When I was growing up, we had a strawberry patch out near the garden.

Strawberries are pretty tasty, but my busy life now wouldn’t allow for me to tend to the plants, so I’ve opted the last several years to buy from local producers. In fact, I relented and got some out-of-state berries from the grocery this weekend.

But like the late Bill Quilliam was known to say, “Just because they are big and pretty doesn’t mean they are sweet.”

What I bought were pretty berries, and they did the job — which was make dessert for Sunday lunch. But they weren’t all that sweet and tasty right out of the box.

Searching through my cookbooks, I was looking for a strawberry dessert, and while I’d settle any day for a simple shortcake, topped with sweetened strawberries and real cream, most of my family prefers other desserts.

I ended up making a strawberry flop, which ended up being a hit at the dinner table.

But I’ll have to confess I cheated a lot along the way to get it accomplished.

Strawberry flop calls for torn up angel food cake and glazed strawberries.

I purchased my cake at Knepp’s Restaurant, and I bought my glaze at the same grocery where the berries came from in anticipation of perhaps making strawberry pie.

Here’s the way I did mine:

Strawberry Flop

1/2 angel food cake torn into small pieces

1 quart strawberries, washed, stemmed and sliced

1/2 bag strawberry glaze

12 oz. cream cheese