Seasonal Fruit and Farewell

For everything there is a season, and with this post on one of summer’s classic favorite fruits, we publish our final recipe. We know many of you loved trying out the recipes over the years and this post on creamy frozen strawberry squares will be no exception! 

While this is the final new recipe/post for this blog – the entire searchable library of recipes will remain here on the site as always. The recipe search option can be used to find recipes that feature a certain ingredient, or perhaps an old favorite.

Today’s post features the strawberry – so abundant in the summer months!

Its surplus gives thoughts to strawberry rhubarb pie, a sisterhood favorite, the time honored classic strawberry shortcake, as well as other new ideas. A particularly bumper crop of strawberries this year has given us an opportunity to experiment and try some fresh ideas. After working with different combinations of crunchy crumbs and creamy strawberry fillings, this one proves to be a winner and captures the essence of Summer! 

While the posts for this website are ending, we will be continuing to publish “Daily Bread” –  a daily spiritual meditation on the Community of Jesus website that includes an excerpt from the Liturgy of the Hours, a meditation, a prayer and the lectionary readings. The “Daily Bread” can also be delivered to your mailbox.  

Click here to subscribe to the “Daily Bread”

We’ve enjoyed the partnership with all of you over the years and this last post comes with a prayer for God’s blessing on our readers. 

 

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Creamy, Frozen Strawberry Squares
SERVINGS
15
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
COOK TIME
20minutes
PREP TIME
35minutes, plus 2 hours
READY IN
3hours

Ingredients

Instructions

Crunchy Topping
  1. Set oven to 350 degrees
  2. In a large bowl, toss together topping ingredients and then spread out on a baking sheet
  3. Toast in oven until walnuts are fragrant and crumbs are golden. Set aside.
Creamy Strawberry Filling
  1. Spray a 8x11 or 9x13 pan with nonstick spray
  2. Place strawberries in blender and puree until smooth (saving a few whole ones aside for garnish)
  3. In mixing bowl, beat heavy cream until stiff peaks form; set aside in another bowl
  4. In same mixing bowl, beat cream cheese and powdered sugar until creamy, then add condensed milk, vanilla, pureed strawberries;mix slowly until combined
  5. Fold in whipped cream, until partially blended
  6. Spread half of the toasted crumbs into baking dish, followed by strawberry filling
  7. Sprinkle remaining crumbs on top and place in freezer for 2 or more hours, until frozen
  8. When thoroughly frozen, remove from freezer 1 half hour before serving; cut into squares and serve with whipped cream topping and fresh strawberry garnish

FRIED SHRIMP—Crunchy and Delicious

There’s such a wonderful versatility to shrimp, and I think that’s why so many cooks love to work with it.  It’s appropriate for luncheons, dinners, hors d’oeuvres. It’s great served on a hot summer day as a salad or in a Tuscan cheesy wine sauce with pasta on a chilly fall evening. It lends itself to being sautéed, broiled, stewed, roasted, boiled—and to me, the best of all: deep fried, having been dipped in egg, and then flour and panko crumbs. You’ll find it’s perfect for a special occasion!

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FRIED SHRIMP—Crunchy and Delicious
SERVINGS
3-4
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
COOK TIME
5minutes
PREP TIME
30minutes
READY IN
40minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. Rinse shrimp, dry with paper towel. “Butterfly” them by slicing down the back, leaving tails on.
  2. Heat cooking oil in a good sized pot, until shimmering, about 350 degrees
  3. Beat eggs and water together in a small dish
  4. Submerge each shrimp in egg mixture for a several seconds; then toss with flour, making sure it’s thoroughly coated
  5. Dip again in egg mixture, then in panko crumbs
  6. Try adding one shrimp to oil; it should be hot enough to bubble and sizzle, but not so hot as to smoke or burn
  7. Add the shrimp, a few at a time, frying for about 3 minutes, until golden
  8. Drain the fried shrimp on a rack, over paper towel
  9. Serve with lemon wedges and dipping sauce

Doughnut Muffins

There are lots of aspects to chimney repair—including snack provision!

We are so fortunate to have creative, able-bodied Brothers who can handle challenging construction and repair projects!  The chimney in our Guest House has shown signs of disintegration—not surprising with years of winter and summer storms.  And with COVID-19 lockdown, with no guests or retreats—a very unusual time for us—what better time for chimney repair!  As we watched out the window, scaffolding going up, platforms, bins to receive old bricks, cement mixing, with dogs roaming around looking on, it was a given that we would supply snacks.  This Doughnut Muffin recipe was an experiment, and the idea of dipping the hot muffins in melted butter and then rolling in cinnamon sugar was very appealing to me, and by the looks of the empty plate, it was to everyone else as well!

