Fluffy lemon chiffon cake, ice cold whipped cream, and just-picked organic strawberries. What more could you want from [...]]]> Jana of Cherry Tea Cakes was our July Daring Bakers’ host and she challenges us to make Fresh Frasiers inspired by recipes written by Elisabeth M. Prueitt and Chad Robertson in the beautiful cookbook Tartine.

Fluffy lemon chiffon cake, ice cold whipped cream, and just-picked organic strawberries. What more could you want from a summer dessert? Though it may appear daunting, all of the components can be broken down into manageable segments that can be spread over a few days. You won’t have to be in the kitchen all day to create such a masterpiece. And believe me, the taste is just as impressive as the presentation. The cake has a pleasant lemon flavor, while the pastry cream filling manages to bring out the fresh flavor of summer strawberries without overpowering them with artificial sweetness.

Jana of Cherry Tea Cakes was our July Daring Bakers host and she challenged us to make Fresh Frasiers inspired by recipes written by Elisabeth M. Prueitt and Chad Robertson in the beautiful cookbook Tartine.

I deviated from the given recipe slightly, by omitting the almond paste topping and the gelatin in the whipped cream, opting to freeze the dessert instead of using a stabilizer.

Lemon Chiffon Cake
Yield: One 8″ cake

1 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup grapeseed oil
3 egg yolks
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest
5 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Preheat the oven to 325°. Line the bottom of an 8″ square (or 8″ springform) pan with parchment paper. Do not grease the sides of the pan.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour and baking powder. Add all but 3 tablespoons of the sugar, and all of the salt. Set aside.

In a small bowl or measuring cup, combine the oil, egg yolks, water, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Whisk thoroughly. Pour into the bowl with the dry ingredients and whisk for a minute, until smooth.

In a large, clean bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer, using the whisk attachment, until frothy.

Add the cream of tartar and continue to whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Slowly add the remaining 3 tablespoons of granulated sugar and continue to beat the egg whites until they hold stiff and shiny peaks.

Using a grease-free rubber spatula, scoop about 1/3 of the egg whites into the yolk mixture. Fold in the egg whites gently, to lighten the mixture. Fold in the remaining egg whites just until combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a wire rack.
Note: My cake collapsed in the center as it cooled. Some chiffon cake experts recommend cooling the cake upside down, which may help to prevent collapse.

To unmold the cake, run a knife around the edges to separate the cake from the side of the pan. If you’re using a springform pan, simply remove the sides of the pan. Invert the cake onto the cooling rack and peel off the parchment paper.

Pastry Cream Filling

1 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons corn starch
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Combine the milk, vanilla extract, and salt in a heavy saucepan. Heat the liquid over medium-high heat, until it is close to boiling. Stir occasionally.

Meanwhile, whisk the corn starch and sugar with an electric mixer. Add the eggs, continuing to whisk until smooth. When the milk is ready, slowly pour it into the bowl while the mixer is running, aiming for the small gap between the whisk and the bowl. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan and continue to heat until the custard thickens, is just about to boil, and coats the back of a spoon.

Remove the pan from the heat. Strain the custard through a fine mesh strainer to remove any lumps. Allow the custard to cool for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Slice the butter into 4 pieces. Whisk each piece into the pastry cream, one at a time, stirring until dissolved. Cover the pastry cream with plastic wrap, pressing the wrap onto the surface of the cream to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate for up to 5 days.

When you are ready to assemble the fraisier, remove the pastry cream from the fridge. Place the whipped cream in the bowl of your mixer. Whip the cream with the whisk attachment until it forms medium-stiff peaks. Gently fold the whipped cream into the pastry cream with a rubber spatula.

Simple Syrup

1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup water
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Combine the water and sugar in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium-high heat until the mixture comes to a boil and the sugar has dissolved. It is not necessary to stir the syrup, but it won’t hurt if you do. Once the sugar has dissolved, remove the syrup from the heat and cool slightly. Stir in the vanilla extract.

