Strawberry Banana Yogurt Popsicles

This past weekend was a hot one! I found myself browsing recipes to try to find something that I could make to beat the heat. As usual I find many a recipe over at The Slow Roasted Italian. This was no exception, as I found just the recipe I needed. You can see their recipe here. I changed nothing about it, that is how good it is!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 pounds ripe strawberries, washed and hulled
• 3 tablespoons sugar, divided
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3 medium ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 cup non-fat plain yogurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

Combine strawberries, 2 tablespoons sugar and lemon juice in a food processor and blend until smooth. 

Divide half of the strawberry mixture in your popsicle molds and set it aside.

In a small bowl combine bananas, yogurt, 1 tablespoon sugar and vanilla and stir to combine.

Add banana mixture on top of the strawberry mixture in the popsicles molds, filling them about 2/3 full.

Pour remaining strawberry mixture on top.  Freeze 4-24 hours until completely frozen.

Don’t have a Popsicle mold? Use an ice-cube tray, younger kids love to eat them this way too. Place a layer of plastic wrap over the top and insert toothpicks or popsicle sticks to keep in place while freezing. ENJOY your summer!

Coconut Strawberry Cake Cocktail!

I only have 1 thing to say…

Let’s enjoy summer together shall we?

 

INGREDIENTS

1 oz. Smirnoff Iced Cake Vodka
1 oz. Malibu Caribbean Rum with Coconut Liqueur
2 tsp. fresh squeezed lime juice + 2 slices of lime
2 fresh strawberries; washed, trimmed and muddled + 1 whole for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. In a glass muddle the strawberries.
2. Add lime juice and  1 thin slice of lime.
3. Add 2 ice cubes.
4. Add alcohol, stir and serve with strawberry and lime on rim of glass.

This makes 1 glass at 125 Calories!

Browned Butter Strawberry Eggnog Pancakes

That ah-ha moment when you serve this at the breakfast table will be all the redemption you need. Once they taste the fluffy, sweet & tartness of these pancakes they will not know there is a hidden secret ingredient PACKED full of nutrients, Chia Seeds. 

1. Chia seeds carry the omega-3 fats our bodies need.
2. Chia seeds have more omega-3’s than salmon and they also contain a fat called omega-6. Both of these “good” fats help regenerate cells in our bodies and regulate processes of our bodies. Our bodies themselves do not make these fats and that is why it is essential to eat them daily.
3. They have 11 grams of fiber per ounce! That is 42% of your recommended daily allotment in just 1 ounce. 
4. Chia seeds are full of calcium too, 3 times MORE than skim milk!

I could go on about all the benefits, but I think you get the idea. Eggnog is one of my favorite drinks this time of year, I have yet to make my own, but I try to put it into everything during the season it is around. My husband absolutely HATES the stuff, so I am limited somewhat. BUT since he is at work, I am playing in the kitchen, shakin’ my groove thang to Dominic the Donkey (no I’m not Italian) and drinking my coffee! There is nothing better today…

These pancakes and nutritious, sweet, tart and beautiful to look at. They are easy to make ahead and refrigerate for Christmas morning. All you have to do is get up and cook them while listening to some relaxing Christmas Music or some soothing jazz!

This recipe yields approximately 16-18 pancakes give or take. 

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups all-purpose flour
7 teaspoons baking powder
1.5 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1.5 cups eggnog
1 cup milk
2 eggs, beaten & room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
pinch of cinnamon
2 tablespoons strawberry jam (I use my homemade jam, use a good quality one for this recipe)
3 teaspoons Chia Seeds
Butter for cooking with

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar; then sift again into another bowl. The second sifting creates a fluffier pancake.
2. In a small bowl or measuring cup, beat the eggs and add vanilla and pinch of cinnamon to it.
3. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour in the eggnog, milk, egg mixture; mix until combined (no need to over do it)
4. Add strawberry jam and Chia seeds and stir until just combined.
5. Heat 1-2 teaspoons of butter in skillet and brown it, if you want the method for browned butter click here.
6. Once browned and ready to go add 1/4 cup of batter to skillet and cook until golden brown on both sides. Wipe out pan after each batch with a paper towel adding fresh butter to the pan for the new batch. Repeat until desired number of pancakes are reached.
7. Drench or drizzle your strawberry jam over the top. I heat mine up for about 30 seconds in the microwave prior to the pancakes being completed.
8. Garnish with some cranberries or blueberries or strawberries.

Nutritional information cited from Dr. Oz

This recipe was shared at Wicked Good Wednesday & Manic Monday.

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Strawberry Peach Amaretto Cobbler

The smell, the texture and what peaches represent are so much a part of summer here in California. I received a ton of free peaches from a friends tree and had to get right to work making some goodies. As most of you know I am not a baker, so this is a hard thing for me to do. Muffins, cakes, cobblers…eh, just not me. However I must admit I think this cobbler took the cake in the YUM department. There is not one single crumb left and I just made it last night! (HAPPY DANCE) 

INGREDIENTS 
6 cups fresh peaches,  peeled and sliced
1/2 cup strawberries, cleaned & sliced
½ cup Peach Amaretto Jam or 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup unbleached flour
Juice of 1.5 lemons
1 cup unbleached flour

CRUMB TOPPING
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup rolled oatmeal
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 ounces (1 stick) butter, cold, cut in 8 pieces

SWEETENED WHIPPED CREAM 
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. almond extract
2 tsp. cinnamon

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Butter a 9″ X 9″ ( i used 8×8) glass baking pan or 2 quart stoneware baking dish. Set aside.
In a large bowl, toss peeled and pitted ripe peaches and strawberries with 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 flour and lemon juice. Set aside.
In a food processor combine flour, brown sugar, oatmeal and cinnamon and pulse until blended.
Add cold butter pulsing until the butter is incorporated and looks like coarse meal.

