Watermelon Pizza

Talk about refreshing. Imagine this at your 4th of July event!

Want a pretty party presentation or a special treat for the family? Try this delicious dish of fruit. The children will love to help with this one. Also try Yogurt Parfait, page 52, Tastes & Treasures cookbook.


Watermelon Pizza

Ingredients:
Watermelon
Blueberries
Kiwi
Peaches
Grapes
Strawberries
Strawberry jam
Feta Cheese
Coconut
Bananas
Any fresh fruit in season

Directions:
Slice watermelon in 1” thick size. Drain to remove excess moisture.
Add a layer of strawberry jam
Cut into 8 sections.
Arrange fresh fruit on the top
Sprinkle with Feta Cheese, coconut, use your imagination

Goat Cheese Brulee

Sea Salt and Crystal Cane Sugar on Goat Cheese? 

What a combination of deliciousness. League Member and Chef Leslie Christiansen prepared a Sea Salt and Crystal Cane Sugar Torched Goat Cheese Brulee. It was served with balsamic blueberry compote and butter toasted crostini.

Tastes & Treasures cookbook has many tasty dishes. Favorites are Stuffed Mushrooms page 27 and Meatballs with Sweet-and-Sour Sauce page 165.

Refreshing Watermelon Cake for the Fourth of July

Found this lovely recipe on the internet. Can't wait to try it for the 4th of July celebration.

Watermelon Cake

Ingredients:
Whipped cream or Coconut Whipped cream (Paleo Version)
1 Large Watermelon cut in a circle like a cake
Blueberries
Raspberries
Almonds

Directions:
Cut your watermelon according to the photos.
Pat the watermelon down with wipes to dry it.
Frost it with whipped cream.
Add Almonds to the side.
Decorate the top with fresh fruit of your choice. Add an American flag to top it off!

Fourth of July Tart

 Celebrate the holiday with a fabulous Fourth of July tart. The pastry is filled with vanilla custard then topped with fresh strawberries, blueberries and whipped cream. Decorate to your heart's content!

Thanks to historic Garland's Oak Creek Lodge for this delicious pastry crust. The recipe is also found on page 49 in Tastes & Treasures cookbook along with a history of Garland's Lodge. Great reading and great recipe.

Tart Pastry
Ingredients:
3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons shortening
1/4 cup cold water
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Directions:
Whisk the flour, salt and sugar lightly in a medium bowl to blend. Add the butter and shortening and toss lightly to coat.

Cut with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles a very coarse cornmeal.
Mix the water and vinegar together. Sprinkle about 3 tablespoons of the vinegar mixture over the flour mixture and toss to blend. Continue adding the vinegar mixture 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing to form a cohesive ball that will hold together when pressed. Divide the dough into two equal portions and shape each portion into a disk.
Wrap and chill for at least 2 hours before using or store in the freezer. Makes 2 pastry disks.

Red White and Blue Trifle

Celebrate the 4th of July with this fabulous dessert. Lower in fat and calories than most trifles, this layered dessert is both beautiful AND delicious -- just right for that Fourth of July cookout!

We also like Desert Picnic Salad (Tastes & Treasures cookbook, page 132) thanks to Historymakers Kax and Bob Herberger's family memories of picnics.

Red, White and Blue Trifle



Ingredients:

One 8-oz. container Cool Whip Free (thawed)

1 sugar-free vanilla pudding snack with 60 calories or less 

Half of a 13-oz. angel food cake, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 5 cups cubed)

2 cups chopped strawberries

2 cups blueberries

2 cups raspberries



Directions:

In a medium-large bowl, thoroughly fold pudding into Cool Whip. 

In a large glass bowl (or trifle dish, if you've got one), evenly layer half of each ingredient: cubed angel food cake, Cool Whip mixture, strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. 

Repeat layering with remaining ingredients. Serve, or chill until ready to serve!



MAKES 8 SERVINGS

Thanks to Hungry Girl for reduced fat and calorie recipe.

Healthy Fruited Popsicles

Summer is coming and nothing beats the heat like frozen popsicles. The kids will love this treat and can help make the icy delights.

Another yummy fruit dish is Yogurt Parfait from The Hassayampa Inn. Recipe on page 52 in Tastes & Treasures cookbook.

Healthy Fruited Popsicles

Ingredients:
3 cups watermelon puree (seedless if possible)
1/2 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup chopped fresh strawberries
1 kiwi, peeled and sliced
1 peach or nectarine, diced small
handful fresh cherries, pitted and chopped

Directions:
Cut the watermelon into chunks and then puree it in a blender until smooth. Set aside.