To assemble the fraisier:

1 chiffon cake
1 recipe pastry cream filling
1 recipe simple syrup
2 pounds fresh strawberries

Line the sides of an 8″ springform pan with plastic wrap. Do not cover the bottom. Since I don’t have an 8″ springform pan, I used two small plastic containers. I lined them both with plastic wrap.

Using a serrated knife or a cake slicer, level off the top of the cake and then cut the cake in half horizontally. Trim the cake to fit your pan or container if necessary.

Place the bottom layer of cake into the pan. Drizzle with simple syrup until it is the consistency of a moist sponge.

Hull and slice in half enough strawberries to place upright, around the edges of your container. Arrange the strawberries so that the cut side faces out, pointy side up.

Spoon or pipe the cream filling in between the strawberries, filling the container to the top of the strawberries. If you desire, slice some more strawberries and place them on top of the cream layer. I chose to place one unsliced strawberry into the center of the cream layer.

Place the second layer of cake on top of the cream layer. Moisten this layer with simple syrup. Cover the cake and freeze for at least 4 hours.

If the cake has not completely frozen, you can invert the container and gently tug on the plastic wrap to remove the cake from the container. If the cake has frozen, you may need to let it sit out at room temperature for a while before it can be removed. If you have used a springform pan, simply remove the sides of the pan to serve.

Top the cake with remaining pastry cream filling and fresh fruit.

It’s that time of year when the population of squash grows at a seemingly exponential rate. You may enter your garden to find a new squash under each leaf, just when you thought you had consumed every squash in sight. We didn’t plant zucchini this year, but we’re still overwhelmed with the amount [...]]]>

It’s that time of year when the population of squash grows at a seemingly exponential rate. You may enter your garden to find a new squash under each leaf, just when you thought you had consumed every squash in sight. We didn’t plant zucchini this year, but we’re still overwhelmed with the amount of squash to be consumed from our CSA and our friends’ gardens. We did, however, plant strawberries. Today we got the first three perfectly ripe and sweet berries that the bugs didn’t chomp first. And there are many more blooms that will soon turn to sweet red berries.

These muffins were inspired by this week’s CSA basket, and are the epitome of fresh local, organic fare. The Meyer lemon, eggs, zucchini, and strawberries are fresh from the farm. Pure maple syrup stands in for refined sugar, giving the muffins a subtle natural sweetness. With their light, fluffy texture and burst of summer flavor, these muffins are sure to be a welcome staple in our home for as long as strawberry season lasts.

Strawberry Zucchini Muffins
Created by Simple Math Bakery
Yield: 18 muffins

3/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice (vinegar would work just as well)
1/2 cup grapeseed oil
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1 egg
1 cup grated zucchini (1 medium sized zucchini)
2 cups flour (I use 1/2 cup all-purpose and 1/2 cup whole wheat)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
scant 1/2 cup fresh strawberries, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a muffin tin and set aside.

In a small measuring cup, combine the milk and lemon juice. Let sit for 5-10 minutes to allow the milk to curdle.

In a large bowl, combine the milk mixture, oil, maple syrup, and egg. Stir until well combined. Mix in the zucchini.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and cloves. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, stirring just until combined. Fold in the strawberries.

Fill muffin cups 3/4 full. Bake for 15-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove them from the pan to cool completely.

I love a good baking challenge, but my favorites [...]]]> The May 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Emma of CookCraftGrow and Jenny of Purple House Dirt. They chose to challenge everyone to make a Chocolate Marquise. The inspiration for this recipe comes from a dessert they prepared at a restaurant in Seattle.

I love a good baking challenge, but my favorites are the challenges that lend themselves to creative shapes. For these challenges, my mind is able to wander through mathematical equations, searching for an appropriate symbol or pattern to re-create in edible form. This month it’s one of my favorites: Pi.

As excited as I was to mold the marquise into a shape of mathematical significance, when the dishes had piled up and the dessert was finally plated, I discovered an irrationally fabulous combination of flavors.

