A Perfect Summer Dinner!

A WoW Saturday night dinner. Grilled Flank Steak. Corn on the cob grilled in the husks! We loved this. And a rather nice tomato and onion salad.

First the corn. Yes, Coles Farm Stand is open!! The corn is growing a few feet from the stand. You cannot get fresher corn unless you grow it yourself. Tonight we tried a different technique on the grill. Grilling it in the husks.

Carefully peel back husks from corn to within 1 inch of the bottom and remove silk. Soak in cold water for at least 20 minutes. 

Add 2 strands of kitchen twine for each ear of corn to the soaking water. 

Drain the corn. Pat corn dry. 

Combine the soft room temp butter and chopped parsley and spread over corn. 

Rewrap corn in husks and secure with string.

Onto the grill for 20 to 25 minutes, turning halfway through. Perfection!!!

The tomato salad. Easy. Halve the tomatoes. Dice red onion. Cube fresh Mozzarella. Chop fresh parsley, oregano, and thyme. Salt, pepper, crushed red pepper. Olive oil, lemon juice, and balsamic vinegar.

The flank steak. Grilled perfectly. 

And dessert!!!! Anyone for Strawberry Shortcake?

I found this recipe on the Desserts for Two blog. Rave reviews were received!! Super easy recipe. Fantastic results!!

I am always cutting recipes in 1/2 to bake for Chris and I. What a treat to have everything already set to bake for 2!

In recipe mentions that the whip cream is whipped by hand. That's what I did too.

Strawberry Shortcake Recipe for Two

Ingredients -

For the shortcakes:

½ cup unbleached flour

2 teaspoons sugar, plus extra for topping

½ teaspoon baking powder

pinch of salt

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, frozen

4 tablespoons heavy cream, plus extra for topping

For the filling & topping:

1 cup small diced strawberries

2 teaspoons sugar

1 teaspoon lemon juice

6 tablespoons heavy cream

3 teaspoons powdered sugar

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Method-

Preheat the oven to 400°. Line a small baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a food processor, add the flour, sugar, baking powder and pinch of salt. 

Pulse once to combine. 

Add the frozen butter, diced into 6 pieces. 

Pulse 10-12 times, until the butter is the size of small peas.

Add all of the cream to the feed tube and continue pulsing. 

The dough will not come together into a ball and that’s okay.

Dump the dough onto a floured surface and knead a few times until a dough forms. 

Pat the dough into a ½” thick rectangle. 

Cut the dough in half to form two square biscuits. 

Move the biscuits to the prepared baking sheet and brush with extra cream and sprinkle with extra sugar.

Bake 15-18 minutes until the biscuits are lightly golden brown. 

Let them cool completely.

In a small bowl, stir together the diced strawberries, lemon juice and sugar. 

Allow to set at least an hour, until the berries soften and red juice forms at the bottom of the bowl.

When ready to assemble, whip the cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla. (This is such a small amount of cream that I often whip it by hand).

Slice each biscuit in half, spoon on the whipped cream and top with strawberries. Serve immediately.