Waffling About Strawberries

While walking through Costco the other day, I was suddenly engulfed by the aroma of ripe strawberries.  I probably looked a bit like a scent hound hunting them down by smell, but they were like 20 feet away.  When strawberries, or fruits of almost any kind, are that fragrant, you simply have to buy them.  I did mention I was in Costco, right?  Assuming you’ve been in a warehouse store like that, you’ll know that they don’t sell anything in normal quantities.  Well, strawberries are no exception. But like I said, I had to buy them… even if Otto and I are the only ones who will eat them.  The problem is, even a strawberry nut like me can only eat so many fresh strawberries.  So what’s a girl to do with 4 pounds of strawberries?  I went with a childhood favorite.  Strawberry waffles!  In my house, that wasn’t waffles with strawberries in them, but waffles with strawberries on them, along with whipped cream of course. 

Ordinarily, there’d be an ingredients picture here, but the strawberries have to get started the night before because they have to be macerated.  No, I said macerated.  Fine, chuckle all you want.  It really isn’t as dirty as it sounds, though.  Just slice about a pound of strawberries, and sprinkle them with 1 Tablespoon of sugar.  Then stir so they’re evenly coated, cover them, and pop them into the fridge overnight. 

In the morning, here’s what you’ll need:

2 eggs
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 tablespoons oil
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon semolina or fine cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon sugar
Macerated strawberries
Whipped cream

The first thing you need to do is separate your eggs.  Go ahead and drop the yolks into the buttermilk.

Next, whip the egg whites until you get stiff peaks. 

Put all your dry ingredients into a mixing bowl.  Obviously they can’t be used like this, so whisk them together and set them aside. 

Add the vanilla and oil to the buttermilk and whisk thoroughly. 

Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and stir just until combined. 

Now back to the egg whites.  Add half of them to the batter and fold them in. 

Then add the other half.

Now, at this point, I have to be a bit vague.  Basically you just have to cook the waffles however it works for your particular waffle iron.  If you’re making waffles for a group, you can place them between towels in a 200° oven so everyone can eat at the same time.  If you have leftover batter, you can make extra waffles and freeze them.  Then just reheat them in the toaster or oven, or even pop them back into a hot waffle iron.  Anyway, so you have your waffle.  Look at the poor naked thing. 

Well, we can fix that.  First, butter it liberally.  Butter is a requirement for waffles, regardless of what else might be going on top.  Then, remember those strawberries you put in the fridge?  Look how juicy they’ve become. 

Drizzle some of that juice on the waffle, then top with strawberries and a dollop of whipped cream.  I’ll be honest, after I snapped this picture, I added even more strawberries and whipped cream because, well… in this case, more is better. 

So, what’s your favorite thing to do with strawberries?

Strawberry Mockaritas

No, that isn’t the Boston accent wearing off on me.  I’m calling these mock-aritas because I didn’t put any alcohol in them.  You’re welcome, of course, to add any kind of booze you like.  I just don’t partake of the spirits.  That being said, I’m in Virginia looking for a house right now (that’s right, it looks like we’re headed for May-hem!!! again this year) so I’m going to keep this post short and sweet.

Here’s what you’ll need:

2 cups chopped strawberries
¼ cup lime juice (probably 2 limes)
½ cup simple syrup
(½ cup sugar + ⅓ cup water)
1 cup ice

To make the simple syrup, combine ½ cup sugar and ⅓ cup water.  Stir them over medium heat until the sugar is completely dissolved and the mixture comes to a full boil. 

Turn off the heat, and with a vegetable peeler, cut a strip of peel from one of your limes.

Then drop it into the hot syrup. 

Allow that to cool, and then refrigerate it so that it’s nice and cold.  When you’re ready to make the drinks, hull your strawberries.  Chopping really isn’t necessary, but I wanted to get a measurement, and you can’t do that if they’re whole.  It was about a half pound of strawberries.

Throw the strawberries into the blender along with the lime juice, simple syrup, and ice.

And let ‘er rip!

Now for the rim.  Run a lime wedge around the top of the glass.  (Yes, this is a cheap plastic one.  It’s all I could find on short notice so I had to make due)

I know most restaurants serve strawberry margaritas with sugar on the rim, but trust me, salt is WAY better.  If you haven’t tried it, you must, and if you still insist on using sugar, you can follow the same steps.  Just don’t tell me about it.  So, make yourself a nice ring of salt on a plate then turn the glass over and place the rim into the salt. 

See?  Perfect rim job. 

Pour the strawberry mixture into the glass. 

Garnish with a slice of lime, and enjoy.  Sweet, salty, fruity, tangy, these strawberry mockaritas are seriously fabulous. 

So, what’s your favorite drink?