Archives for March 2011

Well Lovelies, the elusive little sister has returned…. again. I really hate that I can’t contribute more but I hate the phrase “After basketball you’ll have so much time to do stuff!” even more. Why? Because it’s a major lie. haha I thought I’d have a ton of time too- yeah, not so much.
ANYWAY, on to baking!
Okay so my life right now tends to be filled with a lot of guys… in the worst way possible. haha My four best friends are guys, I have two brothers and my dad. And most days I’m convinced they only love me for my kitchen skills. That aside, I do like to bake and when it comes to my friends at school- the boys get something good to eat in their locker for their birthdays. Which leads me to this post, because usually I just make cake or cupcakes- but Marc’s birthday gift needs to be in his locker on Monday.. and he HATES cake. Serious. I had to come up with something good- so in the process of experimenting I remembered I make a MEAN homemade strawberry shortcake. So here’s how it’s done… Kayli Style


Here’s what you’ll need:
Topping
A few packages of fresh strawberries
Sugar


Shortcakes
1 1/3 cups of milk
Vanilla
1 egg
1 1/2 sticks (12 tbs) butter
4 cups of flour
2 tbs baking powder
6 tbs sugar


So first you’ll need to prepare your strawberries, clean them and cut them in discs like this.



Then sugar them and put them in the fridge to chill.



So now you move on to the shortcakes. Whisk your milk, vanilla and egg together in a small bowl. (right here is where my secret ingredient comes in: I put MAPLE flavoring in, and quite a bit- I think it makes them taste a little less biscuity and a little more desserty) I completely just made up two words…


Then set that aside and cut your butter into small squares like this. It’s a lot easier to do if your butter is frozen…



Sift your flour, baking powder and sugar together in a fairly large bowl. Then toss your butter squares in. You’ll need to mix it until you have a pebbly consistency. I used a pastry blender, but you can use your fingers if you don’t have one.




Once you it looks and feels powdery/pebbley you can pour your liquid mixture over it- use a fork to work your dough until it’s soft. You might need to turn it over with your hands a few times to get it to mix well.



Put them on cookie sheets in medium sized lumps. The sheet on the top shelf is done, the bottom shelf is just put in. (I know the whole “bake one sheet at a time!” rule… don’t care) haha



Bake them at about 375 F for around 15 minutes, or until golden on top. You can serve them immediately.



If you try it, let me know how it goes. So much better than the store bought cakes, I think! And happy birthday to my buddy Marc! (Even if he probably won’t see this


Crazy Love,