Strawberry and blackberry shortcakes with Grand Marnier whipped cream

It’s finally berry season and these strawberry and blackberry shortcakes went over very well at a meeting with my foodie friends at a backyard barbeque recently.   Slightly sweet and very tender, these shortcakes are a cinch to make.   Similar to scones and Southern biscuits, shortcakes contain a ‘healthy’ dose of shortening (or my preferred butter) which creates a “short” and delicate crumb.   Filled with lightly sweetened whipped cream and a combination of fresh summer berries soaked in a little bit of orange decadence (aka Grand Marnier), this dessert prettily announces the beginning of Summer.

As wonderful as all berries are, I had a major run-in with them in Oregon during a wine-tasting trip in the Willamette Valley.  It was late September and much to my delight I found the country roads surrounding our Bed and Breakfast lined with enormous wild blackberry bushes - hundreds of them – loaded with thousands upon thousands of blackberries at different stages of ripening!  These impressive, sometimes 12-foot tall plants use boundary fences and posts as support for their thorny, entangled canes.   They provide a wonderful feast for the birds for several months and I was astounded that so many perfectly ripe and sweet berries were left to rot.   I couldn’t wait to get my mitts on them!

Fearless of the possibility of snakes which make the bushes their habitat, I dove in and moved from branch to branch and ate more than I was putting into my Ziploc.  I was not intimidated!   I conquered!   Unable to pace myself midst such glorious fruit, I became an uncontrollable glutton.   Here was my chance to load up for free on vitamin C, vitamin K, manganese, fiber, and oh yeah…I forgot…sugar!  

It was a morning (and sometimes evening) ritual, with a healthy dose of wine-tasting in between (I know…more sugar).  I had totally ignored the warnings of my friend Ralph, who predicted my affliction.   In a couple of days my mouth was reeling from a serious overgrowth of yeast.   Generously fueled by my greed and the sharp increase in sugar, I had a veritable bloom of yeast buds splurging in my mouth.   It was not a pleasant feeling and nothing short of a drastic change in diet and a few pills would stop it.  

But don’t let me stop you from enjoying these shortcakes with berries…in moderation of course!  Our group is planning a wine-tasting trip to Washington state this fall...

Strawberry and blackberry shortcakes with Grand Marnier whipped cream

Makes about 10 – 16 shortcakes. Adapted from Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan

3½ cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons baking powder

¾ teaspoons salt

6 tablespoons sugar

1½ sticks (12 tablespoons cold unsalted butter), cut into small chunks

1½ cups cold heavy cream

Center a rack in middle of oven. Preheat oven to 425ºF. Line a large baking sheet with a silpat or parchment paper.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together in a large bowl. Add the chunks of butter and quickly work it in the flour with your hands or a pastry cutter until the butter is the size of small peas.

Pour the cream over the mixture and mix it gently with a fork until the dough is just combined but there is still flour on the bottom of the bowl. Use your hands to form a rough ball but don’t overwork the dough or it may become tough.

Dump the dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll it out with a rolling pin to about ¾-inch thickness. Using a 2-inch or 3-inch cookie cutter, cut circles out and place on prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Collect the scraps, re-roll and cut more dough circles. Bake for 15 - 18 minutes, turning the cooking sheet around about half way through the baking time. When the shortcakes are light golden brown, remove them from the oven and transfer them to a rack to cool.

When ready to serve, slice each shortcake horizontally in half. Place the bottom half on a serving plate and top with a couple of spoonfuls of the berries and whipped cream. Top with remaining half of shortcake and dust with confectioner’s sugar.

Strawberries and blackberries in Grand Marnier

2 lbs strawberries and blackberries (the proportion is up to you)

¼ cup sugar

2 tablespoons Grand Marnier

Wash berries and place on clean kitchen towel to dry. Hull strawberries and then slice them into thirds. Transfer strawberries and blackberries to a bowl. Add sugar and Grand Marnier and mix gently. Set aside to macerate for about an hour.

Grand Marnier whipped cream

2 cups heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar

1 tablespoon Grand Marnier

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1 teaspoon orange zest

Whip cream and sugar in a bowl until it begins to thicken. Add Grand Marnier, vanilla essence and orange zest.   Whip carefully until it’s thick.  

Prijatno!

Recipe for Success foundation and 1-2-3 Salad

Ever the diligent volunteers, my friend Chantal and I arrived at Sylvan Rodriguez Elementary School to support our new pet project, Recipe for Success.  Founded by philanthropist Gracie Cavnar, Recipe for Success is a non-profit charity that has been active in five fortunate Houston I.S.D. schools for the last four years. 

The primary goal of RFS is to combat childhood obesity.  Students are taught that nutritious food comes from the ground and not at a drive-thru window or in a sealed plastic bag or box.  The Foundation hopes to increase the students’ awareness and appreciation for fresh fruits and vegetables by teaching them how to garden and harvest their crops.  They then use the produce in simple recipes using basic cooking techniques.

