Grilled Ham and Cheddar with Strawberries and Arugula

As I am wont to do in my culinary experimentation, I've gotten into a bit of a phase - sandwiches with fresh fruit. This certainly isn't an original idea on my part, but with all the amazing fruit I've been getting at the farmers' market lately, I've been inspired to keep going beyond the leftover cranberry turkey sandwich I devour so voraciously at Thanksgiving.

The croque monsieur and Monte Cristo may be the reigning royalty of ham and cheese sandwiches, but this quicker, healthier alternative isn't all that far behind. Sharp cheddar cheese is an obvious partner for smoky ham, and the sweet strawberries, bitter arugula, and tangy Dijon mayo hit all the taste buds those featured players miss. I find myself rushing around even more than usual these days, and this has made meal time especially important, my time to refuel and recoup mental and physically. Even if there's just a small window for a bite to eat, there's almost always time for a sandwich. And if I can sneak in a bit of time for few simple, delicious finishing touches, it makes it all the better.

Grilled Ham and Cheddar with Strawberries and Arugula
serves 1

1/2 tablespoon light mayo
1/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Splash of balsamic vinegar
2 slices whole grain bread
2 or 3 medium to large strawberries, thinly slicd
A few leaves of arugula (about 1/4 ounce)
2 to 3 ounces sliced smoked ham
1 ounce shredded or thinly sliced sharp cheddar cheese
Cooking spray

1. In a small bowl, combine mayo, mustard, and vinegar and mix thoroughly. Spread on one slice of the bread. Top with the strawberries, lightly smashing them.

2. Place the arugula on the second slice of bread and top with the ham and cheese. Place the other slice of bread on top.

3. Preheat a pan over medium heat and spray with cooking spray. Place the sandwich in the pan and cook, flipping once halfway through, until bread is golden and ingredients are warmed through. Cut sandwich in half and serve promptly.

Broccoli Strawberry Salad with Goat Cheese and Almonds

One of the highlights of spring for me is the Dane County Farmers' market moving back outside onto Capital Square after spending the winter indoors. I feel fortunate to live somewhere that has a year-round farmers' market, especially up here in the great white north, but I love it so much more when I get to buy my produce in the fresh air of the early morning. Dominated now by root vegetables and greens, the offerings are relatively modest right now, but as the farmers' market bounty grows, so will my consumption of salads like this one. Spinach and onions are available now, but soon berries and crucifers will join them, this salad getting increasingly delicious as the season progresses.

This salad follows my general template for main-course salads - greens + onion + veggie + fresh or dried fruit + nuts + cheese. It's not a revolutionary formula, but I use it so often because it works. The spinach is fresh and crunchy, red onion provides astringency, and the roasted broccoli is tender and smoky, creating a delicious veggie base for the all finishing touches. The sweetness of the strawberries pops against these ingredients, especially with the addition of rich and toasty almonds and creamy, tangy goat cheese. Balsamic vinaigrette is an especially good choice for this salad, the extra acidity another nice contrast, but a honey mustard dressing is great as well. I eat plenty of salads all year long, but when the grass is green and the sun is warm, they taste all the more delicious.

Broccoli Strawberry Salad with Goat Cheese and Almonds
serves 1

2 ounces baby spinach or lettuce, washed (about 2 cups)
1/2 ounce thinly sliced red onion
2 ounces roasted or grilled broccoli (about 1/4 cup)
1 ounce quartered or sliced strawberries (about 2 tablespoons or 3 to 4 small to medium or 2 large strawberries)
2 tablespoons chopped toasted almonds
2 tablespoons crumbled goat cheese
Salad dressing, for serving

1. Divide spinach evenly between two plates and top each with red onion, broccoli, strawberries, almonds, and goat cheese. Drizzle with dressing of choice and enjoy!

Strawberry Balsamic Grilled Chicken Salad

Who wouldn't welcome this waiting at their desk for lunch?

I eat salads at least four times a week during a summer, ranging from simple vegetable-only side salads to more elaborate main course salads. Although it does mean I spend quite a bit of time chopping vegetables, I find the time and energy well worth it, especially when I make a special salad for lunch at work. When the work day is long and hectic, having a lunch that is filling, healthy, and delicious goes a long way towards helping me power through the afternoon until I get to go home. Although my lunch salads are often vegetarian, when I'm grilling up some chicken or steak for dinner, I'll often make extra for lunch the next day, particularly when I've gone to the trouble of firing up the grill.