The marquise is a rich, velvety chocolate pillow. Even just out of the freezer, it softens into the most glorious texture. Which, by the way, makes it extremely difficult to get out of the Pi molds without breaking the legs off. Out of six attempts at unmolding Pi-shaped marquise, only one was successful. But one was all I needed for the photo!

The rest of them, no matter how many pieces they broke into, got plated atop soft, marshmallowy meringue broiled to golden brown perfection. Fresh strawberry sauce, starring organic local strawberries from our CSA, complemented the marquise and meringue splendidly.

The simple conclusion is that you need to make this dessert. As daunting as it may look, it breaks down into manageable segments. It is well worth the effort!

The May 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Emma of CookCraftGrow and Jenny of Purple House Dirt. They chose to challenge everyone to make a Chocolate Marquise. The inspiration for this recipe comes from a dessert they prepared at a restaurant in Seattle.

Recipe Source: Emma and Jenny learned how to make this marquise dessert when they worked together at a Seattle restaurant. The recipe is adapted from one developed by Bennie Sata, a Seattle-area pastry chef who introduced the city to one of its iconic chocolate desserts.

Chocolate Marquise
Yield: approximately 6 servings

3 large egg yolks, room temperature (save the whites for the meringue!)
1 large egg, room temperature
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon water
Chocolate base, barely warm (recipe follows)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup cocoa powder for rolling
Torched (or broiled) meringue (recipe follows)
Strawberry sauce (recipe follows)

This recipe will fill a 6″ x 6″ pan, or you may substitute silicone molds or any other shape pan of your choosing. It’s a good idea to line the pan with parchment paper or plastic wrap to facilitate easier removal of the frozen marquise. This may not be necessary for silicone molds, depending on the shape of the mold.

Pour the cream into the bowl of your mixer. Whip until the cream reaches soft peaks. Do not beat the cream until stiff, as it will be difficult to fold into the chocolate marquise. Transfer the cream to a small bowl, cover, and place in the refrigerator while you prepare the marquise.

Prepare the chocolate base (recipe below), and allow it to cool while you prepare the marquise.

In the bowl of your mixer, combine the egg yolks and whole egg. Whip with the whisk attachment on high speed until very pale and fluffy, 10-15 minutes. While the eggs are being whipped, prepare the sugar syrup.

In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Bring the mixture to a boil, then cook over medium heat until it reaches the soft ball stage (235°F). For me, this took about 10 minutes (just enough time to whip the eggs).

With the mixer on low speed, drizzle the hot sugar syrup into the eggs, attempting to pour it right between the beater and the bowl. The sugar will begin to harden immediately, so do this fairly quickly. As soon as the sugar has been added, turn the mixer back to high speed and whip until the bowl is cool to the touch.

Add the chocolate base to the egg mixture, and whip to combine. Don’t whip for too long, as you might lose the air that you whipped into the eggs. I mixed for about 1 minute.

Remove the whipped cream from the fridge. Using a rubber spatula, fold in 1/3 of the cream to lighten the chocolate mixture. Gently fold in the remaining cream.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan or mold and cover tightly with plastic wrap (making sure the plastic wrap touches the chocolate so that no air can get in). Place the pan into the freezer until very firm, preferably overnight.

Chocolate Base
This is an ingredient for the marquise recipe above.

3 ounces bittersweet chocolate (I used 86%)
1/3 cup + 2 teaspoons heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/16 teaspoon cayenne
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
dash of black pepper
1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature

Break or chop the chocolate into coarse pieces and place in a medium sized mixing bowl. Set aside.

In a double boiler, or a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, warm the cream until it is hot to the touch but not boiling. Pour the cream over the chocolate. Let sit for a minute or two, then stir until the chocolate has completely melted.

Add the remaining ingredients and stir to combine. Allow to sit at room temperature while you prepare the marquise, above. Do not place in the refrigerator, as the base must be soft when added to the marquise.

