. I get the bebop-a-reebop song stuck in my head because it’s just silly and happy. If you know what I’m talking about, thank you for being a part of my nerdy community. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, here’s a video. The song isn’t until about 4:50, but you should watch the whole video because it’s a great example of Garrison Keillor’s storytelling and the great sound effects of the show.

Anyway, I was so happy with the way this pie looked and tasted. I didn’t know what to expect because I had never made this pie before, but I was really please and impressed with myself. I went to work and brought a big piece to share. And I made my coworkers look at pictures of how pretty it was. Excitedly, I told my coworker I made a pie. He was skeptical.

Me:  I made a pie this morning

Him: What do you mean you made a pie?

Me:  I made a pie.

I mean seriously, when I say I made a pie, I flipping made it! When someone says they made a pie, the first question should be what kind, followed by can I have a slice? But, after some questioning about if I made the crust, and did I brush an egg mixture on top, he seemed sufficiently satisfied that I had in fact made a pie.

And you can make one too. People seem intimidated by pies – especially crust – but it’s not a crazy mystery. It’s not too hard and it took me about an hour and a half total time (maybe less), which includes the 40 minutes of cooking time. One thing more before we get started, this pie is super juicy. It oozes out delicious goodness, but because of all the liquid it doesn’t hold the pie-slice shape very well. It doesn’t bother me because it tastes good. And all the juice goes really well with vanilla ice cream. So don’t feel discouraged if it looks like a ruby-red lump on your plate because it will be heaven in your belly.  So, if you’re interested let’s get baking so you can make impressive, beautiful, delicious, and old-timey pie worthy of Garrison Keillor song.

Ingredients:

Filling:

3 cups strawberries – chopped in quarters if larger, in half if small

3 cups rhubarb – chopped in ¾-1” pieces

1 cup sugar

¼ cup + 1 tbsp cornstarch

¼ tsp salt

Crust:

[Note: I made two pie crusts; one for the top and one for the bottom. If you only want to make one crust, then use the numbers in the parenthesis. If you’re making both then use the numbers not in the parenthesis.]

2/3 cup + 2 tbsp shortening (1/3 cup + 1 tbsp)

2 cups all purpose flour   (1 cup)

1 tsp salt (1/2 tsp)

4-9 tbsp cold water (2-5 tbsp for 1 crust)

Other:

1 egg white

1 tbsp butter cut in small pieces

Directions:

1. About 10 minutes before you want to start baking, put a cup of water in the freezer.

2. Preheat oven to 400°.

3. Mix the flour and salt in a medium bowl.

4. Cut the shortening into the flour. If needed, mix gently with hands. You want the particles to look like small pea-sized clumps. [When adding the shortening do not just dump it all in and then mix it with a spoon. Cut the shortening usually means using a pastry blender to cut up the shortening into clumps. If you don’t have a pastry blender, add the shortening then use two knives. Hold the knives in an x and cut the shortening into small pieces.

5. Add 1 tbsp of cold water to the mixture. Mix with a fork or your hands. [I have better control and can tell when it’s “finished” when using my hands. The problem with using your hands is that it can warm up the dough too much.]

6. Repeat the above step, adding water 1 tbsp at a time until the flour is moistened, and dough has formed. The bowl should be pretty much clean and most of the flour should be incorporated in your ball of dough.  I usually need to add 4 tbsp of water.

7. Gather dough into two balls (if you’ve made enough for two). Generously flour a work surface. Flour your rolling pin. Be generous with your flouring!!! You don’t want the dough stuck you the counter, rolling pin, or your hands. Seriously! The dough can get too warm and flouring really helps it stay together.

8. Roll out both of your dough balls so that it is about 2” larger than an inverted pie plate.

•  The dough ball that will be your top can be rolled out on a piece of parchment paper. Once it’s rolled out to your desired size cover it with another piece of parchment paper. This is done so it keeps its shape until you’re ready to use it.

