Publisher’s Message

Latinas Today

Cars: The GMC Acadia World

Julissa Marenco

LSBS New York

Events & Occasions

Su Casa

Race for the Cure

Food & Entertainment

Home Check-up

Back to School

Rave Reviews

Tech Talk

Soldier Letters From the Front!

AMAMBF Awardee

About the Author

College Beat

Latinas and the 2008 Election Update

His View

¡Punto Final!

Strawberry Sensation
Cool off this summer with tasty strawberries

Strawberries have an enormous amount of Vitamin C; in fact, they contain more per serving than oranges! Vitamin C is an antioxidant which helps prevent chronic diseases and cancer, and strawberries are the second among the top 10 fruits with regard to antioxidant capacity (TAC). This luscious red fruit also has high amounts of fiber, which lowers the risk of heart disease. Potassium is another important health benefit because it helps maintain good blood pressure. For pregnant women, strawberries are a great source of folate, which can reduce the chance of birth defects. So enjoy this wonderfully healthy fruit with its beautiful color and great taste!

Strawberry and Lemon Curd Trifle

Ingredients of Trifle:

Pound Cake (homemade or store bought) (can also use a sponge or butter cake or ladyfingers)
1 1/2 cups Strawberry Sauce
1/2 pound fresh strawberries, sliced
1 1/2 cups Lemon Curd (home made or store bought)
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
2 - 3 tablespoons granulated white sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
4 crushed Amaretti Cookies or shortbread cookies (homemade or store bought)
 

Instructions:
Have ready the pound cake, the strawberry sauce, sliced strawberries, lemon curd, and whipping cream.
To make the whipping cream: In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the cream, sugar, and vanilla extract until stiff peaks form.

To assemble: In the bottom of your trifle bowl place slices (about 1/3 inch thick) of the home made or store bought pound cake. Fill in any gaps with pieces of the cake. Pour half of the strawberry sauce over the pound cake. Top the strawberry sauce with half of the sliced strawberries. Then pour half of the lemon curd over the strawberries. Top with half of the whipped cream. Repeat the layers. Cover and refrigerate for 8 and up to 24 hours to allow the flavors to mingle. Just before serving sprinkle the top of the trifle with the crushed Amaretti or shortbread cookies.
Serves about 10 people

Strawberry Shortcake

Ingredients:
Scones:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cold unsalted butter
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 light whipping cream or half-and-half
(12 - 18% butterfat)

Egg Wash:
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon cream

Filling:
2 pounds fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/4 cup - 1/3 cup granulated white sugar (or to taste)
 

Topping:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon granulated white sugar

Instructions:
Scones: Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and place rack in middle of oven. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces and blend into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or two knives. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs. Whisk together the egg, cream and vanilla extract and add to the flour mixture, mixing just until the dough comes together. Do not overmix the dough. Transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead dough gently four or five times and then pat or roll the dough into a circle that is about 7 inches round and about 1 inch thick. With a 3 inch round cookie cutter, cut out rounds and place the scones on the baking sheet. Make an egg wash of one well-beaten egg mixed with 1 tablespoon cream and brush the tops of the scones with this mixture. Bake for about 15 - 20 minutes or until nicely browned and a toothpick inserted in the center of a scone comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack.

Filling: Wash and slice the strawberries. Place about one third of the strawberries in a large bowl and crush them with a potato masher or fork. Add the remaining sliced strawberries, along with the sugar. (The amount of sugar used will depend on how sweet the berries are.) Set aside to macerate at room temperature for about 30 to 60 minutes.

For whipped cream: In a large mixing bowl place the whipping cream, vanilla extract, and sugar and stir to combine. Cover and chill the bowl and beaters in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. When chilled, beat the mixture until stiff peaks form. The whipped cream will hold for several hours in the refrigerator.

To serve: Cut the scones in half and place the bottom half of the scone (soft side up) on a dessert plate. Top with some of the strawberries. Place the top half of the scone on the strawberries. Top with whipped cream and a few more strawberries. If there is any juice from the strawberries, drizzle a little over the top of the scone. Serve immediately.
Serves about 8 people

Strawberry/Peach Smoothie

Ingredients:
Strawberry/Peach Smoothie
2 peaches, pits removed and sliced
1 cup strawberry sorbet
1-2 tablespoons orange juice
1/4 cup plain or flavored yogurt

Strawberry/Raspberry Smoothie
1 cup strawberries, sliced
1 cup raspberry sorbet
1-2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1/4 cup plain or flavored yogurt

Instructions:
Both of these recipes are made in the same way. Place the fruit in a blender or food processor and puree. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend or process until the mixture is smooth. Pour into glasses and serve. Each recipe makes about 1 1/4 cups.
 

Strawberry Sorbet

Ingredients:
2/3 cup water
2/3 cup granulated white sugar
5 cups or 2 pounds fresh or frozen unsweetened strawberries
2 tablespoons lemon juice

Instructions:
Place the sugar and water in a small saucepan, over low heat, and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved (about 3-5 minutes). Boil the mixture for one minute then remove from heat. Pour the sugar syrup into a heatproof container, and place in the refrigerator until completely chilled (about an hour or so).

Meanwhile, thaw the strawberries and then place the thawed strawberries in a food processor and process until the strawberries are pureed. Transfer to a large bowl, add the lemon juice, and refrigerate until the mixture is thoroughly chilled.

(If using fresh strawberries, puree the berries in the food processor, transfer to a large bowl, add the lemon juice, and place in the refrigerator until chilled.) Once the simple syrup and pureed strawberries are completely chilled, combine the simple syrup with the pureed strawberries. Pour the mixture into an 8 inch or 9 inch stainless steel pan (sorbets will freeze faster in stainless steel), cover with plastic wrap, and place in the freezer. When the sorbet is completely frozen (3 to 4 hours), remove from freezer and let stand at room temperature until partially thawed. Transfer the partially thawed sorbet to the food processor, and process to break up the large ice crystals that have formed on the sorbet. (This step is what gives the sorbet its wonderful fluffy texture.) Place the sorbet back into the pan and refreeze for at least three hours, and up to several days.

Makes 6-8 Servings.

Note: If you taste the sorbet after freezing and find the amount of sugar is not right, adjust the level of sugar by adding a little sugar syrup (too little sugar in sorbet) or water (too much sugar in sorbet) and then refreeze the sorbet. The sorbet is not affected by thawing and refreezing.

Sources: California Strawberry Commission
http://www.calstrawberry.com/health/default.asp

Recipes: www.joyofbaking.com