Spread topping ingredients evenly over the peaches and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until peaches are bubbling through and the topping is starting to brown. Remove from oven and cool for 15 minutes or more before serving.

TO MAKE SWEETENED WHIPPED CREAM 

1.    Place a bowl and your beaters in freezer until ready to make whip cream. 

2.    Get hand mixer, bowl and beaters; on medium-high speed add heavy whip cream

3.    As the mixture thickens, slowly add sugar until completely incorporated. 

4.    Add almond extract and cinnamon

5.    Continue mixing until stiff peaks form 

6.    Add on top of cobbler and sprinkle with toasted almonds or pecans. 

Blackberry Strawberry Goddess

At the Farmer’s Market, you can get just about any fresh fruit and vegetable you could imagine and find gems that you never knew existed! When I saw these blackberries and strawberries, I knew I had to get them now and would figure out later what I could make with them. How can you go wrong with fresh fruit anyway. This recipe was inspired by my love of fresh fruit and farmer’s markets! Every summer I crave going to the Farmer’s Market like a kid craves sweets! Seriously I am not sure if it is an addiction and obsession or what. Whatever it is, I DON’T CARE, I just enjoy seeing all the gorgeous summer bright and bold colored fruits and veggies, smelling all the fragrant aromas of freshly cut flowers, and our local market has hot sweet kettle corn…mmmmmm. Have you ever smelled fresh popped kettle corn? Y to the UM! I guess my husband is lucky that they only happen once a week around here, he might not ever see me otherwise. I don’t know if I am training my kids to enjoy farmer’s market for mommy, or for themselves, but I do hope they enjoy it as much as myself and take 2 things away, well 3 things away from it. (1) Buying local and organic supports out community and is better for our bodies, (2) spending quality time with family in the outdoors is therapeutic, (3) mommy really really likes them. I hope the memories I create with them now, resonate and continue with their families. I know this desert is served in heaven, when you try it, you will agree!

CRUST INGREDIENTS 
1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
1/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold butter
1/4 cup boiling water

GODDESS INGREDIENTS
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cold water
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups fresh blackberries, rinsed and drained
2 cups fresh strawberries, rinsed, drained, and diced

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugars, baking powder, and salt. Cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. A food processor works wonders here, if you don’t own one or are too lazy, like me sometimes to pull it out, use 2 forks to mash it up. If you want to stop at this point and make the Goddess later, store this portion in the fridge until ready to make everything and stick in oven. Butter needs to remain cold to create a nice crunchy topping. 
3. In a sauce-pot, dissolve the cornstarch in cold water. Mix in remaining sugar, lemon juice, blackberries and strawberries.
4. Bring to a boil over medium low heat, stirring frequently. Once boiling turn off or this will bubble up on you and could over flow.
5. Evenly distribute sauce mixture to 6 ramekin dishes.
6. Stir boiling water into crust mixture just until the mixture is evenly combines. DO NOT over mix or butter will melt. You want as much of the butter mixture to remain in tact without melting. 
7. Drop crust on top of goddess mixture in the ramekins by spoonfuls. You can spread it out or just leave it in clumps, either way, it’s delish!
8. If you enjoy cleaning your oven, the don’t worry about this step: Place ramekins on a baking sheet before baking, they WILL spill over!
9. Bake 18-20 minutes in the preheated oven, until crust is golden brown. 
10. Drool & let cool, then top with vanilla bean frozen yogurt or ice cream, and ENJOY!

Let the drooling commence!

Strawberry Peach Amaretto Cobbler

The smell, the texture and what peaches represent are so much a part of summer here in California. I received a ton of free peaches from a friends tree and had to get right to work making some goodies. As most of you know I am not a baker, so this is a hard thing for me to do. Muffins, cakes, cobblers…eh, just not me. However I must admit I think this cobbler took the cake in the YUM department. There is none left and I just made it last night! (HAPPY DANCE)

Do to overwhelming requests for this recipe I am putting it up sooner than I’d like. I don’t have the recipe yet for the peach amaretto jam that goes in it. COMING SOON!

INGREDIENTS
6 cups fresh peaches,  peeled and sliced
1/2 cup strawberries, cleaned & sliced
½ cup Peach Amaretto Jam or 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup unbleached flour
Juice of 1.5 lemons
1 cup unbleached flour

CRUMB TOPPING
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup rolled oatmeal
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 ounces (1 stick) butter, cold, cut in 8 pieces

SWEETENED WHIPPED CREAM 
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. almond extract
2 tsp. cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Butter a 9″ X 9″ ( i used 8×8) glass baking pan or 2 quart stoneware baking dish. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, toss peeled and pitted ripe peaches and strawberries with 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 flour and lemon juice. Set aside.
4. In a food processor combine flour, brown sugar, oatmeal and cinnamon and pulse until blended.
5. Add cold butter pulsing until the butter is incorporated and looks like coarse meal.
6. Spread topping ingredients evenly over the peaches and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until peaches are bubbling through and the topping is starting to brown up. Remove from oven and cool for 15 minutes or more before serving.

TO MAKE SWEETENED WHIPPED CREAM: 

1.    Place a bowl and your beaters in freezer until ready to make whip cream.

2.    Get hand mixer, bowl and beaters; on medium-high speed add heavy whip cream

3.    As the mixture thickens, slowly add sugar until completely incorporated.

4.    Add almond extract and cinnamon

5.    Continue mixing until stiff peaks form

6.    Add on top of cobbler and sprinkle with toasted almonds or pecans.