Strawberry Cake

Homemade Strawberry Cake

Adapted from Paula Deen’s Hummingbird Cake

Nonstick vegetable spray
All-purpose flour, for pans
3 cups self-rising flour
2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cup pureed strawberries, strained*
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon zest
4 large eggs, beaten
red food coloring**

Directions:

- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray and flour three 8-by-2-inch round cake pans, tapping out excess flour; set aside.
- Prepare the cake batter; in a large bowl, stir to combine self-rising flour, sugar, oil, pureed strawberries, vanilla, lemon zest, and eggs.
- Divide batter evenly between prepared pans, smoothing with an offset spatula. Bake, rotating pans halfway through, until the tops spring back when gently pressed with your fingertips, 26 to 28 minutes.
- Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool 10 minutes. Invert cakes onto wire rack. Re-invert cakes and let them cool completely, top sides up.
- Prepare the cream cheese frosting (recipe below); frost as desired and refrigerate until ready to serve.

* You can use fresh or frozen strawberries. If you use frozen, let them defrost on a cookie sheet. Then place in a food processor and pulse until pureed. Run through a medium-sized strainer to remove the seeds. If you have some extra strawberries, try whipping up a quick batch of strawberry scones!

** While I did manage to avoid using red colored gelatin, I did add some food coloring to achieve that perfectly pink color. If you don’t care about getting the pink color, feel free to leave it out. I used about 5 drops, but you should add them one at a time until you achieve the color you are looking for.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened
1 stick of butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
~ 3 cups (approx. 1 box) confectioners sugar (powdered sugar)
1 TBL milk (if needed)

Directions:

- Beat cream cheese and butter together until smooth.
- Slowly add the sugar in 1 cup batches until desired sweetness is achieved. You may need less than 3 cups if you like your frosting less sweet.
- Stir in vanilla. Add milk slowly if you need a looser consistency.

Afritada

The kids ate this 2-1/2 days in a row. Especially the little guy. Not bad.

1-1/2 lbs chicken pieces (thighs, breasts)
1/4 cup chopped tomatoes (we use pomi)
4-5 medium potatoes
3 carrots
2 bell peppers (we like red and yellow)
2 cups of peas
patis/salt
1 small onion
3 cloves of garlic
Black pepper to taste

Saute onion until soft and translucent. Add garlic and continue saute until lightly brown and fragrant. Stir in chicken pieces until browned. Add salt (2-3 tsp) or patis (2 TB). Add tomatoes and sautee until tomato has dried up. Add water - enough to just cover the chicken and bring to a low rolling boil (10-15 min). Add carrots and potatoes, adjusting water accordingly, continue boil. When cooked, add peppers and peas.

Turkey Chili

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pound ground turkey
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 c diced sweet potatoes
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 dash salt
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sour cream

Directions

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat, and saute the onion, green bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, and garlic until tender. Stir in the turkey, and cook until evenly brown. Drain, and mix in tomatoes and pumpkin. Season with chili powder, pepper, and salt. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 20 minutes. Serve topped with Cheddar cheese and sour cream.

MODIFICATION
Added a pinch of tumeric (no taste, just color an antioxidants). Cinnamon pinch would work well here too. Instead of ground turkey, I used shredded turkey or chicken. Came out perfectly. Also reduced chili powder since all my kids can not tolerate spice. Added some cannelini beans and /or sweet potato during my 2nd batch. That was really interesting.

Portuguese Kale Soup

Ingredients

1/2 pound dried white pea beans
1/2 pound chorizo sausage, thinly sliced
1 pound beef soup bones
1 quart water
1 medium head cabbage, chopped
2 bunches kale - rinsed, dried and chopped
5 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 quart hot water or as needed
salt and pepper to taste

Balsamic Vinegar Adobo

This east-meets-west fusion is credited to my mother in law for this recipe. We ran out of cider and palm vinegar and she had to use what was left in our pantry - balsamic vinegar. We have altered it a bit more to our liking.

2 lbs of chicken
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup vinegar
1 tsp freshly ground pepper (at least)
7 cloves garlic
3 hard boiled eggs
1 cup of peas
3 potatoes (medium sized)
water - adjusted to your liking

Combine first four ingredients in a bowl and marinate for an hour. Sautee crushed garlic cloves in 1 tsp of oil until very light brown. Add chicken pieces and sear. Add marinade, potatoes and egg yolk and gently simmer for 30 minutes. Add peas just before finished. You have a hearty dish that tastes better as a left over.

French Dip Sandwiches

Ingredients

* 1 (4 pound) boneless beef roast
* 1/2 cup soy sauce
* 1 beef bouillon cube
* 1 bay leaf
* 3 whole black peppercorns
* 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
* 1 teaspoon dried thyme
* 1 teaspoon garlic powder
* 20 slices French bread

Directions

1. Remove and discard all visible fat from the roast. Place trimmed roast in a slow cooker.
2. In a medium bowl, combine soy sauce, bouillon, bay leaf, peppercorns, rosemary, thyme, and garlic powder. Pour mixture over roast, and add enough water to almost cover roast. Cover, and cook on Low heat for 10 to 12 hours, or until meat is very tender.
3. Remove meat from broth, reserving broth. Shred meat with a fork, and distribute on bread for sandwiches. Used reserved broth for dipping.

Embutido (Filipino Meatloaf)

Ingredients

* 1 pound ground chicken
* 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
* 3 large sweet pickles, chopped
* 1/2 onion, chopped
* 1/2 cup raisins
* 1 (4 ounce) link chorizo, finely chopped
* 1/4 cup green peas
* salt and pepper to taste
* 2 eggs, beaten
* 4 canned Vienna sausages
* 3 hard-cooked eggs, sliced
* 1/2 (8 ounce) package sharp Cheddar cheese, cut into strips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl combine the chicken, flour, pickles, onion, raisins, chorizo and peas. Mix well and season with salt and pepper to taste. Add beaten eggs and mix thoroughly.
3. Spread mixture on a piece of aluminum foil; arrange sausage, hard-cooked egg slices and cheese strips on top of mixture. Shape mixture into a cylindrical roll about 4 inches in diameter and wrap in foil.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour. Unwrap and slice before serving with ketchup.