Countdown to 30: Giveaway 4

Hope you aren't getting tired of giveaways! And have I mentioned how excited I am about Sunday & Monday's giveaways?! You'll have to stay tuned - no hints. :)

I thought you might enjoy some recipes today. These are for a couple of my favorite birthday desserts. The photo is of one of the coolest cakes my mom made for me! We were banished from the kitchen when she decorated cakes for us - such a fun birthday surprise!


STRAWBERRY PIE:
(Better Homes & Gardens)

1 Baked Pie Shell
8 cups medium fresh strawberries
2/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Several drops red food coloring (optional)
Whipped cream or Vanilla Ice Cream (optional)

1. Prepare Baked Pie Shell and set aside. Meanwhile remove stems from strawberries. Cut any large strawberries in half lengthwise; set aside.
2. For glaze, in a blender or food processor combine 1 cup of the strawberries and 2/3 cup water. Cover and blend or process until smooth. Add enough additional water to the mixture to equal 1-1/2 cups. In a medium saucepan combine sugar and cornstarch; stir in blended strawberry mixture. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture is thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 2 minutes more. If desired, stir in red food coloring. Remove from heat; cool for 10 minutes. (Do not stir.)
3. Spread about 1/4 cup of the glaze over bottom and sides of Baked Pastry Shell. Arrange half of the remaining strawberries, stem ends down, in the pastry shell.
4. Carefully spoon half of the remaining glaze over berries, making sure all berries are covered. Arrange remaining berries over first layer. Spoon remaining glaze over berries, covering each. Chill for 1 to 2 hours. (After 2 hours, filling may begin to water out.) If desired, top with whipped cream or ice cream.
5. Makes 8 slices

LEMON GLAZE CAKE:

1 (18.25 ounce) package lemon cake mix
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup lemon juice
4 eggs

Glaze:
1/3 cup lemon juice
2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon water

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x13 inch pan.
In a large bowl, combine together cake mix, oil, lemon juice and eggs. Beat on low speed until blended. Scrape bowl, and beat 4 minutes on medium speed. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.

To make the Glaze: In a medium bowl, combine lemon juice and confectioners' sugar. Beat in the melted butter and 1 tablespoon water. Poke holes in the top of the cake and pour glaze over.

The giveaway for today is for book lovers. I really enjoy a good book and was an avid reader as a kid. I would devour sometimes 2-3 books in one day (on break, of course!). I don't read as much as I would like these days but I still enjoy wandering through book stores, adding to our library, reading something new or revisiting an old favorite. So the winner of this prize will have their choice of a $5 gift card to Half-Price Books, Barnes & Noble, or Borders.

You are all eligible to enter! Just leave a comment with a favorite book, favorite quote, or whatever you like (again, a simple 'pick me' will not work).

Just for a reminder, here are the rules (clarified a little):
1) 1 entry per person per giveaway - you do not have to live locally or even know me personally for any of the prizes (I will cover all shipping costs).
2) You can enter all drawings for the week - just leave a comment with the specified guidelines on each giveaway post.
3) Make sure I have a way to contact you if you are the winner (winners will be chosen randomly unless otherwise noted).

I will draw winners for all giveaways next Wednesday, June 3 and contact the winners via e-mail and list them here on the blog. And I'll try to get everything in the mail or delivered within the week. Thanks for joining in my birthday celebration!