Thursday's Kitchen Cupboard..........6/07/2012

Since half of my strawberry plants were moved and half are new roots this year, I am not anticipating enough strawberries to keep "The Italian" happy for a year. So, last Friday I went to an Organic Pick Your Own Strawberry Farm to pick some strawberries for canning and freezing. I picked 16 pounds of fresh strawberries. Needless to say, there were a lot of things strawberry going on around here this past week!

First, I made some Strawberry Jam following Daphne's recipe from last week. I usually use pectin in my jam and I think I was a little short on the amount of lemon juice needed. I also added about 1 1/2 Tbsp. of Balsamic Vinegar to the recipe. The vinegar is supposed to bring out the flavor of the strawberries. The jam tasted wonderful, but it was a little too runny. I ended up re-making it with some added pectin and now it is fine. I really think the Balsamic Vinegar gave it a great flavor.

Next, I made some Strawberry Syrup. Daphne posted about making this last week also. I used 4 Cups of crushed Strawberries, 2 Cup of Sugar and 1 1/2 Tbsp. of Balsamic Vinegar. The mixture was cooked for a few minutes until the Strawberries were soft. Next, I strained it with a jelly bag, returned it to the pan and cooked it down until it was more syrup like. It is wonderful!

Next on the list was Strawberry Infused Vodka. This is in the large jar on the left in the picture above. "The Italian" and I have made infused vodkas in the past, but never Strawberry Vodka. 

I found a recipe that called for 1 1/4 lbs. of Strawberries to 750ml. of Vodka. I used 1 lb. of Strawberries to 2 Cups of Vodka, since that's all that would fit in the jar. This is very easy to make. Just chop the strawberries, put them in the jar and add the vodka. Cover the jar and keep in a cool dark place for 3-5 days, stirring daily. I didn't stir it and it turned out great. When the vodka is ready, strain and return to a glass container. The Strawberry Vodka would be wonderful with a little Strawberry Syrup and some seltzer or to make a Strawberry Martini! We decided to save it for our special Gardening Blogging visitors this coming Monday! 

"The Italian" found a great Strawberry & Avocado Salsa recipe in a magazine to be served with Chipotle Grilled Pork Tenderloin. He and his daughter made this last Sunday for dinner. It was delicious!

Strawberry & Avocado Salsa

• 4 Cups Quartered Strawberries
• 1 1/3 Cups Chopped Peeled Avocado (about 1 large)
• 1/4 Cup thinly sliced Green Onions
• 2 Tbsp. chopped Fresh Cilantro (recipe calls for 1/4 Cup)
• 3 Tbsp. Fresh Lime Juice
• Salt

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and toss gently.

The recipe for this salsa and pork can also be found here.

Other things Strawberry this week were Vanilla Ice Cream with Strawberry Syrup and fresh Strawberries, lots of plain Strawberries and Strawberry Shortcake. I also froze and vacuum sealed  four 1 1/2 lb. packages of fresh strawberries for later use. 

What's been going in or out of your Kitchen Cupboard lately???