Fruit Bars

Using a basic crumble type pastry these are delicious and so easy.  You can adapt them with most any berry if you want to change it up as the berries begin to ripen in your area.    What a great treat to take on a picnic, serve for brunch, tailgate party, dessert.........

Fruit Bars

1 C sugar

1 tsp baking powder

3 c flour

1 cup butter

1 egg--beaten

zest & juice of 1 lemon

2 c blueberries

1/4 c sugar

2 tsp cornstarch

Preheat oven to 350° butter 9 x 13 pan  (you can double this and make it in a rimmed cookie sheet if you want to feed a crowd)

With pastry blender in large bowl mix sugar, baking powder, flour, lemon zest, butter (I use cold butter and grate it with a box grater for quicker blending), egg....mix till crumble looking texture forms.

Press 1/2 of mixture into 9 x 13 pan reserve the rest for the topping.

Mix berries with lemon juice, 1/4 c sugar and cornstarch and distribute evenly into pan.  Top with rest of crumble mixture and bake on middle rack about 50-55 min or till topping begins to brown.

Let cool completely then add:

juice & zest of 1 lemon mixed with 1 c confectioner sugar add a bit of water for desired consistency then drizzle over cooled bars, let set then cut into equal sized squares.

Great served for brunch or  with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for dessert.

alternate berry ideas:

raspberry & almond
raspberry & white chocolate chips
strawberry & orange in place of lemon
blackberry & orange in place of lemon
apples with the orange in place of lemon

also cinnamon is a nice addition

Any other suggestions for fruit combinations I should try?

Mix blueberries with cornstarch, 1/4 c sugar & lemon juice.

use pastry blender to mix crumble mixture

press into pan

layer blueberries then top with rest of crumble

bake till golden brown

YUM!

Irish Scones

Irish Scones

I will be making these again!  I often pass by scones remembering to many times getting them then realizing they are dry.  I have a memory of the most fabulous scones hot out of the oven on a trip to Ireland, and didn't think I could ever match them.  We were at the Castle Country House, Waterford, Ireland.  This recipe from Sandy Klim was printed in our last issue of AAA magazine, looking simple enough I decided to try it.  I like reading recipes & finding new ideas through them but almost always substitute, adjust, estimate the measurements.... so when it comes to baking I have to be more careful about that.  These scones are well worth the effort but I did enjoy them much better fresh made.  I might try them ahead of time and put the dough in the fridge overnight so that I could just bake them in the morning.

My adaptation of:

         Sandy Klim's Irish Scones

Ingredients:

1 stick frozen butter, I sliced mine lengthwise then crosswise to get small cubes she suggested grating the butter I found that the butter wanted to stick to the grater for me.

1/2 c skim milk
1/2 c plain Greek yogurt

2 c flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp lemon or citrus zest
1/2 c sugar

1/2 pint blueberries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425°

In small bowl grate or cube frozen butter, place in freezer.

Whisk together milk and yogurt, place in fridge.

Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, lemon zest, and sugar.  Toss frozen butter with flour mixture.  Then fold in milk mixture.  Lightly dust counter with flour.  Knead slightly wet dough about 6 times don't over knead.  Roll dough into 12 in square and fold it in half then in half again.  Wrap in plastic and place in freezer to re chill butter.  Dust the countertop with a bit of flour, roll dough to 12 inch square.  Top dough evenly with blueberries.  (freeze fresh blueberries and the blue color won't run into the dough) Press them into the dough slightly, roll dough up and slice into triangle shapes.  Brush with beaten egg a sprinkle of sugar and bake 15 min on cookie sheet in preheated oven.  They do spread a bit so allow some room in between them.  I have made them with blueberries and with dried cranberries both were great, hot from the oven they were at their best.

frozen grated butter, I now prefer to make tiny cubes but
they need to be very fine.  I found it quicker, with grating
the warmth of my hand kept softening the butter to much.

first rolling then re freeze 

scatter blueberries

bake till golden

blueberry scone

warm with butter--the best!

Cranberry scone

Our scones in Ireland, great memory.

Cinnamon and sugar sprinled over dough instead of blueberries.

Blueberry Butter Cake

  "The Black Dog Summer on the Vineyard Cook Book" has been around my kitchen for years, the copyright says 2000 so I am guessing I must have gotten it soon after.  "The Black Dog Cafe" is on Martha's Vineyard and having never been there I am sure my husband picked it up because we had a wonderful black lab named Daphne.  I am sure everyone thinks whatever breed of dog they have that its the best but if you have ever owned a lab you know they really are the best.  You are forever drawn to them & whenever you see one you can never resist going over to them.  This cookbook is filled with stories, quotes, great pictures of the crew, cooking tips and really reads like a book.  I often read cookbooks as though they were a book and this one is a favorite.  The recipes are great and even though we haven't been there it is on my to do list.  I am not a big fan of crowds so will be doing that trip in the off season but will definitely be eating at "The Black Dog" when we get there.  Visiting their site for this blog I see they have a 40th anniversary cookbook out........I'm thinking that I just might need to purchase that.  This cookbook is filled with post it tabs for recipes I refer to often so can only imagine the new book will also.
I wanted to try this coffee cake while the blueberries were in abundance, it hit the spot.

Blueberry Butter Cake


Ingredients:

Cake:
2 3/4 c flour
1 c sugar
1 T baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 c buttermilk
1 c melted butter
1 T vanilla
3 c fresh blueberries

Topping:

1/2 c sugar
1/4 c flour
1/4 c cold butter cut into bits
1/2 T cinnamon

1.  Preheat oven to 350°, butter and flour 9 x 13 pan.
2.  Sift the dry ingredients together.
3.  In a large bowl mix all wet ingredients except blueberries.
4. Mix dry and wet ingredients together until just blended.
5.  Spread batter into prepared pan, top with blueberries.
6.  In a small bowl blend topping ingredients, sprinkle over blueberries.
7.  Bake for 50 min.

I added walnuts to mine. Enjoy with a good cup of coffee or tea!

I needed more blueberries, didn't have quite 3 cups.

bake at 350°

Our Daphne <3!