Strawberries, Wild Strawberries, Shortcake Variation, Pinot Grigio

Summer's here!

I dream of strawberry shortcake, even though cream (and milk) and I don't get along. Today I thought of an alternative to whipped cream/double cream/clotted cream. Vanilla Yogurt! The yogurt can be home-made or store-bought, but the thicker the better, and obviously quality makes a difference--the less ingredients in yogurt the better it is. If your yogurt is runny, that's fine, but the berries may slide off faster. To make a thicker yogurt just place the yogurt in a sieve lined with cheese cloth over a bowl, and let the liquid--whey--drain. Thick store-bought yogurts (like Greek style) are made thick in two ways: thickeners and straining. If you don't make your own yogurt and you don't want to pay more for Greek style, just buy regular yogurt and strain it (in the fridge). Buying plain yogurt and flavouring it yourself is best, because it won't have all the additives of sugar and flavours.

Anyway, using vanilla yogurt in place of cream is fantastic. Now I can eat even more strawberry shortcake!

These are strawberries and strawberry-wild strawberry mutants from my backyard. Last year my strawberries and my wild strawberries cross-pollinated, which messed up the wild strawberries. They are now a bit larger with a distinct texture and more of a strawberry taste. I wish it had gone the other way.

Vanilla and cardamom poundcake with vanilla and berries.

Wild strawberries floating in Pinot Grigio. They're even better with champagne.

Sliced strawberry on top of vanilla yogurt.

This is a photo from last year. You can see the thickness of the cream.

Enjoy!

Asparagus as a Meal

I made this dish--or something similar--about two years ago from an online recipe. I couldn't remember where the  recipe was from, and I'm not sure if I'm remembering it exactly. It turned out well nonetheless.

This is quite easy and quick to make, and even though it doesn't look like much, it's quite substantial.

1. Grate asparagus stems (I roasted the heads for another dish).

2. Briefly blanch (~15 seconds); you want the stems slightly softened, but still with a bit of a crunch. Drain, and quickly rinse in cold water.

3. Melt butter in a pan, add almonds, and fry until the butter has browned a bit, and the almonds look plump.

4. Place asparagus in a dish, and pour the butter and almonds over the asparagus.

5. Squeeze a bit of lemon, and serve.

This is best eaten right away, so make only as much as will be eaten.

Bon appétit!