Have you made your menu plans for Independence Day?
I ask because youll want to add this. Heres a delectable dessert you make on the barbecue that couldnt be easier.
Have you ever had grilled berries? If not, youre in for a treat. Grilling the berries caramelizes the natural sugars, making them taste even sweeter and really bumps the glorious fresh fruit of the season up a notch. Shall we make a brown sugar and lemon caramel drizzle to take it over the top? Of course!
Now, we could serve the berries with shortcake, in fact I started out to do just that. But I was passing the oops, we baked too much day-old bakery cart and these doughnuts just jumped into my cart. Does that ever happen to you?
Then it hit me. These doughnuts are a short-cut shortcake! And better yet – Im going to grill them, too.
Are you still with me?
RED, WHITE AND BLUEBERRY DOUGHNUT SHORTCAKE
Yield: 6 servings – Time: 20 minutes
The glaze is an optional step, but its really good.
What Youll Need:
For the caramel drizzle:
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons water
1 pint fresh blueberries
2 pounds fresh strawberries
6 glazed or cake doughnuts, sliced in half horizontally
whipped dessert topping or whipped cream
Heres How:
In a medium saucepan stir together brown sugar, cornstarch, and salt; stir in the lemon juice and water. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until thickened. Remove from pan and place into a microwave-safe bowl. Cool and set aside.
Meanwhile; gently skewer berries on metal or bamboo skewers. If youre using bamboo be sure to soak them in water for at least 30 minutes to prevent them from catching fire.
Prepare your charcoal or gas grill, to medium heat. Place the skewers directly on the clean grate or use a stainless steel grill topper. Depending on the size of the strawberries they will take 5 to 7 minutes. The blueberries take only 3 minutes. Hang close, when they soften and juice starts to sizzle, theyre done.
When you remove the berry skewers from the barbecue use extreme caution as the berries and the skewers will be lava HOT. Place them on a tray covered in foil and set aside while you grill the doughnuts.
Place doughnut halves, cut side down, on the rack over medium-low heat. Grill for 3 to 4 minutes or until heated through and beautiful grill marks appear. Again, use caution when removing.
Place doughnut halves on serving dishes. Top with berries, a dollop of whipped topping and drizzle. If the drizzle stiffens up place it in the microwave for 10 seconds to loosen it up before you place on the dessert.
Diva tip – when working with blueberries: dont wear white!
Heres hoping that some of the 4th of July fireworks will be flavor explosions in your mouth and that your holiday is red, white and beautiful! Happy Independence Day from all of us at Divas On A Dime.
Fabulous Festive Food contributed by Patti Diamond from Divas On A Dime – Where Frugal, Meets Fabulous! NEW website and blog – www.divasonadime.com Join us on Facebook at DivasOnADime DotCom.