Cantaloupe Soup with Prosciutto and Mozzarella Sandwiches

Everyone knows that cantaloupe and prosciutto go well together. Those prosciutto-wrapped cantaloupe balls leave me longing for a melon baller, but it's not exactly dinner. But a chilled soup and a baguette sandwich? Add a glass of white wine, and we are definitely talking. It helps because Joe doesn't think he likes cantaloupe. Too many bland, hard chunks of cantaloupe in generic fruit salads will do that to you. This was a local melon, full of juice and sweetness brought out ever so slightly by the salt. The recipe is easily halved, which I did. This is also a great summer meal because it doesn't use any heat (provided you don't bake your own baguette). Cool, crisp, and quick to make.

Cantaloupe Soup with Prosciutto and Mozzarella Sandwiches

source: Real Simple 

Ingredients
2 baguettes
2 8-ounce balls fresh mozzarella, thickly sliced
1/2 pound sliced prosciutto
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cantaloupes, chilled, halved, and seeded
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
16 fresh mint leaves, thinly sliced

Preparation
Cut each baguette in half lengthwise, then in thirds crosswise. Layer the mozzarella and prosciutto on the bottom of each baguette portion. Drizzle with the oil and sandwich with the baguette tops; set aside.
In a blender, puree the cantaloupe and salt. Pour into bowls and sprinkle with the pepper and mint. Serve with the sandwiches.

Summer Berry Pie

I never want to actually make anything with fruit because I prefer to eat it on its own or in cereal or with yogurt. But around this time, when its prime berry season, I can justify getting more berries to use in desserts. Fruit desserts are my favorite kind of dessert anyway, especially in the summer.

I made this for a party that our HOA threw for the 4th of July, except it was on the 1st since a lot of people would be going out of town. Most of the people that live in our condominium complex are empty-nesters or single, older people with grandchildren around my age. It's kind of like living with a bunch of grandparents because they're all really nice and want to talk to us all the time. They also loved this pie. Given the plethora of desserts on the table, I thought I would be taking a lot of this home, but I only had about a 1/3 of it left. Everyone wanted to know what made up the filling. The filling is pureed berries, strained, and then cooked with cornstarch to thicken it. It sets up beautifully in the refrigerator, and a lot of people guessed that it was jam. The other nice thing about this pie is that it isn't too sweet, just very refreshing for a hot summer evening.

Summer Berry Pie
source: Annie's Eats

Ingredients
For the crust:
5 oz. graham crackers (approx. 9 crackers), broken into rough pieces
2 tbsp. sugar
5 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and warm

For the filling:
2 cups raspberries (about 9 oz.)
2 cups blackberries (about 11 oz.)
2 cups blueberries (about 10 oz.)
1/2 cup sugar
3 tbsp. cornstarch
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tbsp. strawberry jam

Preparation
To make the crust, adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 325 degrees. In a food processor, process the graham crackers into fine, even crumbs (you should have about 1 cup of crumbs). Combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter in a small mixing bowl and toss with a fork until all the crumbs are moistened. Transfer the crumbs to a 9-inch glass pie plate. Use the bottom of a ramekin or measuring cup to press the crumbs evenly into the bottom and up the sides, forming a crust. Bake in the preheated oven until it is fragrant and beginning to brown, 15-18 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely while making the filling.

For the filling, combine the berries in a large colander and gently rinse (taking care not to bruise them). Spread the berries on a paper towel-lined rimmed baking sheet and gently pat dry with additional paper towels.
In a food processor, puree 2 1/2 cups of the mixed berries until smooth and fully pureed, about 1 minute. Strain the puree through a fine mesh sieve into a small nonreactive saucepan, scraping and pressing on the seeds to extract as much puree as possible (you should have 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups). Whisk the sugar, cornstarch, and salt in a small bowl to combine, then whisk the mixture into the puree. Bring the puree to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon; when the mixture reaches a boil and is thickened to the consistency of pudding, remove from the heat, stir in the lemon juice, and set aside to cool slightly.

While the puree is cooling, place the remaining berries in a medium bowl. Warm the jelly (or jam) briefly in the microwave to melt it slightly. Add the warmed jelly to the bowl of mixed berries and toss very gently so that all the berries are coated. Pour the berry puree into the cooled crust and smooth with a rubber spatula. Evenly distribute the glazed berries over the puree and gently press into the surface. Loosely cover the pie with plastic wrap; refrigerate until chilled and the puree has set, about 3 hours (or up to 1 day). Slice with a hot, dry knife and serve.

Strawberries Romanoff (and a Bake Sale!)

In Courtney's post about this dessert, she mentioned La Madeleine, and from that moment, I knew I would be making this. Throw in my quart of delicious local strawberries from our CSA and the fact that I already had all of the ingredients on hand, and I knew this would make a special treat for a weeknight.

