Strawberry and Vanilla Trifle

I started this blog about a year ago, with the intention of documenting my recipes (so I stop forgetting them), and to be able to easily pass them along. The past year has probably been the biggest whirlwind of change in my life, but at the very least it's kept things interesting. From a slew of jobs and opportunities, friends and family moving about, and with my own move approaching, life looks quite different than it did a mere 12 months ago.

I haven't been doing much recipe testing lately, or posting about it (clearly) because, quite frankly, working in a kitchen all day doesn't leave much time to....cook. Not that I've stopped baking and cooking at home, but it certainly has slowed quite a bit. However, my last day of work has come and gone with the weekend, and though I won't be posting many recipes these next couple weeks, I do want to get in the habit of writing again. My plan is to shift the focus of this blog from recipes and food to a way to keep my nearest and dearest updated on what my life is like in cheery ol' England. Perhaps that will have a lot to do with recipes and food. I have no clue.

I literally have no idea what my days will be like in two weeks. With how intimidating and weird that is, it's also one of the most exciting aspects of this move. Either way, it's comforting to know I can share all my experiences and discoveries with you along the way.

We had a little get-together over the weekend to send me off, full of all sorts of British goodies. One of the things I contributed was a strawberry and vanilla trifle. I've had a few requests for this recipe, so here it is! I apologize for the unorganized and last minute picture!

Strawberry and Vanilla Trifle

Cake:

2 Tbsp butter, softened
1/6 cup oil
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, and grease/flour a 9" cake pan. Cream butter and sugar, slowly adding oil. Mix well, occasionally scraping sides of the bowl. Add eggs one at a time, then add vanilla. Mix on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add baking powder, baking soda, salt, and half of the flour. Mix in buttermilk, then add the rest of the flour. Mix until combined and most lumps have dissolved. Pour batter in pan and bake for 25-30 min, until toothpick inserted in center comes out almost completely clean. Cool cake completely.

Custard:
2 cups milk
1 cup half and half or heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
5 egg yolks
2/3 cup sugar

In a medium-sized saucepan, heat milk, half and half, and vanilla over medium-high heat. In a separate bowl, whisk egg yolks and sugar until they're thickened, lighter in color, and sugar is dissolved. When milk mixture comes to a simmer, take off heat. While continuously whisking egg yolk mixture, slowly add 1 cup of the milk to the eggs to temper. Whisk well to combine. Add one more cup of milk mixture to eggs while whisking. Place sieve over saucepan and strain egg mixture back into the remaining milk. Place saucepan over medium heat and continuously stir mixture until custard is slightly thickened, about 5-7 minutes (it should be able to coat the back of a wooden spoon and leave a trail when running a finger over the spoon). Pour into a clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap and press onto the surface of the custard, and chill completely in the refrigerator, 3-4 hours. Note: Custard will be slightly looser than a typical custard, ideal for the cake to absorb.

Assembly:
Cut cooled cake into 1/2" cubes. In a trifle dish or a large, deep bowl (preferably clear), layer cake, custard, and sliced strawberries (or any desired fruit), repeating the layers until dish is full, finishing the dessert with fruit on top. Refrigerate for a few hours (overnight is best) to set.



This weekend was surely a reminder of how much love and support I have all around me. I'm so blessed to have such kind and caring people in my life. Thanks to all who helped my family and I every step of the way, whether in person or in spirit. If you couldn't tell, I appreciated it with every ounce I have in me! Much love to you all :)

Strawberry and Lemon Mint Pie

Hi, friends. How have you been? Hope everyone had a great July 4th! The great thing about having the holiday on a Wednesday is that the weekends both before and after can be used as excuses to celebrate more than usual. I'll drink to that. I'll drink to America. I'm pretty fond of this country.

These past few weeks sure have been hot ones...I wish I had some fancy ice pop recipes for the occasion, but I'm not that prepared. Pinterest has monopolized the fancy ice pop department anyway. I do have a fresh and summery pie recipe, however. And it's especially good served with a chill from the fridge. More on that later.

