Strawberry Shortcake

Dinner was a success! We had a great time, cracked open a bottle of wine and enjoyed each others company. I didn't take any pictures of the food because we were so hungry I forgot. The subway took forever and it took Danny awhile to get home...so basically we just ate the entire loaf of kalamata bread we made..oops. Things were going great until Tony told me who got kicked off on Biggest Loser. I almost cried (I did). Love my plate and pot washer. Finished piece! Happy Birthday Mom! I'm sure she loves that this pictures is on the WWW.

The dessert wasn't the prettiest thing, but it tasted great!

Strawberry Shortcakes - (The (mostly)Healthy Kind)

4 cups whole wheat flour

2 tbsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

4 tbsp sugar

1 stick(12 tbsp) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

1 1/2 cups cold 1 percent milk

3 cups fresh sliced strawberries

2 tsp sugar

Cool Whip

Preheat the oven 425 degrees F and place one of the racks in the center of the oven. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Add the butter to the flour mixture. Using your fingertips or a pastry blender, rub or cut the butter into the flour mixture until there are pea-sized pieces. Be sure to work quickly so that the heat of your hands does not begin to melt the butter.

Add the milk to the flour mixture. Using a fork, gently toss the ingredients until the dough begins to hold together. If there is some flour left in the bottom of the bowl, use your hands to gently knead it into the dough. Do not overmix.

Using a 1/3 cup measuring cup, scoop out the dough and place it in loose mounds on the lined baking sheet. Place the six mounds so that they are about 3 inches apart. Press down the dough so that the mounds are between 3/4 inch and 1 inch high.

Place in the oven and bake for 15-18 minutes, turning the baking sheet around halfway through baking. When the shortcakes are puffed and give a little when you push on them slightly, remove them from the oven. Remove the shortcakes from the baking sheet and place on a cooling rack. If you have leftover dough, bake on a cool sheet.

Place approximately 3 cups of sliced strawberries into a medium bowl and mix in about 2 tsp sugar. Let the strawberries sit in the sugar for 10-15 minutes.I used frozen strawberries so they were already soft, if you are using fresh they will soften in the sugar.

Cut the shortcakes in half horizontally. Place the bottom halves on dessert plates, top with about 1/2 cup strawberries, and spoon on some whipped cream.

We are off to Boston to do the annual Support Your Troops Pub Crawl on Saturday. Two things I am sure about: 1. It will be a great time. 2. I am going to be complaining on Monday that I'm exhausted. It will be worth it!

Have a great weekend!