This salad is packed with flavor from a harmonious combination of creamy goat cheese, toasty almonds, and sweet, ripe strawberries, all accented with a light balsamic vinaigrette. The chicken makes the salad a bit more filling and hearty, so if you're going to vegetarian route, I recommend doubling up on the goat cheese and almonds. As summer progresses, trying swapping out the strawberries for raspberries and the balsamic vinaigrette for a raspberry vinaigrette for a delicious late-summer variation on this salad. Go ahead and take a little extra time to make your lunch a little more special-you deserve it!

Strawberry Balsamic Grilled Chicken Salad
serves 1

4 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 ounces mixed salad greens
2 ounces baby spinach
1 cup halved strawberries
1/2 ounce toasted sliced almonds
1 oz. crumbled goat cheese
Balsamic vinaigrette, for serving (I like Newman's Own)

1. Preheat a grill or grill pan over medium heat. Season both sides of the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Cook chicken breast until internal temperature reaches 170 degrees F, remove from heat, and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Slice evenly into thin slices.

2. Meanwhile, wash and dry greens and spinach and chop, if necessary. Add greens and spinach to a large plate or bowl and top with the strawberries, almonds, goat cheese, and sliced chicken. Drizzle with vinaigrette and enjoy!

Icebox Strawberry Jam

Although strawberry season is drawing to a close for most of Wisconsin, a bumper crop of strawberries is just starting to appear from Door County at the farmer's market. Door County is consistently a few weeks behind in their growing season compared to most of the state, extending the bounty of summer fruit, much to my delight. I've been scarfing down strawberries by the quart for the past month or so, but have neglected to turn them into jam until now. I don't have a pressure canner, so I make icebox jams/preserves instead. It's true that they don't last as long as pressure-canned preserves, but fresh fruit jam is so delicious that we don't have to worry about its longevity in my house. I love this recipe not only for how simple it is to make, but the how the limited ingredients optimally showcase the fruit instead of burying it.

The sweetness here comes from honey instead of sugar, which gives a subtle bit of flavor in addition to sweetness and blends beautifully with the strawberries. I recommend a mild honey like clover or wildflower honey, so as not to overwhelm the strawberries. As always, taste your fruit to evaluate its sweetness, add only half of the sweetener to start, taste again and then add more sweetener to taste. By the same token, tastes also vary widely in how sweet preserves should be-I tend to like mine a bit more tart than a lot of people, so I may add a bit more lemon juice and hold back on the honey or sugar. The sweetness of fruit varies widely, from the white-centered tasteless, but highly transportable, supermarket strawberries, to the pure red, juicy, wonderfully sweet farmer's market strawberries, so tasting as you go is extremely important.

For tips on how to test the consistency of your jam, see my post on Concord Grape Jam from last summer. It's hard to know exactly how thick the jam should be when hot to translate to the appropriate cooled consistency and this post details a great method for testing the hot jam. This jam is great on toast, bagels, English muffins, waffles, pancakes, PB&Js, and makes a fantastic ice cream topping. Although there are plenty of good commercially-available jams and preserves, nothing quite compares to fresh jam from local fruit, prepared with your own two hands.

Icebox Strawberry Jam
adapted from Food and Wine
makes about 2 cups

1 quart strawberries, thickly sliced (4 cups) 
1/2 cup honey 
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

Pinch kosher salt

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the strawberries with the honey, lemon zest, lemon juice and salt. Bring to a boil. Simmer over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened, 40 to 60 minutes. Let cool, then refrigerate until chilled.

Rhubarb and Strawberry Ice Cream

Strawberries made their first appearance at the farmer's market this week and I immediately snatched up a quart with visions of many delicious summer desserts instantly dancing through my head. With the oppressive heat that plagued us here in Wisconsin for a good part of this week, a big bowl of ice cream was practically a necessity. Although ice cream can be extremely refreshing in the depths of summer heat, it can also be very fatty and heavy and just weigh you down. This ice cream is the perfect bowl of refreshment in the summer heat because while the half-and-half and whole milk make the ice cream creamy and smooth, the large amount of fruit keeps the ice cream bright and refreshing.

