I'm Not Ready to Have Fall Yet!

There are apples in the store now.  And not just a few.  Nooooo!

Yes, I do like apples.  As a matter of fact, I had a Honeycrisp at the store this afternoon.  And it was delicious.  The problem is, when the first apples start coming in, it's a harbinger of the end of summer fruits.  Soon the berries will end.  And the peaches.  And plums.  And my favorite, nectarines.  Waaaaah!!!

Well, I'm just not ready yet.  As I've said before, I'm not a baker but I'm trying to learn.  And I've got a long checklist of things to make before the fruit is gone.  Let me give you a peek at my list.

Photo via Epicurious

Cobblers
This is something I've been comfortable baking since, well, Cooking Merit Badge from eons ago.  Cobbler is essentially pie filling with biscuits on top.  There are options as to what kinds of biscuits, though.  This one most closely resembles what we used to do at Scout Camp back in the day.  This one has a sweeter biscuit that's really divine.  Of course, any cobbler is much better when made in a cast iron Dutch oven with decades of seasoning on it, and baked in the embers of your campfire.

Photo via Oprah.com

Simple Tarts
I think what makes me shy from baking is the detailed decorating involved.  And when some intricate design is required on a couple of dozen cupcakes or something, well, I guess I don't have the patience for it.  But one level more difficult than cobbler would be rustic tarts, no fancy-pants decorating involved.  Here's a simple fruit tart.  It's just a simple pastry dough, formed into a rough circle-ish shape, with fruit piled on and the edges rolled up.  Right up my alley.  Here's another one with a slightly different crust.

Photo via Smitten Kitchen

It's All in the Bundt
Now we have to go up to the level of a real cake.  Uh-oh.  I think bundt cakes are probably the easiest, as there's little to no decorating, or lining up layers straight.  It's the one-pot stew of the cake world.  Just remember to let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes or so prior to trying to invert it onto the plate.  This one I've made before and it's really amazing.  The buttermilk gives it such a rich flavor.  This one is way yummy too.  I know, you normally don't think of strawberries and carrots in the same, well, in the same anything.  But trust me, you won't be able to argue with the results.

For-Real Cakes
Before we get super-serious, this pound cake sorta straddles the line between a bundt cake and a real layer cake.  The lemon really highlights the blueberries, and the ricotta makes it SO rich.  Speaking of ricotta, have you looked in the dairy case lately?  You'll find local ricotta there now!

And lastly, that brings us to a layer cake.  I haven't worked up the courage to try yet, but I've sworn to myself I'm going to try before the blueberries are gone.  I'm thinking that the lemon-blueberry combo should be fantastic once again.

Photo via Sally's Baking Addiction

So, what are you planning to bake before the berries are gone?

Laying Down Some Rad...ish Beets!

This week we're hitting you with beets and radishes.  Okay, we're not literally going to hit you with them, but for those of you who are cringing over either or both of these veggies, you may be feeling like this is a human rights violation.  Thankfully, they are much more versatile than things that get sliced and placed on a sad, side salad.

So here are two sweet treat takes on radishes and beets, one a healthy and detoxifying smoothie, and the other...cupcakes, awesome Red Velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting.  Because everything is better with cream cheese frosting.  And the cupcakes are vegan, so really they're practically a health food.

Rawkin Radish Smoothie via Young and Raw

Natural Red Velvet Cupcakes Made With Beets via Je Suis Alimentageuse

Baked Peach Melba

Last spring I got to test some recipes for a cookbook the Ogunquit Chamber of Commerce in Maine was putting together.  And this one was by far one of the highlights of the 8 or so recipes I tested.  A super quick and easy dessert to make, and there is ZERO added sugar.  The sweetness of the fruit and the honey takes care of that in spades.  So for those of you watching your sugar intake, this is a wonderful dessert.  Plus you get an added protein boost from the walnuts and all that lovely fiber from the oats.  A dessert that eats like a health food but tastes like something sinful?  Count me in!

Baked Peach Melba

Ingredients:

6 to 8 slightly firm peaches (still have peaches leftover from last week, here's your chance to use them up while we give you even more, muahahahaha!)
1 cup fresh or frozen, yet thawed, raspberries
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted (use Earth Balance margarine for dairy-free)
1 cup old fashioned oats (I use Bob's Red Mill oats for gluten-free)
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
2 Tbsp local honey


Preheat oven to 375.

Halve and put unpeeled peaches.  Slice each half into wedges.  Place in a 9x13 baking dish, and sprinkle with the raspberries.

In a separate bowl, mix together oats, walnuts and honey.  Melt butter and pour over oats and walnut mixture, stirring well to fully combine.  Sprinkle topping over the fruit and bake at 375 for 35-40 minutes or until the topping is lightly browned.

See What's New At Nalls!

As you're gearing up for Memorial Day weekend, so are we, with lots of new items in our Produce & Garden Centers to help make your weekend a success.  Whether you'll be relaxing at a picnic or using the long weekend to get all of your planting finished, we'll be here all weekend for whatever you may need.

New in our Produce Center this week is our huge collection of jams, jellies, salsas and pie fillings made especially for Nalls Produce by Troyer Cheese.  We've been waiting with eager anticipation for this shipment for the past two weeks, and when it finally arrived yesterday it was like Christmas at Nalls.  Naturally, some quality control had to be done, I mean we had to make sure these delicious items were indeed delicious.  The first jar we popped open was the Tropical Salsa, and oh my mangos, it is goooooood!!!

Made with mango, papaya, pineapple, tomato and jalepeno, this is a sweeter salsa, almost like a chutney, and you barely get any heat from the jalepeno, just the wonderful flavor.  We may just be putting this on everything, but it would be perfect with grilled fish or chicken.

Another big hit was the ironically named...Traffic Jam!  Hey if you've got to get stuck in a DC area traffic jam, might as well make it a good one.

Peaches, red raspberries, strawberries, cherries and cranberries are all crammed in like rush hour on the Beltway...delicious, delicious rush hour.  Use this in your homemade jelly rolls or tarts, or heat it up to make it melty and drizzle that awesomeness on some pancakes!  Or you know, just eat spoonfulls of it right out of the jar.  What?  No.  Of course, I'd never do something like that.  No, that's not jam on my chin, it's um a rejuvenating face cream.

If you'll excuse me, I should get back to my "beauty regimen."  Now where'd I put my spoon?