So it's been a bit since I last posted. Can you blame a girl for opting to go to the beach instead of sit in front of a computer? Here's what's happened in the meantime:

I've made a few wedding cakes for the sweetest brides in the world.

Photo credit: Christina Batesko

I'm still at my "new" job, though I'm no longer the new girl...I don't think. And it's still as awesome as day one. They put a lot of trust in me and my abilities, and I haven't had an employer that has done that before. It's given me the opportunity to learn a lot and face new challenges every day. I feel very blessed.

I'm on Phase II of P90X. I don't remember what it was like to walk up stairs pain-free, so I guess that means it's working. Maybe one day I'll post embarrassing progress pictures. Though I don't see too much progress. I'm definitely muscley-er, and I think if I stuck to the plain-chicken-steamed-greens diet that they suggest, it might be more noticeable. I don't generally eat unhealthy, but sometimes I get home late and just want some Cinnamon Burst Cheerios. Is that really so bad, Tony Horton? He seems to think so. I digress. 

After talking about it for a few years, we finally got chickens. They aren't the brightest creatures, that's for sure. But now I can bake with fresh eggs...for a little while at least. Which brings me to my final point.

I bought my ticket to England! Only two months left. I can't believe it. And now that all my wedding cake orders are completed and I've settled into my new job, it's finally hit me. Well only partially, because right now I'm nothing but excited, but nervousness needs to set in sometime! I'm trying to fit in some quality time with everyone before I go, and trying to soak up some sweet Jersey sun.

So, summer pie. Here's a recipe for a Strawberry and Lemon Mint Pie I came up with a few weeks ago. There's nothing like sweet berries in the summer, and fresh mint growing in the garden is a lovely addition to almost anything. I'll even chop some up to put in my yogurt to make it extra exciting. Because plain Greek yogurt can only reach a certain level of excitement on its own, ya know? The pie had a nice balance of bright flavors, and wasn't overly sweet. It definitely has summer written all over it. I suggest keeping the pie in the fridge and serving it cold.

Strawberry and Lemon Mint Pie

Your favorite pie dough recipe or store brand, enough for the bottom crust (you can find my recipe here)
1 1/2 pints strawberries, thick sliced
Juice and zest of one lemon (reserve 1 tsp of zest)
8 mint leaves, julienned
3 Tbsp flour
1/4 cup sugar

Place a sheet pan in the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Combine strawberries, lemon juice and zest, and mint in a bowl. Sprinkle on flour and sugar, and toss until evenly distributed. Pour into unbaked pie shell and top with lemon crumb topping (recipe to follow). Place pie on top of sheet pan and bake for 35-40 minutes until golden brown and bubbling. Serve chilled.

Lemon Crumb Topping


3 Tbsp butter, softened
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp lemon zest

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl until texture resembles wet sand.


Speaking of pie, here's one that's oozing American pride to commemorate the first round of our nation's birthday. Now it's on to America Weekend Part II. I don't know if this amount of patriotism can be topped for round two, but I sure am going to try...it's the American way.

Enjoy another beautiful (and hot!) weekend!

Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Cake

A wonderful day off from work! The sun is shining as summer comes to an end (gag), the birds are singing and the squirrels are plumping up for the colder weather that is approaching.

Not.

Well I do have the day off from work today, but it's because I'm sick. Other than that it's pouring and the birds are too depressed to sing because summer is ending...but I'm pretty sure the squirrels are still really fat. Anyway, I'm thinking it's a standard case of strep throat.

Let me tell you a little bit about the relationship between strep throat and I. That's right, we have a relationship.

Growing up, my year would not be complete if I didn't get strep throat a few times. Sometimes the smell of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or cement glue can bring someone right back to their childhood. Give me a whiff of liquid Amoxicillin and I'm 8 years old again, with a closed throat and only canned peaches to get me through (mental note: have someone pick up canned peaches on their way home from work).

