Even though I currently have over 10 pounds of peaches on my counter (I have two different peach preserves coming up this week – at 49-cents a pound for ripe, local peaches, how could I not?) I have a confession to make. I prefer nectarines. Shhhhh . . . don’t tell the peaches! There is just something luscious about nectarines that I adore. A variety of the peach, I love the smoother skin, the more vibrant flavor and the firmer flesh for eating out of hand. The scent is intoxicating, just slightly more exotic than it’s sister, the peach, and one that I would voluntarily dab behind my ear for a sweet surprise for my sweetheart . . . When it is nectarine season, I keep pounds of them on [... To read more, click here ...]
Aug 162010
Aug 092010
I’m not one to gild the lily on most things. I like simple, pure flavors of whatever is freshest and in season. Especially when it comes to fruit. It is my personal opinion that there is nothing better on a hot summer day than a nice wedge of cold watermelon. Sure, every summer I make some jams, enjoy a few strawberry shortcakes, peach tarts and blackberry cobblers in the summer (my personal favorite, by the way) but when it comes to summer fruit, more often than not, I eat it fresh, unadorned and straight out of hand. I’ve seen those recipes for melon salads before. The one that tries to take the melon’s innate sweetness and turn it savory by adding pungent, crumbly cheese, or thrown in with something like [... To read more, click here ...]
Jun 232010
How cute is this kid? Seriously. I’m so glad he’s mine. And what is even cuter is it’s almost an exact replica of a picture of me from when I was a little two or three year old surrounded by stockpots and colanders full of strawberries from our garden. When I have the opportunity, I’ll scan it in to share. (And anyway, isn’t it a better picture than one of a bowl of white ice cream? I thought so too. . .) Buttermilk ice cream was the debut recipe I made in my new ice cream maker this season. We served it to friends after a meal of smoked pork ribs Memorial Day weekend topped with those very same strawberries Lloyd helped pick. However, even though strawberry season is just [... To read more, click here ...]
Jun 152010
Believe me when I tell you this: This recipe could easily be the best strawberry ice cream I’ve ever had. Made with strawberries at the peak of freshness, plucked right out of our patch, this ice cream is smooth and rich with a hint of tang from the cream cheese. When I made it, I thought I’d spoon some extra sliced strawberries over the top upon service. When I ate it, I realized it needed no extra additions; the flavor was purely, deeply strawberry. The deep, rich pink color is purely natural, and takes it over the top for me. If your husband/brother/uncle/father/friend is a fan of strawberry ice cream, you really must make it for them this weekend for Father’s Day. I insist. Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream? Yes, please. [... To read more, click here ...]
Jun 082010
It is almost full-on summertime and it is hot outside! One of my family’s favorite ways to keep cool during the summer heat is to sip on cool smoothies made with fresh, seasonal fruit and freezing those smoothies into popsicles. I love using whole, fresh fruit (whatever is in season at the farmstands!) to make our smoothies and popsicles, as it keeps all the goodness and fiber from the fruit intact, while allowing you, the parent, to sweeten to your family’s taste. We prefer just a bit of honey to make these sweet treats a hit. Not only are these recipes tasty, but they are also a great way to use up lots of fresh fruit before it goes bad. So get out your blenders and your popsicle molds and [... To read more, click here ...]
May 032010
We made this cake for Luke’s first birthday party. Already a big fan of strawberries, (he holds onto them firmly with his fat, dimply fists as he gums them to pieces), with his birthday at the end of April the first strawberries were making their way into the store’s and we had to have some to make the celebration complete. I wanted a special birthday cake that I not only felt comfortable with him eating and enjoying as only a first birthday cake can be, but would be enjoyed by both children and adults alike. When I came across this one, in one of my favorite baking cookbooks, full of good healthy ingredients like homemade yogurt and lemon and adapted lightly, by me, with coconut oil and rapadura, slightly sweet, [... To read more, click here ...]
Nov 252009
Yum, right? I am excited to announce that I’m a guest blogger over at Centsational Girl’s blog today! I’m sharing one of our family’s favorite recipes, Sweet Potato Pecan Pie, which I make every year! This pie is a great combination of classic sweet potato pie with a spicy, creamy base and pecan pie, with a gorgeous crunchy top. Not to mention the flaky, buttery crust. I love it. For the recipe, please visit Centsational Girl, and check out a few of the other great posts she’s shared recently, while you’re at it! My favorites? How to make homemade Christmas Crackers (I am so saving my toilet paper and paper towel rolls from now until Christmas!), and A gorgeous poinsettia pillow made out of felt. I don’t have time to [... To read more, click here ...]
Wait, let me repeat myself. Double Chocolate Cake with Hot Fudge Sauce And did I mention it is entirely whole wheat? Yes, yes it is. Oh, and cooked in your slow cooker? Yes, yes it is. You know you’ve seen recipes like this before. I had. And I thought, “Baking? In a crock pot?” At first I only found recipes in old, original crock pot recipe books that had you baking inside of a metal coffee can inserted in your slow cooker. Quaint, I thought, but I have an oven. But then I saw a recipe I couldn’t ignore. I tried it. It was good. I fiddled around with it and it became better, and better for you. And I’m here to share it with you today. Because Yes, you [... To read more, click here ...]
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