CEIMB: Lemon-Ginger Iced Tea with Berry Cubes

This week's Craving Ellie in My Belly recipe was supposed to be the Peach Pie Smoothies. However, once again, I found myself not really wanting to make this one since it contains my nemesis, yogurt. I feel bad that I haven't been participating with the correct recipes for two weeks now, especially because next week and the week after I will be on vacation, and therefore unable to participate!

So, I decided to go ahead and make next week's recipe a bit early and post about it today. Next week's recipe is the Lemon-Ginger Iced Tea with Berry Cubes, chosen by Mary of Popsicles and Sandy Feet. This one was such a great, refreshing beverage to make for springtime! And we enjoy both iced tea and lemonade around these parts, so I figured this one would go over pretty well.

As usual with Ellie's recipes, this one is easy to make. You allow a saucepan of water, honey, and chopped ginger to boil, and them simmer briefly. Once that is finished, you add in 6 tea bags and steep it for a while. Strain out the solids, and then add a bunch more water, along with 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice. Then you chill it out in the fridge for a few hours. To accompany the iced tea, Ellie instructs you to plop some fresh raspberries in an ice cube tray, fill the tray with water, and freeze it until you have these adorable little berry cubes. Since my kids and my husband just did some strawberry picking over the weekend, I decided to slice those and use them in my cubes.

The tea turned out delicious! Not too sweet, just the right amount of lemon, and the berry cubes were definitely the highlight. I didn't have time to run out and get fresh mint and extra lemon for garnish, but I feel like the cubes do the job of a garnish nicely, so we didn't really miss the other stuff too much. Thanks to Mary for the pick, and my apologies to Chaya of Comfy Cook's Kosher Kitchen for skipping out on the Peach Pie Smoothie! Do head over to her blog to see how it turned out.

Sangria

Next up in our week full of Cinco de Mayo recipes: Sangria! I haven't had that much Sangria in my life; in fact, I only just tried it recently for the very first time. However, I loved it at first sip. It's a red wine that has been steeping pretty much all day in fruit juices and sugar and, I am sure, a variety of other things depending on how it is made. Certainly, there are endless possibilities with Sangria.

I found a pretty basic, standard (I think!) recipe that I wanted to try out. I did not let it sit for 24 hours before serving, as the instructions indicated. I gave it over 8 hours, though, and there is still some left in the fridge, so we'll have to see if the extra day really makes a difference!

For our purposes, my husband and I bought both ginger ale and club soda as the carbonated portion of the beverage. I prefer to drink diet sodas normally, but I don't think that would have been very good in there. So, it was ginger ale for hubby, and club soda for me. I have to tell you, I really did not miss the sweetened ginger ale at all. The club soda worked out very well; it gave it fizz, and I thought the Sangria was just sweet enough. One final note, though; I do very much apologize for my lackluster photos! I really need to practice my beverage picture-taking; I just can't seem to figure out the best camera angles when it comes to drinks. Oh, well. Here's the recipe!

Sangria
adapted from about.com
makes about 12 or so cups (not including ice)

Ingredients
1 bottle red wine (any will work but I used a Garnacha)
1 lemon, cut into wedges
1 lime, cut into wedges
1 grapefruit, cut into wedges
2 Tbsp. sugar
Splash of lemonade (I used a mango lemonade, about 2 oz.)
2 shots of gin or triple sec (I used gin)
1 cup strawberries, sliced (thawed or frozen works; mine were fresh)
1 small can diced pineapples with juice
4 cups ginger ale or club soda

Directions
1. Pour the wine into a large pitcher and squeeze the juices of the lemon, lime, and grapefruit into the wine. Toss in the fruit wedges, leaving out the seeds if possible.

2. Add the pineapple, the sugar, lemonade, and gin. At this point, I also added my strawberries, then read that you're supposed to add them in at the end. I think my way was fine, but do whatever works!

