Some Scinitillating Strawberry Parfait and the year to come !

So is too late to wish you a Happy new year?  How has been the new year so far? What are your resolutions for the year or is it not to have any more resolutions? 


When each year passes by, don't we all make a mental note of our achievements and disappointments of the year left behind. Well.. I too am no stranger to this phenomenon.

I would brand myself otherwise to be a care-free and maybe even happy-go-lucky person following the mantra - "Let me take life as it comes" . I never believed in taking hard- lined resolutions at the beginning of each year as I felt that things in life come unexpected and most of which are beyond one's control. Though this was true to an extent and a carefree attitude is good at most times except that I wasn't doing any self-evaluation or feeling any sense of achievement at the end of every year.


But when 2011 has been radically different for me and enriching with its own share of ups and downs, it got me thinking. From being a new wife learning the ropes of handling all the domesticities such as cooking, re-arrangement of my daily life around a whole new person, acquiring skills of (amateur) baking or other things such as learning to drive to even writing a blog and actually continuing it, it was one swell year. If it doesn't sound too childish, I am going to gloat shamelessly about it. :-)


That's when the idea kicked in that probably it is time that I consciously do something distinct in this new year of 2012. For once let me actually have an proper plan of the things I want/need to do during the year and evaluate myself at the end of the year.

So here goes:

• Getting back into shape and start exercising regularly and availing the free gym facility extended to us at my apartment. This is intended to be implemented and monitored not just for me but also for the husband.  Alas ! This was bound to happen with all the excessive baking I was doing. 
• Learn a minimum of one new language - priority being Arabic. It just hit me so hard to the point of embarrassment that even after living for almost 20 years of my life in the Middle east, I barely know the local language. Ofcourse, not forgetting the edge I expect it to give me at my work place. 
• Set a couple of baking milestones for myself during the year which will be set as I proceed along the lines of advanced cake decorating, cupcake frosting and also to know my way around using coloured fondants not to forget certain specific pastries I intend on mastering.
• Actively continue and mandatorily read a minimum of 20 books that works out to roughly an average of 2 per month and seriously think about posting the respective book reviews out here.
• A flexible resolution of learning to speak French and ofcourse, in the authentic manner, which for some reason has incited much passion in me either due to that fact that it was my highest scoring subject in my 10th board exams or just that it sounded too exotic for me to ever speak perfectly.

So what would be more perfect than some Strawberry parfait to kick off the year- something french and something perfect ! Oh ya Parfait = Perfect in the French language and is usually coined for frozen desserts there. 

                           

STRAWBERRY PARFAIT

(heavily inspired from Anushruti's Divine Taste)

Serves 4 glasses

Ingredients:

3/4 cup- Frozen strawberries

1/2 tin or as needed-  Strawberry pie filling or topping ( I used American garden)

1 cup -Lite Digestive biscuits powdered

2 tbsp- Melted butter

200 ml- Low fat cream

1/2 cup or even lesser- Fine sugar or powdered sugar

500 gm (1 1/2 cups) Thick yogurt/ Labneh- ( I used Pinar Lite)

                       

Method:

Powder the biscuits in your normal mixer/grinder and melt the butter for about 20 sec in the microwave. Mix both together using your hand until it feels like sand or bread crumbs.

In a mixing bowl, whisk the sugar and the cream using a electric beater for 4-5 mins until smooth and creamy. Also fold in the yoghurt into this mixture.

Assembling: 

Either bring out your nice good-looking glasses or even flat-bottomed plain glasses would suffice. First, place about 2 tbsps of yoghurt into it. 

Sprinkle the biscuit crumbs over the yogurt. Scoop in some of the strawberry preserve and repeat until the glass is filled and preferably with the strawberries on top for obvious reasons. Serve chilled !

This is one dessert that can be prepared well in advance and refrigerated until dessert time. Alternatively, the preparations can be done earlier and the assembling can be done just before serving as well. 

Note:

• Definitely would taste better with fresh strawberries.
• Used low fat biscuits, cream and yoghurt in the hope of cutting down the extra calories.
• Strawberry filling does actually have a blood red colour !

How we liked it?

Hubby is a big big fan of this and my MIL who is an ardent fan of strawberries loved it as well. The difference in textures- creamy yoghurt, tangy strawberries and crunch of the biscuits offer such diversity yet complement one another so well.

Perfect when I am pressed for time and having sudden guests over for a meal. Quick, great looking and seemingly exotic dessert that wins hearts of all its consumers. 

Wishing all of you out there a PERFECT New year with this humble PARFAIT of mine. May all your dreams come true !


Update: Sending this recipe to the event - Valentines Day @ Anzz cafe.