Are we human...or are we strawberry?

Yep more strawberry stories lol.......we have had a bumper crop of them this year over 52lbs now and still picking. I have enough jam now to last us around 5 years! If I mention the strawberry word the family groan and vanish in case I put yet another culinary strawberry delight in front of them! We have had scones, victoria sponges, cheesecake, strawberry shortbread muffins (they were scrummy, I will put the recipe up at the end of this) strawberries in balsamic vinegar, mousse, ice cream and lots of bowls of the soft fruits with cream!


Having gathered up another 12lb on Monday I spend a while carefully washing them. As I sorted through putting perfect ones in a bowl for friends and family, small ones for cakes and tiny ones to turn into jam. I stopped to look at the misshapen ones and put them to one side,

Wondering what to do with these not so perfect ones It came to mind that just because they were not perfect strawberry shape, on the inside they would be as sweet and maybe even better than the ones I had singled out as perfect. I decided that would serve up a mixture of all shapes and sizes and figured that the odd shaped ones were actually not only more interesting but they tasted sweeter too.


This got me thinking so many people aspire to be perfect and tend to shun those who do not fit into the same box. We all come in all shapes and sizes with different aspirations,jobs, hobbies, personalities and ideas. Me being one of the the misshapes, struggle with being different. But these strawberries have taught me that no matter what our daily struggles are we are as sweet if not better inside despite our flaws!

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE MUFFINS

Ingredients

• 2 Cups plain flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 3/4 Cups. sugar
• 1/2 C. butter
• 1 egg
• 1 Cups double cream
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 Cups diced strawberries, well drained

Directions

Preheat oven to 180We  degrees. Grease 12 muffin cups. In large bowl mix together flour, baking powder and sugar. Cut in butter as for pastry until it is in small pea-size pieces. In small bowl mix egg, vanilla and cream then add all at once to flour mixture. Stir with spoon until blended. Gently mix in strawberries. Spoon into muffin cups and bake for about 25 minutes. Cool completely in pan before removing. Sprinkle with icing sugar to serve.