To help inspire the kids, well-known local chefs volunteer their time in the classrooms.  With the help of Houston’s own Monica Pope of t’afia, chef participation has grown to include the likes of chefs Randy Evans, Robert Del Grande, David Luna, Randy Rucker, Bryan Caswell, Chris Shepherd, Ryan Pera and many, many more.

Rodriguez Elementary is lucky to have chef Mark Wilson as its full-time instructor.  Here he assists students with the dressing for 1-2-3 Salad.

A former Broadway actor, musician and playwright, chef Wilson does an excellent job of capturing the students’ attention!

Students took turns at whisking the vinaigrette to the count of 10.  As an added bonus, the ever enthusiastic Chantal, a Belgian Francophile, broke out into her native French and taught the kids to count from 1 – 10!  They also learned a new word – emulsion.  They’re not just making any old salad – this is a gourmet salad with balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, feta cheese and walnuts.  Love it!

At each participating campus, the Seed-to-Plate Nutrition Education™ program uses an organic garden as an outdoor classroom.  This expansive garden at Rodriguez Elementary has about 18 raised beds.  Each grade level is responsible for three of them.  I came away with a bunch of the most beautiful flat-leaf parsley that you will see in my next post.

Let’s see how big this pumpkin can grow!

These basil plants are setting their seeds.  Here the students learn about perennials and planting from seed. 

Newly harvested sweet potatoes and delicate lettuce leaves.  Look at the size of those tubers!

Eggplants!

Believe it or not, after the dressing was made, there was a mad dash to do the dishes, which I’m sure rarely happens at home!  Chef Dwain, an intern with RFS, prepares sweet, salty, bitter and sour ingredients for a tasting of flavors – and a fancy new word entered their culinary vocabulary:  UMAMI

The view from the dishwashing stand is to this pretty atrium: bird feeders, a small pond, fruit trees, potted herbs, raised beds, a compost barrel and a busy teacher named Mrs. Silverstone!

Decorated pots in the atrium.

This cutie enjoyed sweeping the floor. 

All in all, the students are exposed to healthy cooking ingredients which have sadly become foreign to many households.   Most students loved the salad and also the feta cheese and asked for more - a sure sign that young palates are much more receptive to delicious and healthy fare than we give them credit for. 

Our beautiful Houston fall weather prompted a fun picnic between the vegetable beds.  Students lined up for a ‘wrap’ of salad greens served with their own home-made salad dressing served by Mrs. Silverstone and Chantal.  Many came back for more…and more.  It was an encouraging sight!

This 1-2-3 Salad includes fresh mixed salad greens and is supplemented with nuts, grains, cheese and just a little bit of sugar (in the form of honey in this recipe).  It provides more precious nutrients than the oppressively sweet cereals and processed foods targeted at our school-aged children.

1-2-3 Salad, adapted from the original recipe by chef Monica Pope

4 servings

2 - 3 large handfuls of mixed lettuce (choose a mixture for color, texture and flavor), washed and patted dry on a towel

¼ cup nuts (walnuts, almonds, pecans)

½ cup fruit (dried or fresh)

¼ cup cooked grains or pasta (quinoa, orzo, couscous)

¼ cup cheese (feta, parmesan, blue cheese)

For the dressing: (use about half of this recipe for 4 people)

1/8 cup balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

½ teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Make the dressing by putting balsamic vinegar, honey, mustard, salt and pepper in a bowl. Whisk quickly to combine. Add olive oil, drop by drop, as you whisk the dressing quickly. The dressing will thicken and emulsify and resemble a deep caramel color. Set aside.

To assemble the salad place in a bowl the lettuce mix, nuts, fruit, grains and cheese.  Check the dressing: if it is very thick, add a little lemon juice or water to it.  Add 1/4 cup of dressing and toss to combine all ingredients. Add more dressing, if desired. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste, if necessary.

Prijatno!

A Spring Fling with the Darling Bakers!

My favorite time of year is Spring.   It’s a short season in Texas, and we spend as many evenings outside before the 90’s are upon us – that’s temperature and humidity, and voracious mosquitoes!   It’s time to admire the wildflowers, in particular the bluebonnets that line our highways and carpet the landscape.  The pictures above and below were taken by the lake in my neighborhood. 

I can’t resist the profusion of color and aromas that seem to appear overnight in our garden.  The grass is suddenly greener, the crepe myrtles leaf out quietly and the azalea bushes are a burst of color, alas, for only a couple of weeks.   Let’s see what’s blooming in my garden this Spring.

Here are blooms from our Formosa azalea:

The delicate flowers of the African Iris plant dangles upon long stems:

This Firecracker plant lives up to it’s name:

The Mexican flame vine attracts bees, butterflies and birds.  This makes Husbie very happy!   He plants native species in order to attract small, interesting critters around the yard.

A busy bee on the Meyer lemon blossoms.  It didn’t take long, did it?

A Monarch butterfly caterpillar chilling on the Plumeria:

A variety of vegetables and herbs, now planted in the garden.  This makes moi very happy!

 A fig lover’s delight!  Makes moi so happy I can hardly bear it!

Mexican (Key) lime blossoms – I know what you’re thinking!