3. Chill up to 8 hours or overnight (the longer this sits, the better it gets). Just before serving, add in ice and either ginger ale or club soda. We served ours with both (I used the club soda, and my husband used the ginger ale). So, I filled up each glass halfway with the sangria (I strained it first, since it does get gritty), then threw in the soda and the ice, and stirred well before serving.

200th Post!! Homemade Strawberry Marshmallows

I can't believe it! I have actually made it to 200 posts! When I first started blogging, I honestly never in my wildest dreams imagined I could make it this long, or this far. Back when I first began, it was sometimes hard for me to find the motivation just to write one blog post a month! Now I do at least 3-4 posts a week, have joined 3 different food blogging groups that I love participating in, and I have accomplished so much! I'm so excited to keep going, and to continue this crazy food journey I have been on!

I couldn't just post about any ol' thing for the 200th. No, I had to do something different. Something unexpected. Something like....Homemade Strawberry Marshmallows! Oh, how I have been wanting to make marshmallows from scratch. I'm always hearing, or reading, about them and how you haven't truly tasted a marshmallow until you've tasted one that's homemade. Then, a couple weeks ago, the family and I stopped into a local confectioner's shop, and they had homemade strawberry marshmallows that were out as samples. I think those marshmallows changed my life.

I know, I know. That's a bold claim to make. However, I can assure you that it was love at first bite. They are so perfect! They're pillowy-soft, sweet without being overly so, and they've got the prettiest pink hue from the real strawberries they're made with. Just blissful. From then on, I was impatiently waiting for an opportunity to make some of my own.

Just as though it was fated, I picked up an issue of Sauce Magazine the other day, and contained in its pages was a recipe for homemade Blackberry Marshmallows. In the St. Louis area, Sauce Magazine is a local food publication that you can find and pick up for free in many various food establishments all around the city. We read it every month; there's always a great tidbit or two in there about local food, and there's usually some mouthwatering recipes, too. I hit the jackpot with this particular recipe. I couldn't believe my luck. So, I finally got my chance, and I grabbed it. I made them! And they are every bit as wonderful as I imagined they'd be.

I was worried that they wouldn't turn out well, because sometimes it takes me a couple of tries before I get my candy-making right. But the instructions in the recipe are laid out very clearly, and I was patient and followed each step slowly and carefully. And it was easy! I was surprised at just how easy this was. Why have I waited so long to do this? Everybody should be making marshmallows at home! Why not?

By the way, the fruit-tinged variety is just sublime. Using fresh strawberry puree is such a brilliant idea. Any fruit puree, of course, would be fantastic, but I just really loved the strawberry. As indicated earlier in the article, you make your puree by blending about 20-24 oz. fresh or thawed frozen strawberries in a food processor or blender. Then, you pass the puree through a strainer to eliminate the seeds and chunks, and measure out the amount of puree you need from the strained liquid. Simple!

Thank you to everybody who reads this little blog. Thank you for listening to me for 200 posts! I love writing, I love cooking and baking, and I truly appreciate being able to share my thoughts and recipes with you. I hope you'll stick around for 200 more posts!

Homemade Strawberry Marshmallows

adapted from Sauce Magazine

makes 48-60 marshmallows (depending on the size you cut them)

Ingredients

4 Tbsp. unflavored gelatin

1 1/4 cups plus 2/3 cup strawberry puree, divided

1/2 cup water

1 1/4 cups light corn syrup

2 cups granulated sugar

2 Tbsp. cornstarch

1/3 cup confectioners' sugar

Directions

1. Prepare the "bloom" by placing the gelatin in a small bowl. Add 1 1/4 cups strawberry puree and stir well. The mixture will begin to thicken quickly. Set aside.

2. Mix the remaining 2/3 cup puree with the water, corn syrup, and granulated sugar in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Clip a candy thermometer onto the pot and cook until the mixture reaches 250 degrees, about 10 or so minutes.

