Fresh Strawberry Dessert

I love this one. It was my first time making it - even though my Mother-in-Law gave me the recipe 8 years ago at a bridal shower. It just looked too complicated for me to try sooner. But I was craving it this week and I had to make dinner for a friend, so I decided to tackle it.

Fresh Strawberry Dessert

2 pkgs vanilla cream-filled cookies (my package - Ralphs brand - was twice the size of the oreo's so I just needed one)

1 1/2 c. chopped nuts

3 baskets fresh stawberries sliced in halves or thirds

2 c. wipped cream, whipped and sweetened

Filling:

1 c. butter, softened

2 c. powdered sugar

4 eggs, seperated

1/4 c. lemon juice

Crush your cookies in a food processor. Then layer them (about a 1/2 layer) in the bottom or a 9 x 13 pan. You'll have cookies left over. Sprinkle your nuts on top. (I'm sorry to admit that I just don't like the nuts layer, so I left it out.)

Now for the filling - Beat the butter, powdered sugar and egg yolks until smooth. Then add the lemon juice. In a seperate bowl beat the egg whites until stiff. Then fold the two mixtures together. Spread the filling on top of your crumbs (and nuts). Then add your sliced strawberries. You can do one or two layers of strawberries. This time I did one and next time I'm definitely doing two. I LOVE the fresh strawberries! Whip your cream and sweeten with powdered sugar. (give it a taste to tell if it's sweetened enough). Then spread it on top of the stawberries. Finally add some more cookie crumbs on top of the whipped cream. (I had my 4 year old help me with that, and we went a little crazy!)

I think this dessert tastes best after a couple of hours in the fridge. You can even make it the day before. It honestly wasn't as scary as I thought it was going to be. And it's one of my favorite desserts for this season of yummy strawberries!