Set out about 1 dozen popsicle molds (amount needed will vary depending on size of molds). Fill each one with the chopped fresh fruit. Then pour in the watermelon puree until each mold is full to the top. Place a popsicle stick into each one. Place into your freezer and freeze for about 6 to 8 hours.

When ready to serve, run the popsicle molds under warm water for a few seconds and then pull each one out.

from Heather Thomas on FB

Blueberry Lemon Loaf

Nothing like reunions for FUN, FOOD and FRIENDS and lots of photos. One of the girls brought Lemon Loaf with Fresh Blueberries. Perfect for breakfast, lunch and dessert. And when you need to travel, it freezes well.

Luscious Lemon Loaf is on page 198 in Tastes & Treasures cookbook.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup grated lemon zest
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup walnuts, chopped
1 tsp lemon extract

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease or line a 5 X 8 " loaf pan with baking parchment paper. Sift the flour (who does this anymore??), baking powder, and salt together. Combine the sugar, butter and eggs in a mixing bowl. Beat using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment until light and fluffy, scraping the bowl occasionally. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, walnuts and flavoring.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 55-60 minutes or until the loaf tests done. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Note: you may drizzle with a mixture of 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar, 1 tsp half and half and 1 tsp lemon juice.

Note: Add 1 cup of fresh blueberries and eliminate the walnuts for a summer version.

Makes 1 loaf.

Blueberry Crumble Bars

Blueberry Crumble Bars

Here's a treat using some delicious wild blueberries.  This recipe makes a blueberry compote with a simple shortbread-like base and a delicious graham crumb crumble topping. Another freezer-friendly recipe to make in advance of your seasonal festivities.

For the shortbread base, combine:

3/4 cup butter
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups flour

Press into the bottom of a greased and parchment paper lined 9x9 inch baking pan. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and add the blueberry compote and crumble topping.

Blueberry Compote Filling

2 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen)1/2 cup sugar
¼ cup water
1 rounded tablespoons corn starch

Bring the berries and sugar to a gentle boil. Mix the corn starch with the water and add slowly to the boiling berry mixture stirring constantly. Boil gently for 1 additional minutes stirring constantly.

Graham Crumble Topping
In a large bowl toss together:
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
2/3 cups flour
1/3 cup brown sugar

Using your hands, rub thoroughly through the dry ingredients:

1/2 cups butter, cut in small cubes

Press the crumble mixture together in handfuls so that it holds together and break off chunks of crumble all over the top of the prepared blueberry compote filling. Press down very lightly and bake for about 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees or until the top is golden brown. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into squares or bars. Freezes well.

Red, White and Blue Trifle

Celebrate the Fourth of July with this layered dessert. It is both beautiful and delicious -- just right for that cookout. Plus you can use your elegant trifle dish.

Summer Trifle, page 154 in Tastes & Treasures, is also delicious with the addition of blackberries and orange juice. A few more calories and it is made from scratch - well worth it.

Red, White & Blueberry Trifle

Ingredients:
One 8-oz. container Cool Whip Free (thawed)
1 sugar-free vanilla pudding snack with 60 calories or less (like the kind by Jell-O)
Half of a 13-oz. angel food cake, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 5 cups cubed)
2 cups chopped strawberries
2 cups blueberries
2 cups raspberries

Directions:
In a medium-large bowl, thoroughly fold pudding into Cool Whip.

In a large glass bowl (or trifle dish, if you've got one), evenly layer half of each ingredient: cubed angel food cake, Cool Whip mixture, strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries.

Repeat layering with remaining ingredients. Serve immediately or chill.

MAKES 8 SERVINGS
Thanks to Hungry Girl for the statistics.
Serving Size: 1/8th of trifle (about 1 cup)
Calories: 170
Fat: 1.5g
Sodium: 133mg
Carbs: 38g
Fiber: 3.5g
Sugars: 20.5g
Protein: 2g

Need Fresh Fruit for My Oatmeal

Fresh peaches, blueberries and bananas in Steel Cut Oatmeal. Adding yogurt is also delicious. What a great way to start the day.

It's like Yogurt Parfait, page 52 in Tastes & Treasures, recipe from Hassayampa Inn but with cooked oatmeal instead of granola.

