Gorgeous Michigan strawberries are now available — red, ripe, fragrant, and delicious. Eat them out of hand, serve them topped with freshly whipped cream, stir them into rich ice cream. Or flavor them with bright, refreshing Margarita ingredients and bake them into a simple, summery dessert that also uses another Michigan product: Jiffy mix, a great convenience item to have on hand at any time.

Strawberry Margarita Cobbler

2 pounds strawberries, cut into 1/2-to 3/4-inch pieces
juice of 1 lime
1 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest
1 tablespoon tequila, optional
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 8.5-ounce package Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 egg
1/3 cup buttermilk
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Preheat oven to 400degrees. Grease 4 8-ounce ramekins and place them onto a baking sheet (to catch drips).

In a large mixing bowl, combine berries, lime juice, orange zest, the optional tequila, sugar, and cornstarch; divide the berry mixture among the ramekins.

Place the Jiffy mix into a medium mixing bowl. Stir together the egg and buttermilk; stir into the muffin mix just until combined. Divide batter among the ramekins, covering the berries as much as possible. Sprinkle the salt over the corn muffin batter.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until the top is golden and the filling is bubbly. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

Makes 4 servings.

Mary Bilyeu - a self-proclaimed Food Floozie (named for her blog, which is taking a summer vacation) - writes for AnnArbor.com on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, telling about her adventures in the kitchen. She is also on a mission to find great deals for her Frugal Floozie Friday posts, seeking fabulous food at restaurants on the limited budget of only $5 per person. Feel free to email her with questions, comments, or suggestions: yentamary@gmail.com.

The phrase "You Should Only Be Happy" (written in Hebrew on the stone pictured in this post) comes from Deuteronomy 16:15 and is a wish for all her readers - when you come to visit here, may you always be happy.