One of the most importants things to consider with this recipe is that the amount of sugar given here is merely a guide. The sweetness of the strawberries and tartness of the rhubarb can vary greatly, so taste both components, start by adding less sugar than the recipe call for, and adjust accordingly. The strawberries I had were quite sweet and I didn't find it necessary to add very much sugar, although I tend to like my desserts less sweet than many people. I reported the amount of sugar from Martha Stewart's, although my ice cream needed significantly less than original recipe. Supermarket strawberries tend to be a lot less sweet and flavorful than fresh farmer's fruit, and they will likely need the full amount, if not even a bit more. This ice cream manages to be sweet, tart, and creamy all at once, and is the perfect end to a hot summer evening.

Rhubarb and Strawberry Ice Cream
adapted from Martha Stewart
makes about 1 quart

1 pound trimmed rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 3 1/2 cups)
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons water
8 ounces ripe strawberries, hulled
1 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup whole milk

1. Place rhubarb, 1/2 cup sugar, and the water in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to mediumlow; let simmer, stirring frequently, until rhubarb is very tender and beginning to fall apart, about 12 minutes. Mash with a potato masher, if desired, to achieve a smoother texture. Remove from heat; transfer to a bowl; set aside.

2. Place strawberries in the bowl of a food processor; puree. Strain through a fine sieve or chinois into a bowl; set aside.

3. Scald cream and milk in a saucepan over medium heat. Do not let boil. Remove from heat, add remaining 6 tablespoons sugar, and stir until sugar is dissolved. Allow mixture to cool to room temperature.

4. In a medium bowl, combine cooked rhubarb, strawberry puree, and half-and-half mixture. Cover with plastic wrap, and chill at least 2 hours or overnight. Freeze in an ice-cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Strawberry and Rhubarb Crumble

Strawberry is definitely my favorite fruit to pair with rhubarb. Raspberries, peaches, and even apples all can make fantastic dishes in combination with rhubarb, but there's something about strawberries that complements the rhubarb particularly well, especially in that fleeting time when both are in season (which has yet to come in this area). My favorite fruit desserts are usually the simplest, using just a few ingredients to accentuate all the best characteristics of the ingredients without taking over the flavor of the dish. With sweet strawberries, tart rhubarb, and a crumbly streusel topping, how can you go wrong? Swirl a bit of rich, vanilla ice cream into warm crisp for a sweet, tart, rich, and crunchy dessert packed with the flavor of early summer.

Strawberry and Rhubarb Crumble
adapted from Tamasin Day-Lewis in Bon Appetit, via Epicurious

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup turbinado sugar
Large pinch of salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup husked hazelnuts, toasted, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 pound strawberries, hulled, halved (about 4 cups)
12 ounces rhubarb (preferably bright red), ends trimmed, stalks cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick pieces
Vanilla ice cream

1. Combine flour, turbinado sugar, and salt in medium bowl; whisk to blend. Add butter. Rub in with fingertips until mixture sticks together in clumps. Mix in oats and nuts. DO AHEAD: Topping can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.

2. Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter 11 x 7 x 2- inch glass baking dish. Place 1/2 cup sugar in large bowl. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; whisk to blend well. Add strawberries and rhubarb to sugar in bowl; toss to coat well. Scrape fruit filling into prepared baking dish. Sprinkle oat topping evenly over filling.

3.Bake crumble until filling bubbles thickly and topping is crisp, about 45 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes. Spoon warm crumble into bowls. Serve with ice cream.

Rhubarb Strawberry Pudding Cake

One of my husband's coworkers and his wife live near Warner Park and invited us over for a cookout tonight and to watch the fireworks (Rhythm and Booms, the Midwest's largest fireworks display). I was trying to decide if I should bring a side or a dessert and after probably far too much thought, decided I would bring a dessert. I knew I wanted to make a fruit dessert using produce from the farmer's market and after much searching, I found this simple gem of a recipe. When I'm bringing food to other people I tend to shy away from the atypical ingredients I would use in my own cooking, like grains that many people aren't familiar with or have never used, so many of the dessert recipes I have in my queue aren't appropriate. This simple recipe features gorgeous farmer's market produce set in a simple, but tasty cake that appeals to a wide range of people.

