Time for a Trifle!

It's "real" Memorial Day today - May 30th - summer's unofficially here, you can wear white all over without offending the senior set, and best of all....fresh berries are hitting the supermarkets in full force!

So for a family BBQ today, I've busted out my trifle dish (mine's an old family one, but the link will show you the general idea) so I can throw together one of the easiest and prettiest summer desserts you can make.

Here's what you need:

* A trifle dish or large glass mixing or serving bowl - preferably with a domed lid

* A pint each of washed, hulled and halved strawberries (go extra with the strawberries), blueberries, raspberries...any berries you want, really - but we're making ours a patriotic red, white and blue today.

* Stiffly whipped cream (toss in some powdered sugar and a hint of vanilla) or a container of Cool Whip*

* A prepared/store-bought angelfood cake, cut lengthwise into thirds (so you have 3 rings)

Here's what you do:

1. Take 8-10 of the strawberries - the mushy or less than aesthetically appealing ones - place in a small bowl and coarsely mash with a fork until some juice is running in the bowl.

2. Sprinkle 2 Tb sugar over the mashed berries and set aside for 5 minutes while you whip the cream and slice the cake. Stir and mash again after the berries have broken down a bit more with the sugar doing its job.

3. Place the bottom layer of the cake into your dish. Spoon a third of the strawberry mixture over the cake, then ***CAREFULLY*** apply a layer of 1/4 of the whipped cream, and a layer of strawberries, positioning them against the glass first so that they show nicely, then working your way in.

4. Repeat this process - add cake (press it down gently to smush down the layer underneath), then strawberry juice, whipped cream, thick layer of blueberries...and again...cake, strawberry juice, whipped cream, with your final layer of raspberries on the very top. Fill the center hole with a dollop of cream, remaining berries, and plug it with whipped cream, then put raspberries over the top of that, too. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and

5. Refrigerate for an hour or so to let it chill and settle, then serve!

There are two great things about this dessert The first is the presentation. If you are careful about layering, it looks pretty from the outside of the glass dish (the whipped cream is the key - if you slime it around on the sides too much, it obscures the berries). I always get compliments about how nice it looks...but it doesn't take much work or skill. A win-win!

The second is its flexibility - you can make a dessert out of just about anything leftover and it still looks good. We've used sliced bakery-outlet-stale pound cake, even chunks of leftover ubiquitous birthday/whatever event white sheet cake, topped it with homemade raspberry jam that didn't set right, ice cream, more cake and raspberry slime...leftover chocolate sheet cake, ice cream, with hot fudge and white chocolate chips on top...nilla wafers, vanilla pudding, bananas, and whipped cream for a chocolate free Lent dessert...you can soak your cake with rum or creme de cacao for the adults....the possibilities are endless.

Hard to screw this one up, so give it a shot and have fun!


* Cool whip is probably better - only because it's a little more durable - if this is going to be sitting out for awhile at a party like the one we're going to today. Otherwise I prefer the real stuff with my own flavoring added.

Crockpot Chicken & Chicken Pastina

Oh, it is that lovely time of year again...Michaelmas is today, Fall is officially here! So crack out the slow-cooker and try this one:

Ingredients:

* 1 whole fresh chicken, skin on and bones in, with organs (or baggie thereof) removed from body cavity

* 1 packet Lipton Onion Soup Mix, split in thirds

* Pepper, Poultry Seasoning to taste

* 1 can cream of mushroom soup

Directions: (NB: start right after breakfast!)

1. Pour 1/3 of soup mix on bottom of pot, sprinkle 1/3 into body cavity of chicken, then place chicken in pot.

2. Using a sharp knife, carefully slit and gently separate skin on top (breast side) of chicken and pat final third of soup mix under skin, pressing skin back down when finished.

3. Set crock pot on low setting, cover and cook all day (at least 8 hours), without removing lid. About 2-3 hours before cooking time is done, stir in cream of mushroom soup and replace cover.

4. When ready to serve, carefully remove chicken from pot (it will be drippy, so hold it over the pot for a minute or so) and serve on a platter - reserve the juices and drippings! (See below...)

This chicken is so good and juicy! It should disjoint and be falling apart when done.

Some practical tips and options:

• Slow cookers differ! If yours tends to cook quickly, reduce time by an hour or so and pour a bit of white wine or water into the bottom of the pot to prevent any sticking or drying out - this has never been a problem for me, but keep an eye on things if you can when you try this one for the first time.


• Got a few extra eaters? Depending on the size of your pot AND of your crowd, you can easily throw in some extra legs and thighs around the edges of the whole chicken. Add more soup mix and liquid if needed.


• For some extra flavor, put a few stalks of celery (greens included) in the body cavity of the chicken.


• Goes GREAT with Pane Toscana (or any nice, crusty bread and butter)


• Leftovers? DON'T chuck the contents of your pot! You can make a gravy from the juice or do our favorite recycling project....


• This recipe makes a GREAT stock for soup, as follows:

Chicken Pastina

Ingredients:

* All the juices and bits of chicken leftover from your delicious crockpot chicken (see above)

* 1-2 cans - or a carton - of chicken broth, or equivalent in bouillon cubes if need be***

* salt and pepper to taste

* 1/2 box of Pastina (tiny star-shaped pasta - I use Barilla)

* chopped fresh veggies - carrots, peas, green pepper, sweet corn - lightly pre-steamed, OR (much easier!) a 1/2 bag of your favorite frozen mixed veggies

Directions:

1. Carefully pour reserved juices from crockpot into a cover-able pan, amply-sized storage container, or even a large, gallon-size ziploc baggie, straining out any bones but reserving any other bits of meat and skin that might still be lurking in the juice!

2. Strip all remaining meat (skin too) from chicken carcass, shredding with fingers into bite-size pieces.

3. Place meat and skin into juice from pot, cover and refrigerate overnight.

4. About 30 minutes prior to your planned lunch or dinner time, take chicken/juice out of the fridge and skim off as much fat (white-ish stuff, Kasia!) as you can to prevent your soup from being "greasy"

5. In large saucepan or stock pot (depending on the amount of leftovers), slowly warm mixture, gradually pouring in your broth or bouillon and seasoning to taste. If it's too salty, add in water, 1/2 c. at a time, testing before and after each addition - don't over-dilute! You can pick out excess skin now as you see fit (Wiley and our other furry friends love this part!) but we leave a little bit in because we like it that way.

6. Bring mixture to a gentle boil, add pastina and bring back to a slow boil for 5 minutes.

7. Add veggies, cover, turn heat to lowest setting and simmer for 10-15 minutes, serve in bowls and enjoy this yummy, filling soup as a hearty lunch or a full-on dinner with a nice salad and/or Pane Toscana on the side!

***Note that the pastina will thicken substantially after the veggie-simmering process - this will make your soup more substance than liquid, so if you like a lot of broth, add extra. We like the thicker consistency - it is a very filling mixture either way.

As always - enjoy!