3. Remove the pan from the heat and quickly stir in the bloom. The mixture will foam up, so stir carefully until the bloom is completely incorporated. Pour the batter into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Mix on a low speed, then gradually increase the speed to medium-high. Let the mixture whip for 5 to 10 minutes, or until it is fairly stiff but still spreadable. Immediately pour the mixture into a well-oiled 9x13-inch pan (I lined my pan with nonstick aluminum foil, then sprayed the foil, just to be safe).

4. Allow the pan to sit, uncovered, on the counter overnight. This is called curing and reduces some of the stickiness factor. Once you are ready to slice the marshmallows, sift a thin layer of the cornstarch mixed with the powdered sugar over top of the marshmallows. Invert the pan onto a cutting board, releasing the marshmallows. Sprinkle more of the cornstarch/powdered sugar mixture over the marshmallows, then coat a knife or pizza cutter with some of the sugar mixture.

5. Cut the slab into bite-sized pieces (I did 8 rows of 6 squares, for 48 total squares), then toss the pieces into a bowl with the remaining cornstarch/sugar mixture. Store the coated marshmallows between layers of waxed paper in an airtight container at room temperature. They should keep for several days, up to a week. Do not refrigerate!

Meatless Mondays: Chocolate and Strawberry Stuffed French Toast

Happy Valentine's Day! In honor of the occasion, I decided to make my Meatless Monday a breakfast-themed one, and do a super-decadent french toast sandwich for you. I got this one from Ellie Krieger, so it only seems super-decadent! In fact, it is actually a kinda nutritious breakfast! The thing that makes it indulgent is the inclusion of chocolate, but of course a bit of chocolate in the morning never hurt anybody as long as there was some fresh fruit and whole grains accompanying it!

This is a stuffed french toast recipe. Only three ingredients are required for the inside of the sandwich: ricotta cheese, fresh strawberries, and chocolate chips. You assemble your sandwiches, dip them in an egg/milk mixture seasoned with vanilla and ground cinnamon, and fry them up on your griddle as you would with traditional french toast. I did make some swaps for this; I used a combination of 2% milk and water as opposed to skim milk, and I substituted one egg white for a whole egg. I also added in the cinnamon; we're big fans!

These french toast sandwiches were surefire hits over the weekend! It truly felt like we were eating dessert for breakfast, which was just fine with me on a special occasion. I paired the sandwiches with some breakfast sausage (turkey for the boys, meatless links for me!) and it really made a nice meal that kept us good and full all morning long. I couldn't believe this recipe came from a healthy cookbook, but that's Ellie for you. She's always surprising me with how good healthy food can taste! Anyway, I think this would make a fantastic Valentine's Day treat, whether for breakfast, lunch, or a really yummy, sweet dinner. I hope you have a great day!

Chocolate and Strawberry Stuffed French Toast
adapted from Ellie Krieger
makes 4 sandwiches

Ingredients
3/4 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup water
2 large eggs
1 large egg white
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 cup low-fat ricotta cheese
8 slices whole-wheat sandwich bread (Ellie removed her crusts; I did not)
4 oz. fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
2 Tbsp. bittersweet chocolate chips
Cooking spray
2 tsp. confectioners' sugar

Directions
1. In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, water, eggs, egg white, vanilla, and cinnamon. Set aside.

2. Spread 1 Tbsp. of the ricotta cheese on 4 of the bread slices. Top each with about 6 slices of strawberry and 1/2 Tbsp. of the chocolate chips. Cover each with another piece of bread to form sandwiches.

3. Spray a large nonstick skillet or griddle with cooking spray and preheat over medium heat. Carefully dip each of the sandwiches into the egg mixture (I learned the hard way that you should not dip the whole slice of bread into the egg; that makes the sandwich soggy on the inside. Rather, you want to dip the lower half of a bread slice, carefully flip the sandwich, and then dip the lower half of the other bread slice). Place each sandwich on the skillet or griddle and cook until the outside is golden brown. The center should be warm and the chocolate should be melted. Ellie says 3-4 minutes per side should do it, but mine were on the griddle more like 6-7 minutes per side.

