Strawberry Lemonade Sangria*

Ingredients:

2 lemons, sliced

1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced

1 (750ml) bottle sauvignon blac (or favored white wine)

1 cup lemonade

1 cup lemon-lime soda

mint sprigs, for garnish (optional)

Instructions:

1)Add lemon slices and sliced strawberries to a pitcher. Pour in wine.

2)Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving for best results.

3)Mix with soda right before serving to preserve carbonation. Garnish with fresh mint sprigs, if desired. 

Last for 3 days in the fridge.

theblondcook.com strawberry lemonade sangria

Lemon Pound Cake with Fresh Strawberry Icing*

Ingredients:

3 Cups all- purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 Cups granulated sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (Eath Balance for dairy free)
1/2 cup shortening, room temperature
5 large eggs
1 Cup whole milk (almond milk works too)
6 Tablespoons lemon juice (fresh squeezed)
(Icing Ingredients below)

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour your pans. This recipe makes either one large Bundt pan or two large loaf pans.

2) Sift flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

3) Cream butter, shortening and sugar until the mixture comes together and it is no longer lumpy. Add eggs one at a time, beating just until incorporated.

4) Add flour mixture in three additions alternating with milk, starting and ending with flour (yes, this is important). Don't worry it your batter appears curdled after adding the milk. It's all good. Mix after each addition only until just blended.

5) Add the lemon juice. Mix well. It might look curdled. Don't worry here either.

6) Working quickly, pour batter into prepared pans until they are a little more then 3/4 full. (Will go flat if delayed)

7) Bake cakes until tester comes out with only a few crumbs attached. Approximately 55 minutes for a large Bundt pan and 35 minutes for small pans.





Fresh Strawberry Icing 

Ingredients:

1 Cup strawberries
4 Cups powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, very soft but not melted
2 Tablespoons light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1) Sift your powdered sugar after measuring and set it aside. Coarsely chop the hulled strawberries.

2) Add strawberries and 1/4 cup powdered sugar to Nurtibullet. Blend until the strawberries are completely pureed.

3) Blend the butter, corn syrup and vanilla extract into the strawberry juice.

4) Stir the remaining powdered sugar into the strawberry mixture. Add a little powdered sugar at a time to get the right consinsity. If it is still to thin, add more powdered sugar. If it's too thick add a tablespoon of water.

http://americanheritagecooking.com/2013/07/lemon-pound-cake-strawberry-icing/

*This dense and moist cake is great with tea. Maybe add a little lemon EO next time for a little extra kick. It disappears very quickly every time I make it. 

Strawberry Shortcake Pops

1/2 prepared pound cake, crumbled (a little more than 2 c.)
3/4 c. Betty Crocker "Whipped" Whipped Cream Frosting
6-8 large strawberries (1 c. chopped)
2 c. white chocolate, melted 
lollipop sticks (available at Michael's or JoAnn Fabrics) 

1. Mix pound cake, frosting, and strawberries together in a medium bowl.
2. Roll into 1 1/2 inch balls.
3. Cut or break lollipop sticks in half; twist 1 stick into the center of each cake ball, about halfway in.
4. Freeze until firm. 
5. Dip pops in melted white chocolate to cover.
6. Chill until ready to serve.

Makes 2 dozen.

http://www.lemontreedwelling.com/2013/05/strawberry-shortcake-pops.html?m=1

Strawberry-Blueberry Shortcake

What you'll need

• SHORTCAKES
• 5 cups flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup margarine or shortening
• 2 cups milk
• STRAWBERRIES IN SYRUP
• 2 quart fresh strawberries, sliced
• 1/2 cup sugar
• WHIPPED CREAM
• 1 pint whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons maple syrup

