Showing posts with label Fruit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fruit. Show all posts

Monday, July 9, 2012

Peachy White Zinfandel Sangria

Most of the time, when Bob's best friend stays at our house, his grandmother sends along a little gift bag for the house. She totally doesn't need to do that, but she always does. Often there's some kind of alcohol... Hungarian sausage... snacks for the kids. It's awesome! Thank you Elizabet! You're such a sweetie!!

The last bag had a bottle of White Zinfandel in it. I knew right away I'd be making it into sangria!!

I mentioned to Erin that I needed to come up with a sangria recipe for the White Zin and she sent me this from Tasty Kitchen. I've tweaked it to my liking and upsized it to use a 1.5 L bottle of wine, since that's what I had on hand.

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Peachy White Zinfandel Sangria
1.5 L White Zinfandel
1 C peach schnapps
1/4 C triple sec
1/2 lemon, sliced
1 1/2 oranges, sliced
BIG handful of strawberries, sliced
2 nectarines, sliced

Keep the extra 1/2 lemon & 1/2 orange, slice and use as a garnish.

Combine all ingredients in a large pitcher. Refrigerate for several hours.
Pour over ice.
Enjoy with friends!

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This is all you need!
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This was tasty. It was light and refreshing. I didn't add any soda to it at all. Very peachy in flavor. I prefer a red sangria. But I definitely wouldn't say no to this!

Friday, July 6, 2012

Nectarine Mango Salsa

A long time ago I had some peach mango salsa and really liked it! I've been trying, without much success, to find some that I liked ever since... until now.

This is adapted from a recipe I found on Winner Dinners,, while browsing tastespotting.com.

This was wicked good!! It's a good thing too, because I had a good bit of drama while making it!!

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Nectarine Mango Salsa
1-1/2 C fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped
3 ripe nectarines, chopped
1 ripe mango, peeled and chopped
3/4 C red bell pepper, chopped
1 C onions, chopped
1/2 C cilantro, chopped
4 TBLS jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 TBLS apple cider vinegar
1 tsp lemon juice
2 TBLS sugar
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
tortilla chips

Peel the tomatoes by dropping them into boiling water for about a minute and then running them under cold water. The peels should come off easily.
Chop the tomatoes and place in a medium-sized bowl.
Chop the nectarines and mango and add to the bowl.
Chop the red bell pepper, onions, and cilantro and add to the bowl.
Chop the jalapeno and mince the garlic and add to the bowl.
In a separate small bowl, combine the tomato paste with the apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, oregano, salt, and pepper.
Stir well and then add to the larger bowl.
Mix again and serve with tortilla chips.

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This is what you need... well.. the produce anyway...
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Next peel the tomatoes.

I had never done this before... it's so easy!

Boil a pot of water... drop in the tomatoes...
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Let them boil for 1 minute. Rinse under cold water.
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The skins pull right off!
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Who knew it was so easy??

Ok... chop those and put them in a bowl.

Chop mango and nectarines.
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That part took me awhile. They're so slippery!! Plus I was watching Ahmed Hassan on Yard Crashers while I was chopping... He's a little... distracting... *swoon*... anyway...

Then I started chopping jalapenos.
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Around that time Jon had missed the last bus to his friend's house. It's not too far away, but it was a gazillion degrees out, so I said I'd give him a ride. (We only have one car, and I needed it later) So I was still in my jammies, no bra... no shoes, my hair probably wasn't brushed. I figured, I'm just running down the street, I'll be right back... no one will see me.

We jump in the car... I drop him off... I'm just pulling away from his friend's house and I wiped my eye with the tip of my finger.

See the pic above?

It doesn't look ominous does it?

Well let me tell ya, instant BLINDING searing pain in my eye... Did I mention I was driving??

Both eyes slammed shut!

So I was trying to pull over... I knew there were cars parked beside me and I was vaguely aware of a few pedestrians.

I very slowly creeped the car over to the right and was able to get out of the street without hitting anything or anyone.

I was in my car, bent over the steering wheel, swearing, eyes burning and running, barely able to open them, hair a mess, in my jammies, no bra, no shoes, and I hear a tap at my window.

I kinda squint in that direction, because I'm still only barely able to open my untouched eye a little bit and roll down the window.

There was a guy there and he said, "My wife noticed you had a really hard time pulling over and she wanted to make sure you're ok"

I told him I was fine, just stupid and that I had just rubbed fresh jalapeno juice into my eye.

He chuckled a bit. I thanked him for checking on me and he went about his day.

It took me a few more minutes before I could actually see enough to drive.

I guess it's a good thing I wasn't on a highway!

So... let this be a lesson to you.

If you're cutting hot peppers, WASH YOUR HANDS... then wash them again!!!

