Angeli della Fragola

Strawberry Angels.... Or, more appropriately, Strawberry Shortcake Angels. This is my first creation. Inspired by my Angel (you know who you are). I prepared this as a dessert for Christmas. Of course, this dessert can be made for any occasion.

This is a very simple recipe - premade shortcakes, fresh strawberries, fresh mint, and whipped cream. Yet, there is a lot that can be done to tweak the recipe. For instance, vanilla beans and lemon can be used to provide contrast to the other flavors.

I'm still experimenting with this recipe, which is my own creation. That's right, this is something new. There are three layers - one premade and two to be made. The shortcake shells are available at any grocery store. The filling in the shortcake shell consists of diced strawberries, and the scrapings from vanilla beans. The topping is a whipped cream, which gives the appearance of clouds. Strawberries act as the angels and fresh mint represent their wings. After I made this recipe, I thought of using lemon zest to create halos. That will be for the next time.

ANGELI DELLA FRAGOLA

A Chef Bolek Original
Serves 4-6

2 pints of fresh strawberries

2 vanilla beans

2-3 tablespoons of strawberry jam

whipped cream

fresh mint

pre-made shortcake shells

Select the largest fresh strawberries and set aside, as those strawberries will be the angels. Take the remaining strawberries and dice them. Take the vanilla beans, scrape the vanilla and add it to the diced strawberries. Also add some chopped mint. Then, add the strawberry jam to the mix all of these ingredients.

Take a spoonful of the strawberry mixture and place it in each shortcake shell. Once all the shortcake shells are filled, take a spoonful of whipped cream and place it on top of the strawberry mixture. Try to place the cream in a manner that replicates clouds.

Once the whipped cream is added to all of the shortcake shells, take the large strawberries and slice them in half (to make it easier to eat them). Place the two halfs together in a shell, using the cream to hold the strawberry halves together. Then take two good size mint leaves and anchor them in the whipped cream. Repeat with each shortcake shell.

ENJOY!