How to make it

1. Preheat the oven to 425°. Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and sugar together in a large bowl.
2. Slice the margarine sticks into pats and add to the dry mixture. Using a handheld pastry cutter or your fingertips, mix the margarine and dry ingredients until they resemble a coarse meal. Avoid overmixing.
3. Make a small well in the center and pour the milk into it. Stir just until the mixture holds together. If the dough appears too sticky, sprinkle in a little more flour.
4. Turn the shortcake dough onto a lightly floured countertop or pastry cloth and pat into a 1-inch-thick circle, handling it as little as possible. Do not knead the dough; doing so will make the shortcake biscuits heavy.
5. Use a biscuit cutter or inverted cup to cut out the shortcakes, and arrange about 1 1/2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes. Let cool before serving. Makes 10 to 12 shortcake biscuits.
6. To make the strawberries in syrup, wash and hull the strawberries and slice them into a glass bowl. Sprinkle with the sugar. Stir a few times, cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. The strawberries will release some juice and make a light syrup. Stir once again before spooning the berries on top of the shortcakes.
7. Before whipping the cream, place a stainless steel bowl in the freezer for a little while to chill. Pour the whipping cream into the chilled mixing bowl. Add the maple syrup (you can substitute a teaspoon of vanilla extract or a couple of tablespoons of sugar) and whip with an electric mixer or a whisk until stiff. Keep refrigerated until you're ready to serve the dessert.
8. To serve the shortcake, split the biscuits into halves. Spoon some of the strawberries and syrup onto the bottom halves. Cover with the remaining shortcake halves and spoon more of the strawberries on top. Top with the whipped cream and garnish with fresh blueberries.

http://spoonful.com/recipes/strawberry-blueberry-shortcake

Red, White and Blue Cheesecake

What you'll need

• CRUST
• 2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted
• FILLING
• 3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup sour cream
• 3 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• TOPPING
• 1 pint fresh blueberries

How to make it

1. Heat the oven to 325º F. Grease a 9-inch springform pan and line the bottom with waxed paper.
2. Put the graham cracker crumbs in a medium bowl. Add the butter and mix with a fork until evenly moistened. Press the mixture over the bottom and up 1 inch of the sides of the pan. Refrigerate until ready to use.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl when necessary. Beat in the sour cream until blended. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract. Pour half of the batter into the pan.
4. Put the jam and lemon juice in a small saucepan and warm over low heat, stirring often, until melted and smooth (about 4 minutes). Drizzle one fourth of the jam mixture in stripes over the batter in the pan. Spoon the remaining batter over the jam, then drizzle with 1/8 cup of jam. Reserve the last of the jam mixture to drizzle over the cheesecake.
5. Swirl the batter gently with a thin knife to marbleize it slightly.
6. Bake the cheesecake until firm around the edges but still slightly wobbly in the center, 70 to 80 minutes. (Don't worry if your cheesecake cracks while baking or cooling.) Set the cake in the pan on a wire rack, run a knife along the inside edge to loosen the sides, and let it cool completely. Wrap the cake in plastic and chill it for at least 4 hours.
7. Take the cake out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before serving. Remove the pan sides and place the cake on a platter. Warm the remaining jam mixture until liquid, then drizzle it over the cheesecake. Serve with the fresh blueberries. Serves 12 to 16.

http://spoonful.com/recipes/red-white-and-blue-cheesecake

Red, White & Blue Jello Shots

Ingredients

50 1oz plastic cups, or 25 2oz cups

Red & Blue layers

3oz box of red Jello

3oz box of blue Jello

2 cups vodka ( I used Smirnoff Raspberry)

2 cups water

White layer

2/3 cup heavy cream

2/3 cup milk (I used fat free)

2/3 cup vanilla vodka (I used Absolut Vanilla)

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons Knox powdered gelatin

1 1/2 tablespoons water

Instructions

1. Blue layer; Heat 1 cup water, add blue Jello mix, stir until dissolved. Add 1 cup vodka, stir. NOTE; this recipe is pretty strong. If you want less intense jello shots I would go with 1 1/4 cups water to 3/4 cups vodka. I wouldn’t make them any stronger though, because the gelatin in the jello needs the water to set the alcohol. Not enough water, and they might not set.

