Mixed Fruit Lasagne

For Sunday dinner, I had intended to bake an old favorite, Peach Lasagne, using leftover Italian bread and some beautiful peaches from the farm market. Unfortunately, the peaches I had bought most recently weren’t ripe enough and the three peaches leftover from the previous week didn’t equal the four cups I needed for the recipe. I decided to add some leftover strawberries and drained, canned pineapple tidbits. I also substituted toasted pecans for the almonds in my original recipe and the dessert was delicious. My daughters loved it.

This is the original recipe: https://lillianscupboard.wordpress.com/2008/07/06/peach-lasagne/

• Servings: 6
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Fruit Layer:
4 cups mixed fruit (I used equal amounts of strawberries, peaches and pineapple)
3/4 cup granulated sugar

Bread Layer:
6 Tblsp. butter
8 slices hearty bread, sliced fairly thin
1-1/2 Tblsp. granulated sugar

Crumb Topping:
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 Tblsp. dark brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of salt
4 Tblsp. butter
3 Tblsp. toasted pecans, coarsely chopped

Preheat oven @ 350 degrees F

Cut fruit into bite-sized pieces, add granulated sugar, mix and set aside.
Spread butter on both sides of 8 slices of bread. Place slices in a large skillet over medium heat and brown on each side.

Line the bottom of a 9 inch baking dish with half of the browned buttered slices – just cover the bottom without overlapping. OK to break the bread into smaller pieces to fit them in. Sprinkle ¾ Tblp. sugar over the slices. Spoon half of fruit mixture on top of bread slices, spreading to cover.

Repeat with another layer of bread slices sprinkled with sugar and the remaining half of the fruit mixture.

Crumb Topping: Mix together the flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt and cut in butter. Sprinkle the topping over the last fruit layer and top with chopped pecans.

Cover and bake @ 350 degrees F for 50 minutes. Uncover and bake 10 minutes more.

Serve warm.

 

Fresh Blueberry Sauce

Each summer I look forward to the wonderful, flavorful blueberries grown by a local farm/market – Blooms and Berries (Loveland, Ohio). I was looking for a sauce to be used on ice cream that would not detract from the natural flavor of these berries and came up with this very simple recipe which everyone loves. I make the sauce as I’m finishing cooking the meal, turn it off and allow it to set until we’re ready for dessert. That makes it just the right temperature for serving.

• Servings: 2 cups - 4-6 servings
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2 cups (one pint) fresh blueberries, rinsed and drained
¼ cup plus 1 Tblsp. granulated sugar
1 Tblsp. water
Dash of grated nutmeg
½ tsp. vanilla extract

Place berries, sugar, water, nutmeg and vanilla in a medium saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a boil – approximately 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand for a half-hour or so to cool a bit. Spoon over vanilla ice cream. 

Blooms and Berries just announced that their U-Pick session for blueberries begins tomorrow.  My daughter will have to get down there early to pick berries and I’ll be sure we gave enough ice cream on hand.  Summer is here!

 

 

 

 

 

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Raspberry Mountain

In the 1980s-90s, my husband and I lived in a rural area called Blue Jay, located on the Ohio/Indiana border.  My husband had a huge garden and every kind of berry bush and fruit tree that does well in our area.  My favorites were the black raspberries and we got bumper crops year after year.  I used them in every conceivable way, but regret that I found this recipe after we had to leave our country home and all the wonderful berries.  It’s a quick, easy way to turn 1-½ cups of fresh raspberries into a delicious dessert with a little cake and lots of berries.

Butter is melted in the oven in a 9-inch pie plate.  Then cake batter is poured over the butter (no stirring) and berries are scattered on top along with a sprinkling of sugar.  The cake rises up over the berries to form a thin layer and is delicious warm from the oven or at room temperature.

