The Berry Thing

Fresh berries are probably the most delicious thing in the world! One of the favourite desserts here at my house is The Berry Thing. Tasty, versatile, easy, useful for more than just a dessert, and it can even be made for diabetics!

Try it out!

Photo by Stacy Spensley, flickr

Ingredients
2 cups fresh strawberries
1 cup fresh red raspberries
1 cup blackberries or blueberries (or 1/2 cup of each)
1/2 cup sugar or Splenda (sucralose)

Method
Chill berries. Wash berries and pick through, discarding blemished berries. Hull and cut strawberries into pieces no larger than the raspberries. Combine all berries into a bowl, cover with sugar, and lightly mash with a potato masher to bruise the fruit and release juices. Cover and refrigerate for two hours or more.

To serve
1) Scoop into bowls and top with whipped cream or vanilla yoghurt; garnish with mint sprig
2) Spoon onto sliced pound cake or madiera cake, top with whipped cream or vanilla yoghurt; garnish
3) Spoon onto waffles or pancakes, top and garnish
4) Roll into crepes, top with sour cream and sprinkle with confectioner's (icing) sugar
5) Spoon onto hot cereal (porridge)
6) Spoon over ice cream
7) Serve along side a chocolate frosted fudge cake
8) Spoon over scones or shortcake sponges, top with whipped cream

What kind of things can you think of to do with the Berry Thing?

Fresh Summer Fruit Salad

This is a delicious, refreshing, and versatile fruit salad that works for a light breakfast or lunch, an alfresco dinner side dish, and even as a dessert! It can be served with or without a dressing, spilled over a scoop of ice cream, or used as a topping for sponge or pound cake. The variations and uses are practically endless, and its cool, crisp texture and blend of flavours make it a wonderfully fresh, juicy choice for those hot summer days.

Fresh Summer Fruit Salad
Ingredients:
1 fresh ripe pineapple, cut into bite-sized chunks
2 slightly green bananas, sliced
⅓ lemon juice
2 ripe but firm kiwis, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
¾ cup fresh berries (if strawberries, cut into bite-sized pieces)
1 small container lemon yoghurt
Sprig of mint for garnish

Preparation:
Toss bananas in lemon juice, coating all sides well.
Refrigerate berries in a separate container from salad.

Drain all fruits. Combine pineapple, bananas, and kiwi in bowl and toss with yoghurt. Refrigerate for at least ½ hour. Immediately before serving, add berries and toss once again. Garnish and serve.

Variations:
Use a different flavour of yoghurt for dressing
Sprinkle with sliced almonds
Sprinkle with muesli

Omit yoghurt and serve as below:
--with a scoop of vanilla ice cream
--with a scoop of lemon sorbet
--over a slice of baked cheesecake
--over a slice of poundcake
--over a slice of sponge or angelfood cake
--over a bowl of muesli or bran flakes
--over a bowl of oatmeal
--in a dessert bowl, topped with whipped cream


Photo by Kristie’s NaturePortraits, Flickr