Rhubarb Strawberry Pudding Cake
from Gourmet

1/4 c. water

1 1/2 t. cornstarch
1/3 c. plus 1/2 c. sugar
2 c. chopped fresh rhubarb stalks (10 oz.)
1 c. chopped fresh strawberries (5 oz.)
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 3/4 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 large egg
1/2 c. whole milk
1 stick (1/2 c.) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 t. pure vanilla extract

1. Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 400°F. Butter an 8-inch square glass or ceramic baking dish.

2. Stir together water, cornstarch, and 1/3 cup sugar in a small saucepan, then stir in rhubarb. Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly, then simmer, stirring occasionally, 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in strawberries.

3. Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a bowl. Whisk together egg, milk, butter, and vanilla in a large bowl, then whisk in flour mixture until just combined.

4. Reserve 1/2 cup fruit mixture, then add remainder to baking dish and pour batter over it, spreading evenly. Drizzle reserved 1/2 cup fruit mixture over batter. Bake until a wooden pick inserted into center of cake portion comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool in pan on a rack 5 minutes before serving.

Strawberry Barley Scones

The recipe feeds two of my recent obsessions: Good to the Grain and strawberries from the farmer's market. While Kim Boyce has recipes for Strawberry Jam and Three-Citrus Marmalade in her book, I used the Strawberry Preserves I made last weekend, which are almost identical to her recipe (no pectin; cook fruit mixture to 210 degrees, using a candy thermometer).

Most grocery stores are not going to have barley flour. Even Whole Foods, where I got barley flour out of the bulk section, didn't have it bags from it from Arrowhead Mills or Bob's Red Mill, as I would have expected. They have all kinds of other seldom-used flours (a few of which I also bought), but no bags of barley flour for some reason. You may have to do a little hunting around at natural foods and gourmet grocery stores to find it, but it's definitely worth it to make these scones. The crunchy top coating gives way to a crumbly and moist center with the perfect amount of sweet strawberry jam. They're best warm out of the oven, but I plan on freezing the extras and heating them in the toaster oven this week for breakfast (I wouldn't use a microwave).

Strawberry Barley Scones
from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce

Barley flour has a distinctly sweet, creamy quality that taste great with fruit. This recipe sandwiches a generous smear of jam between two disks of dough. When the scone bakes, the jam thickens, even caramelizing a little around the edges. Strawberry Jam is delightful in these scones, as is Three-Citrus Marmalade, or you can use a purchased jam of your choice.

The moist dough and the small irregular bits of butter are responsible for these tender scones. Resist the urge to add more flour to the dough that you need-it should be sticky but manageable. A generously floured surface will help these scones come together.


Dry Mix:
1 c. plus 2 T. barley flour
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. dark brown sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1.25 t. kosher salt

Wet Mix:
4 oz. (1 stick) cold unsalted butter
1/2 c. buttermilk
1 egg

Finish:
1/2 c. Strawberry Jam or Three-Citrus Marmalade
1 T. unsalted butter, melted
1 T. sugar

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. Rub a baking sheet lightly with butter. Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl., pouring back into the bowl any bits of grain or other ingredients that may remain in the sifter.

2. Cut the butter into 1/2-inch pieces and add them to dry mixture. Use your hands to rub the butter between your fingers, breaking it into smaller bits. Continue rubbing until the butter is in sizes ranging from rice grains to flattened peas. The more quickly you do this, the more the butter stay solid, which is important for the success of the recipe.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the buttermilk and egg until thoroughly combined. Scrape the buttermilk and egg into the dry mixture, and mix until barely combined.

4. Use a pastry scraper or spatula to transfer the dough to a well-floured surface. The dough may be too sticky to handle; if it is, dust it with flour and fold it together a few times. Divide the dough into 2 pieces. Flour your hands and pat each piece of dough into a disk about 3/4-inch thick and 7 inches in diameter.

