It’s prime picking season for some of summer’s most bountiful crops. Strawberries, blueberries, peaches, cherries, tomatoes and summer squash are at their peak and ready to be showcased in your next meal. The good news is that you don’t have to have a green thumb to make a magnificent meal from summer’s harvest. Rather, visit local farmer’s market or shop at a grocer with a quality produce section, and then use the season’s best selections in these fabulous recipes: FRESH PEACH AND RASPBERRY CRISP Ingredients for Filling: 6 fresh peaches, stones removed and sliced 1 cup fresh raspberries 1/2 cup … Continue reading →

Nothing sings the praises of summer like blueberry cobbler. Cooks love summer for its fresh bounty and yes, if you make it right–blueberry cobbler sings! Personally, I love a dallop of crème friache, but it’s not necessary to make this tasty treat really stand out. This blueberry cobbler is unique with a cornbread cinnamon top but I almost guarantee that once you try it this way–you may just ditch your old blueberry cobbler recipe! The recipe originally appeared in Fine Cooking Magazine. . .however I’ve tweaked it just a little to bring out the combination of cinnamon, cornbread and blueberries. … Continue reading →

‘Tis the season for fresh berries in abundance. That also means, if you love to bake, it is the season for strawberry shortcakes, blueberry crumbles and anything else that you can possibly imagine. This recipe is one of those that is great for impressing guests because the results are so delicious but it’s not difficult to put together. It’s also nice because you can do it ahead of time, since they have to freeze to be firm. The impressive layered dessert is very easy to put together and save for the baking time for the crumbly topping, and the chopping … Continue reading →

Okay, I admit it. Sometimes I bake just to make my house smell good. Can you really blame me? I’ve had an infant in residence for at least eight years. That’s eight years of dirty diapers. Come to think of it, for at least six of those years, we’ve had two or more in diapers. Seriously, I think I deserve a little smelly goodness from the oven. This is one of my favorite “make your home smell good recipes” because it uses canned pie filling so its super easy to make. Whenever I bring this to potlucks people devour it … Continue reading →

I just confessed in the comments section of another blog that I hate pumpkin pie. I make it, because other people like it and even if they don’t, they feel like Thanksgiving would truly not be Thanksgiving without the beloved pumpkin pie. My own disdain for the pie however, has led me to come up with a cache of deliciously fall pies and desserts. . .some of which have some pumpkin in them (I never said I hated pumpkin. . .just pumpkin pie.) So I hope to bring you a few more “abandon the pumpkin pie” blogs before Thanksgiving so … Continue reading →

My husband says I tend to cook in phases and I have to admit, it’s kind of true. I’m in a fruit phase right now so most of the things coming out of my kitchen are fruit based. (To the dismay of some of my sugar cravin’ family members!) But fruit cobblers and fruit crisps are a great low fat way to serve dessert and not regret it or spend hours working it off at the gym later. And I’ll let you in on a secret. Crisps and cobblers are mostly interchangeable. So if you don’t like the topping, want … Continue reading →