Triple-Berry Pie with Pecan Crumb Topping

When I went picking a couple of weeks ago, I saw that tayberries were still available and Marionberries were beginning to ripen.  I decided to pick just a few cups thinking that I'd make berry pies.  I had in mind a pie with crumb toppings after making a double-crust pie already.

So here's what I made with those berries, a triple-berry pie with blueberries, tayberries and Marionberries.  I fell in love with tayberries this summer.  The flavor is more delicate that the other blackberry variety; it's said to have a floral and aromatic flavor.  It's a little bit too late to make jam from tayberry this year but I vow to try it next year.  I'm already thinking of infusing the jam with tea.

My family loves this triple-berry pie because apparently the combo works!  The crumb topping has crunchy pecan and toothsome oats.  Often I have too much crumb topping but I usually put them in a bag and freeze them until I need them again.  Good thing I have a few 4-inch tart pans lined with leftover pie crusts that I stored in the freezer.  The blueberries got made into these little pans with lemon zest, the juice, a few teaspoons of cornstarch, some sprinkling of cinnamon and some sugar.  The tart baked quicker than the whole pie and it's equally as good!

The bottom picture is what my individual blueberry tart looks like.  They're gone in a couple of days!

My advice is to stock up with whipped cream or ice cream to eat these various pies/tarts in the summer!  No wonder I can't store anything else more important in my fridge! :D

Triple-Berry Pie with Pecan Crumb Topping

Serves 8 to 10


1 dough (makes single piecrust) from All-Butter Piecrust, refrigerated


For Filling:
1 1/4 cups fresh blueberries
1 1/4 cups fresh Marionberries
1 1/2 cups fresh tayberries
1/2 cup sugar--taste your berries, if they're particularly sour, add more sugar.  I personally like less sweet of filling
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

For Pecan Crumb Topping:
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3/4 cup pecan pieces
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats


Preheat oven to 400 degree F.

On a floured surface, roll the dough into a 12-inch circle.  Drape the dough onto the rolling pin and invert it into a 9-inch pie pan.  Gently tuck the pastry into the pan, without stretching in.  Trim the edges and fold under.  Crimp edges decoratively.  Place in the freezer while you're readying the filling and crumb topping.

Combine the berries in a large bowl.  Fold in sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon and salt.  Mix cornstarch, lemon juice and zest in a small bowl.  Pour into the filling and stir.  Set aside.

Blend flour, grown sugar and salt in a food processor.  Add butter; using on/off turns, process until mixture resembles fine moist clumps.  Add pecans and oats.  Using on/off turns, do a few turn just until nuts and oats are combined.

Take the pie crust and fill it with berry mixture, smooth the mixture with a spoon.  Sprinkle pecan topping evenly over the fruits.  Mound it in the center a bit but do not overfill.  I like just enough crumbs to about 1/4-inch thick around the edges, perhaps.  Freeze the remaining crumbs for the next pie project.

Bake pie at bottom rack for 25-30 minutes.  If necessary, place an old baking pan on the oven floor to catch the juice overflowing from the pie.  Reduce oven temperature to 350 degree F.  Continue baking until topping is brown and juices bubble thickly, about 30-40 minutes.  If necessary, tent the topping with foil if it browns too fast.  Cool pie on rack 1 hour.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Oat Crisps with Fresh Fruits and Honey Yogurt

When I made these crips I was expecting it to be good on their own.  Well, yeah, I wasn't wrong.  I ended up eating them as snacks because they were so addictive.  Crispy, crunchy, and caramel-y, I just love these!

If you want to eat these for breakfast, the simple way to do is to grab yogurt--honey flavored is my favorite--and fresh fruits for a feel good sustenance in the morning.  This recipe is simple and irresistible which what I like from the book by Emily Luchetti, Classic Star Desserts.  I've been going through my baking book collection and trying out recipes this summer when I had a more leisurely time for baking and cooking.  So far I've found very good recipes and I'm very pleased.  I hope I can continue the baking well into the busy school and work year.  Fingers crossed!

Oat Crisps with Fresh Fruits and Honey Yogurt

Serves 6


1 1/4 ounces (2 1/2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons dark corn syrup
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 pint blueberries
4 medium peaches, sliced rather thinly
1 cup yogurt--any flavor you like

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a bowl, combine the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and corn syrup and stir until blended.  Stir in the oats, mixing well.

