First up… Strawberry-basil ice cubes and vegetarian jelly.
An average cook tries…
Whilst I have a good sound knowledge of nutrition I would definitely describe my cooking skills as average, some things turn out well and some not so well! Hopefully this will be a bit of fun and a chance to be creative.
This was inspired by YouTuber Lucy Wood’s series Average girl tries, where Lucy tries a range of different makeup brands ( and worth a watch if you enjoy makeup)
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQDcFS0jDfE8fcxmpFHcZGReYP77kIIDL
Strawberry-basil ice cubes and jelly…
My all time favourite herb is basil! Love the taste and the smell! Sadly I am not good at growing basil but I will try again soon!! Over the last year or so I’ve been introduced to basil containing cocktails and mock-tails which are my favourite!
Today I went to Tesco for the weekly shop and found a few packs of basil on sale and set myself a challenge to use them! I found a recipe for basil and strawberry ice cubes (perfect for spring!) and adapted these slightly.
Inspirational recipes
https://www.tablespoon.com/recipes/strawberry-basil-ice-cubes/c6f457dd-cfe9-4583-8d67-50ccf243c92f
https://www.tablespoon.com/recipes/basil-simple-syrup/4e334549-f07a-4b68-bfe3-3284406eac97
I adapted the basil syrup by using stevia instead of sugar. After making the ice cubes I used three packets (possibly too many) of vege-gel ( a gelatine alternative ) to make a vegetarian jelly. I didn’t want to add more fluid so I heated up the basil and strawberry mixture.
Ingredients
- Large pundit of strawberries
- 2 packets of basil
- 6 stevia tablets
- 3 packets vege-gel
- 2 cups water
Step-by-step
Basil syrup
- Add two packets of basil to two cups of boiling water in a pan
- Add stevia to taste ( I added 6 tablets) or sugar/ sugar alternative
- Heat mixture on medium whilst stevia dissolves
- Turn off heat and allow to steep for at least 15 minutes
- Strain syrup
Strawberry and basil mixture
- Blend strawberries until smooth
- Strain to remove seeds
- Add in basil syrup and stir
Jelly
- Dissolve one pack of vege-gel to 200ml water, this will set 1 pint of fluid.
- Heat mixture to boiling and stir frequently
- Add to mounds and allow to set
Pictures















If anyone has any ideas for recipes to try (vegetarian please) then please feel free to leave me a comment 🙂