Tag Archives: strawberry

Strawberry, Basil & Black Pepper Ice Cream + Ice Cream Maker Giveaway!

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—THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED, CHECK BELOW FOR THE WINNER—

What is it about ice cream that makes it one of the world’s most loved comfort foods?  Many nights, after having a hard day, I’ve cuddled up on the sofa with a small tub of ice cream after everyone else is asleep Continue reading →

Matcha Latte Strawberry Popsicles

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Summer is in full swing in my home state of Indiana this week – in fact, the high there today is supposed to be 102!  Here I am in Sydney complaining that it’s too cold, but my family in Indiana is complaining that it’s too hot!  Well, my fellow Hoosiers, this recipe will cool you down a real treat.  The flavors of matcha and strawberry (one of my all-time most favorite flavor combinations) combine into one amazing, refreshing and cooling popsicle.

I have not yet seen this flavor combination in popsicle form.  Some inspiration lent itself from the matcha strawberry cupcakes I made for an Iron Cupcake: Earth competition in June 2009.  Those cupcakes were out-of-this world delicious.

But these popsicles are even more amazing.  The flavors of both the matcha and strawberry are strong and ice cold.  The striped popsicles were lovely, but I wanted to get the matcha and strawberry in one single bite.  So I filled some matcha popsicles with my strawberry mixture.  As you do.

Yes, now that was perfect!  Matcha on the outside, strawberry on the inside!  Wondering how to do that clever little trick?  It’s so easy.  You’ll need a Zoku Quick Pop Maker though.  Fill the molds with your outside flavor (in my case, matcha).  Wait for 30 seconds-2 minutes, depending on how thick you want the outer layer to be and how quick your Zoku is freezing the liquid.  Then, stick a straw to the very bottom of the mold (but don’t poke through the outer layer – be gentle!) and suck out the unfrozen liquid.  If you have a thin sort of turkey baster thing you can use that too (or you can use the siphon tool in this set from Zoku).  Then pour in the flavor you want on the inside and let it freeze.  Easy.

I’ve also made strawberry popsicles with a yogurt filling.  Those were very yummy too!

A quick note on the matcha popsicles – the longer you leave them in the freezer (we’re talking over one day), the darker the matcha will become.  It doesn’t seem to affect the flavor, just the color.  And why did I call them “matcha latte”?  Because I made the matcha part of the popsicles with lots of milk and cream!

If you’re after a refreshing and cooling pick-me-up treat this summer, I guarantee that these matcha latte strawberry popsicles will do the trick!

Matcha Latte Strawberry Popsicles
Adapted from Zoku Quick Pops recipe book
Makes 6 popsicles (plus some leftover to drink!)

For the matcha latte layer:
Ingredients
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh matcha (it should be bright green), sifted
1/2 to 1 teaspoon warm water
1 1/3 cup 2% milk
1/4 cup caster sugar
1/3 cup heavy cream

Method
Combine sifted matcha and warm water in a small bowl and stir until it forms a smooth paste.  You may need more warm water.  Set aside.

Heat the milk in a small saucepan over low heat (do not boil).  Whisk in the matcha paste (you don’t have to add all the paste if you feel the matcha flavor is strong enough and the color is green enough) and the sugar.  You’ll probably notice little lumps of undissolved matcha – that’s okay, mine didn’t dissolve fully either.  Remove from heat and let cool about 10 minutes.  Stir in the heavy cream.  Place in the refrigerator until completely cool, stirring every so often.

For the strawberry layer:
Ingredients
8 1/2 ounces hulled, quartered strawberries
3 1/2 tablespoons whole milk
1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon heavy cream
3 tablespoons caster sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Method
Puree strawberries and milk in a blender until completely smooth.  Strain the mixture through a fine sieve to remove the strawberry seeds – you’ll need to use a spoon to help push the mixture through the sieve.  Whisk in the cream, sugar and vanilla until incorporated and the sugar has dissolved.