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Doughnut Muffins
SERVINGS
12
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
COOK TIME
30minutes
PREP TIME
30minutes
READY IN
1hour

Ingredients

Instructions

Instructions
  1. Set oven at 350 degrees
  2. In an electric mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar; blend in eggs, one at a time.
  3. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg.
  4. Mix together alternately wet and dry ingredients until well combined, but without over mixing.
  5. Grease and flour standard size muffin tin.
  6. Scoop enough batter (about ½ cup or # 16 ice-cream scoop) to reach rim of cup
  7. Bake until firm, about 30”
To Finish
  1. Combine sugar and cinnamon
  2. When the muffins are cool enough to handle, dip them in melted butter and then roll them in cinnamon sugar

Recipe adapted from Fine Cooking - See the original recipe at finecooking.com

The Beauty of Spring – Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies

What encouragement from God as we move through these challenging days! Hope coming up against fear; love and care for one another, binding us together. And often, this can take place in the simplest of ways. Sometimes a group of our Sisters prepares a surprise treat in the middle of a hard day. The sharing of time, generosity, and love in the form of delicious food reminds us of this essential truth: God is Victor over all—He is with us in all circumstances!

Here’s a delicious and fun treat for your family.

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The Beauty of Spring - Carrot Cake Whoopie Pies
SERVINGS
12whoopie pies
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
whoopie pies
COOK TIME
10minutes
PREP TIME
40minutes
READY IN
50minutes

Ingredients

Instructions

Pie Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper
  2. Whisk flour and dry ingredients together and set aside.
  3. In an electric mixer, with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in vanilla.
  4. Gradually add dry ingredients until just combined; fold in grated carrots.
  5. Using a tablespoon, scoop out 12 generous “balls” onto a baking sheet. With dampened fingers dipped in brown sugar, gently flatten,
Frosting Instructions
  1. Beat together butter and cream cheese until smooth
  2. Add powdered sugar and beat until creamy and lump-free
  3. Add vanilla, coconut and coconut flavoring and salt
  4. When the cookies have cooled, match up sizes and fill with frosting!

OATMEAL CARMELITAS

HANDS-DOWN, ONE OF OUR SISTERHOOD’S MOST FAVORITE TREATS!

This is a dessert / snack that I think is fair to say, always brings a smile and sparkle to the eye.  Whether served as a plated reception option, a surprise snack for a hard-working crew, a dessert tucked into a bag lunch, it always hits the mark—and is never refused!  And as a living testimony to this—today, I left the batch of fresh baked Carmelitas on the counter, only to find when I returned to do my blog “photo shoot”, that the Sister on duty saw them and couldn’t resist offering a few to some Brothers doing a spackling job; I’m still hearing how much they loved them!

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OATMEAL CARMELITAS!
SERVINGS
9-12
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
COOK TIME
20
PREP TIME
30
READY IN
50

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients for crust; blend well to form a crumbly, moist crust.
  2. Press half of the crumbs into bottom of 9” pan and bake at 350 degrees, for 10 minutes.
  3. Remove from oven and sprinkle with chocolate chips and nuts. After blending flour with caramel topping, spread over chocolate and nut mixture.
  4. Sprinkle with remaining crumbs, and bake 15-20” until golden brown

MAMA’S FLUFFY MAPLE CAKE

It’s too easy to lose track of the origin of some of the many wonderful recipes that we all love–but have no idea where they came from!

One of our Sisters, known for her love for cooking and her creative culinary skills, has a great intro to one of her favorite recipes… that lives on to this day!

“My mother, who came to this country as a young girl, first obtained a job doing housework for a wealthy family on 5th Ave, N.Y.  The lady of the house had a special liking for a tall, moist, three-layered cake from a nearby bakery—with a creamy custard filling, generous swirls of maple-flavored frosting and lavishly sprinkled with finely chopped walnuts. My mother soon cultivated a taste for this culinary wonder also—and developed her own recipe for the cake by taste and instinct.”

And now, through the years, it’s been passed on to us, with modifications and adjustments, and continues to be the quintessential dessert for the right occasion.

 

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MAMA’S FLUFFY MAPLE CAKE
SERVINGS
8-10
CHANGE SERVING SIZE
COOK TIME
1hour
PREP TIME
1hour
READY IN
2hours

Ingredients

Instructions

Cake
  1. Lightly grease and flour (3) 8 inch cake pans
  2. Combine flour, baking powder and salt
  3. Cream together butter and sugar; add vanilla
  4. Beat in egg yolks and add milk alternating with flour mixture; mix well
  5. Beat egg whites until stiff and fold into cake batter
  6. Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes, or until cakes tests done, using a toothpick
  7. Cool before filling and frosting
Filling
  1. Scald milk and let cool slightly
  2. Beat eggs and whisk into milk
  3. Place milk back on medium heat and whisk in sugar, flour, cornstarch mixture
  4. Slowly bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add butter, vanilla and banana flavoring
  5. Allow to cool and thicken before filling cake
Fluffy Maple Frosting
  1. Melt brown sugar in the water and bring to a boil.
  2. Gently continue boiling for about 15”, until it reaches the soft ball stage, about 240 degrees.. The thickness should be similar to maple syrup.
  3. Beat egg white until stiff. While continuing to beat, slowly pour in brown sugar mixture. Add in maple flavoring to taste; continue beating until cool, and it appears to be of a spreading consistency.
  4. Fill and frost cake; cover with chopped walnuts
  5. The cake holds well in refrigerator.