Broiled Meringue

3 large egg whites
1/2 cup less 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Splash of apple cider vinegar
1/8 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Combine the egg whites, sugar, and vinegar in the bowl of your mixer. Using your (clean!) hand, reach into the bowl and stir the ingredients together. The sugar should be evenly moistened.

Place the bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water. Stir continuously with your fingers. As the liquid heats up, the sugar will dissolve and the egg whites will thicken. Remove the bowl from the heat when you no longer feel grains of sugar and the mixture is uniformly warm, but not hot.

Using the whisk attachment of your mixer, whip the egg whites until they form soft peaks. During the last 10 seconds of mixing, add the vanilla extract and beat until combined.

Torch the meringue with a blowtorch, or broil as directed below.

Strawberry Sauce
Adapted from Epicurious
Yield: approximately 1 cup (you may want to double this if you are serving all the marquise at once)

8 ounces strawberries (about 1 cup)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Remove the tops of the strawberries and chop them coarsely. Add them to a small saucepan, along with the rest of the ingredients. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 3 minutes.

Allow the sauce to cool, and refrigerate until served.

To plate the dessert:

Use a blowtorch to broil the meringue, or optionally use the broiler of your oven. To do this, lightly spray a piece of aluminum foil with cooking spray. Spoon a dollop of meringue onto the foil. Set the broiler to the lowest heat setting, place the meringue under the broiler, and watch it carefully until it has browned. Transfer the broiled meringue to your serving plate.

Remove the marquise from the freezer. Carefully pop it out of the molds, or invert it out of the pan. Slice into cubes if you have used a larger pan. Measure the cocoa powder into a small bowl. Handling the marquise as little as possible (I used two large spoons), roll it in the cocoa powder and then place it on top of the meringue. The marquise will start to melt as soon as it is removed from the freezer.

If your cubes are large enough that they aren’t melting fast enough, you may want to place them in the fridge for about 15 minutes while you are broiling the meringue. My Pi-shaped marquises were thin enough that I knew I wouldn’t have a lot of time to transfer them from molds to plate before they started melting!

Carefully place the marquise atop the broiled meringue. Drizzle sauce over or around the dessert as desired. Enjoy!

1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987…

Have you deciphered the pattern? Each term is the sum of the previous two terms, creating the Fibonacci sequence. I find the graphical representation of this sequence beautiful and intriguing. Using squares whose sides correspond to the [...]]]>

1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987…

Have you deciphered the pattern? Each term is the sum of the previous two terms, creating the Fibonacci sequence. I find the graphical representation of this sequence beautiful and intriguing. Using squares whose sides correspond to the numbers in the sequence, each consecutive square is placed in an outwardly spiraling manner. There is something satisfying about the way that each square nestles against the previous squares, and the pattern seems to contribute equally to the fields of mathematics and art. Since baking is a bit of both, I used this pattern as the inspiration for my berry dessert pizza.

I filled each square with a different berry: blueberries, pomegranate seeds, raspberries, cranberries, and strawberries. Atop a honey whole wheat crust with a layer of sweetened mascarpone cheese, each of the berries adds a different degree of tartness. A drizzle of caramel sauce balances the flavors perfectly!

Berry Dessert Pizza
Created by Simple Math Bakery
Yield: 8 servings

Dessert Pizza Dough
Adapted from King Arthur Flour

2 teaspoons instant yeast
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups unbleached bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
1 to 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water

In a large bowl, or the bowl of your mixer, combine the yeast, whole wheat flour, bread flour, and salt. Add the olive oil, honey, and 1 cup of the water. Stir with a wooden spoon or the paddle attachment of your mixer until the dough comes together. If necessary, add more water 1 tablespoon at a time to get the dough to come together.

Knead the dough by hand or mixer until it becomes a cohesive dough. It may still look a little rough, but should hold together well. This will take about 5 minutes with the dough hook of a mixer.

Place the dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let rise for 1 hour. It should be very puffy and not quite doubled in size.

Lightly flour a piece of parchment paper (if you are baking the crust directly on a pizza stone) or grease the pizza pan of your choice. Stretch the dough into shape. If it won’t hold its shape, cover it and let it rest for 15 minutes then try to stretch it farther.