Yogurt Parfaits
2 cups fresh blueberries
2 cups fresh raspberries
2 cups granola
Strawberry yogurt
Mix the blueberries and raspberries in a bowl. Alternate layers of the berries and granola in parfait glasses or wine glasses and top with the yogurt.
Note: You can use homemade or commercial granola and low-fat yogurt in this recipe.
Serves 6

Everything but the Kitchen Sink in this Salad. . .

Garland's Oak Creek Lodge has a refreshing Mixed Salad with Celery Seed Vinaigrette on page 43 of Tastes & Treasures cookbook.

We like salads that are creative so we often add additional ingredients. Perfect for summer meals.
Try grilled chicken breast, roasted asparagus, candied pecans sprinkled with cinnamon, blueberries, yellow baby pear tomatoes, sliced apples. What is your favorite combination for a summer salad?

Mixed Greens with Pears, Roquefort and Pecans with Celery Seed Vinaigrette from Garland’s Oak Creek Lodge page 43

Celery Seed Vinaigrette

1/3 cup raspberry white wine vinegar
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon dry mustard
1 tablespoon chopped yellow onion
½ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup walnut oil
1/3 cup canola oil
½ teaspoon celery seeds

Salad

1 cup pecans, chopped
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
4 large red Bartlett pears or Anjou pears
4 quarts mixed salad greens, rinsed and spun dry
1 cup crumbled Roquefort cheese

For the Vinaigrette, combine the vinegar, sugar, dry mustard, onion, salt, walnut oil, canola oil and celery seeds in a 2-cup glass measure and blend until smooth. Use a hand-held blender, if desired.

For the salad, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Toss the pecans with the olive oil and salt in a bowl and spread on baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until toasted. Pour 1/3 cup of the vinaigrette into a 1-quart bowl. Quarter and core one pear at a time and slice each quarter lengthwise into ¼-inch wedges into the vinaigrette. Cover and chill until ready to serve. Place the mixed salad greens in a large bowl and toss with the remaining vinaigrette. Divide among eight salad plates. Sprinkle the cheese around the salad greens. Arrange five pear wedges on each salad and sprinkle with the toasted pecans.

Fresh Peaches and Blueberries Inspire Me

With a peach tree growing in my daughter's backyard, we feel the need to create a peach dish. This is a good one from www.hungrygirl.com. Of course, fresh fruit in the summer is always inspirational. Try the delicious Apple Streusel Pie from Tastes & Treasures, page 163.

Blueberry Peach Custard Pie

1 cup sugar
¾ cup skim milk
¾ cup (6 oz) non-fat plain Greek style yogurt
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon cornstarch
¼ teaspoon almond extract
Pinch of salt
1 store-bought, refrigerated pie crust
1 cup blueberries
1 cup peeled, sliced peaches

Position a rack in lower third of the oven. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 9 inch pie pan with cooking spray.

To make the filling: In a medium bowl, combine the sugar, milk, yogurt, eggs, flour, cornstarch, almond extract and salt. Whisk until smooth. Set aside.

On a lightly floured surface, roll a sheet of piecrust into a 12-inch circle. Place the crust in the pie pan and trim so it overhangs evenly by about 1 inch. Fold the edges under he crimp or flute the edge with your fingers or a fork. Place the pie pan on a baking sheet.

Arrange peaches in the bottom of the crust and top with the blueberries in an even layer. Pour the filling on top (the fruit will float but this won’t affect the final results). Bake for 25 minutes.

After the pie has baked for 25 minutes and the filling is beginning to set, remove from oven and cover the edges of the crust with foil to help prevent over browning. Reduce heat to 350 and return the pie to the oven.

Bake until a knife inserted at the center of the pie comes out clean, an additional 20 to 25 minutes. (The pie may puff up quite a bit but will settle during cooling.) Let cool for 1 ½ hours. Serve warm or refrigerate.

Serves 10.

Nutritional facts per serving: 200 calories, 6 g fat, 41 mg cholesterol, 34 g carbohydrates, 4 g protein 1 g fiber, 163 mg sodium

Celebrate 4th of July with Red and Blue

Red Beet Salad and Blueberry Pie
Two great recipes to present on this festive weekend. Thanks to www.bigblendmagazine.com for inspiration for these foods. You could also make Blueberry Muffin Tops page 198 Tastes & Treasures. They are delicious.
Happy Birthday America.

Red for Beet Salad
Ingredients

8 large beets
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 Vidalia onion, sliced thin
3 tablespoons feta cheese
1/4 cup chopped parsley

Directions

Rinse the beets very well and boil until fork tender (about 15 minutes.) Drain and use a knife to peel, then cut into bite-sized pieces.