9. Place one of the rolled out crusts into the pie plate. I like to fold the dough in quarters, place in the pie plate, and then unfold the dough, and finally press it into shape. What’s great about making your own dough is that it’s really malleable. If you rip it, or if you have one side that’s too short, you can tear a bit from somewhere else and patch up your problem area.

10. Place the pie plate crust and the parchment crust in the fridge while you prepare the inside of your pie.

11. In a large bowl mix your chopped strawberries and rhubarb

12. In a small bowl mix the sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Mix until there are no lumps.

13. Add the sugar mix to the fruit. Mix until combined and all the fruit is coated.

14. Remove pie plate from the refrigerator. Gently pour the fruit mix into the pie plate.

15. Dot the fruit with your small pieces of cut butter.

16. For the top you have options:

•  Cut a few slashes in the rolled out crust dough. This is to vent the insides. You can make the cuts pretty and decorative if you want. Then place the dough on top of the fruit mixture. Press the top of the crust to the edge of the pie pan (so it seals with the bottom crust.)

• You can cut strips of dough and make a lattice (which is what I did).  I’m not crazy about crust so I made big strips with big spaces between (you can make a tighter weave). My way looked pretty, but it didn’t hold its shape well when I cut a piece. Anyway, cut some strips (whatever size you like) and weave them together.

17. Once you’ve assembled your top you also have some styling options:

• You can use a fork and press the tines down all along the sides of the pie plate. This will bind the top and bottom crusts and also make a nice design

• Remove overhanging crust dough and roll it into a long “snake.”  Put the snake around the on the edge of the pie plate. Pinch the dough to make a zig-zag pattern. This will make a “crimped” looking edge to your pie. (This is what I attempted to do, but it didn’t zig-zag as much as I hoped).

See the edge of the pie? That’s my attempt at crimping the edge.

18. Put your egg white in a small bowl. Add a few drops of water. Whisk until a little foamy.

19. Brush egg white mixture on to tops of the crust.

20. Place pie plate on a baking sheet. Bake for 40 minutes. Or until the crust is golden and the juices are bubbling.

21. Isn’t it the most gorgeous pie?! If yours is gorgeous, GO YOU! Hold yourself back and let cool for about an hour before serving

Messy Level: Medium-High. When I turned around to look at the kitchen, I was a little shocked by the mess. The messiness comes from making the dough. Shortening is greasy and sticky and gets on everything. And flour is just messy. It gets into every nook and cranny of my kitchen – but to do this right you need a lot of flour so I just have to accept it. And finally, the pie is super juicy.  You really need the cookie pan under the pie plate because juices will drip over. And, once you let it cool and cut it, there will be delicious juice everywhere. Don’t be afraid to get a spoon and slurp it up.

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When I saw them last week in Clarendon I thought, “they’re here! THEY ARE HERE!”  So I bought two large boxes. One for eating, and one for making ice cream. Last year my parents gave me an ice cream maker for my birthday, and it’s been really fun to use. After each new batch, I’m always itching to try using another fruit or candy. But, strawberry is my go-to. It’s delicious, creamy, sweet, and a little bit tart. Ice cream is easy to make, just a bit time consuming.

This recipe comes from the manual that came with my Cuisinart ice cream maker. Here is a manual from a different maker, but with a similar recipe.

Ingredients:

1 pint strawberries, stemmed and sliced

1 cup sugar

1 cup milk (this time I used 2%, but I think it works better with whole)

2 cups heavy cream

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Put the freezer bowl piece of your ice cream maker in the freezer. It should be in there for at least 8 hours. This is very important because the bowl needs to be completely frozen in order for your ice cream to work. I usually leave it in overnight.

For storage I usually use a large plastic food storage container. However, I did some online research and I read that shallow flat containers are better. Also, to keep freezer burn off, putting plastic wrap over the ice cream before closing the lid is supposed to help. I haven’t tried either thing, but perhaps it’s useful.

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