• Servings: 6
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¼ cup butter, cut into small pieces
½ cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Dash of salt
¼ tsp. nutmeg
¾ tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup plus 2 Tblsp. milk
1-½ cups fresh raspberries
Additional 1-1/2 Tblsp. granulated sugar for topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and melt butter in 9-inch pie plate   Heat until butter is melted but not brown.

Meanwhile, mix flour, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, salt and baking powder in bowl.

Stir in milk.  Pour this batter over the melted butter – DO NOT STIR.

Drop berries over top, scattering evenly over surface.  DO NOT STIR.

Sprinkle 2 Tblsp. granulated sugar on top and bake for 30 minutes @ 350 F degrees.

The butter and batter rise to make a thin top crust that is buttery, sugary and crunchy at the edges.

Delicious plain or with a bit of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. 

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Lemon Custard Bread Pudding with Sauce

This recipe is adapted from one in a favorite cookbook from the 1970s – Redbook Cookbook (1976), offered as a premium with a subscription to Redbook magazine.  This was originally a custard bread pudding recipe which I adapted by adding lemon extract and by making a favorite sauce with lemon juice and grated lemon peel.  It’s lighter than most bread pudding with a delicious custard.  Heavier bread like Italian, French or sourdough would be the best to use for this.

The pudding is baked in a deep casserole dish which has been placed in a shallow pan of hot water.

LEMON CUSTARD BREAD PUDDING AND SAUCE

• Servings: 6
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4 cups day-old bread cubes
3 cups milk
¼ cup butter
½ cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp lemon extract

Heat oven to 350.  Grease a deep 1-1/2 qt. baking dish.

Place bread cubes in a large bowl and set aside.  Heat milk in a saucepan over low heat until little bubbles form at pan edge.  Remove from heat, add butter, sugar.  Stir and pour this mixture over the  bread cubes.  Let stand for 5 minutes.

In a small bowl, beat eggs well and add salt and lemon extract.  Slowly stir tje egg mixture into the bread/milk mixture.  Pour into greased dish.  Set dish in a baking pan and add one inch of hot water to pan.  Bake for 55 minutes until set.  Let cool in dish on a rack.

LEMON SAUCE  (1-½ cups)
½ cup granulated sugar
2-¼ Tblsp. cornstarch
¼ tsp. salt
1 cup cold water
2 Tblsp. butter
½ cup lemon juice
1 tsp. grated lemon peel

In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, salt and water.  Stirring constantly, heat until mixture boils.  Remove from heat and stir in butter, lemon juice and lemon peel.  Serve warm over bread pudding.  Makes about 1-½ cups.

Refrigerate leftovers of pudding and sauce.  Bring to room temperature or heat briefly in the microwave to serve.

 

Clementine Pudding

It’s that time of year again when we often find a few remaining Clementines and we’re tired of eating them out of hand.  This is a good way to use Clementines and enjoy a bright, orange flavored dessert.

First, to prepare the Clementines:

Wash and dry three Clementines, remove stems and place in a microwave-safe dish.  Cover Clementines with cold water, put a lid on the dish and microwave on high for approximately 10 minutes.  Clementines should be quite soft and look something like fresh, ripe apricots.  Let cool in microwave – be careful, they get very hot.

Cut the Clementines in half and process as finely as possible in a food processor or blender (remove seeds if necessary but, yes, process both rind and flesh).

Makes about ½ cup.  Set aside.

Note:  Clementines can also be covered with water and boiled on the stove top for two hours.  Clementine puree can be frozen.

• Servings: 6
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¼ cup cornstarch
½ cup granulated sugar
½ tsp. salt

1 egg
1 cup cold milk
1 cup hot milk
1/2 cup Clementine puree (See instructions above)
1 Tblsp. undiluted orange juice concentrate

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the cornstarch, sugar, salt, egg and cold milk.  Slowly whisk in hot milk and cook over medium high heat until mixture begins to boil. Lower heat to medium and continue cooking, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes.  Remove from heat and add Clementine puree and orange juice concentrate.  Stir and allow to cool in the pan, stirring occasionally to prevent a skin from forming on top.

