Strawberry Cream Angel Food Cake
1st Place Winner – Strawberry Cakes Division
“Best of Show” Winning Recipe
Barbara Troxler

1 plain Angel Food Cake
1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, room temperature
1 (12 oz.) can condensed milk
1/3 c. lemon juice
1 tsp. almond extract, divided
2 ½ c. fresh Valley Home Farm Strawberries, sliced
1 c. heavy cream
2 Tbsp. confectioner’s sugar
Whole strawberries, stems removed for garnishing

Carefully cut the top 1-inch from the cake. Remove and set aside. Using the tip of the knife, cut into the cake along the inner and outer edges, leaving a 1 inch border of the cake in tact. Using your fingers, carefully hollow out the cake between the two cuts, leaving an empty tunnel. Tear the removed pieces of cake into bite-sized pieces and set aside. In a large mixing bowl using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add the condensed milk and beat until thoroughly combined. Stir in lemon juice and ½ teaspoon almond extract. Gently fold in the cake pieces and sliced strawberries. Spoon the mixture into the tunnel in the center of the hollowed-out cake. Cover with the reserved 1 inch cake top. Cover cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 8 hours or overnight. When ready to serve the cake, whip the cream until it begins to form peaks. Add confectioner’s sugar and remaining ½ teaspoon almond extract. Whip until the cream forms stiff peaks but is not dry. Slice cake. As each slice is served, spoon whipped cream on top of slice, add a few strawberries for garnish and a light snow of confectioner’s sugar.

White Chocolate Strawberry Tart
1st Place Winner – Strawberry Pies
Virginia Barrett

Crust:
28 Chocolate cream-filled cookies
1 small pkg. chopped pecans
4 T. melted butter

Finely crush together cookies and pecan until crumbs begin to hold together. Press mixture into bottom and up sides of a 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Refrigerate.

Filling:
½ tsp. unflavored gelatin
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 (3 oz.) cream cheese at room temperature
8 oz. white chocolate, chopped
2 cups Valley Home Farm fresh strawberries

Sprinkle gelatin over cream in a small bowl. Let stand 5 minutes. Beat cream cheese in a medium bowl until smooth. Add gelatin mixture; beat until smooth. Transfer to saucepan. Add white baking chocolate and cook stirring over medium heat until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth, about 4 minutes. Pour into tart crust and refrigerate 2 hours or overnight.
Garnish:
White Chocolate curls and fresh mint sprigs

Hull strawberries, rinse. Half some of the berries and mound in the center of tart. Garnish with white chocolate curls and mint.

Low Fat Strawberry Cheesecake Torte
1st Place – ‘Low to No” Sugar Desserts
Amy Massey

Cake:
1 ½ cups egg whites
1 ¼ tsp. cream of tarter
¼ tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 ½ cups sugar, divided
1 cup Martha White All-Purpose Flour

Assemble all ingredients and utensils. In a mixing bowl with beater, beat egg whites, cream of tartar, salt and vanilla until mixture holds a peak. Continue beating, adding ½ cup sugar a little at a time. Sift together the flour and remaining sugar; then sift again over the egg whites, fold in.

Line a 9” x 13” jelly roll pan with a 13” piece of parchment paper. Spoon batter into pan. Bake 15 to 18 minutes in a preheated 400 degree oven. Cool completely

Filling:
½ cup water
1 pkg. (3 oz.) sugar-free strawberry gelatin
1/3 cup seedless, sugarless strawberry jam
1 lemon
1 pkg. (8 oz.) fat free cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup cold skim milk
1 (12 oz.) frozen lite whipped topping, thawed
1 pkg. (3.4 oz.) sugar free cheesecake instant pudding and pie filling
1 kiwi peeled, sliced and halved
1 cup fresh Valley Home Farm strawberries, hulled and sliced

In a small bowl, microwave water on high 1-2 minutes or until boiling. Add gelatin; stir until dissolved. Add jam; whisk until smooth. Invert cake onto a cutting board; remove paper. Prick cake at ½ inch intervals. Brush cake evenly with all but 2 tablespoons of the gelatin mixture. Trim ¼ inch around edge of cake; discard edges. Cut cake crosswise into 3 equal layers.

Zest lemon; set zest aside. Juice lemon to measure 2 tablespoons juice. In a medium bowl combine cream cheese and lemon juice; whisk until smooth. Add skim milk; whisk until smooth. Spoon whipped topping over cream cheese mixture. (Do not mix). Sprinkle with pudding mix; mix well. (Mixture will be very thick.)

Place one cake layer on serving dish. Fill a decorator bag, equipped with a large star tip with filling mixture. Pipe a straight border around the edge of the cake layer. Using a large spoon, place 4 spoons of filling down the center of the cake layer; spread evenly to border. Top with second cake layer. Repeat filling as before. For third layer, pipe a decorative border around the edge. Spread any remaining filling down the center.

Arrange kiwi on top of the cake. Place strawberries and reserved gelatin mixture in a small bowl; mix gently. (If gelatin mixture has set microwave on high 5-10 seconds or until softened.) Spoon strawberries over top of cake. Sprinkle with reserved lemon zest. Yield 16 servings.