To form the crisps, drop the oats mixture, one tablespoon per cookie, onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 1/2 inches apart.  Bake, rotating the baking sheets 180 degrees at the midway point, until golden brown and bubbly, about 15 minutes.  Let cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheets.  Then, using a metal spatula, transfer the crisps to a large flat plate to cool.

To serve, divide blueberries, peach slices and yogurt among individual plate and place 2 oat crisps alongside or on top of each serving.


Source:  adapted from Classic Stars Desserts by Emily Luchetti

Corn Crepes with Blueberry Sauce

Before making this dessert, honestly, I've never tried eating corn with blueberry.  I've eaten corn kernels sauteed in lots of butter and spoonsful of sugar with a dash of salt or an Indonesian version of sweet tamale--a mixture of corn, shredded coconut, sugar and salt wrapped in corn husk and steamed until soft.  Boy, that was a good sweet snack!  But never corn with blueberry and ice cream.

This doesn't make me not like the pairing; I think it's a wonderful one especially when the corn and blueberries are in season.  I love crepes and there's an interesting texture of the crepes with the addition of cornmeal in there; a little different but in no way bad.  Blueberry sauce is one of my family favorites to use in desserts so it can't go wrong in this dish.  And, oh boy, the vanilla ice cream just finishes off nicely!

In the last few weeks of summer--it's already cooling down rapidly here in Oregon--I'm sharing this recipe before it's too late!

Corn Crepes with Blueberry Sauce

Makes 6 servings


Corn Crepes:
2 large eggs
1 cup milk
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup (about 1 ear) uncooked fresh corn kernels, preferably white
3 tablespoons white cornmeal, preferably stone-ground

Blueberry Sauce:
1 1/2 pints blueberries
3 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Vanilla ice cream


To make the crepes:  Put the eggs and milk in a food processor or blender.  Blend until smooth.  Sift together the flour, cornstarch, and salt and add it to the egg mixture.  Blend until smooth.  Add the melted butter and again blend until smooth.

Transfer the batter to a bowl and stir in the corn kernels and the cornmeal.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes to overnight.

Heat a 6-inch crepe pan or nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Lightly grease the bottom of the pan.  fill a 1/4-cup measure three-quarters full with the crepe batter and pour it into the pan, rotating the pan so that a thin layer covers the entire bottom.  Cook for about 1 1/2 minutes, until lightly browned.  Using the edge of a knife, loosen a corner of the crepe from the pan.  Using your fingers, flip the crepe over and cook for another 15 seconds.  Place the finished crepe on a large plate.  Continue cooking crepes, stacking them, slightly overlapping, on top of each other, until there are at last 12.  It is not necessary to grease the pan after making each crepe.  Wrap the crepes in plastic wrap until ready to use.

To make the blueberry sauce:  Place 1 pint of the blueberries, the sugar, and lemon juice in a medium saucepan.  Cook, covered, over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the blueberries are soft and juicy, about 3 minutes.  Stir in the remaining blueberries.

To serve:  Place a small scoop of ice cream in the middle of each of the crepes.  Fold crepe over the ice cream.  Place 2 crepes on each of 6 plates.  Accompany with some warm blueberry sauce.  Serve immediately.


Source:  A Passion for Desserts by Emily Luchetti

Blueberry-Coconut Crumb Bars

Here's another post about blueberries but don't look away because these bars are so good that you'll want to make it now, especially when the blueberries season will end soon.  

I sneaked in some coconut in the bar because I wanted to have extra texture in the crumb, and also because I had leftover coconut in the fridge.  I think I made the best decision to include coconut in the recipe.  The bars have a hint of coconut, sweet and lemony blueberry taste with buttery crunch top and bottom.  They are good warm, straight after baking, but also delicious cold.  Make sure to store bars in the refrigerator to keep the texture crisp.  They will keep for a few days.  

Blueberry-Coconut Crumb Bars

Makes 24

Bars:

3 cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (from 1 lemon)

½ cup sweetened grated coconut

1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks, plus more for pan

1 large egg

Filling:

¼ cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon cornstarch

3 cups fresh blueberries (about 12 ounces)

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 375.  Line a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with foil or parchment paper, overhanging edges to serve as handles.  Lightly butter foil.

For bars:  In a food processor, pulse flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, lemon zest, and coconut until combined.  Add butter pieces and egg; pulse until dough resembles crumbly wet sand.  Pat half of dough into the prepared pan.