Pour into six dessert dishes.  Good at room temperature or chilled.  Refrigerate leftovers.

 

Raspberry Cream Dessert

This is another take on one of my favorite chilled desserts which combines yogurt, frozen topping and cream cheese.  This makes a delicious chilled dessert base which is creamy and smooth but not too sweet.  The addition of raspberries makes it special.

• Servings: 4-6
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1 cup yogurt
1-½ cups frozen topping, thawed (Cool Whip)
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
12 oz. frozen raspberries, thawed (about 1-½ cups with juice)

Mix together the yogurt, whipped topping and cream cheese until smooth.

Stir in the raspberries.

Spoon mixture into 4-6 pretty dessert dishes.

Cover and chill for at least two hours.

Makes 4-6 servings

Easy Cannoli Cones

These cannoli cones aren’t going to be as good as the cannolis from your favorite Italian restaurant but they’re really delicious, easy to make and fill the need for a quick cannoli fix.  I combined several recipes, ideas and tips from online to make this fun dessert.

To hold the cones while coating them with chocolate and chilling them, you can cut an “x”  for the number of portions in the top of the cardboard cone box covered with foil…

… or, my favorite, the bottom of a Styrofoam egg carton, inverted with an “x” cut for the portions.

At first, I thought it would be nice to serve the cones in a tall flute along with the filling and garnishes in separate bowls …

… but the cones are  too hard to remove.  I found it best to just let each person grab a cone and alternate layers of filling, chips, cherries and nuts.

• Servings: 6
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6 sugar cones (the cake type with pointed ends)
½ cup chocolate chips, melted
¼ cup heavy cream
8 oz. ricotta cheese (one cup)
¼ cup powdered sugar
¼ tsp. vanilla extract
½ cup each of mini chocolate chips, chopped pistachios and chopped candied cherries

Place a spoonful of melted chocolate into each cone, turning and swirling to coat the inside of the cone.  Spread a little bit of chocolate over the rim of the cone.  Place cones in a container and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes until set.

To make filling:
Beat heavy cream until stiff peaks form.  Beat in ricotta, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth.  Place in a covered bowl and refrigerate until ready to serve.

The chocolate coating on the cones and the filling can be done ahead of time, but wait until ready to serve before filling the cones so they will be nice and crisp.

Fill cones with alternating layers of filling, chips, cherries and nuts.

Servings:  6 cones   

Peach and Cantaloupe Shortcake

I was looking through my collection of vintage cookbooks and found one dated 1944 (priced 10 cents) from Kerr Mason Jars, Caps and Lids.  

The art work in these old books is amazing and since this was published during WW II, there are a number of references to doing your part for the duration.

I found one recipe for Peach and Cantaloupe Conserve that sounded interesting, but I don’t make big quantities of sweet spreads any more.  I liked the idea of the combination of fruit and used a favorite fruit sauce recipe with a tiny percentage of the sugar called for and came up with these shortcakes.
We liked this dessert very much and it’s a good way to use fresh summer produce.

Here in the Cincinnati area, we have a melon which looks and tastes like a cantaloupe, but it’s as big as a medium-sized watermelon.  It’s called Indiana Melon and has the most wonderful flavor.  I also found some huge South Carolina peaches at the farm stand and had what I needed to make my shortcakes.

• Servings: 8
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3 cups fresh peaches, peeled, seeded and diced

3 cups cantaloupe, peeled, seeded and diced
1 cup water
¼ cup granulated sugar (depending on sweetness of peaches)
1 Tblsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Butter and Egg Biscuit Shortcakes:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tblsp. granulated sugar
1 Tblsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
5 Tblsp. butter, cut in cubes
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg

Milk to measure 1/2 cup when mixed with vanilla and egg

Topping:

2-3 Tblsp. chopped walnuts

Thawed frozen topping or whipped cream

To Make Fruit Sauce:
In a large pan, place prepared fruit.