Cover the shaped dough with lightly greased plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise for about 1 hour. It will puff up quite a bit. Preheat the oven to 450° for at least 45 minutes during this last rise.

Use a peel to transfer the pizza directly onto a baking stone (or place the pizza pan in the oven) and bake for 10-12 minutes. The crust should be golden brown. Remove the crust from the oven and allow it to cool on a cooling rack for 10 minutes before adding toppings.

Dessert Pizza Sauce

3/4 cup homemade mascarpone cheese
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

Whisk the maple syrup into the mascarpone until combined. Spread a thin layer over the pizza crust.

Top with berries of your choice. Fibonacci sequence art is optional.

Place the pizza back into the oven for about 5 minutes. The mascarpone sauce should be bubbly and just starting to turn brown. The berries will soften ever so slightly. Place on a cooling rack and allow to cool for 10-15 minutes. Slice and serve with a drizzle of warm caramel sauce.

Caramel Sauce
Adapted from Simply Recipes
Yield: 1 cup

1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Make sure all of your ingredients are ready and accessible before starting. Boiling sugar is extremely hot and can go from caramel to burnt very quickly. You don’t want to be trying to measure the cream while your caramel burns!

In a 2 or 3 quart saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Heat over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. When the liquid comes to a boil, stop stirring and allow it to boil until the sugar starts to brown. Gently swirl the pan if necessary to keep the liquid heating evenly.

When the sugar becomes a dark amber color, carefully add the butter, stirring vigorously. It will bubble up and then subside as the butter melts. When the butter has melted completely, remove the pan from the heat. After 3 seconds, stir in the cream and vanilla extract. Again, the mixture will foam up. Keep stirring vigorously until the mixture is smooth.

Allow the sauce to cool for 15-20 minutes before drizzling over the pizza. When completely cooled, the sauce can be stored in the refrigerator.

Challenge #5 of Project Food Blog prompted the remaining 72 contestants to put their own spin on a common theme: pizza. Voting starts Monday, October 18th at 6AM Pacific Time, and runs through Thursday, October 21st at 6PM Pacific Time. As always, I truly appreciate your support!

Saturday, 7:10 am. The farmers market had just opened and we found ourselves in front of a bright display of strawberries and marionberries. As we selected one of each type of berry, the farmer appeared in front of us and half-whispered, “I’ve got one container of tayberries back here if you’re interested.” The [...]]]>

Saturday, 7:10 am. The farmers market had just opened and we found ourselves in front of a bright display of strawberries and marionberries. As we selected one of each type of berry, the farmer appeared in front of us and half-whispered, “I’ve got one container of tayberries back here if you’re interested.” The Boyfriend and I exchanged looks. “What’s a tayberry?” I asked. He produced the half pint container and replied, “They’re like gold. They won’t last long.”

I’m not sure if it was his clever marketing or the gorgeous purplish-black hue of the tayberries, but we were sold. We brought home the most delicious collection of strawberries, marionberries, and tayberries. Our CSA share added boysenberries and rhubarb to our bounty. Now, each and every one of those berries could have made their way into our stomachs within a few hours. But I had grander plans for them: pie.

Here they are. The tayberries are on the left side, at the top. They look like blackberries but are longer in shape. They’re a cross between blackberries and raspberries, which means that they taste phenomenal. The perfect addition to my summer berry pie. This pie is definitely a winner, so I’m submitting it to “You Want Pies With That?” for this month’s summer fruit pies roundup.

I decorated my pie with a lattice crust on top, garnished with little pie crust strawberries. The filling came out a beautiful deep purplish-blue color, with a rich sweet-tart berry flavor. The perfect beginning to summer. Now, if only I had some vanilla ice cream…

Rhubarb Berry Pie
Adapted from The King Arthur Flour Baker’s Companion
Yield: 1 yummy 9″ pie

For the crust:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, cold
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice cold water

Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Slice 1/2 cup of the butter into small cubes and add it to the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter or a fork, blend the butter into the flour until it resembles large crumbs.