For filling:  In a medium bowl, stir together sugar and cornstarch.  Gently fold in berries and lemon juice.  Spread blueberry mixture evenly over crust, leaving a ½-inch border around the edges.  Crumble remaining dough over berries.

Bake for 40 minutes, until top is golden brown and crust is firm.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Use foil handles to lift bars from pan.  Sprinkle with powdered sugar.  Cover and store in refrigerator.

Source:  adapted from Debbie Macomber's Christmas Cookbook

Cocomama Quinoa Cereal

Quinoa is still in one of the food trends for 2014, and I'm glad that it won't go away so soon.  Why?  Because I just had an opportunity to sample ready-to-eat quinoa cereal from Cocomama.  I've cooked with quinoa before and I almost always incorporate it into my homemade bread.  It's quite versatile, easy to digest protein-packed grain with slightly crunchy texture.  My bread comes out with fluffy and soft texture which everyone likes and it stays like that for days.

There are several flavors to choose from, Banana Cinnamon, Honey Almond, Orange Cranberry, and Wild Blueberry, and all are equally good. My favorite is Honey Almond flavor, while my son's favorite is the Banana Cinnamon.  What I like about this cereal is that it's precooked, you can eat it either cold or warm--very convenient, and the quantity is just right for breakfast meal.  The crunchy texture is what makes quinoa cereal fun to eat for my son, his only complain is that the banana needs to shine more in the Banana Cinnamon flavor.  I don't have any quips with Honey Almond flavor though; there's coconut cream in the product which I detect but it's not bothersome, in fact I like it.  I think this cereal is much better than those instant flavored oatmeals, this is barely sweet not too mention healthier because of all the natural flavors it uses.

Cocomama also has another product which is called Crunched Out.  This comes in clusters--like pieces of breakfast bars--intended to eat as snacks, in yogurt, milk, or for ice cream topping (delicious!).  I haven't tried this before but I think I will!

Here's the video about their Kickstarter campaign--with link for you to click--and help spread out the revolution of quinoa cereal!



Disclaimer:  I was sent samples of Cocomama Quinoa Cereal.  All opinions are solely my own.

Blackberry and Blueberry Cobbler with Walnut Biscuits

I guess it's time for the blackberry to shine. As we're moving forward to fall season, the blackberries are ripening everywhere. Here in Oregon, the wild ones are very prolific and people develop a love-hate relationship; they certainly don't want those thorny vines in their backyard, but they welcome the arrival of juicy-sweet blackberries ripened from the sun. I live close to a secret picking spot where the blackberries are abundant, it's within a walking distance and a bit sheltered from the traffic which is desirable for impromptu u-pick.

For several days, it's my dad who was so eager to pick the berries. I guess the benefit of moving close to me is to have acquired a newfound hobby, that is berry picking. He is the one who will pick all the blueberries from the yard, he is the one who will walk and bring home the blackberries, though he complained that the thorns attack him ferociously at times.

Here is what I did with those berries, a delectable desserts who need only whipped cream or vanilla ice cream to accompany it till the last spoonful.

Blackberry and Blueberry Cobbler with Walnut Biscuits

Makes 8 servings


1/2 cup walnuts, toasted
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2/3 cup buttermilk
4 cups fresh blackberries
4 cups fresh blueberries
3/4 cup granulated sugar, use slightly less if the berries are very sweet
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons finely shredded lemon peel
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon whipping cream
1 tablespoon coarse sugar or granulated sugar
Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream

Preheat oven to 375°F. For biscuits, place walnuts in a food processor, pulse several times until roughly chopped. Add flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and the 1/2 teaspoon salt. Pulse several times until combined. Add butter, pulse again until butter pieces are no larger than small peas.

Transfer the flour mixture to a large bowl. Add buttermilk, stirring with a fork until the dough comes together. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface; knead two or three times to bring dough together. Press dough into a rectangle or circle 1/2-inch thick. Using a knife or 2 1/2-inch fluted round cutter, cut the dough into eight squares or rounds, re-rolling the scraps as necessary.

In a 3-quart rectangular baking dish combine berries. In a small bowl combine the 3/4 cup granulated sugar and the 1/4 teaspoon salt. Mix lemon peel and ginger into sugar mixture, pour sugar mixture over berries; gently toss with hands to combine. Combine lemon juice and cornstarch. Add cornstarch mixture to berry mixture; toss.