The first time I had strawberries Romanoff was at La Madeleine, and it was a bite of someone else's order. The cream was much thicker and more tangy than I anticipated. It's not too sweet but is the perfect accompaniment for those glorious strawberries. I even whipped up the sauce in the morning and stored it until later, making it a great make-ahead dessert for a party.

Strawberries Romanoff
source: Cook Like a Champion
Serves 2

Ingredients
1/4 cup sour cream
1 1/2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons brandy or vanilla
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 cups fresh strawberries, sliced if large
freshly grated nutmeg

Directions

Mix the sour cream, brown sugar and brandy together in a small bowl.
In another bowl, whisk the heavy cream until it thickens slightly, then add sugar. Continue whisking until cream is fluffy.
Gently fold whipped cream into sour cream mixture.
Place strawberries in serving dish of your choice, top with sauce and freshly grated nutmeg.

Coming up this Saturday, Lindsay from Love and Olive Oil wrangled a bunch of Nashville-area food bloggers together to do a flood benefit bake sale. All proceeds will benefit Second Harvest Food Bank. The Green Wagon in East Nashville (1100 Forrest Ave) has been kind enough to take us on, so we will be there from 1:30-4 pm with our delicious treats. I'll be making these delicious peanut butter cookies. All treats will go for $2. So if you're in the area, come on by and spend some money!

Mile-High Lemon Meringue Pie

You know that rule about how you're supposed to make things that you've made before when planning a dinner for guests? Yeah, I routinely break it. Last year for Easter, this meant a trifle that tasted way too much like chemicals. This year, I left it up to Cook's Country. Joe had suggested a lemon meringue pie, gesturing with his hands just how tall he wanted the meringue to be. I had never made meringue. Or lemon curd. But that didn't stop me.

Like everything in the America's Test Kitchen vein, this lemon meringue pie tastes like a lemon meringue pie should. Lots of lemon juice gives it a great, puckery lemon flavor, and the meringue is silky and light. I don't have a stand mixer, so I just used a hand-held, which took slightly longer than the times indicated in the recipe.

Mile-High Lemon Meringue Pie
source: Cook's Country

Ingredients

1 (9-inch) pie shell. fully baked and cooled
FOR THE LEMON FILLING:
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup of lemon juice (from 6 lemons)
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp. salt
8 large egg yolks (reserve 4 whites for meringue later)
2 tbsp. grated lemon zest
3 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened and cut into pieces

FOR THE MERINGUE:
1/2 cup water
1 cup sugar
4 egg whites
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Preparation

TO MAKE THE FILLING:
Whisk sugar, lemon juice, water, cornstarch and salt together in a large non-reactive saucepan until cornstarch is dissolved. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, whisking occasionally until mixture is translucent and begins to thicken, about 5 minutes.

Whisk in yolks until combined. Stir in zest and butter. Bring to a simmer and stir constantly until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 2 minutes.

Strain through fine mesh strainer into the baked and cooled pie shell and scrape off filling from the bottom of strainer. Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the filling and refrigerate until set and well chilled, at least 2 hours and up to 1 day.

WHEN READY TO MAKE THE MERINGUE:
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees F.

Combine water and sugar in saucepan. Bring to a vigorous boil over medium high heat. Once syrup comes to a rolling boil, cook for 4 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside while beating egg whites.

With electric mixer beat whites in large bowl at medium low speed until frothy, about 1 minute. Add salt and cream of tartar and beat gradually increasing speed to medium high, until whites hold soft peaks, about 2 minutes. With mixer running, slowly pour hot syrup into the whites. Add vanilla and beat until meringue has cooled and becomes shiny and thick, 5-9 minutes.

Using a rubber spatula, mound meringue over filling making sure meringue touches the edges of the crust. Use spatula to create peaks all over the pie.

Bake until peaks turn golden brown about 6 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and cool to room temperature and serve.

Cranberry Ginger Muffins

Nothing says winter to me quite like cranberries. Those tart red orbs are a classic flavor this time of year. In graduate school, we read and absorb so much that we joke about how sometimes we don't have an original thought. Even when I think I may have had an original thought, I can usually go back in a book I've read or a lecture I've listened to and find the same idea. The same thing goes for cooking. I'm just honestly not that brilliant of a cook, so when I thought "cranberries and candied ginger in a muffin," I knew someone else had probably had the same thought at some point. So I went searching and found this recipe.

These muffins have some strong flavors going on. With the tartness of the cranberries and spice of the ginger, no one will mistake these for cake. The oats bulk them up. They freeze well and, heated up in the microwave, make the perfect pre-exam breakfast. Or really any kind of breakfast.

