Celebrating Strawberry Season With Whole Foods Market Tulsa//DIY Strawberry Themed Dinner
This post is sponsored by Whole Foods Market Tulsa but all opinions and words are my own.
The second that springtime rolls around each year, I instantly want to add fresh fruit to everything and strawberries are my absolute favorite berry on earth! And Whole Foods Market is the perfect place to stock up on. You can experience peak season strawberries throughout their stores, including delicious recipes and culinary innovations April 4th to April 24!
I have always wanted to attend the Strawberry Dinner at Living Kitchen Farm & Dairy out on the Oakley Farm in Depew Oklahoma. It's a 400-acre property with a rustic cabin hidden in the woods. But I still have yet to get a reservation. So since this strawberry event was begging for a celebration I decided to create and host my very own strawberry themed farm to table supper partnering with my favorite market ever-Whole Foods Market. Nothing fancy-- just an easy weeknight dinner you can prepare for your own family. I think that cooking & entertaining are about the relationships formed both in the kitchen and around the table so make it a family affair. Have the kiddos pitch in and feel excited about cooking a themed dinner with fruits or veggies or whatever you decide!
I grabbed my ingredients the day before and started cooking around 2 p.m, now granted cooking for a blog involves shooting in the best natural light possible, staging, and many other fussy components so you could easily start much later so don't fret. For me, I make these days super leisurely with music, a little afternoon white wine, and just enjoy the whole process. Cooking can be stressful but it doesn't have to be!
MENU
Cilantro-Lime Grilled Chicken with Strawberry-Jalapeño Salsa And asparagus
biscuits with strawberry butter
Roasted strawberry mint lemonade
And strawberry 🍓 shortcake for desert as a classic favorite
So I am just going to break these down one by one for you!!!
Cilantro-Lime Grilled Chicken with Strawberry-Jalapeño Salsa RECIPE
Ingredients:
2 limes, zested and juiced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon honey
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped
4 thinly sliced boneless skinless chicken breasts (If you can’t find thinly sliced chicken breasts, don’t panic. Just butterfly 4 regular boneless skinless chicken breasts.)
Kosher Salt
Coarse Black Pepper
For the Strawberry-Jalapeño Salsa:
2 cups diced strawberries
1 jalapeño, seeded and finely chopped
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon minced red onion
1½ tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
½ lime, juiced
Kosher Salt
Instructions:
In a shallow baking dish, whisk together the lime zest, lime juice, olive oil, honey and cilantro with a pinch of salt. Briefly set aside.
Place each chicken breast between two pieces of plastic wrap. Using a rolling pin or tenderizer (or random heavy object), pound the chicken until about ½-inch thick. This process is sort of noisy, but also cathartic. Just go with it.
Place the pounded chicken breasts into the baking dish, and make sure each one is well coated in marinade. Press plastic wrap on the surface of the chicken and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes. (Obviously, the longer you can let your chicken marinate, the better.)
While your chicken is marinating, place all the ingredients for the salsa in a medium bowl. Gently mix the ingredients with a fork (you don’t want to smoosh your strawberries), and season with salt to taste. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Heat a clean, lightly oiled grill or grill pan over medium-high heat. Remove the chicken breasts from the marinade and pat them dry. Season both sides of each breast with kosher salt and coarse black pepper.
When the grill/grill pan is hot, add the chicken and cook for about 3½ minutes per side until grill marks appear and chicken is just cooked through.
Remove chicken to a plate and serve with strawberry-jalapeño salsa.
My fave way to eat asparagus is roasted with olive oil, and salt and pepper. So easy!
Strawberry biscuits with strawberry butter RECIPE
BISCUITS
Ingredients
1/2 cup (4 oz.) salted butter, frozen
2 1/2 cups (10 oz.) self-rising flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup chilled heavy whipping cream
1 cup chopped fresh strawberries
2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
How to Make It
Step 1
Preheat oven to 475°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Grate the frozen butter using large holes of a box grater. Toss together grated butter, flour, sugar, and baking powder in a large bowl. Chill 10 minutes.
Step 2
Make a well in the center of the butter mixture. Add the heavy cream, and stir 10 times. Add the strawberries, and stir 5 times. (Dough will be loose and flaky.)
Step 3
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and gently knead 3 to 4 times. Lightly sprinkle flour over top of dough. Using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll dough into a 3/4-inch-thick rectangle (about 9 x 5 inches). Starting at 1 short end, fold dough in half so short ends meet. Repeat rolling and folding procedure 4 more times.
Step 4
Roll the dough to 1-inch thickness. Cut dough with a floured 2 1/2-inch round cutter, and place on prepared baking sheet, re-rolling dough scraps and flouring as needed.
Step 5
Bake in preheated oven until lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Serve with strawberry butter.
Strawberry Butter
Ingredients
½ cup fresh strawberries, diced (make sure they are really sweet and fragrant)
2 sticks real butter, (16 tablespoons) softened
¼ cup cane sugar
Instructions
In a large bowl cream butter with a hand mixer until whipped and smooth.
Stir in sugar.
Fold in diced strawberries.
Mix until butter is light pink and creamy.
Store in the refrigerator.
ROASTED STRAWBERRY MINT LEMONADE Recipe
Ingredients
¾ pound fresh strawberries (about 20 strawberries), hulled and sliced
¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided
4½ cups cold filtered water, divided
1 cup fresh lemon juice (from about 5 large lemons)
6 sprigs fresh mint
Lemon slices
Whole strawberries
Fresh mint sprigs
Instructions
Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees.
In a shallow baking dish, toss the strawberries with 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar. Arrange them in an even layer and roast for 25 minutes until the berries are soft, slightly darkened and juicy. Removed from the oven and let cool.
While the strawberries are roasting make your simple syrup. Place ¾ cup sugar and ¾ cup water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring regularly until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat and let cool completely.
Transfer your cooled strawberries to a blender or food processor (make sure you get all the awesome roasted strawberry juice in there) and purée until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh sieve into a pitcher.
Add the lemon juice, mint sprigs, and remaining 3¾ cups cold filtered water to the strawberry puree and mix well. Stir in the simple syrup ¼ cup at a time until you reach your desired level of sweetness. (If your strawberries are very ripe, you may only need about half of the syrup! Save the remaining syrup for future cocktails.) Refrigerate the lemonade for about 30 minutes to let the flavors mingle.
To serve, pour lemonade into ice-filled glasses. Garnish with lemon slices, strawberries, and fresh mint for added fanciness. Now would also be the time to add vodka if you’re going that route...
AND STRAWBERRY 🍓 SHORTCAKE FOR DESERT AS A CLASSIC FAVORITE RECIPE
I keep thing super simple here and purchase the packages shortcake from Whole Foods and just top it with chopped strawberries and whipped cream! It is soooo delicious.
Everything was so incredibly delicious!
I hope you will be inspired to create your own strawberry themed supper! Tag me in your pics! And share some of your fave strawberry recipes with me in the comments below.
Take advantage of Whole Foods Market's sale too! From April 4th to April 10th the strawberries will be 2 for $7.00. And from April 4th to April 24th get 15% off 30+ grocery items to help you get creative in the kitchen!
Thank you so much for Whole Foods Market Tulsa for sponsoring this post!
Visit Tulsa Whole Foods Market locations at....
1401 E 41st St, Tulsa, OK 74105
Or
9136 S Yale Ave, Tulsa, OK 74137