Brush tops of biscuits with whipping cream; sprinkle with the coarse sugar. Arrange biscuits on top of fruits. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Loosely cover baking dish with foil; bake for 10 to 20 minutes or more or until bubbly around the edges. Transfer baking dish to a wire rack; remove foil. Cool on wire rack for at least 20 minutes before serving.

To serve, spoon each biscuit and berry mixture into eight serving bowls; top with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream if desired.

Source: adapted from Better Homes and Garden, Fall Baking 2011.

Three-Berry Spoon Cake

Strawberry season is in full swing in Oregon.  I was not planning to go u-picking this summer for strawberry because my parents have a little patch of evergreen strawberry in their garden.  Even though their strawberry is small in size but they are prolific plants.  Each week either my mom or dad can be found in the garden picking the juicy morsels; they are trying to save most of it before the slugs can get hold of.  But I gave in and set out u-picking last weekend.  My goal was to pick Hood strawberries, but the two farms that I went to, both closed their Hood fields because of overpicking.  People are really going for those berry once the weather turn nice.  Last weekend we had back-to-back sunny days and this weekend the sun finally spread out its glorious rays.

So even though I didn't get to pick Hood strawberries, I got to pick Tillamook variety in a Sauvie Island farm.  Of all the berries that I picked some will be made into jam, lemonade concentrate, pies, milkshakes, pops, and marmalade.  Yes, I have lofty ideas yet I am still finding time to do all of those so for right now my strawberries are safely bagged in the freezer.  Some of the fresh ones were made into this three-berry spoon cake.  I have this urge to make cake with berries for some time, something substantial, something that I can sink my teeth into.   Looking up a recipe in my book collection, I found the perfect answer.  I've never made a spoon cake before and I can't find the origin for this cake either.  All I know is that this is a homey dessert; the batter part is similar to pancake batter and it puffed up considerably and was pretty sturdy.  I just love it.  You should see my husband scarfed down this cake in a beat :)

Here is the recipe and you really should try it this summer!

Three-Berry Spoon Cake

Makes 8 to 10 servings

___________________________________________

For the filling:

4 pints strawberries (2 pounds), hulled and quartered if they are big; if they are small you could leave them whole

2 pints blackberries (12 ounces)

2 pints blueberries (12 ounces)

1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoon cornstarch

For the batter:

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, melted

______________________________________________

To make the filling:  Combine strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries in a large bowl with lemon juice, sugar, and cornstarch.  Toss to combine; let stand 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375 degree F.

To make the batter:  Combine flour, sugar, lemon zest, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; whisk to combine.  In a smaller bowl, whisk eggs, milk, and vanilla extract.  Pour the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk them until evenly moistened, then whisk in the melted butter until evenly smooth.

Scatter the filling in a 13-by-9-inch baking dish.  Spoon the batter on top, leaving small gaps.  Bake in the center of oven for 1 hour, or until the fruit is bubbling and a toothpick inserted into the topping comes out clean.  Let the cake cool for 1 hour before serving.

Source:  adapted from Food and Wine:  Reinventing the Classics

Blueberry Cream Cheese Pie

Surely the summer will come.  Slowly yet surely.  Fireworks, sleeping in, sitting outdoors, picking berries, road trip.  The list is endless though the summer is short.  It's going to be a great summer.

Just last week, I got into a conversation with someone I work with.  We were discussing how fortunate of us to be working in school since we have summer break (and any other break related to school).  I honestly don't know if I could cope if I have to work during the summer months, I'm rather spoiled by the schedule.  I will make do with what I have.  To preserve the precious time summer brings.

Blueberry Cream Cheese Pie

Serves 6

Butter for greasing pie plate

Chocolate cookie crust:

1 1/2 cup crumbled chocolate wafers or homemade chcoolate shortbread cookies

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Cream Cheese filling:

12 ounces full-fat cream cheese

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 1/4 teaspoons grated lemon zest

1/2 cup sour cream

2 large eggs

Blueberry topping:

3 cups fresh blueberries, divided

1/2 cup sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

-----------------------------------------

6 teaspoons sour cream for garnish

6 mint sprigs for garnish

-------------------------------------------

Arrange an oven rack at center position and preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter a 9-inch Pyrex pie plate.

