Yesterday was Labor Day which “unofficially” means the end of summer and is marked by tons of backyard cookouts and pool parties. I wanted to make a dip to help celebrate and came up with this strawberry shortcake dip. Strawberries are an iconic summer fruit and so a strawberry shortcake dip seemed quite fitting. I also have a personal connection to strawberries that I will get to in a minute.
Of course, like any holiday, there is a true meaning behind Labor Day and it is not just an excuse to get together with friends and family and eat lots of yummy food. Although there is nothing wrong with that part of it 🙂 .
I like to actually think food and Labor Day are very much connected. According to the US Department of Labor, Labor day “…constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.” Farming is definitely one of those industries that helped transform this country.
My parents were strawberry farmers for a period of their lives. Unfortunately, I was not old enough to remember living on a strawberry farm (they gave up farming when I was around 2), but I think this is a really cool fact of my personal history. Maybe this is one of the reasons I love strawberries?
So I have now combined a recipe for strawberry shortcake dip and a history lesson into one blog post 🙂 Enjoy!
Adapted from: What’s Cooking, Love?
Strawberry Shortcake Dip
Ingredients
- 1 8-oz block of cream cheese, softened
- 1 14-oz can condensed milk
- 2 cups of strawberry puree
- 1 8-oz container of Cool Whip
- Strawberries and pound cake for dippers
Instructions
- Beat together the cream cheese and condensed milk until creamy.
- Mix in the strawberry puree. For the strawberry puree, I used this recipe from Joy of Baking. It is simply strawberries, sugar, and lemon juice blended into a puree.
- Fold in the Cool Whip. Cover and chill for at least an hour before serving.
- Serve with strawberries and pound cake or your choice of dippers. Chocolate graham crackers, angel food cake, or vanilla wafers would all be good options.
Notes
You may also be interested in: Strawberries & Cream Cheeseball & Dessert Mix on Amazon