Slice the remaining butter into 1/4″ pats. To do this, slice a stick of butter lengthwise into four pieces. Rotate the stick and cut four lengthwise slices again. Then slice the strips.

Add the butter pats into the flour mixture and blend just until all the butter is coated in flour. Leave large chunks of butter in the dough for a flakier crust.

Add the ice water, one tablespoon at a time, mixing gently with a fork after each addition. Add enough water that the dough just comes together when you grab a small handful. Resist the urge to add too much water, it may get sticky when you try to roll it out.

Separate the dough into two halves, form each half into a disc shape, and wrap with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. This “relaxation period” will serve to keep the dough chilled (thereby preserving the chunks of butter) and allow the gluten to relax (making the dough easier to roll out).

For the filling:
4 cups fresh berries, rinsed (I used 1 cup each of strawberries, marionberries, boysenberries, and tayberries)
1 cup rhubarb, chopped (about 4 small stalks)
1 cup sucanat (or your preferred sugar)
1 1/2 tablespoons tapioca flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
1 egg white
1 tablespoon water

Preheat the oven to 450°.

Combine the berries and rhubarb in a large bowl. Add sucanat and stir gently until well combined. Sprinkle the tapioca flour, cinnamon, and nutmeg over the berry mixture, gently folding until combined.

Beat the egg white and water in a small bowl. Set aside.

On a generously floured work surface, roll out one of the pie crusts to about 12″ or 13″ in diameter. Gently wrap it around the rolling pin and transfer it to a 9″ pie plate. Brush the inside of the crust with the egg white mixture. This helps to avoid a soggy crust.

Pour the fruit filling into the crust. Roll out the top crust and use it whole or create a design that inspires you. I chose to make a lattice pattern with the top crust. Brush the egg wash over the top of the crust as well.

Bake the pie for 15 minutes at 450°, then turn the oven down to 350° and bake for an additional 35-50 minutes. If it looks like the filling may bubble over in the oven, place a baking sheet covered with foil underneath the pie. The pie is done when the crust turns brown and the filling is bubbling.

Allow the pie to cool on a cooling rack for 45 minutes before slicing. Then eat it all up!

I miss fresh berries during the winter. Luckily, I found some strawberries in my freezer. My first instinct was to make strawberry muffins, but I decided to try a quick bread instead. Of course, I didn’t have enough strawberries, so I added some frozen blueberries as well.

This bread is quick and easy. [...]]]>

I miss fresh berries during the winter. Luckily, I found some strawberries in my freezer. My first instinct was to make strawberry muffins, but I decided to try a quick bread instead. Of course, I didn’t have enough strawberries, so I added some frozen blueberries as well.

This bread is quick and easy. It doesn’t get much simpler than this. Two mixing bowls, one loaf pan, and into the oven it goes. An hour later, you’ve got a healthy snack!

While your bread is baking, you’ll want to check out this cookbook:

Lauren from Celiac Teen has compiled an ebook to benefit survivors of the earthquake in Haiti. All proceeds will be donated to the Canadian Red Cross, earmarked for Haiti earthquake relief efforts.

Lauren compiled 87 recipes, donated by 71 individuals (one of whom is me!). She asked foodies to donate recipes that make us think of home, so that we may remember those who lost their home in the earthquake. I am proud to be a part of this amazing fundraising effort. I hope that you’ll make a donation!

And now, without further ado, I bring you a bread recipe.

Blueberry Strawberry Quick Bread
Adapted from The King Arthur Flour Baker’s Companion
Yield: One loaf

1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 eggs
1/2 cup mashed strawberries
1/2 cup blueberries
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup canola oil

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9 x 5 loaf pan with butter, or spray with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, strawberries, applesauce, and oil. Fold in the blueberries.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, and stir until combined. Pour into the pan, and bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the bread in the pan for 5 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool on a cooling rack.