STRAWBERRY SALT WATER TAFFY

2 cups sugar plus 1 tablespoon

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 cup corn syrup plus 2 tablespoons

41⁄2 tablespoons butter

1⁄4 teaspoon salt

1 cup water

Strawberries, either 21⁄4 tablespoons jam

OR 2⁄3 cup smushed and strained strawberries but ALSO decrease water by 1⁄4 cup

Butter

Combine all ingredients except strawberries or strawberry jam in a large sauce pan.

Boil ingredients, stirring.

Then close the lid and let mixture quickly reach the forming a ball stage. Check to make sure the bottom isn’t burning.

Pour out on a heat proof surface or pan that has been well-greased with butter.

When cool enough to touch, pull taffy until it lightens a lot in color and is a nice light and chewy consistency. As you pull, quickly add strawberries or strawberry jam (as above) and stir. You must sample this of course.

It is fun to pull the taffy with others!

When cool, cut salt water taffy in small pieces of about 1 inch and wrap in small pieces of wax paper. When stored in a cool and dry place, it will last all summer.

Strawberry Shortcake

Traditional shortcake is like a cross between a scone and pound cake.

2 to 3 pints strawberries, washed, and hulled, about half of them sliced in two

2 to 3 tablespoons sugar

2 cups flour

11⁄2 teaspoon baking powder

11⁄2 teaspoon baking soda

Pinch turmeric

3 tablespoons sugar

41⁄2 tablespoons butter, cut into small chunks

1⁄3 cup milk

Dash balsamic vinegar

1⁄4 cup cream

Whipped cream

Sprinkle sugar evenly over strawberries. Set aside in a glass or ceramic bowl until juice forms in the bottom.

In another small bowl, combine milk and dash of balsamic vinegar. Let sit for at least 5 minutes or until milk sours.

Meanwhile, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and turmeric in a large bowl.

Toss butter chunks and rub about half of them of them into the flour to make a coarse meal. Make a well in the middle of the flour butter mixture.

Pour in the cream, milk and vinegar. With as little stirring as possible, combine the two into a dough. Lumps of butter are fine.

Roll out the dough to about 2-inches thick and then either place it as a huge shortcake on a lightly greased cookie sheet or glass pie pan; or use a cookie cutter to make small shortcakes and place them on a lightly greased cookie sheet or glass pie pan.

Bake in a 350 oven for 10 to 20 minutes or until lightly browned and done inside, with a skewer thrust through the middle coming out cleanly.

Let cool.

Slice in two, cover with sugared strawberries and their juice, and then whipped cream, then place the second piece of shortcake on top, then cover again with strawberries and juice, and whipped cream.

Note: Strawberry jam or strawberry curd may be used with the shortcake with or without strawberries and with cream.

Strawberry jam

(single batch refrigerator style)

Strawberries have natural pectin, like apples, that jells and which you can usually produce by cooking. One of my friends has made this jam and added 1 cup more of blended berries and she did not cook the berries at all but if you do this, your jam may not jell. Experiment and see what you like.

21⁄4 cups sliced strawberries, hulled

3⁄4 cup sugar plus 2 teaspoons

1 tablespoon lemon juice

16 ounces glass jar

Place strawberries, sugar and lemon juice in the blender and blend until the strawberries are ground up to the consistency of jam, as fine or with “lumpy” as you like it. (You may strain the seeds out if you wish but it’s unnecessary.)

Cook in a pot until strawberry jam boils. Keep boiling and stirring for 8 to 10 minutes. Pull out a spoonful and check for how jelled the jam is; you may do this by poking the spoonful or by putting the spoonful in the middle of a chilled heatproof plate and seeing if there is fluid runoff when you tip the plate or if it stays jelled in the middle of the plate. If the strawberry runs, put another heatproof plate on to chill and cook the jam another 2 minutes. Then retest, using the new chilled plate. Be careful to use plates or pans that can withstand the extreme hot and extreme cold temperatures.

Be careful not to burn the strawberries or yourself, as the jam gets very hot.

Let jam cool.

Pour into jar and cover.

Keep refrigerated. May be used for up to 2 weeks.

Great fresh homemade taste. If you are going strawberry picking, pick some extra berries and make some of this for your friends.

Note: you can make this into strawberry rhubarb jam by adding 1⁄2 cup cooked and sweetened rhubarb and decreasing strawberries by the same amount in the beginning of the recipe. The same can be done with fresh blueberries, fresh raspberries or other fruit. Also, you may add orange flavor by adding a few tablespoons of fresh squeezed juice and cooking for a few minutes longer to reduce the extra fluid.

A few fresh sliced strawberries can be stirred in at the end to increase the fresh flavor.

Strawberry curd

11⁄3 cup sliced strawberries

4 tablespoons sugar plus 1 teaspoon

21⁄2 tablespoons lemon juice

21⁄2 tablespoons cornstarch

16 ounces glass jar

Blend strawberries and sugar until smooth and with no lumps. Combine lemon juice and cornstarch until smooth and unlumpy too. Pour into blender with strawberry mixture, and blend briefly until fully combined. (You may strain the seeds out if you wish, many do, using fine cheesecloth or a fine strainer).

Pour into small pan and cook over low heat until mixture begins to thicken, until it becomes as thick as you want it, usually at least 5 minutes. Curd is generally quite thick. Stir continuously.

Pour into a dish and cool in fridge. It will thicken more as it cools. Spoon strawberry curd into a glass jar. May keep refrigerated for 2 weeks.

Great on shortcake, English muffins, sandwiches with peanut butter or with turkey, with yogurt, over ice cream, etc.

— Mel Baker is an experienced chef, caterer and cafe manager. Email her a [email protected].