4. Transfer sandwiches to serving dishes. Top with extra strawberries, if desired, and sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.

CEIMB: Whole-Wheat Waffles with Strawberry Sauce

This week's Craving Ellie in My Belly recipe was supposed to be Whole-Wheat Pancakes with Strawberry Sauce, chosen by Melissa of It's Melissa's Kitchen. However, since I've already made (and loved) these pancakes before, I thought it would be fun to transform the recipe into waffles this time! I wasn't sure it would work, but I assumed that the pancake batter would turn out equally as well in a waffle maker as it would on a stovetop griddle.

Guess what? The waffles were as good as the pancakes, if not better! In my opinion, they rank right up there with some of the best waffles we've ever made at home. I followed the recipe exactly, but I did throw in the zest of one small lemon. What a difference it made! The fragrant lemon zest could be detected both in the smell of the waffles cooking and in the tender, fluffy finished product. It worked great with the tart strawberry sauce as well.

Speaking of that sauce. In my version, I wanted no strawberry seeds, so I ran my strawberry puree through a fine mesh sieve before setting it on the stovetop to warm. It was just perfect. With the generous dusting of confectioners' sugar that we sprinkled on our waffles, there were great contrasts of flavor in this dish. We just loved it.

So it was yet another Ellie winner for us! Of course, I knew waffles would most likely be a hit here, but the fact that these were completely delicious, yet deceptively healthy, was just icing on the cake. Or waffle?

You can find Ellie's pancake recipe here. And be sure to check out the CEIMB blogroll to see the other members' versions.

Strawberry "Julius"

We love that store in the mall, Orange Julius, that sells all those yummy, fruity shakes and smoothies. It's one of the few ways I can get fruit into the kids. Xander requests a "julius" nearly every time we hit the mall, and he loves them so much he doesn't even care that he's drinking something that isn't completely bad for him!

I still have all these strawberries to use (sorry if you're getting sick of all these strawberry-centric blog posts, but that's just what I've been using a lot of lately). This time, when thinking of new ways to use them, I remembered that I had: 1) been nagged by Xander recently to make some "julius" at home, and 2) seen a nifty recipe on Recipezaar for a strawberry variation on the original orange drink. I love that this recipe uses real berries, rather than using a fruit juice concentrate. I'd done that several times in the past to duplicate these beverages at home, and while it works, it's not entirely feasible all the time.

First things first: I wanted to strain out the seeds from the berries. I whirled them up in the blender with a bit of water, and pushed the puree through a sieve.

After all the straining was done, I had this lovely, bubblegum-pink, frothy liquid that was both gorgeous and seed-free! I threw this back into the blender, along with some milk, sugar, and a bit of vanilla extract. I tossed in about 5 ice cubes, let it rip, and just like that I had Strawberry "Julius!"

Seriously, this is about as simple as it gets. The only way I could have made it simpler would have been to save myself the trouble of straining out those pesky seeds. Most people would probably leave them in, but I'm just strange and happen to hate them. Plus, I figured the kids would probably appreciate the effort, and the silky-smooth consistency.

I think you can probably tell, these little smoothies were a huge hit with my kids! Above is Evan, relishing the last few drops of his glass.

Below is Xander, enjoying the remains of his serving. He posed especially for this picture; he wanted an action shot of him drinking. Very cute!

These went over so well, in fact, that there was none left for Daddy when he got home from work. Oops. No worries, though. I do believe I see more of these Strawberry "Julius"-es (how do you pluralize that? Who knows?) in our near future. Next time, there may even be enough for all of us!

