Bring on summer! Try these sweet and savoury strawberry recipes

Published on 25th November, 2022 at 01:56 pm

What better way to bring on summer than with strawberry recipes for everything from your starter to your dessert?

Reading time: 6 minutes

In this article you’ll learn:

• How to make delicious sweet and savoury strawberry recipes, perfect for summer.
• Enjoy summer savings with our exclusive benefits.

Strawberry tres leches sheet cake

Serves: 10-12 | Prep time: 30 min | Cook time: 20 min

Cake:
10 large eggs (separated), at room temperature
300g soft brown sugar
250g cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt

Tres leches mixture:
200g fresh strawberries, hulled and roughly chopped
1 x 380g tin evaporated milk
1 x 385g tin condensed milk
1 ¼ cup full-cream milk
1 tsp vanilla extract or essence

Topping:
500ml cream, chilled
200g fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
Edible flowers, to garnish (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180°C, 160°C fan-forced. Grease and line a 23cm × 33cm sheet tray. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks and sugar together until very light and fluffy, about 8 minutes. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks.

Sieve the dry ingredients together. Gently fold a third of the whisked egg whites into the beaten egg yolk mixture and fold in a third of the dry ingredients. Alternate between the egg whites and dry ingredients until everything is folded in completely, taking care not to knock out the air that you’ve incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until golden and a wooden skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Remove from the oven and leave to cool completely.

Place the strawberries and milks in a blender and blitz until smooth and combined. Strain through a sieve. Using a skewer, poke holes into the cake and slowly pour ⅓ cup of the milk mixture over the cake, allowing it to soak in. Do this until all the milk has soaked in. Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight before serving.

Before serving, whip the cream until soft peaks form. Remove the cake from the tray and top with the cream, strawberries and edible flowers.

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Strawberry & tomato gazpacho with pickled strawberries & goat’s cheese

Serves: 4 | Prep time: 15 min

Pickled strawberries:
1 ½ cups red wine vinegar
50g caster sugar
1 tbsp fine salt, to taste
250g fresh strawberries, hulled and halved

Gazpacho:
4 small cucumbers, peeled and roughly chopped
400g fresh strawberries, hulled and roughly chopped
500g ripe tomatoes, quartered
1 leek, finely sliced
1 garlic clove, grated
1 lime, juiced
2 tsp fine salt, to taste
100g goat’s cheese, crumbled
Fennel fronds, for garnishing
Black pepper, to serve
60ml olive oil, for drizzling
Edible flowers, to garnish

For the pickled strawberries, combine the vinegar, sugar and salt in a large jar and stir until the sugar and salt have dissolved.

Add the strawberries and place in the fridge for at least an hour, or overnight.

For the gazpacho, in a large bowl, combine all the ingredients and set aside to marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature.

Transfer to a blender and blitz on high until smooth and completely combined. Adjust the seasoning if needed and strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large bowl.

Refrigerate for 1 hour or until completely chilled.

Serve the gazpacho divided between 4 bowls topped with the pickled strawberries, goat’s cheese, fennel fronds, black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Garnish with edible flowers.

Strawberry & black pepper chicken with strawberry & basil salsa

Serves: 4 | Prep time: 20 min |Cook time: 1 ½ hrs

Sauce:
450g fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
50g soft brown sugar
60ml honey
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cracked black pepper
1 tbsp sriracha

Chicken:
1 whole chicken, spatchcocked
3 tbsp olive oil
Sea salt and cracked black pepper, to taste

Salsa:
200g fresh strawberries, hulled and diced
1 pickled jalapeño, deseeded and finely diced
1 shallot, finely diced
10g basil, finely chopped, plus extra to serve
1 lime, zested and juiced
Sea salt and cracked black pepper, to taste

In a medium saucepan, combine the strawberries, vinegar, sugar, honey and salt. Place over medium heat and bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Mash the strawberries as it cooks. Once the mixture reaches a syrupy consistency, stir in the black pepper and sriracha. Adjust seasoning if necessary and leave to cool.

Preheat the oven to 200°C, 180°C fan-forced. Drizzle the olive oil over the chicken and season well with salt and pepper. Place a griddle pan over very high heat and place the chicken, breast side down, on the pan. Griddle on high until char lines form, about 10 minutes.

Flip the chicken over so it’s breast side up, and put in the oven to roast. Baste the chicken every 10-15 minutes until the chicken is cooked through, about 50-60 minutes. Alternatively, cook over medium-low coals, turning and basting every 10 minutes.

While the chicken roasts, toss all the salsa ingredients together in a serving bowl and season to taste. Remove the chicken from the oven and leave to rest for 10 minutes before carving. Serve topped with the salsa and extra basil leaves.

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White chocolate panna cotta with roasted strawberries

Serves: 4 | Prep time: 15 min | Cook time: 40 min

Roasted strawberries:
400g ripe strawberries, rinsed and hulled, plus extra for garnishing

Panna cotta:
200ml full-cream milk
40g white chocolate, chopped
40g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
300ml cream
3 (6g) gelatin leaves, softened
Mint leaves, for garnishing

Preheat the oven to 200°C and line a baking tray with baking paper.

Halve some of the strawberries and leave the rest whole. Place the strawberries on a lined baking tray and roast for 20 minutes or until they are sticky and jammy. Set aside to cool completely.

To make the panna cotta, gently heat the milk to just below boiling point, then stir in the white chocolate, sugar and vanilla until dissolved. Remove from the heat and stir in cream and softened gelatin leaves.

Spoon 2 tablespoons of the roasted strawberries (reserving some) into resealable jars, and pour the panna cotta mixture over.

Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or preferably overnight. Garnish the panna cotta with fresh and roasted strawberries and mint leaves.

Food styling: Katelyn Allegra

Photography: Kirsten Mackrill

Food assistants: Cassandra Upton and Mia van Heerden

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