In a two-cup measure, place water, cornstarch and vanilla.  Whisk together and pour over fruit.  Stirring occasionally, heat fruit mixture over medium heat until it comes to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium-low and continue to cook for two more minutes, stirring constantly.  Set aside to cool to room temperature.  Fruit should be fork-tender and hold its shape.  Makes about 4 cups of sauce.

To Make Biscuit Shortcakes:

Preheat oven to 410 degrees F

Place flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl.  Add butter cubes and mix with fingers until butter is distributed.

In a one cup-measure, whisk together the vanilla and egg. Add milk to make 1/2 cup.

Pour this mixture over the dry ingredients and with a fork, mix together to form a ball of dough.  Place dough on a floured surface and knead briefly until it holds together.  Pat to about one-inch thickness and cut 8 circles with a floured two-inch cutter.  Place an inch apart on an ungreased baking sheet.  Bake @ 410 degrees F for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.  Remove to a rack to cool.

To serve:
Split a biscuit and place on a dessert plate.  Spoon sauce over the biscuit halves, spoon whipped cream/topping on top and sprinkle with chopped nuts.

8 Servings

Note:  Refrigerate any leftover sauce and bring to room temperature to serve. 

Your Choice Fruit Salsa and Crisps

I saw this recipe on spendwithpennies.com and adapted it to make a smaller amount and to use almost any kind of fresh fruit.  The fruit should be diced into ½-inch cubes to make it easy to scoop up with the delicious cinnamon crisps.  A lovely, summertime, light dessert.

• Servings: 4
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Cinnamon Crisps:
4 10-inch flour tortillas
Cooking spray
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon

Fruit Salsa:
4 cups of assorted fruit cut into ½ inch cubes (strawberries, blueberries, apple, pineapple, banana, peach, kiwi, etc.) – your choice

1 Tblsp. lemon juice
1 Tblsp. fruit preserves or jam (I used my homemade blueberry jam)

To make cinnamon crisps:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F
Combine cinnamon and sugar
Spray each tortilla on top with cooking spray and sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar.

Cut each tortilla into 6 wedges and place on baking sheet.  Bake for 8-10 minutes until light brown and crisp (watch carefully so the wedges don’t burn).

To make the salsa:
Combine the prepared fruit with the lemon juice and preserves/jam, tossing lightly.

Allow to come to room temperature for at least 15 minutes before serving.

To serve:
Divide fruit salsa among four small dessert dishes and serve 6 cinnamon crisps with each dish.

Strawberry and Amaretto Tiramisu

I’ve seen a few recipes for Strawberry Tiramisu online but went back to my original recipe which my family loves, substituting Amaretto for the Kahlua I normally use and adding fresh strawberries.  This might be our new favorite, certainly during the strawberry season.  It’s very easy to put together, not too sweet and a good make-ahead dessert.

• Servings: 9
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One package Italian lady fingers (about 12 lady fingers – I use Alessi Biscotti Savoiardi)
¼ to 1/2 cup Amaretto (to pour over lady fingers – they should be evenly moist)
One cup of fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
15 oz. light ricotta cheese
2 cups frozen whipped topping, thawed (Cool Whip)
9 fresh strawberry-halves for garnish

Place the lady fingers in a layer in bottom of 9-inch pan.  Pour Amaretto over the lady fingers.  Arrange sliced strawberries over lady fingers.  Set aside.

In a large mixer bowl, beat together the cream cheese and ricotta cheese until smooth.  Fold in whipped topping.

Spoon the cream cheese mixture over the top of the lady fingers and strawberries.  Place the strawberry halves over the top of the dessert, creating 9 servings.  Cover and refrigerate at least two hours or overnight.

To serve, cut dessert into 9 servings, including a fresh strawberry half.  Refrigerate leftovers.