Desserts

I will be the first to admit that I was quite skeptical when my blogging partner Tricia mentioned she wanted post a Pavlova recipe on the blog.  I’d seen photos of them before, but they looked pretty fancy and just not my thing.  She mentioned that a friend of hers was raving about them, and that was good enough for her.  I was noncommittal, and just attempted to ignore her when she brought it up.  When I showed up at her house to do the photo shoot for this week’s posts, what did I see but a big old Pavlova sitting on her kitchen counter.  I had been duped!  I was expecting Raspberry Hand Pies.  As usual, she had completely ignored me and did what she felt like (this is typical), and I’m glad she did.  One bite of this dessert had me hoarding the plate and not willing to give it up.  It’s completely addictive, with a crisp, sweet crust and a creamy, almost marshmallowy interior.  Then comes the whipped cream, and a ton of fresh berries in a gorgeous glaze.  You can make these large or small, and each one is a show stopper. Besides, it’s totally easy to make.  And as the song goes, “Oh, what a beautiful mess you are!”  Let’s jump right on over to the blog and you can see for yourself…….

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I just had to throw one more strawberry recipe in before the season ends, and what better time to do it than the Forth of July?  These tarts can either be all fancy and scooped into tart shells, or another more rustic route (and easier) is to crumble the crust into crumbs and pat into the bottom of a small Mason jar.  Your call – either way is delicious.  The only trick is: you can make all the parts in advance, but it’s not a great idea to assemble until right before you serve.  The crust has a tendency to soak up all that strawberry goodness, so you can lose the crunch factor if you aren’t careful.  That being said, it’s a cool breeze to make, so let’s get going!

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These little beauties take shortcake to a whole new level. They are buttery and flakey, with just the right amount of orange zest to brighten the flavors, but not so much that it overtakes the whole strawberry business at hand. To add to the ‘orange is beautiful’ theme, the strawberries are macerated in some Grand Marnier, an orange liquor, that is so good it almost made my head spin around. And then of course comes the whipped cream….

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How about we don’t think about politics for a just one minute?   Let’s turn off our televisions, radios, and all social media outlets and try to remember there is still a lot of good in the world, and as long as we remain positive and hopeful, listen to each other and speak for what we believe is right, these storms will pass. Here’s one thought… a nice, warm Apple & Pear Crumble with good vanilla ice cream baked by each of us for a friend, relative, or coworker from ‘the other party’ just might help us all along on this journey.  I, for one, am going to stuff my face with some immediately.

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I would have to say that Ice Cream Pies are my favorite summer dessert.  How can that be?  Better than Strawberry Shortcake?  Peach Crisp?  Blackberry Cobbler?   Not that I don’t love all of those and devour them frequently, but there is something special about an ice cream pie on a hot summer’s night. Just kind of puts the world back in proper order if you know what I mean.  Here’s one of my favorites:  chocolate cookie crust, layers of cookies & cream ice cream, with fresh strawberries and plenty of chocolate sauce hiding in the center.  Top the whole thing off with a fresh strawberry sauce, and get ready for fireworks.

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Hello everyone!  This posting was supposed to be published before the 4th of July.  I was going for a kind of ‘fireworks’ effect in the Poundcake.  Umm…I guess it worked in one way, since my first attempt exploded and ran all over the oven, then sunk in on itself.  This, upon reflection, was due to the fact that I did not read my recipe with glasses on, so left an entire cup of flour out.  Note to self: This is not a good strategy.   However, despite the fact that it was awful to look at, it tasted pretty good.   I baked a second cake, which is why this article is behind schedule. The second attempt worked better.

While cake #1 was baking, I started writing this posting.  I got a big laugh out of the first paragraph when I came back to finish writing after the second cake was done.  I’ve kept it because I think that it’s important to remember that if a little voice inside your head whispers that something is amiss, it usually is.    Little did I know….

“I cannot lie to you about this because I feel that we are friends.  I am sweating bullets right now.  Why?  Well, this Raspberry Swirl idea was just an idea, and one that I had never tried. Sure, I had baked this Pound Cake for years, but the swirl thing?  Not really. Not ever.  What could be the harm? What could possibly go wrong?  At this moment, the timer on the cake will go off in ten minutes, and then we will both know.  I was going for a beautiful, bright red fireworks kind of swirl in the cake, so that is our goal.  I am praying it does not turn out a big old pink mess.  Or that it will overflow all over the place due to the added jelly.  But then again, who cares?  Any of the above can be fixed, and I do enjoy living on the edge when it comes to cooking and baking, so there you have it.  We will play the cards we are dealt. Until the timer goes off and the cake is cool enough to slice, I’ll just fill you in on all the steps that got us to this point:”

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Happy almost 4th of July!  We usually entertain a crowd for this particular holiday, and it is almost always blistering hot outside.  Keeping that in mind,  I went in search for a do-ahead dessert that was relatively quick, easy, and cold that could also feed a small army.  And here you have it.  To be fair, this is a translation of a dessert that Neeners used to make when we were kids.  We have unofficially named it ‘Blueberry Surprise’ since Neeners was surprised when I mentioned it because she does not recall making it and cannot find her recipe.  If memory serves, hers was made when the very first boxed cheesecake kits came out on the market.  This is why she cannot find a recipe, although she blames me for stealing it.  Situation: normal.

We begin with a graham cracker crust.  Get those puppies into your food processor, or put them in a ziplock bag and hit them with a hammer or rolling pin until you have crumbs.  Feel free to grab a few for yourself.  This will not affect the final outcome of the crust.  I am speaking from experience.

Add sugar and melted butter…

Mix it all up until it looks like this:

 

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