While the beets are boiling, put the balsamic and brown sugar into a sauce pan and reduce over medium-high heat until the balsamic vinegar is thick like maple syrup.

Finally, put all of the ingredients in a bowl with a lid. Cover the bowl and shake well to mix. Serve.

Blue for Blueberry Crunchy Pie Ingredients
1 premade pie crust
1 pint blueberries
1/2 cup grape juice
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon sugar
Juice of 1 lemon
1 stick butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 frosted cornflakes

Directions

Get the butter out to soften!

Now, take your pre-made pie crust and blind bake it according to package directions. (Blind baking refers to baking the crust without any filling.) Set aside to cool.

In a saucepan, add the blueberries, grape juice, sugar, and lemon juice. Cook over medium-high heat. Stir occasionally and cook until about half of the blueberries have popped. This usually takes about 10-15 minutes.

While the blueberries are heating, put the butter, brown sugar, and cornflakes into a bowl. Work the butter with your fingers until the cornflakes are coated

Preheat your oven to 350. Construct the pie by pouring the blueberry filling into the crust and topping with the buttered cornflakes.

Bake until the butter is melted and the cornflakes are browned, about 12 minutes.

Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Baked Brie with Fresh Cranberries

Fresh from the oven, the presentation of this colorful dish is fabulous. Leslie Christiansen gave us this delicious appetizer that her whole family enjoys.

Another method of serving this is to scoop out a round loaf of sourdough bread and bake the brie cheese and toppings inside the hollowed out bread. Then use the bread cubes to serve the brie. Wonderful for the Holidays or any special time.

BAKED BRIE WITH FRESH CRANBERRIES

Ingredients:
19 oz Wheel of Brie
½ bag of fresh cranberries, rinsed
½ cup raisins, golden or regular
½ cup brown sugar
½ t cinnamon
½ cup orange juice
½-1 cup black berries
½-1 cup blueberries
Crackers or sliced baguette


1. Preheat the oven to 325 F.
2. Place cranberries, raisins, brown sugar, cinnamon and orange juice in a sauce pan, stirring to combine.
3. Bring to a boil; as the cranberries begin to burst, reduce the heat to a simmer.
4. Continue to cook until the liquid has thickened to a syrup; about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
5. Remove from the heat and stir in the fresh berries.
6. Meanwhile, cut the top off the wheel of brie, leaving the sides of the cheese intact. Place brie in an ovenproof serving dish with sides.
7. Pour the cranberry mixture over the brie; it’s ok if the mixture tumbles over the sides a little bit. Place the brie in the oven.
8. Bake until the cheese begins to bubble, about 15-20 minutes.
9. Serve with your favorite crackers or bread.

Yogurt Smoothie

Refrigerator leftovers . . . what do you do with them? We were leaving our condo in Eleuthera and decided to use up what was left. The condo had a "state of the art" blender so we put in yogurt, milk, blueberries, flax seed, ice, banana and a little oatmeal from breakfast. It looked wonderful until we twisted the blender from it's base. Unfortunately, this was the kind you twist to remove the bottom . . . whoosh. Yogurt Smoothie all over the counter and floor. We saved some of it and I got a few pictures to remember the laughs. It tasted pretty good, except for the oatmeal. Note to self: Remember not to add oatmeal next time.

The Hassayampa Inn has an easy Yogurt Parfait recipe pg 52 from the cookbook. No blender involved so no spills.

Yogurt Parfaits
2 cups fresh blueberries
2 cups fresh raspberries
2 cups granola (use the granola recipe from pg 196)
Strawberry yogurt

Mix the blueberries and raspberries in a bowl. Alternate layers of the berries and granola in parfait glasses or wine glasses and top with the yogurt.
Note: you can use homemade or commercial granola and low-fat yogurt in this recipe.

Serves 6

Berry Fruit Salad with Mint Sugar pg 118

Terrie Sanford made this delicious fruit dish for our monthly Historical League meeting. It was so refreshing with the minty taste lingering in my mouth.
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh mint
6 tablespoons sugar
3 cups sliced strawberries
3 cups blackberries
3 cups blueberries
Pulse the mint and sugar in a food processor until finely ground. Sprinkle over the strawberries, blackberries and blueberries in a large bowl and toss gently to combine. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.
Terrie commented it was easy to make but can be very expensive if the berries are not in season.

Kudos to April Riggins and Mary Pearce for the lovely Easter display on the buffet table. Note the tatting on the recipe card that Mary made. Love to see a lost art still in use.