Balls and Walnuts
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Free Jinger!
My hit counter went nuts today, thanks to the good folks at Television Without Pity’s Duggar Forum. The undoubtedly kind, lovely, and overflowing-with-awesome-taste Twissy recommended my post, Snape Hearts Michelle Duggar, and the TWP-people have been dropping by ever since. Oh, if only it would last.
In honor of the Duggar girls, AKA The Foodbringers, I’d like to post my recipe for dead easy and delicious strawberry shortcake. PBW, listen up — here’s your strawberry recipe!
Most strawberry shortcake recipes require you to make your own shortcake. Maybe I’ll try that one of these days, but for now, I prefer a compromise between DIY shortcake and those horrid spongy wonders they sell in the supermarket. I like to use SaraLee’s pound cake.
Here’s the version for PBW and my faithful readers:
1 SaraLee’s large pound cake, defrosted
1 pound of strawberries, rinsed and dried
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 tub of Mascarpone cheese (6 ounces?) — Philadelphia cream cheese will substitute
heavy cream
vanilla
Ruby Port or some other fruity alcoholic beverage — optional.
1. Trim stems from the strawberries. Quarter the strawberries, then sprinkle them with the sugar. Toss and allow them to sit for an hour at room temperature. A syrup will form. Add the optional Port, toss again.
2. While the strawberries are macerating, whip the cheese together with the cream using an electric beater. This is easiest if the cheese is at room temperature. Gradually add cream, whipping constantly. No, I can’t tell you how much cream to use. I keep adding cream until I like the consistency of the cheese-cream mixture, then I add a little more (since the mixture will firm up when you chill it). Add vanilla to taste and finish whipping the mixture. Put it in the refrigerator while you wait for the strawberries to do their thing.
3. Cut the pound cake into 3/4 inch slices and plate out the slices. Spoon strawberry syrup over the cake. (There won’t be enough syrup to soak the cake slices, but there should be enough to flavor them.) Put a big heaping dollop of cream/cheese mixture on top of the cake, then spoon strawberries over the top. Serve!
And here’s the version for those busy Duggar girls:
4 dozen spongy-wonders from the grocery store (“shortcake rounds”)
2 gallons of Kool Whip
6 bags of frozen strawberries, thawed
As the strawberries thaw, they will give off a thin syrup vaguely reminiscent of strawberries. Spoon this over the spongy-wonders. Add Kool Whip and strawberries. Yum. It’s good to be alive.
***
While we’re on the subject of strawberries: I tried Marcella Hazan’s recipe for strawberries macerated in sugar and tossed with balsamic vinegar. Yeah, you heard me. The way she raves about this, I thought I was in for something truly special. Instead, the strawberries tasted about like you’d think. Not my cuppa.
Guess I’m not a big fan of balsamic vinegar. On the other hand, last night I made Marcella’s recipe for artichokes braised in wine, butter, and pancetta. That was good. Jake objected to the wine flavoring, so if I make it again, I may substitute chicken stock and a bit of lemon juice.
D.
For the first time ever I caught sight of Michelle on the tube the other night. The bizarre haircut, the permanent smirk/smile, the wide glazed eyes — she really is perfect for Snape.
There were other Duggars in that show but she was the only one that drew the eye . . .just like any good cult leader. Barely noticed Dad.
Like the cheese/cream thing, but Sara Lee Pound Cake??? Too sweet & squishy.
I’ve always made (or my mom or grandma did, when I was a kid) homemade biscuits for the base–they can be slightly sweetened, or not.
The oldest boy, the one who narrated, is also an interesting character. Likes show tunes, really into audiovisual stuff. I expect him to come out of the closet at age 54, around about the time he becomes a great-grandpa.
Darla, I love the idea of using biscuits. I’ll bet if I doubled the sugar and halved the salt on this recipe, I’d have a perfect biscuit.
My son loves Sara Lee pound cake. What can I say. But this does jog my memory. Cook’s Illustrated had a recipe for lemon pound cake some years ago which my family loved. I’ll have to dig that out.
Doug – consider setting up another blog. I know you burn the candle at both ends as it is, but I think you could have a stricly cooking/recipe blog. Full of your recipes, scone bake-offs, recipes you’ve tried from other people, snarky remarks about people who don’t cook things the way you would, your funny little quips and juvenile jokes – I think it would be great.
I’m an adequate cook, but not a great one, so I really do appreciate your recipes.
Nah. It’s so easy for people to simply click on ‘Food’ under categories, and then you’ll get the food-only blog. I tend to tire of single-topic blogs, which is why I haven’t added to Wax, Boogers, and Phlegm in a while, and I haven’t added to Bare Rump’s Diary in forever.
I always use Bisquick with some sugar (or Splenda) in it for shortcake biscuits. Learned that from my mother. Your recipe sounds incredible, Doug. Must. Try. *sigh* and my cholesterol level was so good, too.
Where can I find that braised artichoke recipe?
Goddammit Walnut, some other fruity alcoholic beverage is never “optional.” Especially now that it’s bunf**k SUMMER in Alabama.
Umm, I like the sound of this one! And thanks for adding the ounces measurement (saves me time googling the conversions ;o)) But we don’t have the Saralee pound cake – is it just a plain sponge cake weighing a pound?
Another vote for biscuits in strawberry shortcake.
Grandma made them for dessert by mixing bisquick with heavy cream instead of milk–adds a little sweetness to them, and then sprinkling the biscuits w/a little sugar before baking.
Pound cake I love, but not as shortcake.
Help me, Doug. I’m over at TWOP on a thread I know is 84 pages long. I cna’t help myself. I started at page 1 and Can’t. Stop. Reading.
Thanks for ruining my Friday afternoon….;)
ooh – you are EVIL – this looks so damned good!
I’m making it with biscuits tonight. I’ll let you guys know how it comes out.
Mary Stella, I’ll post the braised artichoke recipe this weekend — I have something else in mind for tonight.
Lovely, thank you.
No prob, Sheila.
Here’s the verdict: the wife and kid liked it a lot, but both felt it would have been better had I made lemon poundcake and used that as the base. I tried some, and I have to agree. Biscuit good, pound cake better.
I came here looking for recipes. I found some really awful comments in the blog links about the Duggar family. I honestly don’t know where people get their notions about this family. They make up stuff as they go I’m sure and if you would notice their OWN words, not one of them is crazy or brainwashed. They are all great individuals who have befriended me since I moved into the neighborhood and having been inside their environment several times, I will say there is more level headed maturity in their kids and more love, respect and harmony than you will find in many homes. I think folks are jeolous of that fine example that they either didn’t have or aren’t living up to in their own parental lives. I could say more to brag about them and how genuine they are but they know the truth and all who meet them personally know the truth. I thought it was hilarious how the younger boys were cutting up on one of their latest interviews. Jennifer is a just a doll. All of the kids who are of driving age for this state can and drive as far as I know. I see them in passing sometimes. I’m glad for the many other friends I’ve made through their home church fellowship (not my background denomination by the way but I love to visit when I can) and since I myself do not have children, I enjoy the fellowship there immensely. If I were ever to have children, Michelle and Jim are fine examples of how to have the patience and wisdom and love to raise them in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Considering how many parents murder their unborn children and how many abuse and/or murder them after they are born, why can’t we be glad that there are some shining examples of parents with natural affection to remind us that children really are a blessing from the Lord and not an inconvenience to our lives?