Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Riff on Strawberry Shortcake

I absolutely love strawberry shortcake. I was having a dinner party last weekend, and I really wanted to serve strawberry shortcake for dessert. Strawberries, whipped cream and cake - what's not to love? Well, the calories for one. Both we and our dinner guest are watching our calorie intake, so I decided to create a spin on the old favorite. Instead of big fluffy slices of shortcake, I made mini shortbread biscuits. Theses mini treats were buttery and delicious, and their size made for a nice presentation. Instead of luscious and oh-so-sinful whipped cream, I made a ricotta cream blend with a bit of cream cheese, sour cream and honey. And, just to turn the dish on its head, I substituted blueberries and raspberries for the traditional strawberries. The result was dinner party-worthy!

For the shortbread cookies (makes 12 mini cookies)

  • 1/2 c flour
  • 1/4 c (1/2 stick) butter, room temperature
  • 1/4 c confectioner's sugar
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • cooking spray
Preheat oven to 350F. Whip butter and sugar with beaters until combined. Add vanilla and flour. Whip until combined. Batter will be loose and crumbly. This is normal. Grease mini-muffin tin with cooking spray. Divide batter evenly between 12 spots, pressing into tin. Bake until they are light golden brown on top and a deeper brown around the edges (approximately 12 minutes). Flip muffin tin over onto cooling rack immediately after removing from oven and allow cookies to cool.

For the ricotta cream:
  • 5 tbsp reduced fat ricotta
  • 2 tbsp reduced fat sour cream
  • 2 tbsp reduced fat cream cheese
  • 1 tbsp honey
Whip all ingredients until smooth. Chill for at least 1 hour before serving.

To serve:
Plate 2-3 cookies. Add 2 tbsp ricotta cream. Sprinkle with fresh berries of your choosing. Serve with a sprig of fresh mint for garnish.

No comments:

Post a Comment