The First Signs of Spring...

First of all, I'd like to mention that I recently tried my first batch of cake pops. They are meant to be shared, and I made them for a very sweet blogger friend of mine. You can - and I hope do - check out my guest post on the lovely and amazing Indian Simmer. I also really, really recommend looking around, because it is a truly inspirational place.

It is beginning to feel a lot like spring here...finally. Spring is, and always has been, my most favorite season. I even love the light of it, a lovely soft blue/green instead of the rich gold of autumn. It is the season of renewal, of rebirth. It is no wonder that the poets sing of it. Oh, and the flowers...how I wish I brought my camera the day I saw that the dogwood and tulip trees were all-aflower in Berkeley! And now, wisteria everywhere...on porches of the beautifully aged Victorians in Hayes Valley (San Francisco), creeping out of restrictive fences... Everything is so austerely bright.

Spring means strawberries. Real strawberries, fresh and in season, bursting with flavor. To celebrate their arrival, I made strawberry shortcakes. I realize I say this about a lot of things, but I do truly adore strawberries, and always have. While they are in season, I eat some practically every day. Often with yogurt and honey for breakfast or a snack, but sometimes I'll wash a bunch and leave them in a small colander, ready to be eaten through the lazy weekend afternoon. One of the nicest ways to eat them is with a fresh, flaky biscuit and a pouf of whipped cream. The strawberry shortcake, of course.

Strawberry Shortcakes
 (adapted, see HERE for original source information)
1 cup flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup butter, cut into cubes + frozen at least 30 minutes
1 large egg
1/4 cup cream
Whipped 'Chantilly' cream and strawberries - see note
Preheat oven to 395°f.
Blend together flour and frozen butter. Combine in a food processor and process for approximately 45 minute. If you don't have a processor, combine flour and butter on cool surface, and use knife or pastry cutter to cut butter into flour.
The mixture should resemble coarse cornmeal.
Mix together the cream and the eggs and then pour into the food processor while pulsing. A soft dough should form within a few seconds. Stir the liquid in with a spatula if you aren't using the food processor. Don't overmix.Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board and gently shape into a rectangle approximately 1/2 inch thick. Fold in thirds lengthwise, turn one quarter turn and repeat once more. This gentle folding creates a tender, flaky biscuit.Roll the dough out (or pat out with hands) to about 1/2 or 3/4 inch thick. Cut out your biscuits with whatever shape you like.
Bake for 10-12 minutes, until the tops are just golden brown.
NOTE - To Assemble: Slice the desired amount of strawberries - one of those green pint baskets should be more than enough. If you are using the pint basket, sprinkle approximately one tablespoon of sugar over the slices, and allow the mixture to sit for at least 10 minutes. The strawberries will soften and produce a sort of strawberry juice, and this will help meld all the ingredients together.
Chantilly cream is vanilla-flavored whipped cream. In a bowl, combine 1 cup whipping/heavy/double cream, 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract or 1/2 vanilla bean scrappings, and 2 - 4 tbsp fine sugar. Whip with a whisk until soft peaks form. Do not overwhip. The cream will whip faster if your bowl and cream are cool/cold, and if have and use a balloon whisk.

Here are a few lovely things I'd love to share:
This photographer
And this one too
This charming bracelet - and its for a great cause