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Two Recipes with Fresh Homemade Strawberries To Try Out Today

Come to our Banistra Villas and enjoy all you can eat homemade strawberries. Freshly picked from a nearby plantation, they are GMO free and without pesticides so you can eat them straight from the plants.

Strawberries are ideal summer food. Delicious, juicy, fat-free, nutrient-rich and packed with antioxidants. They are excellent source of vitamin C which is needed for body health, helps to improve skin’s elasticity and resilience and helps with cancer prevention.

Store-bought berry is good but homegrown is just perfect. Burst of sweetness after you take a bite and then you get a hit of tanginess. It’s juicy, fresh and tender. Fragile and perfect in taste.

Strawberry Layer Cake

Ingredients

Cake:
1 1/4 cups sliced strawberries 
10 ounce all-purpose flour (about 2 1/4 cups) 
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs 
2 large egg whites 
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
1/4 teaspoon red food coloring
Cooking spray

Frosting:
1/3 cup (3 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese 
1/3 cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier (orange-flavored liqueur)
3 cups powdered sugar
12 whole strawberries (optional)

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. To prepare cake, place sliced strawberries in a food processor; process until smooth.

3. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt, stirring with a whisk. Place granulated sugar and 1/2 cup butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in egg whites. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Add pureed strawberries and food coloring; beat just until blended.

4. Divide batter between 2 (8-inch) round cake pans coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pans; cool completely on wire racks.

5. To prepare frosting, place cream cheese, 1/3 cup butter, and liqueur in a medium bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until blended. Gradually add powdered sugar, and beat just until blended.

6. Place 1 cake layer on a plate; spread with 1/2 cup frosting. Top with remaining cake layer. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake. Cut 1 whole strawberry into thin slices, cutting to, but not through, the stem end. Fan strawberry on top of cake just before serving, if desired. Cut remaining 11 strawberries in half. Garnish cake with strawberry halves, if desired.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Ice Cream

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups whole milk 
3/4 cup half-and-half
1 cup sugar, divided 
3 large egg yolks 
2 cups chopped fresh rhubarb
1/3 cup fruity red wine (such as merlot)
3 cups chopped fresh strawberries (about 1 pound) 

Preparation

1. Combine milk and half-and-half in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat. Heat milk mixture to 180° or until tiny bubbles form around edge (do not boil). Combine 1/2 cup sugar and egg yolks in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk until pale yellow. Gradually add half of hot milk mixture to egg yolk mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Pour the egg yolk mixture into pan with remaining milk mixture; cook over medium-low heat until a thermometer registers 160° (about 2 minutes), stirring constantly. Place pan in a large ice-filled bowl for 20 minutes or until custard cools completely, stirring occasionally.

2. Combine remaining 1/2 cup sugar, rhubarb, and wine in a saucepan over medium-high heat; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 8 minutes or until rhubarb is tender and liquid is syrupy. Remove from heat; let stand 10 minutes. Combine rhubarb mixture and strawberries in a blender; process until smooth. Strain mixture through a sieve over a bowl, pressing with a wooden spoon; discard solids. Stir rhubarb mixture into custard mixture.

3. Pour custard into the freezer can of an ice-cream freezer; freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. Drain ice water from freezer bucket; repack with salt and ice. Cover with kitchen towels, and let stand 1 hour or until firm.

Strawberries at Banistra Villas