Strawberry "Julius"

from Recipezaar

makes 2 (6-ounce) glasses

Ingredients

1 cup strawberries, sliced (can use fresh or frozen; it's also equivalent to 100-125 g on a kitchen scale)

1/2 cup milk (any kind is ok)

1/2 cup water (or use half water, half ice, as I did)

1/4 cup superfine sugar (since I did not have this, I used 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar)

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Directions

1. Place strawberries in blender. If you wish to strain seeds, add about 2-4 Tbsp. water to the blender, puree, and then pass the puree through a mesh sieve to collect the seeds. Place strawberry puree back into the blender. Proceed with step 2.

2. Add all the remaining ingredients to the blender. (If you've already strained the seeds, you need only add water until the total you have used, both before and after step 1, equals 1/2 cup. Otherwise, I found that 1/4 cup total water, plus 5 ice cubes, was perfect for an icy, frothy consistency.)

3. Blend until smooth. Pour into glasses and serve.

Strawberry Coffee Cake

So it turns out that we bought way too many strawberries last week. It's a shame, really. The strawberries have been looking great this year, and I don't eat them. I wish I liked them straight up, by themselves. I would like to like them. But I just can't do it. I can't get past the seedy exterior. To me, the seeds are such a distraction on the tongue that I can't enjoy the tart fruit underneath. It's sad. Hence, the need to find some yummy recipes that I can bake strawberries into! Fortunately, I can handle them as long as they are contained inside a baked good. Go figure.

Sometime later this week I will post another recipe I tried using strawberries, and that one I actually did eat myself. However, this Strawberry Coffee Cake was sent straight to work with Andy the other day and I didn't get a drop. That's okay, though: the glowing reviews of this one kept me giddier than if I had been on a real sugar rush from actually eating the cake!

The method is fairly simple. You whip together a quick coffee cake batter made with butter and cream cheese, granulated sugar, flour, et al. You spread half the batter into a square cake pan, spread sliced strawberries across the batter, and then dollop the remaining batter onto the strawberries. Sprinkle a simple brown sugar/nut topping on top, bake, and allow the delicious aroma of the cake baking away to tempt you like crazy!

One thing I should mention about this recipe: for some reason, I had to bake mine in a differently-sized pan than what was called for. I was supposed to use a 9x13 pan, but when I spread half the batter into the pan (since only half was needed on the bottom, then the strawberries, then more batter), it didn't fit! I couldn't even get half the batter to spread thinly across the bottom; there just wasn't enough of it. So, I took out the batter and tried it out in an 8x8 pan. That was perfect! I was kinda concerned that it would overflow the pan and drip out in the oven, but I needn't have worried. The cake rose beautifully, and it did clear the top of the pan. Once the cake had been out of the oven to cool, it settled back down and was roughly at the level of the top of the pan (as you can see from my pictures).

Since Andy didn't cut into this until he was at work that day, I insisted that he bring the camera to the office so I could see what it looked like inside! That is why the lighting looks all different in the picture of the single slice of cake. Sorry; it's all I had! Anyway, I really would like to make this again for company sometime, and actually try it. Until now, take Andy's word for it: this cake was a huge, delicious hit!

Strawberry Coffee Cake

from Recipezaar

serves 12

Ingredients

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup milk

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

2 cups strawberries, sliced (Original recipe used 3 cups.)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup nuts, coarsely chopped (I used pecans. I'm sure walnuts or even almonds would work.)

1/2 tsp. cinnamon (Original recipe did not use, but I thought it needed this.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Beat together cream cheese, butter, and granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer, until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Stir in milk, eggs, and vanilla.

2. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to cheese/butter mixture and mix until just smooth.

3. Spread half the batter into the bottom of a greased (I used nonstick cooking spray) 8x8 pan. (Again, this recipe indicated that a 9x13 pan should be used here, but I just couldn't make that work for me.) Spread the strawberries across surface of batter, followed by the rest of the batter, dropping it in dollops. Once all the batter has been dropped on top of the strawberries, spread it gently to cover the berries.