Strawberry – Lemonade Punch
1st Place Winner – Strawberry Beverage Division
Donna Floyd

1 (6 oz.) can frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed and undiluted
1 (6 oz.) can frozen limeade concentrate, thawed and undiluted
1 (6 oz.) can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed and undiluted
1 quart Valley Home Farm fresh strawberries, Pureed
2 quarts apple juice
1 (2 liter) bottle of ginger ale or Sprite, chilled

Combine the first 5 ingredients; add the ginger ale or Sprite and stir gently. Serve immediately.


Old Fashioned Strawberry Shortcake

6 cups sliced strawberries combined with ½ cup artificial sweetener
1/3 cup fat-free milk
Fat-free whipped topping
¼ cup artificial sweetener
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons low-fat biscuit mix
2 tablespoons nonfat sour cream

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Mash 2 cups strawberries in a bowl. Stir in ½ cup artificial sweetener. Mix in remaining strawberries. Cover and refrigerate. Blend baking mix and ¼ cup artificial sweetener in medium bowl. Add milk and sour cream. Mix until a soft dough forms. Drop batter by spoonfuls onto greased baking sheet to form 6 shortcakes. Bake 7 to 9 minutes until golden. Let set 10 minutes. Cut each shortcake in half; layer strawberry sauce and whipped topping in middle. Serves 6.

Berry Patch Ice Cream Dessert

2 cups chocolate graham cracker crumbs
½ stick melted butter or margarine
1 quart vanilla ice cream or frozen yogurt
2 cups fresh strawberries, sliced with ½ cup sugar or 16 oz. frozen berries
1 cup blueberries

Line a 8” – 9” springform pan with plastic wrap allowing excess to extend over the edges of the pan; set aside.
Combine chocolate graham cracker crumbs and margarine or butter. Press into the bottom of the pan forming a crust.
In a large mixing bowl, combine softened ice cream, strawberries and blueberries until evenly distributed throughout the mixture. Pour ice cream mixture evenly over prepared crust, cover and freeze for 6-8 hours.
Let dessert stand for 15 minutes before serving to soften slightly. Garnish with fresh berries or your choice of ice cream toppings. Makes 10 servings.

Amaretto Strawberry Trifle

1 butter recipe cake mix, baked
2/3 cup sugar
3 1/2l tablespoons cornstarch
1/2l teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Amaretto
2 1/2l cups milk
3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups plain yogurt
4 cups fresh strawberries, sweetened
1 pint heavy whipping cream, whipped

Combine sugar, cornstarch and salt in top of double boiler. Stir in milk. Cook in double boiler until thickened, stirring constantly. Cover and cook 15 minutes longer. Stir a small amount of the hot mixture into the slightly beaten egg yolks. Add to remaining mixture in double boiler and cook for 2 minutes, do not boil. Fold in yogurt. In a trifle bowl, layer half of the crumbled cake. Brush with Amaretto. Cover cake with half of the pudding yogurt mixture followed by 2 cups of the crushed strawberries. Cover berries with 1/2 of the sweetened whipped cream. Repeat layer ending with whipped cream. Chill.


Strawberry Tea Sandwiches

1 (8 oz.) cream cheese
1/4 teaspoon seasoning salt
1 small can crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 cup fresh strawberries, chopped
2 tablespoons green peppers, finely chopped
White sandwich bread

Combine cream cheese and seasoning slat. Fold in the pineapple, strawberries and green pepper. Spread onto a piece of white bread and top with another slice. Cut off crusts and cut into fingers or triangles

Sweet Strawberry Salad
4 cups fresh spinach and butter head lettuce
1/2 cup chopped celery
Bottled Blush Wine Vinaigrette Dressing
1 pint fresh strawberries, halved
1/4 cup toasted or sugared almonds

Wash and dry spinach and lettuce. Tear lettuce into bite sized pieces. Remove stems from spinach and tear into pieces. Chop celery and add to lettuce and spinach. Toss with dressing. Top with strawberries and almonds.


Here’s some helpful strawberry tips:

When picking berries, be sure the cap remains on the strawberry by pinching the stem between the thumb and forefinger. This will prevent damage to both the fruit and the strawberry plant.

When selecting berries, look for the ones that are firm, yet fully ripe. These are the best for all your needs – freezing, preserving, or eating just the way they are.

When storing berries, in the refrigerator, do not remove caps or wash the berries until you are ready to use them. When caps are removed before use, the berries lose some of their moisture. Washing early tends to bruise the berries and they lose their freshness. Arrange berries in a shallow container and keep at 35 degrees for best results. Berries are the very best when prepared and eaten the same day.

When preparing berries, place in a strainer and rinse with cool water. To remove the caps, give the caps a gentle twist or use the point of a sharp knife or your thumbnail trying not to remove any of the berry.

When freezing berries, place one layer of clean whole berries on a cookie sheet and freeze until firm. Remove from cookie sheet and package in freezer bags and seal. Serve slightly frozen to help fruit retain its shape.

For frozen sugar packs, slice berries in halves or thirds. Mix berries with sugar (1 cup sliced fruit to 1 cup sugar) and allow to stand until sugar dissolves (about 10-15 minutes). Pack the fruit and juice into freezer bags. Leave ¼” head space for pints.

When measuring:
1 pint = 2-1/2 cups whole berries
1 pint = 2-1/4 cups sliced berries
1 pint = 1-2/3 cups pureed berries
1 pint = about 12-14 large berries
 

Nutritional value
Strawberries are high in Vitamin C and Folate and are a good source of Potassium. One cup of strawberries contains only 50 calories and no fat, cholesterol or sodium.