Or wear gloves.

Thank you for checking on me kind strangers!!

Ok... back to the salsa.

Chop the jalapeno, onion, red pepper, cilantro, and garlic and add them to the tomatoes, mango and nectarines.
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Gently stir until mixed well.
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In a separate small bowl whisk together, tomato paste, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, oregano, salt and pepper.
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Add the sauce mixture to the fruit/veggie mixture
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Stir gently until well combined.
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Now it's ready to serve with tortilla chips!
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We enjoyed this on the porch with some Peachy White Zinfandel Sangria... stay tuned for that recipe!!
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It's a very flavorful salsa, sweet, a little spicy, a bit of crunch from the onions & peppers, yummy cilantro. Definitely a winner... well... unless like Jon, you don't care for cilantro. But I LOVE this! And I'm happy that my search for nectarine (peach) mango salsa has ended.

This makes a huge batch of salsa! So invite over a bunch of friends. Or put some in pretty jars to give to your neighbors. But it also keeps well in the fridge for a few days, so you can keep it all for yourself too!

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Banana Bread Cobbler

These were sitting on the counter.
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Tawny wanted me to make Banana Pudding Pie but I didn't have any heavy cream.

My friend CaSeYmOm had posted about Banana Bread Cobbler that she'd made and how good it was. Then everyone started making it and posting about how good it was. I decided that would be the perfect use for my very ripe bananas. CaSeYmOm found this recipe in the Better Homes and Gardens 9x13 The Pan That Can cookbook, page 378.
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Banana Bread Cobbler
1 cup self rising flour
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 medium bananas, peeled and sliced
1 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup self rising flour
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream

1. Grease a 13x9 baking pan or baking dish;set aside. Preheat oven to 375F.

2. In a medium bowl stir together the 1 cup self rising flour and the granulated sugar;add milk, melted butter and vanilla. Stir until smooth. Spread evenly in the prepared pan or dish. Top with sliced bananas.

3. In a large bowl combine oats, brown sugar and the 1/2 cup self rising flour. Using a pastry blender, cut in 1/2 cup butter until crumbly. Stir in walnuts. Sprinkle mixture over bananas. Bake uncovered, for 25-30 minutes or until browned and set. Cool in pan or dish on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

Makes 12 to 18 servings.

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Mix up the 1 cup self rising flour, granulated sugar, melted butter, milk & vanilla.
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Pour that into the greased 9x13 pan.
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Top with sliced bananas.
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Combine oats, brown sugar, 1/2 cup self rising flour, walnuts, cut in 1/2 cup butter, until crumbly.
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Sprinkle evenly over sliced bananas.
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Bake at 375F for 30 minutes or until browned & set.
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Cool 30 minutes, top with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream and enjoy!
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Everyone LOVED this! My husband almost never eats bananas, but tried and loved this. Ryan wasn't sure if he'd like it, so he requested a small piece, but he loved it too! Tawny & Lilly loved it! Bob isn't a fan of this kinda thing so he just passed on it. I thought it was awesome! This is so fast and easy and it's a nice alternative to banana bread for those ripe bananas!

Actually, I think I might try the oat topping from this on my next banana bread! Stay tuned!

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Tropical Sangria

I love Sangria! I think I like red best, but I wanted to try to make a tropical white sangria.

This is basically the same recipe I tried before, but I changed the wine to Sauvignon Blanc and changed the fruit.

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Tropical Sangria
2 bottles Sauvignon Blanc
1/3 C brandy
1/3 C triple sec
1/2 ripe mango, cubed
1 orange, cut into slices, then quartered
5 or 6 pineapple fresh pineapple spears, cut into bite-sized pieces
cold lemon/lime soda

Pour all ingredients except lemon/lime soda, into a large pitcher and refrigerate for several hours.
Add some ice to wine glasses, pour in wine mixture and top off with lemon/lime soda.

That's it! Really easy right?!

I really don't like most wines... but I do love sangria.

I took a little sip after mixing the fruit & wine & liquor, before I put it in the fridge.

MAJOR squinchy face!! I hoped it would get better in the fridge.

Thankfully, it really did!!

It was very fruity & tropical tasting. Perfect for a hot summer day!

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

Strawberry Basil Lemonade & Granita!

Nothing says summer like cold fresh squeezed lemonade!

But add a couple of treats from your garden and you have something really special!

A few months back, Jon was browsing the interwebs and sent me a link to a recipe. He thought it sounded really gross and was being a smart ass. But as soon as I saw read it, I thought it sounded amazing and knew that I would be making it soon!

That recipe was Strawberry Basil Lemonade at What's Gaby Cooking.