4. In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, chopped nuts, and cinnamon. Sprinkle across the top of the batter. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out mostly clean, with just a bit of crumb. (Mine baked up in about 33 minutes, and a 9x13 should be kept in until 40 minutes.) Serve warm.

First MSC Post: Strawberry Cupcakes!

I am very excited to announce that I have joined yet another blogging group! This one is the Martha Stewart Cupcakes Club, and is dedicated (obviously, hence the title) solely to cupcakes baked from Martha's Cupcakes Cookbook. I am really looking forward to cooking along with the other members; this is a group I have been following ever since they started out, nine or so months ago. However, this group had filled up with eager members very quickly in the beginning, so by the time I wanted to join, the club was closed to new bloggers. There was a waiting list, but I didn't sign up for it. Instead, I would read the blogs each month and enjoy other people's results, virtually.

But now the group is open for anyone to join! So I decided that it was time. You only need to bake along once a month, so it seems completely possible to keep up. Plus, I have been looking forward to using my Martha Stewart Cupcakes book more often; now is my chance!

For my debut outing, I made Strawberry Cupcakes (found on p. 146), which were chosen by Sherry of Sherry Starts Cooking. This is a great recipe; you incorporate real, finely chopped strawberries into a vanilla cake batter. The result is a light, sweet little cake studded with tart, red flecks that give it this extra pop. So good! I don't even eat strawberries, but I loved them in these cupcakes!

The recommended frosting was a Strawberry Swiss Meringue Buttercream, which could also be found in the book. Here's where my problems began! It's been years since I have made this type of frosting; it's very tricky. I recently tried my hand at Italian Meringue Buttercream, with great results. I felt confident that I could pull off the Swiss variety.

Well, my confidence waned after my first attempt, when I began whipping an egg white/sugar mixture that had been heated on the stovetop, over a saucepan of simmering water. Instead of forming stiff, meringue-y peaks as the recipe called for, I got.....well, I don't know what I got, exactly. It looked like taffy, the kind you can get on the Jersey boardwalks of my youth, watching it pull and stretch on a machine in the storefront window. It was thick and sticky, almost like chewing gum after it's been chewed awhile. I was baffled. I chucked that batch and started over.

This time, pretty much the same thing happened. I got goop; it proved to not be usable; I scrapped that batch. By now, I was ready to give up and run to the grocery store for some canisters of whipped cream. It was only because of Andy that I tried one more time. He had been helping with the whisking stage of the proceedings, and he convinced me that if we tried again, we would be successful, darnit! I was skeptical, but I plunged onward.

I am so glad I listened to him! Our third attempt was a wild success. This buttercream is to die for! The consistency is that of silk; smooth and light on the tongue. The added pureed strawberries give it the right amount of fruit flavor and tartness. The frosting piped onto the cupcakes like an absolute dream. It was wonderful. We were victorious, and it was worth all the hassle! A garnish of fresh sliced strawberry perched on top completed these little cuties.

So, what went wrong? Andy thinks I made an error by setting my egg white/sugar mixture over a COLD pot of water, then heating it to a simmer. By the time the egg whites had come to the temperature they needed to in order to remove them from the heat, I had overcooked them. The third time we did this, Andy started with an already-simmering pot of water, and we were fine. So I'm gonna go with him on this. Now I know for next time! And there will be a next time, because these were an enormous hit! I sent Andy to work with 2 dozen cupcakes, and he returned that evening with one left. People loved them! I'm glad, because now that I'm in this blogging group, they get to sample cupcakes once a month from now on!

We don't post recipes as part of this group, but you can find the cake recipe on Martha's website, here. You can find the (devil) frosting recipe here.

Once again, I am thrilled to be a part of the group and can't wait to keep baking! If you want more cupcake goodness, check out the MSC website to find out how all the other members made out this month.