Foodie Fridays & Weekend Fare

It's a double feature today. :) I'm sharing a recipe and introducing Foodie Fridays - I hope many of you will join in and share your food experiences!

Peaches and blueberries are such a wonderful combination. I needed a dessert for company and found a recipe for individual Peach & Blueberry Crumbles which I adapted. Yum. They were absolutely delicious. I made them a few hours ahead and then put them back in the oven to re-warm them. I served them with fresh whipped cream (not pictured) flavored with a little vanilla extract and a hint of cinnamon. The only thing I would change is to add a bit less sugar to the crumble topping - it was quite sweet. These were quick to put together and looked elegant served in the individual ramekins.



PEACH & BLUEBERRY CRUMBLES
Print This Recipe

2 lbs. firm, ripe peaches, peeled & sliced or 4 c. frozen peaches
1 c. fresh or frozen blueberries
1 tsp. grated lemon zest
2 Tb. lemon juice
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. flour

Crumble: 
1 c. flour
1/3 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 c. (1 stick) cold  butter, diced

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Place peaches and blueberries in a large bowl. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, granulated sugar, and flour. Toss well. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes. Divide the mixture between six lightly greased ramekins or custard cups.

For the topping, combine the flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and the cut butter in a medium mixing bowl. Use a pastry cutter to cut in butter until it is pea size. Sprinkle evenly over the fruit. Place the ramekins on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake for 45 minutes or until the tops are browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Top with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream if desired.

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FOODIE FRIDAYS!

We are so excited to give this feature a try. There is so much we can learn and share from one another! I find myself inspired by reading other blogs. We hope you will find this feature encouraging and inspiring.

Here are just a few guidelines for participating in Foodie Fridays:
1) Leave a link to your post with Mr. Linky.
2) Your entry can include a recipe, a kitchen success, an ingredient, a tradition, a book/magazine/restaurant review, a favorite (or not) tool or gadget, food photos, recipe website, a food memory, a cooking or eating experience or anything food related.
3) Please link back here in your participating post.

Hope you have fun, meet new people, learn a few things, feel encouraged, and find inspiration as you cook, bake, and entertain!

Off The Shelf: Eating History

Eating History: 30 Turning points in the Making of American Cuisine, by Andrew F. Smith, is not a cookbook, but rather a book of essays showing how Americans' diets have evolved throughout the history of our country to get to the point we are at now.

Some may find this book a bit dry. Others, who love both history and food, will find it fascinating as they discover things like the effect of the Erie Canal on the average diet, the role of religion in the development of modern cold cereal, how war opened the way for our present-day reliance on canned goods, and how the development of various diets has affected the food available in our grocery stores.

Other fascinating chapters include: Cyrus McCormick's Reaper, Gail Borden's Canned Milk, Fair Food, Wilbur O. Atwater's Calorimeter, Fannie Farmer's Cookbook, Jerome I. Rodale's Organic Gardening, and Julia Child the French Chef.

One of the chapters is devoted to the start of Gourmet magazine in 1941. Started during World War II, the magazine surprisingly survived a difficult time in our American history and continued being published right up until last year. Since there are no recipes in Eating History, I decided to use one from Gourmet.

This cake is simple to make and perfect for a summer afternoon (combined with a cup of tea, of course).



NECTARINE GOLDEN CAKE
(Gourmet, September 2009)
Print this recipe

1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
rounded 1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. butter, softened
3/4 cup plus 1/2 Tbsp sugar, divided (I used 1/2 cup sugar)
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. almond extract
2 nectarines, pitted and cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges (I used peaches)
1/2 tsp. grated nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350F with rack in middle. Lightly butter a 9-inch springform pan.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

Beat butter and 3/4 cup sugar with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in extracts. At low speed, mix in flour mixture until just combined.

Spread batter evenly in pan, then scatter nectarines over top. Stir together nutmeg and remaining 1/2 Tbsp. sugar and sprinkle over top. Bake until cake is golden-brown and top is firm but tender when lightly touched (cake will rise over fruit), 45 to 50 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Remove side of pan and cool to warm.

Serve plain, or with whipped cream or vanilla ice-cream.

Serves 8.

Baker's Delight: Pear Tart

It's getting towards the end of winter and I'm getting anxious for summer fruits! It's the perfect time to finish using up your canned and frozen fruits which would be great in this recipe. Today, I'm using fresh pears. This is absolutely one of our favorite desserts. I made this when we were first married and it's continued to make a regular appearance. I usually make it with canned, fresh, or frozen peaches and that's still my favorite way but this is really good!



PEAR TART
Print This Recipe

3 Tb. butter, melted
3/4 c. plus 1 Tb. sugar, divided
3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/3 c. finely chopped pecans
1 package (8 oz.) regular or reduced-fat cream cheese
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon, divided
1 large pear, cored and thinly sliced (you can peel if you want)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Grease a tart pan with removable bottom (about an 8-9 inch tart pan). In a small mixing bowl, use a fork to combine melted butter, 1/2 c. of sugar, flour and nuts until crumbly. Press onto the bottom and up the sides of the fluted tart pan.

In another mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in 1/4 c. sugar, egg, vanilla, and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon; spread over the crust. Arrange pears over cream cheese mixture. Combine the remaining 1 tsp. cinnamon and 1 Tb. of sugar; sprinkle over pears.

Bake at 425 degrees for 10 min. Reduce heat to 350 degrees; bake 15-20 min. longer or until filling is set. Cool for 1 hr. on a wire rack. Refrigerate for at least 2 hrs. before serving. Remove sides of pan and slice. Yield: 8-10 servings.