Strawberries Filled with Almond Cream
25 jumbo strawberries
3/4 c heavy whipping cream
3/4 c milk
1 small box vanilla instant pudding
1/2 tsp almond extract
Wash and dry berries. Slice off stem end. Using a sharp paring knife, slice an “x” deep into berries without cutting all the way down. Beat heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form. In a separate bowl, combine milk and pudding. Beat for 2 minutes. Add almond extract and whipped cream. Fit a pastry bag with a #10 or #12 round tip (depending on the size of berries). Fill pastry bag with pudding mixture. Pipe pudding into strawberries, spreading petals open with fingers to allow more cream to fit.
A word to the lazy: an alternate way of serving this would be to quarter or slice the strawberries and serve the filling in a small dish. The filling can be spooned over the cut strawberries. Slicing the strawberries and using them as scoops for the filling works well too.