Strawberry Picking Adventure

 We went strawberry picking with friends of ours in early May.  It was an overcast day, which turned out to be a welcome relief from the sun and heat.  It made for a perfect morning of picking strawberries followed by lunch with our friends had a fun food join near the strawberry patch.

As we left, Kaitlyn asked when would we go strawberry picking again.  Hopefully, we'll make this an annual outing.  

 Charlie, Kaitlyn & Garet after picking and eating lots of strawberries. 

 Madelyn trying her best to find some delicious toddler sized strawberries.  She enjoyed walking through the patch. 

 Garet and Kaitlyn trying to decide if they found a good strawberry. 

The strawberries we brought home.  Both boxes were full, but we already pulled some out of the one box. 

Fresh strawberries in sugar - getting ready to them ready for the pie. 

Kaitlyn checking out the ingredients for the strawberry pie.

Kaitlyn showing off a little, tasty strawberry. 

 Kaitlyn and I mixed the muffin batter and scooped it into the muffin tins. 

Tah-dah - our finished product!

A unique looking strawberry we found in the patch.  

Madelyn enjoying fresh strawberries with her yogurt.  

Kaitlyn eating our muffins straight from the oven.  

Dave showing off all the strawberries we plan to freeze.

After I made the filling, Dave puts it in the pie crust he worked on while Kaitlyn and I made muffins. 

After teamwork between Dave and I, we had a wonderful strawberry pie.  Thank you Cook's Illustrated for the recipe!! 

We decided that sparkling wine would be the perfect accompaniment to the strawberry pie.  We did not finish making it until after the girls went to bed.  

The pie was so good, we let Kaitlyn have it for breakfast.  It has fruit in it afterall!

Madelyn enjoyed the muffins with a little butter.  

Here is the strawberry pie recipe from cook's illustrated:

Fresh Strawberry Pie

Ingredients 

Filling  

• 4 pints (about 3 pounds) fresh strawberries , gently rinsed and dried, hulled (see note)
• 3/4 cup (5 1/4 ounces) sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Sure-Jell for low-sugar recipes (see note)
• Generous pinch Table salt
• 1 tablespoon juice from 1 lemon
• 1 recipe Baked Pie Shell (see related recipe)
• Whipped Cream  
• 1 cup cold heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon sugar 
• One recipe Cook's Illustrate Pie Dough, or store bought pie crust 

Instructions

1. FOR THE FILLING: Select 6 ounces misshapen, underripe, or otherwise unattractive berries, halving those that are large; you should have about 1½ cups. In food processor, process berries to smooth puree, 20 to 30 seconds, scraping down bowl as needed. You should have about ¾ cup puree.
2. Whisk sugar, cornstarch, Sure-Jell, and salt in medium saucepan. Stir in berry puree, making sure to scrape corners of pan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly with heatproof rubber spatula, and bring to full boil. Boil, scraping bottom and sides of pan to prevent scorching, for 2 minutes to ensure that cornstarch is fully cooked (mixture will appear frothy when it first reaches boil, then will darken and thicken with further cooking). Transfer to large bowl and stir in lemon juice. Let cool to room temperature.
3. Meanwhile, pick over remaining berries and measure out 2 pounds of most attractive ones; halve only extra-large berries. Add berries to bowl with glaze and fold gently with rubber spatula until berries are evenly coated. Scoop berries into pie shell, piling into mound. If any cut sides face up on top, turn them face down. If necessary, rearrange berries so that holes are filled and mound looks attractive. Refrigerate pie until chilled, about 2 hours. Serve within 5 hours of chilling.?
4.  FOR THE WHIPPED CREAM: Just before serving, beat cream and sugar with electric mixer on low speed until small bubbles form, about 30 seconds. Increase speed to medium; continue beating until beaters leave trail, about 30 additional seconds. Increase speed to high; continue beating until cream is smooth, thick, and nearly doubled in volume and forms soft peaks, 30 to 60 seconds.
5. Cut pie into wedges. Serve with whipped cream.
   
   Here is the link to the strawberry muffins:  http://allrecipes.com/recipe/florida-strawberry-muffins/
   
   As always, Bon Appetit!!

Kaitlyn's Jake and the Neverland Pirates Birthday Party

Kaitlyn chose to have a Jake and the Neverland Pirates birthday party.  She decided she would dress like the character Izzy to make it extra special.  She also asked mommy to make a pirate ship cake.


Here is the beginning of mommy making the pirate ship cake.  In an effort to save time and my sanity, I used box cake this year with homemade decorate, super sugary, icing.  I call it my kid icing b/c they love it!

Here is the skeleton of the pirate ship.  It used a football cake pan to help get close to a ship shape. 

 

The icing has begun...

 

I made a 11 x 17 sheet cake to hold the pirate ship.  We put wooden dowels to support it in the un-iced middle portion.  

 

Daddy made the sail for me as my fondant sail broke.  

 

 For lunch, Kaitlyn chose to have tortellini, olive, tomato and cheese swords (skewers) with marinara sauce for dipping.  Pa Clinton and daddy helped assemble them the night before the party. 

They look so yummy, we made some for the parents too!

I found the old school 'sword' toothpicks and bought some so our mates could eat their fruit off the sword.  I think they were a big hit as we had almost no fruit left after the party. Thank you Gamma Linda for putting them all together! 

Kaitlyn checking out the pirate 'booty' (aka: treasure) before the party.  She hadn't seen the chest filled up yet. 

Kaitlyn chose to have her party at the tennis center, complete with a mini-lesson for her and her mates.  Here she is in her costume and ready for her friends to arrive. 

Kaitlyn and her friend Hannah - Ahoy mateys!!

 

 The finished pirate ship cake complete with Jake, Izzy, Cubby, Scully, Captain Hook and Tick Tock croc.  Everything but the sail and supports were edible. 

Our party set up.

A quick family shot before the party - cheese!

Mommy and daddy with a full store of energy. 

 

Kaitlyn's cousin Carter and Kennedy came decked out for the party.  They looked great!!

Coach Shari teaching the kids to walk the plank at the beginning of the lesson. 

The mates gathering doubloons on their tennis racquets. 

Madelyn behavior wonderfully during the entire party.  Granted, Ms. Crystal was a huge help on that front!!

 

 The mates playing pirate games...

Logan and Madelyn getting ready to chow!

 

 All the mates eating lunch and having sword fights.

 

 

 Kaitlyn opening presents while mommy cut the cake. 

 

 

 Time for cake!

Bye-bye pirate ship!  It tasted delicious!!

One last gift before the day ended, a beginner camera from Pa Harry.  Thank you all!

 Overall, it was a splendid day!  We had a wonderful time at the party celebrating with family and friends.  We will certainly miss this group of people when we move.  Now time for sleep for the whole team! :-)