{ Strawberry Lemon Pound Cake }

I think, dare I say it... it's finally Spring here in Ohio.

I thought that before, then awoke to snow on Bean's birthday (April 9). It seems it is here for real now though. 

Ohio likes to give us 75 degree days in March, but when April rolls around its like, "Hey, jk! Here's a 30 degree day!". Um, thanks.

Now that Spring actually has arrived, I like to open all the doors and windows and just let the happy flow through.

Don't get me wrong, I love Winter. I love Winter a lot. I love beautiful snowy days, snuggling inside, reading books under blankets, warm cocoa, etc, etc, etc.

However, I love Winter IN Winter. By the time April arrives, I'm over it. Over. It.

Bring on the sunshine, bring on the lemonade, bring on the lemon cake!

This is a simple lemon pound cake (it starts with a box mix) with a tangy lemon glaze.

Not too lemony. Just right lemony. As my friend Lori likes to say, too much lemon "tastes like Pledge". And let's be real life here. No one wants that.

Just right lemony with strawberries.

Welcome, Spring!

Strawberry Lemon Pound Cake

by Tina @ Sugar Bean Bakers

1 lemon cake boxed mix

1 package (3.4 oz) vanilla pudding mix

4 eggs

1 cup water

1/3 cup oil

1 Tablespoon lemon zest

2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 cup fresh strawberries, chopped, and set aside in a bowl.

Zest one lemon and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 Degrees F.

Grease and flour tube or bundt pan, set aside.

In mixing bowl add the cake mix and pudding mix, stir to combine. Spoon a couple tablespoons of this over the strawberries to dust. This will help them from all sinking to the bottom while baking*. Set strawberries aside again.

Add the oil, water, and eggs. Beat until well combined. Add in the juice and zest. Mix well. Fold in the strawberries last. Pour into pan and bake for 45-50 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.

Allow to fully cool before glazing.

*they still like to sink, but this will help some.

Lemon Glaze

2 Tablespoons butter, melted

1 cup powdered sugar

1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice 

1 Tablespoon lemon zest, divided

hot water

Stir together powdered sugar and melted butter. Add in lemon juice. Stir until glossy. If desired consistency is not reached, add hot water 1/2 teaspoon at a time. Stir in 1/2 Tablespoon of lemon zest.

Drizzle over cake, immediately sprinkle the other 1/2 Tablespoon of lemon zest over the glaze.

If you like more glaze, double the recipe above.

{Delicious Summer Drinks}

As the thermometer heads up, you can keep cool with these drinks that I've posted.

They are yummy, and, my favorite thing, EASY.

Easy is especially great on a hot day!

{Disney Inspired Dole Whip}

{Peach Banana Smoothie}

{Frozen Strawberry Lemonade}

{Strawberry Lemonade}

{Layered Drinks}

{Easy to Make Smoothie}

Stay cool, my friends!

Tina

{ Strawberry Lemonade }

My kid is weird.

He can't tolerate certain (food) textures. There are many meats he won't eat.

He picks the strawberries out of his strawberry sundae. While he loves both sugar and marshmallow, he cannot eat Peeps. He doesn't like noodles (unless they are spaghetti).  And so on, and so on.

He's just weird. Weird, I tell you.

I mean, who picks strawberries out of a strawberry sundae? Who raised this kid?? Certainly not me.

It must have been

Yeah. 

Why do I tell you all of this totally arbitrary information about my child's eating habits?

To let you know that this Strawberry Lemonade is NOT Bean approved.

It.has.texture. Oh my.

(texture=seeds and tiny strawberry bits)

And while he likes the flavor, he cannot get over the texture.

So, if you are like him, this drink is NOT for you.

If you are like me, however, come along, and I'll show you how to make this delicious summer drink in less than 5 minutes.

Yes, less than 5 minutes, because you see, I'm a cheater.

By that I mean, this starts with powdered lemonade. Cause it's summer, why would we want to break a sweat juicing lemons. Srsly!

This is soooooooo simple, yet delicious.  

For 2 quarts of Strawberry Lemonade:

Prepare powdered lemonade mix according to package for 2 quarts

Wash and remove greens from 1 pint of strawberries

Place berries and 2 Tablespoons of sugar into a blender or food processor

blend until pureed 

Pour into prepared lemonade and stir

You'll want to stir just before pouring as well. 

Since this has fresh berries it in, it will only keep a couple days.

 When I stopped to think about it, I realized that the smoothies (like Strawberry Banana or Peach Banana) that I make for the Bean nearly every night have some lumps and bumps in them. This confused me. I asked him about it, and his reply,

"I don't like it in there either, but for smoothies, I'll suffer through".

Watta man.

(after mixing the Strawberry Lemonade together, you could actually strain it through cheesecloth if you wished)

Oh, and for more refreshment, check out the Frozen Strawberry Lemonade I made last year. If you want to shortcut that, start with powdered lemonade as well!

So, the Bean doesn't like it? That's cool...

Tina

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Michelle's Tasty Creations

{ Frozen Strawberry Lemonade }

If I said summer fruit, what’s the first thing that pops to mind?

”Strawberries”.

Mmmhmmm, that’s right!

If I said summertime drink, what is the first thing you’d think of?

Am I wrong in assuming most of you said “lemonade”?

So, what do you get when you put the two together into a lovely frozen concoction?

That McYouknowwhat Place has nothing on me.

I can make frozen strawberry lemonade too.

Want me to show you how?

Yeah, I thought so.

1st thing you’ll need is a blender that will crush ice (or other ice crushing equipment- your car vs. a bag of ice is not quite what I mean though).

You’ll also need:

The juice of 6 lemons**

12 or so strawberries

2 cups of water

4 cups of ice

1/2- 3/4 cup white sugar + 1 Tablespoon

**You can also make this the quick and easy way by starting with a lemonade from a  mix or pre-made lemonade.

Just make up the lemonade and use 1 cup in place of the above. Do NOT use the juice of 6 lemons or 1/2-3/4 cup of sugar in this case).

First we’ll make the strawberry puree.

Simply throw about 12 medium sized washed berries (with greens removed, obviously) into the blender with 1 Tablespoon of sugar.

Blend, then pour into a dish.

Wash your blender well.

Juice 6 lemons. You should have close to 1 cup of juice. Make sure to remove all the seeds that you may have lost into the juice.

Yes, you are smart enough to do that without me telling you to.

I apologize.

 Add the juice, 2 cups of water, 4 cups of ice and 1/2 to 3/4 cup white sugar. Start with 1/2 a cup, then taste it to your preference. It all depends on if you like a more tart lemonade or a sweeter one.

I’m tarty. Betcha could have guessed that :)

You can even add more sugar if you wish.

Blend on ‘ice crush’ until smooth (ish- I mean as close as ice can come to smooth). This only took about a minute in my black n decker.

Pour into clear glasses (or if you are like me, canning jars. I like ‘em they are quirky). You should have about 5-6 servings depending on the size of your glass.

Then spoon the puree evenly over the glasses. 

 

Give it a little swirl, top with lemon and a strawberry on the side if desired.

Then kick back, relax, and enjoy the summer day.

What if you can’t drink it all at once? No worries, pour the rest of the puree into the lemonade mix and refrigerate (use with in 2 days).

Know what you get when Frozen Strawberry Lemonade melts?

Strawberry Lemonade!

It’s all good.

Things I want to try next? 

Frozen Kiwi Lemonade

Frozen Blackberry Lemonade.

oh. yes, I do.

~Tina

Print me!