To make the chocolate cookie crust:

Melt the butter in a medium bowl, add cookie crumbles, and mix until combined.  Spoon the mixture into pie plate, press into the bottom and sides evenly.  Refrigerate the crust for at least an hour.

To make the filling:

With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese until smooth, about 3 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl if necessary.  Continue beating while gradually adding sugar in a thin stream.  Beat in lemon juice and zest.  Finally, add sour cream and eggs, and beat until incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl if necessary.

Pour batter into the prepared pie plate and bake until filling is set and a toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.  As it bakes, the mixture will puff up.  When done, remove pie from oven and cool to room temperature.  The filling will deflate slightly as it cools, forming a shallow cavity.

To make the topping:

Combine half of the blueberries, the sugar, and lemon juice in a medium saucepan over medium heat.  Stir constantly.  As the mixture cooks, the sugar will liquefy and the berries will cook down and release their juices.  Bring to a boil and cook 1 minute.  Remove from heat, and stir in remaining blueberries.  Cool to room temperature.

When both filling and berries are cool, use a slotted spoon and spread berries evenly on top of pie.  Reserve remaining sauce for serving with pie.  Refrigerate pie until chilled, 2 hours or longer.

To garnish pie, spoon 6 dollops of sour cream, evenly spaced, around the edge of the blueberry topping.  Tuck a mint sprig into each dollop.  Serve each slice with a drizzle of reserved blueberry sauce.

Source:  adapted from The Big Book of Backyard Cooking by Betty Rosbottom

Banana-Blueberry Gelato

When the weather was predicted to be super hot late last week, I quietly rejoiced because it's been cool ever since I was back in town.  It's like waiting for the summer to begin, my friends told me that I didn't miss much in July anyway.  August is supposed to be very nice in Oregon, I'm counting on you, Mother Earth.  We all wish that school didn't end till the end of June and will not start again until middle of September so we all can enjoy the warmth.

So yeah, the weather hovers around the upper 90's.  It's dry hot that's quite uncomfortable at times, I try to keep my house cool by opening windows in the morning, and shut them midmorning when the sun's going high.  The plan to make gelato came just as I had quite a bit fresh blueberries in the frigde.  I wanted to whip it up pretty quickly, providing it's also made of fruits, blueberry is one of them.

The first thing I made was the blueberry sauce for it to be added to the gelato.  The sauce was supposed to be a bit thicker, but it turned out okay, I could still use it.  Once the sauce chills, time to make the gealto base.  It's quite simple since it only used milk, sugar, vanilla extract, mashed bananas, and a bit of lemon juice to prevent the bananas from getting brown.  My idea was also to make gelato popsicle because it's fun for my son to eat it like that.  And you know what, chocolate covered gelato-on-a-stick is even better!

Photographing melted gelato on a hot day was fun, the waiting time is rewarded with something cool in the end.

Banana-Blueberry Gelato

Yields about 9 3-oz portions



Blueberry Sauce:

6 tablespoons granulated sugar

3 tablespoons water

1 1/2 cups fresh bluberries

Gelato:

1 1/4 cups whole milk

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 ripe bananas

Juice of 1/2 lemon

9 3-oz. paper cups

9 popsicle sticks



Make the blueberry sauce:

Mix the sugar and water in a small pan.  Heat until sugar is dissolved, then boil for 3 minutes or until the mixture is thickened, do not let it caramelized.  Cool slightly.  Puree the fresh blueberry in a food processor or a blender then press through a sieve over a bowl.  Stir in the syrup and chill well.

Make the gelato:

Heat the milk in a medium-sized pan, bring to boil continuously.  Take the pan off heat and pour the sugar and vanilla extract, stir until dissolved, cool slightly then chill well.

Put the lemon juice in a bowl, mash the bananas with fork into the bowl.  It is okay if the bananas pieces are a bit chunky.  Mix banana mixture with gelato base.  If using an ice cream machine, follow the manufacturer's instruction.  After the churning process is done while the gelato is still partly frozen, drop blueberry sauce by spoon into the gelato.  Mix it just enough to get ripple effects into the gelato.

Spoon and divide the mixture into the 3-oz. cups evenly, fill the cups until it is full.  Insert the popsicle sticks.  Freeze the gelato until firm.

*If desired, coat the gelato with melted chocolate.  I used bittersweet chocolate here, but you could use different types of chocolate as well.*



Source:  adapted from Making Ice Cream and Iced Desserts by Joanna Farrow and Sara Lewis