This was a food filled weekend if ever there was one. No eating out, cleaning out the cabinets (why do I not label the food I put up? and what was that weird peach colored container of sauce in the back of the freezer?), and shopping up a storm at the farmers' market and the Bradford Store.
Going into the Matthews Farmers' Market, the strawberries are right up front. When I'm there I usually pull a 1 hour shift in the coffee house and then walk around and shop. The first 2 weeks the strawberries were there, they sold out before 8 AM. This time they lasted well after I finished my shopping, and I snagged a gallon. A GALLON. The lady in front of me said she was going straight home to make jam, which sounded like the perfect idea and a gallon seemed necessary.
Except the jam recipe used *maybe* a quarter of what I had. Even after snacking I had more than half leftover, so they became a part of our delicious, nutritious French Toast breakfast (homemade strawberry syrup and fresh strawberries on the side).
Then I was down to just under a half gallon; a clafoutis seemed a perfect use (especially after how well the last one was received). Now I have just under 2 cups of berries left and I'm thinking I'll buy another gallon next week.
Cla-fou-what? I made a batch of blueberry clafoutis last year with Gayla's recipe, and C liked them so much I thought it was worth another go. The Strawberry Clafoutis recipe I found was by Clotilde Dusoulier {via NPR}. There were, of course, some substitutions: no almonds since Mr. C is allergic so I used oats and added a half a tablespoon vanilla, no sugar (used if up in strawberry jam) so I used maple syrup, which worked out ok because I also used powdered buttermilk instead of the milk and just didn't add any water.
It's all gone now, so I guess that means it was a hit! I bet actually following the recipe would've made it even better. . .but who needs to follow directions anyway?
What's going on this week friends? We're going Thursday to find out if Critter Baby is a boy or a girl! Whichever it is, it's now the size of a cantaloupe!
Going into the Matthews Farmers' Market, the strawberries are right up front. When I'm there I usually pull a 1 hour shift in the coffee house and then walk around and shop. The first 2 weeks the strawberries were there, they sold out before 8 AM. This time they lasted well after I finished my shopping, and I snagged a gallon. A GALLON. The lady in front of me said she was going straight home to make jam, which sounded like the perfect idea and a gallon seemed necessary.Except the jam recipe used *maybe* a quarter of what I had. Even after snacking I had more than half leftover, so they became a part of our delicious, nutritious French Toast breakfast (homemade strawberry syrup and fresh strawberries on the side).
Then I was down to just under a half gallon; a clafoutis seemed a perfect use (especially after how well the last one was received). Now I have just under 2 cups of berries left and I'm thinking I'll buy another gallon next week.
Cla-fou-what? I made a batch of blueberry clafoutis last year with Gayla's recipe, and C liked them so much I thought it was worth another go. The Strawberry Clafoutis recipe I found was by Clotilde Dusoulier {via NPR}. There were, of course, some substitutions: no almonds since Mr. C is allergic so I used oats and added a half a tablespoon vanilla, no sugar (used if up in strawberry jam) so I used maple syrup, which worked out ok because I also used powdered buttermilk instead of the milk and just didn't add any water.
It's all gone now, so I guess that means it was a hit! I bet actually following the recipe would've made it even better. . .but who needs to follow directions anyway?
What's going on this week friends? We're going Thursday to find out if Critter Baby is a boy or a girl! Whichever it is, it's now the size of a cantaloupe!