Aug/09262
Peach Clafouti
Written by Cris, Special Contributor
There are few things I will turn the oven on for during the summer, this clafouti (cla-foo-tee) is one of them. Sweet summer fruit is delicious enough, but sometimes I want something rich and sinful. Being health conscious creates some guilt, adding fruit to the mix gives me a reasonable excuse to indulge. I have tinkered with this recipe over the years, reducing both sugar and fat, while upping the fruit. Friends have enjoyed all versions and liked the lighter ones just as much. The fruit would sometimes sink and disappear, so now I cut the peaches into thick slices, 3/4″ thick, so they will not be buried under the batter. My lighter version is so full of sweet, healthy fruit that I feel good about treating myself and others.
Peach Clafouti
1/2 cup (one stick) butter
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
4 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
3 Costco sized peaches, peeled and sliced (about 3 cups)
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
2 tbsp raw sugar
Put butter in 13×9-inch baking dish in 350-degree oven till melted, set aside.
Whisk flour, sugar, salt (skip if using salted butter) and baking powder in large bowl. Add milk and vanilla, and whisk until blended. Pour batter over melted butter and cut through a few times with a rubber spatula. Make sure to push batter into corners of the pan.
Drain any juice from peaches and place slices evenly over batter, dot with blueberries next. Don’t worry if the fruit sinks.
Bake at 350 degrees until top is browned, about 50 minutes.
Sprinkle with raw sugar for a nice crunch.
Serve warm, with vanilla ice cream or a little whipped cream. Heaven!
Jul/090
Jenna’s Cream Cheese Pastries
These scrumptious little things are dangerously good, especially with my strawberry jam. If you make them small enough, you could probably pop a dozen or so in your mouth in a few minutes and then you won’t feel so good about yourself, now will you? Make them for a bake sale or a party and people will adore you. Jenna became my hero in 6th grade because of these little devils.
Cream Cheese Pastries with Strawberry Jam
(credit goes to Jenna Blackford)
You’ll dirty just: 1 mixing bowl, the beater or 1 wooden spoon, 1 measuring cup, 1 baking sheet
4 Tablespoons of room-temp butter
4 oz of cream cheese (1/2 cup)
3/4 c sifted all purpose flour
6 Tablespoons of your favorite preserves or jam
Blend cream cheese, butter and flour thoroughly til mixture forms soft dough. Be sure to incorporate all the cream cheese into the flour - you don’t want any clumps of cheese.
Place dough on large sheet of wax paper; cover with second sheet. Roll dough 1/8 inch thick between the two sheets. Chill in fridge for 20 minutes.
Heat oven to 425.
Peel off wax paper. Cut dough into 2 inch squares. Spread 1/2 teaspoon jam on each square. Fold corners to middle; overlap ends and pinch together very well. The jam will fight its way out, so secure those edges well.
Place on ungreased sheet. Bake at 425 for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly before removing from baking sheet.
Jul/0929
a favorite chocolate treat
If Dan’s been particularly sweet to me, or if I’m just in a lovey mood, I’ll splurge and buy him a 5 Star Chocolate Bar by Lake Champlain Chocolates at Whole Foods. They’re not cheap — $3.49 for a 1.8 oz bar. But they are oh-so-good. They’re made by hand, and the Peanut one is the best — the peanut butter is smooth and creamy and has chunks of peanuts and crisp rice all coated in a very smooth milk chocolate. But don’t keep it in the fridge like I did last night. It’s way better at room temp.
Get one for your honey the next time you’re even remotely near Whole Foods. 
Jul/090
No-pectin small-batch Strawberry Jam
This jam is great on french toast and waffles - ask my little guy, Ryan! It’s his favorite condiment after ketchup! I don’t prepare mine for shelving because it doesn’t last that long around here, and honestly it just seems like a project that I don’t have time for. This recipe is super quick and it’s fun, really. It will last for about two weeks in the fridge.
No-pectin small-batch Strawberry Jam
3 cups sliced strawberries
1 cup sugar
2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice (depending on your taste)
Put a small plate in the freezer. You’ll use this to test the thickness of the jam.
Put all the ingredients in a large, wide saucepan over medium heat. You want to ensure maximum water loss from the strawberries in as little time as necessary, and the wide pan helps with this. Stirring slowly, bring the strawberries to a boil (mine usually take about 8-10 minutes to boil). After they’ve been boiling for 2 or so minutes, test the liquid part by putting a small spoonful on the cold plate. This will show you the thickness after it has cooled. If it’s thick enough for your taste, take it off the heat now. I let mine go for a total of about 15 minutes on the heat (boiling for about 5-7 minutes).
Put the jam into a large glass container (I use old peanut butter jars) and close tightly!
Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!