Cranberry Ginger Muffins
source: Coconut & Lime

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup flour
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup cranberries
1/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup chopped uncrystallized candied ginger (I used crystallized candied ginger)
1/3 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350. Line or grease and flour one 12 well muffin tin. In a large bowl, mix together the oatmeal, egg, oil, milk, and sugar. After it is thoroughly mixed, add in the flour, salt and baking soda. Stir to combine. Fold in the cranberries and ginger chunks. Divide evenly amount 12 muffin wells.


Bake 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the center muffin comes out clean. (Mine took about 25 minutes.)

Grandma's Banana Nut Cake

My dad has been requesting that I make this cake for some time now, and since I had a bunch of ripe bananas in the freezer, I asked for the recipe. It's my grandmother's recipe, though it's very similar to any kind of banana bread recipe but with a lot of sugar to make it more cake-like. I wanted to make it as-written the first time. Next time I think I'll sub butter for the Crisco and maybe top it with a cream cheese frosting. My dad enjoyed it thoroughly! He did specify that nuts were a necessity in this cake, so don't skimp on those.

Grandma's Banana Nut Cake
source: Family Recipe

Ingredients
1/2 cup Crisco
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 cup bananas, mashed
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup nuts
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda (or 1 tsp if sour milk is used)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk - sweet or sour

Preparation
Cream Crisco and add sugar gradually. Add eggs and beat thoroughly. Add banana pulp and vanilla. Sift dry ingredients together and add alternately with the milk. Bake at 350-degrees for 30-35 minutes in greased 9 x 13 pan.

Mango-Agave Sorbet

There was a full package of frozen mango in my freezer staring me in the face every time I opened the freezer door. I adore mango and wanted to do justice to the flavor but just hadn't come across exactly what I was looking for. Then I saw this recipe several places in a few days and knew that it was what I had been waiting for. Oddly enough, we did not have tequila in our house, but that could be remedied. I found the agave nectar at Trader Joe's.

This sorbet is out of this world. The lime and mango flavors complement each other so well, and there is just a hint of tequila flavor. The agave nectar acts as a sweetener and is an alternative to sugar. I think this might be Joe's new favorite dessert!

Mango-Agave Sorbet
source: Cooking Light

Ingredients
4 cups cubed, peeled mango (about 3 lbs fresh mango)
1/2 cup fresh orange juice (about 3 oranges)
1/3 cup fresh lime juice (about 3-4 limes)
1/3 cup tequila
3/4 cup light agave nectar
1/3 cup water

Preparation

1. Combine mango, orange juice, lime juice, and tequila in a food processor or blender and pulse to combine until smooth. Pour the mixture into a bowl and add the agave nectar and water, stirring to combine. Cover and chill for several hours.

2. Freeze in an ice cream maker according to the ice cream maker's instructions. Spoon sorbet into a freezer-safe container, and cover and freeze for 8 hours.

Meyer Lemon Sorbet

After hearing about Meyer lemons and never seeing them, I had concluded they were simply beyond my grasp. All of the foodies on the coasts were going nuts about them, and all I had were the normal yellow lemons. Then last week I was shopping at Publix and spotted them. Shaped like a lemon but colored like an orange. I double-checked the sign...Meyer lemons! I let them be since I had absolutely no plans for them, and I try to stick to my grocery list. But this week, I made a beeline for them, nearly pushing aside the guy restocking the produce on Saturday morning. He saw me reach for them and asked, "Do those taste more like a lemon or more like an orange?" I admitted that I didn't really know from personal experience but that I was going to use them to make SORBET. I don't think he was as excited as I was.

This sorbet is exactly what I crave after dinner -- something sweet but flavorful enough that I don't need a lot of it. In fact, a few spoonfuls of this sorbet satisfies me because the flavor is so unique. It's slightly sour but sweet. It's unlike anything I've ever tasted before. And Joe is crazy about it as well!

Meyer Lemon Sorbet
source: Simply Recipes

Ingredients

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1 cup Meyer lemon juice (3-4 lemons)
2 tsp zest from lemons

Preparation

1. In a small saucepan on medium high heat, make a simple syrup by heating sugar and water until the sugar has completely dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool. Mix in the lemon juice and zest. Chill, either in the refrigerator, or by placing in a metal bowl over an ice bath.

2. Once the mixture has thoroughly chilled, freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. If you don't have an ice cream maker, you can pour the mixture into a shallow pan and freeze in your freezer until semi-solid. Then take a fork and fluff it up, returning it the the freezer to freeze firm. Then put in a food-processor or blender to process until smooth.
Place sorbet in an airtight container and freeze until ready to serve.