2. Distribute evenly into 50 1oz cups, filling only 1/3 full, then refrigerate until set, about 1-2 hours.

3. Next is the white layer; this is the most difficult part of these tricolor shots! Place powdered gelatin and water in small bowl, let soak for 5 minutes to allow the gelatin to “bloom”. In a medium saucepan, heat cream, milk, sugar and vanilla extract to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, add gelatin and stir to dissolve. Add vanilla vodka. Let cool 10-15 minutes before topping blue layer.

4. Once blue layer is set and the white mixture has cooled, pour an equal amount of the white mixture on top of the blue. You’re almost there!

5. Finally the red layer; it is the same exact thing as the blue. Heat 1 cup water, add red Jello mix, stir until dissolved. Add 1 cup vodka, stir. Cool 5-10 minutes.

6. Once the white layer has set, and red mixture cooled, fill the cups the rest of the way until full. Refrigerate until set, about 1-2 hours.

7. Enjoy some patriotic jello shots!! =] Garnish with mini flags on toothpicks. Looks super cute, plus using the toothpick to release the jello from the sides of the plastic cup makes it come out easily without breaking apart.

http://gurutotheoutdoors.com/red-white-blue-jello-shots/

STAINED GLASS JELLO (ALSO KNOWN AS BROKEN GLASS JELLO)

INGREDIENTS:

4 boxes (3-ounces each) Jello (or store brand gelatin dessert) in different colors
14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin (Knox)
Water

DIRECTIONS:

1. For each flavor, dissolve one box of Jello in 1 cup of boiling water. Pour into a square container that is about 6 to 8" square and chill at least 3 hours, or overnight. (Try to use the same size for all four so that the blocks will come out the same. In this case the smaller the better - I used 8" pans and felt my "blocks" were a little too flat.)

2. After chilling the flavors, cut them into small blocks.

3. Carefully mix the blocks in a 9x13-inch pan.

4. In a separate bowl, sprinkle 2 envelopes of unflavored gelatin into ½ cup cold water. After the gelatin blooms, add 1½ cups boiling water and dissolve. Add the can of condensed milk. Stir and let cool. Pour cooled milk mixture over Jello blocks in 9x13 pan. Skim off any small bubbles that are created when you pour the condensed milk on the Jello pieces. Chill overnight or at least 3 hours until firm.

5. Cut into blocks or shapes and serve.

(Recipe adapted from The Food Librarian)

http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2009/07/02/stained-glass-jello/

S'more's Bars

Ingredients

18 graham crackers (2 packages) (two thirds of a 14.4 oz box) (280 g.) or 2 cups crumbs
2 sticks (1 cup) (230 g.) butter- melted
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
3 cups milk chocolate chips (420 g.) (about 15 oz.)
3 1/2 cups (174 g.) (6 oz.) mini marshmallows (can use big ones and cut in half but not as good)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, 180 degrees Celsius, Gas Mark 4.

Line a 9x13 pan with heavy duty foil (do not skip this part) with 4 inches overhang off the sides to create a sling to lift the bars out when they are finished. Don't use parchment like I did, the sides burned under the broiler. Grease the foil.

In a food processor, grind the graham crackers into crumbs. Pour the crumbs into a large bowl and add the salt and melted butter. Mix together, it will resemble wet sand. Add the egg and mix well. Set aside 1/2 cup of the crumb mixture for topping.

Press the rest of the crumb mixture into the prepared pan. Bake for about 15 minutes, until golden brown.

Let the crust cool for a bit while you melt the chocolate.

Put the chocolate chips in a pan on the stove on medium heat stirring until completely melted. Or microwave the chips on medium power stirring after 2 minutes.

Preheat the broiler.

Spread the melted chocolate chips evenly onto the crust. Sprinkle the marshmallows onto the chocolate pressing them in a bit. Sprinkle the reserved crumbs onto the marshmallows, getting the crumbs in the spaces around the marshmallows.

Place pan 6 inches under the broiler for 1-2 minutes until the marshmallows are golden brown. Seriously don't walk away. They will burn in no time.

Refrigerate them until the chocolate hardens slightly, about an hour. Remove the bars with the foil, cut into squares. Serve cold or at room temperature.


http://alchemybaking.blogspot.com/2011/06/smores-bars.html