Assembly:  Freeze in alternate layers in your Zoku Quick Pop Maker (refer to freezing instructions that came with your Zoku if unsure), letting each layer freeze completely before adding the next layer.  Or, fill molds with matcha latte layer, freeze for 30 seconds-2 minutes, depending on how thin or thick you want the outer layer to be.  Stick a straw into the unfrozen liquid in the middle and suck it out.  Fill the empty matcha shells with the strawberry layer and let freeze completely.  Remove popsicles according to the Zoku instructions.

Scones With Honey Cream And Strawberry Apple Conserve

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Lately I have been obsessed with foods that go perfectly with tea or coffee.  I’m particularly interested in scones.  In fact, I chose a scone with jam and cream to go with my flat white coffee at Thyme Square Cafe yesterday morning while I was out with my two sons and mother-in-law.  Can you believe that I chose a scone over cupcakes or a slice of delicious cake?  I’m still in awe of my decision, because I’m not sure how it happened!

I’ve made scones before.  They were easy and turned out quite nice.  So when I saw the recipe for scones with jam and cream in Issue #3 of MasterChef Australia magazine – the same recipes they used on the show for the Country Women’s Association challenge – I was sure I could make all three components quite easily.

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Illustration: Matcha Strawberry Cupcakes

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Recently I was emailed by Lisa Orgler of  The Lunch Box Project; she is a wonderful artist that I am very fond of and she is drawing green tea foods for the month of March.  I was delighted that she contacted me and asked if she could draw my matcha strawberry cupcake, which is one of the best cupcakes I’ve ever made (in my opinion). I told her she could most definitely draw my cupcake and I was looking forward to seeing it in her illustration.

Around a week later, Lisa emailed me again to tell me she had finished drawing my cupcake.  I hurried over to The Lunch Box Project and saw her amazing drawing:

Absolutely beautiful!  Thank you, Lisa!

If you’re as interested in Lisa’s work as I am, you can find her at The Lunch Box Project, Etsy, Facebook and Twitter.

Popsicles

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We’ve been having a lot of fun with our popsicle mold these past few weeks.  The weather has been very warm and it’s nice to come inside and cool off with a popsicle.  This post is a collection of the popsicle recipes we’ve used lately.  Click on the photos if you’d like to see a larger view of the popsicles.

DSCN6920 Strawberry Watermelon Popsicles
Adapted from myself
Makes enough for 4-6 popsicles

Ingredients
About 1 cup chopped seedless watermelon
A handful of fresh hulled strawberries
A splash of lemon or lime juice
About 3-5 tablespoons powdered sugar, to taste

Method
Place all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.  Pour into popsicle molds and freeze for at least 5 hours.

DSCN6926-1 Mocha Popsicles
Adapted from Eating Out Loud
Makes enough for about 8 popsicles

These were really yummy!  I never had thought about freezing coffee for popsicles, but I’m glad I came across this recipe.  The white tip is a mix of sweetened condensed milk, whole milk and vanilla extract, while the coffee part is strong brewed coffee, sweetened condensed milk and cocoa powder.  Everything was perfect with these, except I added about 1/2-1 teaspoon more cocoa powder.

DSCN6977 Creamy Jello Popsicles
Adapted from SparkRecipes
Makes enough for 4 popsicles

Now these were really interesting.  I wasn’t sure what sort of texture these were going to have, knowing that Jello is supposed to be wobbly.  These popsicles are a mix of Jello (the small box), water and vanilla yogurt.  The texture was only barely wobbly and the popsicles do not freeze solid – you can bite straight into one.  I would recommend that you freeze these overnight and be careful when unmolding them, as the sticks can easily pop out of the popsicle itself, leaving the popsicle inside the mold (I know from experience!)!

The red popsicle picture above is raspberry, but we’ve also made an alien-green lime one!