Well I haven't gotten a good case of strep throat in a while, so I guess it's long overdue. Actually when looking for medicine in the cabinet last night, it had all expired somewhere between the golden years of 1991-1994. Yep, definitely still effective.

So don't mind me while I lay on the couch and eat soggy Rice Krispies all day. At least I can devote my day to blogging! No baking though....I don't think people would appreciate cookies laced with strep.

Sounds sketchy.

Since I don't have anything new I can make and share with you, I'll share a recipe from Valentine's Day a few years ago. Don't ask questions, just go with it.

I wanted to make a strawberry cake for this particular Valentine's Day. But when searching through recipe after recipe, they all contained Jell-O and food coloring and while I'm sure they're wonderful and tasty and beautifully pink, it just seemed....wrong. But I finally found one on another blog (Confections of a Foodie Bride--check her out if you haven't already!), and it was perfect.

Then I filled the cake with a quick strawberry jam, frosted it with a light pink vanilla buttercream, covered it in chocolate ganache, swirled in some white chocolate hearts and topped it with chocolate-covered strawberries. If that doesn't scream love, folks, I'm not sure what does.

Oh, and it sparkled. TAKE THAT.

Strawberry Cake
Adapted from Confections of a Foodie Bride

2 ¼ cups cake flour

1 ¾ cups sugar

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

12 Tbsp (1 ½ sticks) softened butter
1 cup pureed fresh strawberries

¼ cup room temperature milk

4 eggs, beaten

1 Tbsp vanilla

¼ cup plain Greek yogurt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, and grease and flour two 9” cake pans. Add dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder and salt) to mixing bowl. Add butter and mix just until butter is incorporated and texture is crumbly. Add wet ingredients (milk, eggs, vanilla and strawberry puree) and mix to combine. Fold in yogurt. Divide batter evenly between pans and bake 25-30 minutes until toothpick inserted in middle comes out with no traces of batter, but not completed dry (should have some moist crumbs attached). Cool cakes completely.

Quick Strawberry Jam

1 cup chopped strawberries
1-2 Tbsp sugar (as much or as little as you'd like to get desired sweetness)
1/4 cup water (juice can be substituted)
2 tsp cornstarch mixed with 2 tsp water

Add all ingredients to a saucepan over medium heat. Slowly bring mixture to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Allow mixture to cook until liquid is reduced and thickened. Transfer to a bowl, cover, and put in the refrigerator to cool completely before using.


Chocolate Ganache
Adapted from Fine Cooking

1 lb. chopped bittersweet chocolate or chocolate chips
2 cups heavy cream
2 Tbsp softened butter

Place chopped chocolate in a heat-proof bowl. Heat heavy cream in a saucepan over medium heat just until it begins to bubble (not boiling!). Pour hot cream over chocolate and let sit, untouched, for 3-5 minutes. Slowly begin whisking chocolate-cream mixture until chocolate is melted and smooth. Add butter and continue to whisk until completely incorporated. Cool ganache at room temperature before using, just long enough so it's still able to be poured (if you let it sit overnight it'll become thick, perfect for frosting a cake).

For the pink buttercream, I just used the vanilla buttercream recipe I've mentioned before and added a few drops of pink food coloring to reach the desired color. For the chocolate-covered strawberries I used dark and white chocolate candy melts and went crazy with it!

To assemble the cake, I filled it by putting a layer of buttercream then topped it with the cooled strawberry jam. I frosted the whole cake with the pink buttercream, poured on the chocolate ganache, then used melted white chocolate to make the heart designs on top (start with just a dot of white chocolate then pull a toothpick through the center--voila!). Finally, I topped the cake with some gold luster dust (so it shimmered, obviously) and the chocolate covered strawberries.

Happy Valentine's Day! ....I mean, Happy Day After Labor Day! Hope it's a good one...now bring me some peaches.