5. Cover one disk with the jam or marmalade. Top the spread with the other disk and press down gently so that the dough settles into the jam. Brush the dough lightly with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar. Use a sharp knife to slice the circle into 8 triangular wedges, like a pie. Carefully place the wedges on a baking sheet, leaving a few inches between them.

6. Bake the scones for 22 to 26 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through. The scones are ready when their tops are golden brown and some of the jam or marmalade has bubbled over onto the pan. To keep the scones from sticking to the pan, slide a thin spatula underneath them while they're still warm and move them to a baking rack. The scones are best eaten warm from the oven or later that same day.

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies

Yes, it's another strawberry recipe. With gorgeous strawberries still everywhere at the farmer's market, I'm making the most of it with another strawberry dessert.

I can't say that these cookies are as good as real strawberry shortcake or Drop Biscuits with Strawberries and Cream, which might be my favorite strawberry dessert ever, but they are good, portable, and easier to store than a lot of strawberry desserts. I found that my cookies baked much faster than the recipe indicated and would have been completely burnt if I'd followed the recipe and not checked them early. My oven may run hot, but I've never had a bake time be so far off from what a recipe indicated. I would suggest keeping a close eye on them during the baking time.

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies
from Martha Stewart

makes about 3 dozen

These tender cookies are made with cream and studded with sweet strawberries for a portable version of a classic dessert.

12 oz. strawberries, hulled and cut into 1/4-inch dice (2 cups)
1 t. fresh lemon juice
1/2 c. plus 1 T. granulated sugar
2 c. all-purpose flour
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. coarse salt
3 oz. (6 T.) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2/3 c. heavy cream
Sanding sugar, for sprinkling

 
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine strawberries, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons granulated sugar. Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and remaining 7 tablespoons granulated sugar in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter, or rub in with your fingers, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in cream until dough starts to come together, then stir in strawberry mixture.

2. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, drop dough onto baking sheets lined with parchment, spacing evenly apart. Sprinkle with sanding sugar, and bake until golden brown, 24 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool. Cookies are best served immediately, but can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 day.

Strawberry Ice Cream

I bought 6 quarts of strawberries at the farmer's market last Saturday, 1 quart of which was specifically for strawberry ice cream. I'm trying to make the most of all-too-short strawberry season and homemade ice cream is one of my favorite things in the world. This recipe couldn't be simpler, but is absolutely divine.

Strawberry Ice Cream
from The Joy of Cooking

1 quart strawberries, hulled and sliced
3/4 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla
2 c. heavy cream
1 c. whole milk

1. Combine strawberries, sugar, and vanilla in a food processor. Pulse 2 to 3 times, just until the fruit is crushed. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour.

2. Add heavy cream and milk. Stir until sugar is dissolved, 2 to 3 minutes. Pour into an ice cream maker and freeze as directed.

Warm Strawberry Crumb Cake

Another strawberry recipe! If you have mass quantities of strawberries, you should definitely try this recipe (it requires 3 pounds of strawberries, but it's totally worth it). In addition to being absolutely delicious, the three contrasting textures of this cake make it absolutely exquisite. The strawberry layer is soft, jammy, and sweet, the cake layer is buttery and light, and the crumb topping is rich and crunchy. My one complaint is that the strawberry layer was almost too sweet for my taste. If I had made this cake with the sorry excuses for strawberries that are trucked across the country to my local chain grocery store, the level of sugar would have probably been appropriate, but the smaller, sweeter farmer's market strawberries don't need as much sugar to achieve the same level of sweetness.

Warm Strawberry Crumb Cake
from Food and Wine


FILLING
 3 lbs. strawberries, hulled and halved (8 cups)
1/2 c. sugar
2 T. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2.5 T. cornstarch dissolved in 2.5 T. of water
1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped

CRUMB TOPPING
1/2 c. lightly packed brown sugar
1/2 c. plus 2 T. all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
4 T. unsalted butter, cubed and chilled

CAKE

2.25 c. all-purpose flour
1 T. baking powder
3/4 t. salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1.25 c. sugar
3 large eggs
1.5 t. pure vanilla extract
3/4 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. plus 2 T. all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
4 T. unsalted butter, cubed and chilled


1. Make the Filling: Preheat the oven to 350°. In a large bowl, toss the strawberries with the sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch slurry and vanilla seeds and let stand until the berries release some of their juices, about 30 minutes. Pour the fruit filling into a 9-by-13-inch glass or ceramic baking dish set on a sturdy baking sheet. 

