Blueberry Buckle

A few days ago, I managed to score two pints of blueberries for less than $3. It's not as good as getting them free off my blueberry bushes but until they flower and produce, I'm stuck buying local grocery fruit. Blueberries however, are one of my favorite fruits. I love how nutritious they are, and yet, they are just so yummy. I also love making desserts. So what better dessert than one with blueberries! 

Now a buckle is a cake type batter, filled with berries (usually blueberries) and then topped with a streusel like topping. Rumor has it that it's called a buckle from the way the steusel on the top causes the cake to buckle inwards. Regardless of the etymology, it's damned good. 

So. Lets get to it! 

 

Prep Time	Cook Time	Ready In
20 min	45 min	1hr 5 min

 

Servings	Calories	Fat	Carbs	Protein
16	158	7	23	3

What you'll need: 

NOTE: For this recipe, to make the streusel topping, you'll need a pastry cutter. You can use two knives to cut the butter into the flour, but I assure you, it's a workout.

BATTER:

• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 and 3/4 cups of whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 cups fresh blueberries

 

 

 

TOPPING:

• 2/3 cup sugar 
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/3 cup cold butter

  

Here's what you do:

1. Preheat oven to 375º.
2. In a small mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. 
3. Beat in the egg. 
4. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk. 
5. Fold in the blueberries. 
6. Pour into greased 9-in. square baking pan.
7. For topping, combine the sugar, flour and cinnamon in a bowl; cut in butter until crumbly. Use the pastry cutter here. 
8. Sprinkle over blueberry mixture. 
9. Bake at 375 degrees F for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
10. Cool on a wire rack.

Profit from your latest baking spree!

Salsa!

For those of  you with gardens, you know what it means when August arrives. Tons of tomatoes and peppers. What to do with all those tomatoes and peppers? Why, salsa, of course!

Salsa is my most favorite condiment. It packs some serious flavor, with tons of nutritional content. I eat it on eggs, enchiladas, baked potatoes, in my rice, omelets, salads, chicken, the list just goes on and on!




What you need:

• Tomatoes – whole and peeled
• Tomatoes – diced
• Onions – Vidalia or other sweet onion
• Peppers – green, red, banana, mucho nacho, jalapeno, cayenne, the choice is yours!
• Fresh cilantro
• Limes (for juice)
• Garlic – fresh (I was out of fresh and used powder, it’s still really good!)

What you do:

The first thing you  need to do is peel your tomatoes. Now, this is easy with the right approach. Put on a pot to boil, dunk  your tomatoes in there for about 30-40 seconds, and then immediately immerse in ice water. Let them sit in the water for about 1-2 minutes, and when you pull them out, the peels will slide right off. Just so you know, this works great for peaches, nectarines, and plums too.

After you have your peeled tomatoes, dice the rest. I used early girl for my peels and then diced a ton of cherry tomatoes, because they were really coming in and we just couldn't keep up with eating them. You can choose what tomatoes you use. You can even used canned tomatoes from the grocery if you like.

Now, chop your onion and put it in your food processor. Add in the peppers and garlic. Blend up just a bit. Add in your tomatoes, both the whole and diced, your cilantro and lime juice. Give it a whirl around for about a minute and viola! You have salsa. Wasn't that easy?

If you prefer the taste and texture of store bought, with the "tomato puree" feel and look to it, you can add in a can or two of tomato paste, which will thicken and give it that store bought feel.

If you wanted to, after you were done with this, you could put it on the stove to cook for a bit, add in a cup of lemon juice and hot pack your salsa into half pint or pint jars. All you need to can it is a water bath, as it's on the cusp of the acidic foods spectrum. It only takes 15 minutes (20 minutes for altitudes 1000ft to 6000ft) in a water bath canner and you'll have canned salsa all year round! If you don't want to can it, you can keep it in a jar in your fridge for about a month or six weeks.

Reusable Market Tote - Ultra Compact

Did you know, that the average American uses over 1200 plastic bags a year? 1200?? That's crazy! And then they all get tossed in the garbage. And don't fret, I was guilty for a long time too. I never even thought twice about it honestly.


Between grocery trips, convenience store outings, and that stop to get just one item, that they then stick in a bag for you....the waste accumulates, and accumulates! Some of you, probably use those bags to line your small trash cans, or for your litter boxes, etc. I myself used to line the bathroom and bedroom trash barrels with them.

However, on my journey to be more environmentally friendly, I've stopped using plastic bags at all. We do have kitchen bags that are labeled as "biodegradable" and since we compost and recycle, we don't have much in the way of waste. I have various reusable bags that I've either made, or have gotten free from places, or have bought for $1 here and there that I use for my groceries. I also have found other uses for them from toting kids stuff around to toting books, storing my craft supplies, etc.

So, I decided what better way than to get people using reusable bags but take all the negatives away? The bags you can buy at the checkouts of your local grocery store are flimsy, and will rip easily. The handles break and they're boxy and don't fold down very small though they do fold flat. Regular totes are strong, but heavy, bulky and cumbersome to try to take several to do your shopping.




So I found some 100% cotton, which by the way, you can compost when you've worn out your bags with shopping, and made a bag. It's based on the shape and funciton of plastic bags in that it has gussets on either side. There are no seams showing, as I've used French seams all around. Best part? Simply fold down the handles, fold either side in and then fold the top down and tuck it in the pocket located on the front. It goes from being  16W x 13H shopping bag to a quarter inch thick 7"x5" pocketed bag. You could take 10 or more with you in one open bag and do all your shopping! As you can see, I fit 2 boxes of baby cereal, a 5lb bag of sugar, a box of pasta, 2 cans of beans and a tub of cocoa in one bag.  And the best part? They're super cute!

Buttercream Frosting

 
Every year, I make at least one cake a month. During Lent, I make about 20 cakes for Church. One thing I can't live without on my cake, is buttercream frosting. Not the thick, too sweet kind you get at the local bakery, but the light, fluffy, airy kind, with just enough sweet to be yummy!

Prep Time	Cook Time	Ready In
7 min	0 min	7 min

Servings	Calories	Fat	Carbs	Protein
24	121	4	20	0

Cost of frosting, $1.66 (makes enough to frost a 2 layer cake)
So without further ado, here's what you'll need:

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 2 egg yolk, beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons half and half or milk

Now, if you want all white frosting, you're going to need to use the egg whites instead of the yolks.

And here's what you'll do:

1. Cream butter until soft.
2. Add salt and part of sugar gradually, blending after each addition.
3. Then add egg yolks and vanilla; blend well.
4. Add remaining sugar, alternately with milk, until of right consistency to spread, beating after each addition until smooth.
5. Mix on high speed for 3 minutes.  Makes 2 1/2 cups or enough frosting to cover tops and sides of two 8 or 9 inch layers.