You probably couldn’t have guessed it from the sweet treats I’ve posted recently, but Nate and I are really trying to eat better.  Even his cupcake hording has subsided; I didn’t even hear one fuss when giving away extra chocolate cupcakes with mint chocolate chip frosting to our parents.  However, I truly do not believe in diets.  I don’t think they work, and I don’t think it’s realistic to restrict your eating for your entire life.  What I do think is possible is being conscious of what you put in your body, everything in moderation, and taste everything, but eat nothing.

The purpose behind this dessert was two-fold.  We had both our parents over for Father’s Day, and we wanted to serve a light dessert since we’d be sitting outside, it was hot and we were grilling.  Secondly, because we were grilling dinner, I wanted to do a dessert on the grill, but quick and easy as I didn’t want to spend a lot of time putzing around.  Bobby Flay does it, why can’t I?  I thought of doing grilled strawberry shortcake, and as always, while I think I have a fantastic brainiac idea, alas, someone else has already thought of it.  But the upside to not being the first to think of it is that it’s usually already perfected, so there isn’t a lot of trial and error.

This was my dad helping me with the photos.

I found this recipe at Sugar Mama, a blog I’ve never visited before.  It was quick, simple and light, just what I was looking for.  The key to this dessert was the sweetened condensed milk.  That adds an extra sweetness to the angel food cake and the strawberries.  Sugar Mama suggests brushing just the angel food cake, but I did both.  And by brush, I mean drizzle, because that light and fluffy cake makes it hard to brush on anything, especially sticky, thick sweetened condensed milk.  Overall, everyone seemed quite impressed and liked the fun idea of the grilled shortcake kabobs.  This would be a great idea for your summer grilling parties, and especially for kids and little paws.  The cake gets a slight crisp on the outside, but stays soft and fluffy on the inside.  The strawberries soften up just a bit, but not so much to be mushy.  Add a dollop of Cool Whip, and you’re good to go!

Grilled Strawberry Shortcake Kabobs

Source: Adapted from Sugar Mama
Servings: 6-8

Ingredients:

1 pint strawberries, stems removed and washed
1/2 store-bought angel food cake (I made mine from a box for a little less and used half)
3 tbsp fat-free sweetened condensed milk
Cool Whip

Directions:

1. If you are using wooden skewers, soak in water for about 15 minutes.  Heat grill to medium.

2. Cut angel food cake into large pieces, about 1 1/2 inch cubes.  Thread skewers, alternating strawberries and angel food cake cubes.  Place on a large baking sheet.  Drizzle skewers with sweetened condensed milk, flip and drizzle again to get both sides.

3. Place skewers on hot grill, turning every minute or so.  This will depend on how hot your grill is, but once you see the angel food cake begin to brown or get grill marks, it’s time to turn.  Don’t walk away, it goes very quickly.

4. Serve with Cool Whip for dipping.