3. Scoop out preferably with a melon-baller. Garnish with mint. Makes 2 1/2 cups.

Sweet Corn Coffeecake with Berries

Those of us in my Koine Greek class have spent all semester together, working hard and struggling with the Gospel writers, Paul, the Septuagint, and Justin Martyr's account of Jesus' baptism. We've gotten to know each other well. In order to celebrate our last day of 8 am Greek class, I wanted to make some treats.

I made hot cross buns, but since some people might not like raisins, I wanted another option as well. This coffeecake was the perfect choice! The cornmeal lends a heartiness to it, and the yogurt and lemon zest give a nice tang. I used frozen berries, which promptly sank to the bottom, but no one seemed to mind.

This would be a perfect addition to a brunch or baby/wedding shower. It's unique and different from most coffeecakes and actually feels healthy when you're eating it!

Sweet Corn Coffeecake with Berries
source: Baking and Books

Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup cornmeal, any color
  
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup lowfat, plain yogurt
• Grated zest of 1 lemon (about 1 teaspoon, packed)
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 cup strawberries, stems removed and sliced in half vertically
• 1/2 cup blackberries (I used 1 1/2 cups frozen mixed berries.)
  
• Confectioners sugar, optional

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Spray an 8-inch springform cake pan or 8-inch square pan with PAM, or another non-stick baking spray. Dust pan with flour, then tap off excess.

Whisk the dry ingredients together in a bowl. In a second bowl, combine the wet ingredients. Quickly add the wet ingredients to the dry, stirring to combine. Scrape into the pan. Scatter the berries over the top and bake in the center of the oven until the cake is browned and beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan, about 45 minutes. (Mine got a little too brown for my taste. I should've checked it earlier.)

Allow cake to cool for 5-10 minutes, then remove the rim of the springform pan, if applicable. Serve cake warm, dusted with confectioners sugar if you like.

Raspberry Frozen Yogurt

The weather is still toying with full-blown spring, but I'm trying to build up a repertoire for my ice cream maker before the 90-degree weather hits. My preference for desserts tend to lead towards the fruity anyway, but this yogurt was to die for. This had such a different taste from store-bought frozen yogurt--very bright and fresh. I already had some frozen raspberries in the freezer, so I knew I would be making this right away. Look at that gorgeous color! And that's without any artificial colors or preservatives or anything! And the taste is tangy and summery but creamy at the same time. This would be beautiful served to company with a little mint leaves right on top.

My grocery store did not carry the type of Greek yogurt that I needed, so I bought regular whole-milk yogurt and drained it through a cheesecloth-lined mesh sieve over a pot for a few hours, until it was the texture of sour cream.

Raspberry Frozen Yogurt
source: Rec(ession)ipes

Ingredients

• 2 cups Greek yogurt
• 2.5 cups fresh or frozen raspberries
• 1 tsp kirsch (or vodka if you don't have kirsch)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• Juice of 1/2 lemon

Preparation

In a blender, puree all ingredients. If you want to remove the seeds, push the pureed ingredients through a strainer. Chill for 1 hour, then freeze in ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions.

Gingered Fresh Pear Cake

I love bundt cakes. I really do. There's just something about them that makes me feel all warm and happy inside. Sure, they aren't as elegant as a layer cake, but bundt cakes remind me of church in the South and potluck suppers.

My best friend Abby and her boyfriend John came to town last week for a conference, and they stayed with Joe and me. Abby left behind four pears that were starting to get pretty sad looking. I couldn't bear to throw away good fruit, but I also knew that neither Joe nor I would eat them plain, so I figured baking with pears would be the perfect way to use them up. I started looking up recipes and found this one: a pear bundt cake that used ingredients I already had and with a slight exotic twist. Perfect!

I was a little worried that the batter was so runny, but the cake set perfectly. The crispy outside gives way to an incredibly moist inside, and the ginger flavor is not overpowering but just right. For serving this to guests, the whipped cream or fruit compote suggestion is good, but I think just a sprinkle of powdered sugar would be enough to gussy it up.


Gingered Fresh Pear Cake
source: southernfood.about.com

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups pureed pears, about 4 to 5 medium ripe pears
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon ground ginger
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup naturally sweetened applesauce
• 5 eggs
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350°.

Butter and generously flour a Bundt pan. Puree pears in a food processor. In a small bowl mix the pureed pears, vanilla, lemon juice, cinnamon, and ground ginger. Set aside. Heat the milk and butter in a small saucepan until butter is melted. Sift flour and baking powder.

With an electric mixer on medium-high, beat the eggs and brown sugar for 5 minutes, until pale and thick. Add milk and melted butter mixture while beating on low, then add the pear mixture and applesauce. Add the flour and baking powder, beating until just combined.

Pour batter into the prepared Bundt pan and bake for about 55 to 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Serve with a dollop of sweetened whipped cream or warm fruit compote.