I'm making chocolate fondue for the grand opening of our office tomorrow and so I got a big bin of strawberries at the farmer's market. But about 2-3 cups' worth of the berries are not suitable for dipping, so I'm wondering if there's some cooked item I could make from them. Any suggestions? I'm not really all that psyched about making shortcakes, and I actually do not own a blender so smoothies are out of the question.

 

Make a compote. Chop the berries, add an acid(lemon juice, etc.) let sit for 1-2 hrs and macerate. Then drop in a pan with some sugar and voila.

A perfect topper for icecream or decorative element for a dessert plate.

 

Oooh that is a great idea... I think I'll use half for that and half for this (just found on recipegoldmine.com)

Strawberry Clafouti

1/2 teaspoon butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons granulated sugar
4 eggs
1 1/4 cups milk (2 percent or fat-free)
1/4 cup crème de cassis (substitute Chambord or raspberry purée)
2 tablespoons plain yogurt or sour cream
4 tablespoons honey
4 cups sliced ripe strawberries
Confectioners' sugar
Sprigs of mint for garnish
Scoops of your favorite ice cream

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a 10-inch cake, quiche or tart pan that is at least 2 inches deep and does NOT have a removable bottom. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl, combine the flour and sugar. In a separate bowl, mix together the eggs, milk, crème de cassis, yogurt and honey until smooth. Slowly incorporate the egg mixture into the flour and sugar mixture, stirring until smooth but not overworked.

Add one-third of the batter to the tart pan and place on the lower rack of the oven. Cook until it starts to firm, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and flatten, if necessary, to make room for the remaining mixture. In a separate large bowl, combine the strawberries and the remaining batter. Pour into the tart pan over the existing batter and finish baking until solid and golden, about 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.

Cut into pie-shaped wedges and place in the center of serving plates. Sprinkle the plate and clafouti with confectioners' sugar. Garnish with a sprig of mint and serve with your favorite ice cream.

 

Sounds great. Wish I was in CA to enjoy that.

 

If I am not too late, you can make strawberry jam

 

Wait...You don't have a blender?

 

I know, isn't it weird? Our old one broke and we didn't replace it cuz we were hoping to get one for the wedding, but we didn't, and I never have gone to buy one. I also don't have a stand mixer so I have to mix all my desserts by hand.

 

The wedding gift blender joke has backfired for you...

 

Strawberry compote wrestling?

 

Spinach salad , with the righ dressing, carmelized pecans and sliced strawberries.