The elegant Calla Lily:

Cat’s whiskers!

And finally, a fabulous Knockout rosebush that blooms all year and never fails to impress:

I am honored to belong to a group of lovely ladies called the ‘Darling Bakers’.   I’ve been getting to know them on another website, and boy are they a talented and interesting lot.  Our theme this month is ‘Spring Fling’.

One of the things I look forward to in the Spring is fresh, ripe, sweet strawberries.  For this occasion, I would like to share with you my recipe for Muesli, which includes a healthy portion of them.

Years ago, when I first moved to Houston, I enjoyed muesli at Marshall-Field’s department store in the Galleria.  A German woman who worked in the little cafe made it and she called it Birchmuesli.  I tried to coax the recipe out of her but all she offered were vague instructions on how to prepare it.  I immediately began experimenting, and my latest version is right on!  I’ve included variations for you to experiment with.

This recipe makes a healthy and delicious breakfast.  It combines raw oats with crushed pineapple, nuts and fresh fruit.  You can adjust the proportions to suit your taste.  Begin the night before you plan to eat it. 

Muesli

Serves 2

1 cup raw oats (not minute or instant)

1 8-ounce can crushed pineapple in it’s own juice (you will use the pineapple and the juice)

2-4 tablespoons plump raisins, cranberries, dried blueberries, dried cherries, or a combination.

2-4 tablespoons cream, half and half, milk or yoghurt.  The cream will make it rich and creamy – go for it!

2 teaspoons brown sugar (or honey), optional

1/4 cup chopped pecans, walnuts or almonds, toasted

fresh fruit of your choice, cut into bite-sized pieces - strawberries, blueberries, apples, bananas, peaches, raspberries, blackberries

The night before you plan to eat the muesli, combine the oats, crushed pineapple and its juice, and dried berries in a bowl until well mixed.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning add the cream, half and half, milk or yoghurt to loosen the mixture.  It should be easy to stir but not too thin.  Add the sugar (optional), chopped nuts and fresh fruit.  Enjoy!

Prijatno!

Nuts for Nutella!

In Europe, the equivalent to the peanut butter and jelly sandwich is the nutella sandwich.  Nutella is a heavenly blend of hazelnuts, cocoa, sugar, milk and oil and is deliciously spread between a chunk of French or hearty whole-grain bread.  It’s the common school lunch fare in Italy and beyond!  It is a popular filling for crepes in France.  It’s a cultural icon in Europe and is included in many books and movies.  Gaining popularity in the United States since its introduction to our markets in 2000, it’s available in many grocery stores next to the peanut butters and jams.

Nutella was created in Italy’s Piedmonte region by Pietro Ferrero during World War II when there was a shortage of cocoa.  Native hazelnut trees were and still are abundant on the hills around Alba, and the hazelnuts were used as a filler with great success.   A smililar product, Eurocrem, is made in my native Serbia and you may be familiar with Ferrero Rocher chocolates.  Wrapped in gold foil, it’s a multilayered confection with a hazelnut in the middle, encased by a layer of nutella, a wafer shell, milk chocolate and chopped nuts.   It’s one of my favorite chocolate treats!

I took the following picture during a fabulous trip to Piedmonte a little over a year ago.  Piedmonte, ‘foot of the mountains’, is situated in the northwestern part of Italy, at the foot of the Alps.  The hazelnut orchard (in the foreground and middleground in the photograph) is nestled between the vineyards of the rolling hills of the Langhe hills near Alba:

Nutella is so versatile, I’ve used it in many different ways – to make ice-cream, mousses, cakes, cookies, as a filling for crepes, on toast, and as a dip for fruit.  The way my chocoholic and nutella addict daughter, Emilia enjoys it is a spoonful straight out of the container!  I was scanning my pantry for inspiration for today’s World Nutella Day recipe, when my eyes fell on a bag of chocolate pasta.  Perfetto!  I had some strawberries in the fridge and a ripe banana and I put together a simple but delicious dessert you could make in no time! 

Nutella sauce with chocolate pasta and fruit

Serves 4

8 ounces chocolate pasta

8 tablespoons (1/2 cup) nutella

1 cup cream

8 strawberries, washed and halved

1 banana, sliced

whipped cream and chopped, toasted hazelnuts (or any other nut) for topping.

Cook pasta until ‘el dente’ (cooked but still firm).   While pasta is cooking place cream and nutella in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave at 30 second intervals until nutella  is soft and the cream is hot.  Blend nutella and cream together with a whisk until smooth.  Drain the pasta and divide between four serving bowl.  Pour nutella sauce over pasta and top with strawberries, banana slices, whipped cream and toasted nuts.  It’s that simple!

 

To see what other nutella lovers are doing today start at these two addicted ladies’ sites:  Ms Adventures in Italy and Bleeding Espresso.  For a good laugh, see what  The Top Ten Signs You’re Addicted to Nutella are!  If you are a nutella virgin or to find out what type of nutella lover you are or want to know 50 ways to eat nutella go to nutella virgin and enjoy!

Prijatno!