I decided to make it for a little impromtu birthday party I threw for myself and Bob. Even though it was the beginning of April, it was extremely hot and lemonade sounded delicious.

There is usually no shortage of cocktails at a party at Casa de Spryte. So, I decided to make the kid-friendly version of this, since we've been having extra younglings in attendance lately. But I kept the options open for adding rum or vodka per glass if anyone wanted a little kick!

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Strawberry Basil Lemonade by What's Gaby Cooking
10 lemons, juiced, approx 1 cup of lemon juice
3/4 cup super fine sugar
4 cups water
8-10 strawberries, hulled
1/3 cup fresh basil
1/2 cup vodka or rum (optional)

Directions:

Juice the lemons and transfer the juice into a large pitcher. Add the sugar and the water and stir to combine and dissolve the sugar. Add the strawberries and basil. Using an immersion blender, blend the mixture for about 20 seconds just until the mixture turns pink and the basil is finely chopped. Add alcohol if desired.

Pretty easy right?!

When I made this back in April, I was still totally not in blogging mode in the kitchen. Although, after I made this, I wished I had been!

Everyone loved it! It was tried plain, with vodka and with rum. Erin even suggested it would be great made into popsicles. I knew I'd be making it again and probably freezing some!

So, while planning a small Memorial Day cookout and trying to think of kid friendly drinks, I remembered Gaby's Strawberry Basil Lemonade. Then I thought maybe I'd make popsicles!

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Stir together the lemon juice, sugar and water. Be sure the sugar is completely dissolved.
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Add strawberries & basil and blend with the immersion blender.
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Serve over ice and enjoy!
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This is so refreshing. A little sweet, a little tangy, a little herby. YUM! It just tastes like summer. If you're someone who doesn't enjoy pulp, you you might not like this. It's a little on the thick side. If you don't mind pulp, which I don't, this is great!

But on to popsicles... I don't think I have popsicle molds anymore, at least I couldn't find them. So I was thinking I'd use the little plastic cups I have to make Jello Shots as molds and add popsicle sticks from the craft store. I couldn't find the sticks (I have since found them in Tawny's room!) So I was thinking, maybe I could use plastic spoons as sticks. Then I decided I was trying way too hard to improvise these popsicles and tried to think of how else to make them into a frozen treat.

Granita!

I'm not really sure if this actually 'is' granita. But I think it is! If not, let me know the difference!

Anyway.

I just poured the Strawberry Basil Lemonade into a 13x9 baking dish.
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Then put it into the freezer.
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I had to use my chest freezer, since my other one was too full.

It was nestled in the habaneros & blueberries & frozen chicken nuggets. (I'm sorry Jamie Oliver!!)
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For granita, at this point, as soon as ice crystals start to form, (about 20 or 30 minutes) you're supposed to scrape them up with forks and repeat until it's all ice crystals anywhere from 3 to 5 hours.

It was Memorial Day... and I totally forgot I put it into the freezer. So it was frozen solid by the time I remembered it.

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I tried scraping with forks, but the tines weren't really strong enough. Then I tried the edge of the spoon and that worked a little better. Then I decided to give my ice cream scoop a try. It has kind of a serrated edge.

That worked the best.
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The scrapings were really soft and almost fluffy.

Spoon them into a dessert bowl and enjoy!!
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So refreshing!!
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This is for you Gaby!
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Thanks for the great recipe!!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Amaretto Blueberry Pie

I was in a total baking mood last week. Two pies in one week... wicked weird for me!

Anyway...

I still had some blueberries in the freezer from a previous family blueberry picking excursion and decided that I had to make pie!

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Amaretto Blueberry Pie
1 9in unbaked pie crust (I bought mine and just unrolled it!)
5 C blueberries
1 1/2 C sugar
1/4 C tapioca
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of salt
2 1/2 TBLS amaretto

Toss blueberries with sugar, tapioca, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl.
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Sprinkle in amaretto and toss until well mixed.
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Pour blueberries into prepared pie crust.

Cover with remaining crust, crimp and vent.
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I also sprinkled it with a little cinnamon sugar.

Cover crust edges with foil so they don't burn.

Bake at 350F for about an hour.
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Cool completely and enjoy!
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Maybe top it with a little whipped cream?
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I heard lots of mmmm's while everyone was eating this. So it appears to be a keeper!!

As I look at these pie pictures, I've decided that I'm going to get rid of all of these pie plates, with recipes printed in them.

Recipes that I've never made!

I think I want to get some colorful fluted pie plates!

Something like this...
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Pretty nice huh? Of course I don't see spending $45 on ONE pie plate. But I think I need to do a little shopping...

Jon... I'll update my Amazon wish list! I'll let you know when it's done baby!! *kiss*