Strawberry Blossoms

Total Time: 20 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• 12 large fresh strawberries, rinsed, stemmed
• 1 (3 ounce) full fat package cream cheese, softened
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons full fat sour cream
• 1/2 teaspoon hazelnut extract or 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• mint leaf
• hazelnuts, chopped and roasted

Recipe

• 1 note: a ziploc-type sandwich bag can be used instead of a pastry bag to fill the strawberries. place the filling in the bag, then squeeze out the excess air before sealing. carefully snip off corner of the bottom of the bag.
• 2 remove stems from strawberries to form a flat base by cutting off horizontally a very thin top layer of each strawberry.
• 3 place berries on cutting surface, pointed end facing up. with a sharp knife, carefully slice each berry in half vertically to within a 1/4 inch of base. cut each half into three wedges to form 6 petals. *do not* slice through the base. pull petals apart slighly and very carefully.
• 4 in a small bowl, combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, sour cream and extract; beat until light and fluffy.
• 5 fill strawberries with cream cheese mixture using a a pastry bag with star tip, ziploc bag or small spoon.
• 6 refrigerate until ready to serve. when ready to serve, garnish each strawberry with a small mint leaf and a sprinkle of roasted hazelnuts.