2. Meanwhile, Make the Crumb Topping: In a medium bowl, mix all of the ingredients with your fingers until a coarse meal forms; press into small clumps. 

3. Make the Cake: In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, using a handheld electric mixer, beat the butter with the sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between additions. Beat in the vanilla extract and scrape down the bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the batter in 3 additions, alternating with the buttermilk.

4. Spoon the batter over the fruit filling, spreading it to the edge. Sprinkle with the crumb topping. Bake in the center of the oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the fruit is bubbling, the crumb topping is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Transfer to a rack to cool slightly. Serve the crumb cake warm or at room temperature.

Strawberry Preserves

When scouring websites and my cookbooks for ways to use all the beautiful strawberries at the farmer's market, I immediately put preserves on my list of recipes. With such a fleeting strawberry season in Wisconsin, preserves keep the taste of early summer around for a little bit longer. This recipe is extremely simple to make and allows the taste of the strawberries to shine through; it wouldn't be nearly as delicious with the supermarket strawberries bred to be durable and shelf-stable for trucking across the country.

Strawberry Preserves
from Martha Stewart Living

These preserves can be canned and stored for up to one year; multiply the recipe, if you like.

1. Put strawberries and lemon juice in a large saucepan. Cook, stirring occasionally, over low heat until juices are released, about 40 minutes. Stir in sugar.

2. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture registers 210 degrees.on a candy thermometer, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely; skim foam from surface with a spoon. Preserves can be refrigerated in an airtight container, up to 2 months.

Drop Biscuits with Strawberries and Cream

Strawberries made their first appearance at the farmer's market this week, which I was beyond excited to see. I bought quite a few on Saturday and plan on spending part of my time this week looking for strawberry recipes so I can buy a lot more this weekend.

The whole wheat flour adds a wonderful flavor to the biscuits, but they are still light and tender. This recipe is an excellent way to showcase the beautiful strawberries that will be around for much too short a time this summer.

Drop Biscuits with Strawberries and Cream
from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce

serves 6


My great-grandmother would make drop biscuits for me every summer when I was growing up. Hers were made from a boxed mix, sprinkled with sugar, and served with sliced sugared strawberries and a generous dollop of Cool Whip. I just loved sitting out on her back porch way past bedtime, in the summer heat, eating biscuits with her. This recipe is my updated version, composed around whole-wheat flour. Drop a warm biscuit into a bowl with some unsweetened whipped cream and a large spoonful of macerated fresh strawberries. It's every bit as good as my great-grandmother's dessert, just without the extra sugar and additives.

Butter for the baking sheet

Biscuits:
3/4 c. whole wheat flour
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. kosher salt
1 c. cold heavy cream

Finish:
1.5 t. sugar for dusting
1 lb. strawberries, hulled and sliced
1 T. sugar
1 c. cold heavy cream
1/3 c. creme fraiche, optional

1. Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Rub a baking sheet lightly with butter.

2. In a large bowl, sift together the flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt, pouring back into the bowl any bits of grains or other ingredients that may remain in the sifter.

3. Pour in the cream and, using a fork or your hands, stir until the dough just begins to come together. The dough will be very shaggy, do not overmix.

4. Pile the dough into six mounds, leaving 4 inches between them. Use your hands to tuck in the rough pieces of dough. Sprinkle the biscuits with the remaining 1.5 t. of sugar.

5. Bake the biscuits for 34 to 40 minutes, rotating the sheet once halfway through, until the begin to color on the top.

6. While the biscuits are baking, place the berries in a bowl and toss with 1 tablespoon of sugar. Allow them to macerate, uncovered at room temperature, for about 30 minutes, or until the biscuits are done. Meanwhile, whip the remaining cup of cream (combined with creme fraiche, if desired-see above) into soft peaks that barely hold their shape, and chill.

7. When the biscuits are out of the oven, fill six bowls with cream and berries, then nestle a warm biscuit alongside.