DSCN6999 Jello Pudding Pops
Adapted from Recipezaar
Makes enough for about 5 popsicles

These popsicles are very similar in texture to the regular Jello popsicles above, but much creamier.  You’ll need to be extra careful with unmolding these, and also I’d recommend freezing these overnight as well.  I’d love to try these with banana pudding, or with a vanilla-chocolate swirl!

Matcha Strawberry Cupcakes

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This is my third and final entry into Iron Cupcake: Earth this month.  This is also my favorite entry, matcha strawberry cupcakes.

I loved this cupcake!  It is one of the best I’ve made in ages.  The cake is a basic vanilla cake, borrowed from Billy’s Bakery, flavored with matcha, or green tea, powder.  Inside the cupcake is a filling of strawberry preserves, for a big strawberry taste.  Swirled on top is fresh strawberry Swiss meringue buttercream, which is really lovely.  It also does actually taste like strawberries, unlike my first strawberry cupcake entry, which used heaps of strawberry puree but did not taste like strawberry.

This cupcake, however, did taste like strawberries and matcha.  With one bite you will first taste the strawberry.  After that bite is swallowed, the flavor of the matcha hits.  I really really love this cupcake, but I think I’ve already said that!

I used Billy’s vanilla cupcake recipe because this is my favorite vanilla cupcake recipe.  They always come out moist and soft and were perfect for the addition of matcha – I just added the powder to the dry ingredients.

The buttercream comes from Martha Stewart.  It takes a lot of mixing to make this particular buttercream, so a stand mixer is a necessity.  The buttercream came out perfectly and the softness of it matched well with the moist cake.

I divided both of these recipes in half, which is why some of the ingredient amounts in the recipe may look a bit funny.

Our June ETSY PRIZE-PACK is from artists:

Last and certainly not least, don’t forget our corporate prize providers: HEAD CHEFS by FIESTA PRODUCTS; HELLO CUPCAKE by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson; JESSIE STEELE APRONS ; TASTE OF HOME books; a t-shirt from UPWITHCUPCAKES.COM. Iron Cupcake:Earth is sponsored in part by 1-800-Flowers.

Here are the recipes I used to make these cupcakes…

Matcha Cupcakes
Adapted from Billy’s Bakery & Martha Stewart
Makes 12 cupcakes

Ingredients
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons cake flour, not self-rising
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh matcha powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 large eggs
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Strawberry jam or preserves

Method
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flours, sugar, baking powder, salt and matcha powder; mix on low speed until combined. Add butter, mixing until the cubes of butter are peanut-sized or a little smaller.

In a large glass measuring cup, whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla. With mixer on medium speed, add wet ingredients in 3 parts, scraping down sides of bowl before each addition; beat until ingredients are incorporated but do not overbeat.

Divide batter evenly among liners, filling about 2/3 full. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 17 to 20 minutes.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cupcakes have cooled completely, using the cone method, fill cupcakes with strawberry jam or preserves.

Strawberry Buttercream
Adapted from Martha Stewart
Makes about 2 1/2 cups

Ingredients
2 large egg whites
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, softened, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup fresh strawberries, pureed

Method
Place whites and sugar in a heatproof mixer bowl set over a pot of simmering water. Whisk until sugar dissolves and mixture registers 160 degrees on a candy thermometer.

Remove from heat, and attach bowl to a mixer. Whisk on medium speed for 5 minutes. Increase speed to medium-high, and whisk until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 6 minutes. Reduce speed to medium, and add butter, 1 piece at a time, whisking well after each addition.

Switch to a paddle attachment. With mixer on low, add strawberry puree, and beat until smooth, 3 to 5 minutes. Use immediately, or cover, and refrigerate for up to 3 days.  Bring to room temperature, and beat on low speed until smooth before using.

Because of the egg whites and jam in these cupcakes, it is best to store them in the refrigerator.  Let them return to room temperature again before enjoying.