Eat Seasonally in June: Sweet Strawberry Desserts

Summer just wouldn't be complete without strawberries. Juicy, sweet strawberries are delicious eaten right out of the container, or even straight from a patch in your garden. But they also make a fantastic ingredient in desserts.

This month, take advantage of seasonal fresh strawberries and try a few of these strawberry desserts. From traditional to elaborate, we're sure strawberry-lovers will find something new to make among our summer strawberry dessert discoveries.

Strawberry Desserts: Strawberry Lattice Pie

Lattice-top pies are an old-fashioned treat, and this one from Joy the Baker is filled with strawberries. That's about it too, except for some sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and ginger. Don't leave out the lemon or the ginger; they help bring out the sweetness and depth of the berry flavor.

Don't be intimidated by the prospect of weaving a lattice. Go over and under, and trust that your pie will look fantastic once it comes out of the oven. We bet it will taste even better.

(For additional pie-baking tips to ensure your crust turns out light, flaky, and buttery, refer to our post on baking fails. Cold butter is key.)

Strawberry Desserts: Fresh Strawberry Pie

That's right; we've included two strawberry pie recipes in this roundup. You'll see why when we tell you about this one from I Heart Naptime. Fresh strawberries go on top of a layer of cream cheese whipped with powdered sugar, heavy cream, and lemon zest. But then, you also pour strawberry glaze over all of it. Heavenly!

Of course, this pie includes a crust, but it's only on the bottom. Bake it and let it cool before filling it up. Jamielyn provides her pie crust recipe, but she acknowledges this pie also tastes delicious with a graham cracker crust.

Strawberry Desserts: Strawberry Blondies

If you're looking for a change from brownies, give these blondies from The Kitchn a try. Mix a stick (yes, a whole stick) of browned butter with brown sugar and white chocolate chunks, plus halved fresh strawberries on top.

Take care when browning the butter; it can go from brown to burnt quickly. Definitely follow the guidance to line the pan with parchment too; it will help you lift the blondies out without making a mess.

Strawberry Desserts: Strawberry Yogurt Mousse Cake

Ready to try something a little more challenging? This cake recipe from The Little Epicurean really impressed us.

Don't be fooled by the yogurt in list of ingredients; this cake is full of plenty of richness. There's a shortbread crust, a layer of white cake, a layer of strawberry mousse, and a strawberry jelly glaze. Assemble all of these layers in a springform pan. Yes, it will be time-consuming, but the results will knock your guests' socks off.

Strawberry Desserts: Balsamic Strawberry Mascarpone Mousse

If you haven't tried balsamic vinegar with strawberries, you're missing out on a surprisingly good combination. This recipe from Just a Little Bit of Bacon combines mascarpone and ricotta with heavy cream and lemon curd for the mousse.

Then simmer fresh strawberries with sugar on the stovetop and cool them down. Use them to top the mousse, and then drizzle with your best balsamic vinegar. Or you can use off-the-shelf balsamic -- just reduce it first to give it greater depth of flavor.