Maple Chomeur (Poor Man's Pudding)

Maple Chomeur is a very popular traditional dessert in Quebec, supposedly dating back to the Depression era and it really is simplicity itself. This is the sort of recipe that draws me in because it transforms a few familiar ingredients into something absolutely delicious. We enjoyed this particular pudding at the end of our last weekend brunch for a warm, sweet, sticky ending to my favorite meal of the week.

To prepare the sauce, in a medium sized pot simmer for 3 or 4 minutes:

1 cup real maple syrup

1 cup brown sugar
½ cup water
3 tbsp butter

1 tsp vanilla extract

Set aside to cool to lukewarm.

For the cake, begin by greasing a 9x9 inch baking pan very well

In a food processor combine:

1 1/4 cups flour
2 tspbaking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup sugar

Using the pulse button on the food processor cut in

2/3 cup very cold butter, cut in small pieces

Pulse until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. ( If you don't own a food processor, you can cut the butter into the flour mixture using a pastry cutter or even a couple of knives.)

To the flour/butter mixture, add

3/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

Blend in until the flour is fully incorporated and spread into the well-greased pan. Pour  the prepared maple syrup mixture over the cake batter and bake for about 35 minutes at 350 degrees F. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice-cream. Some lightly toasted walnuts also make a wonderful addition to this dessert.

Watermelon Flavored Cake

My oldest daughter gave me the inspiration for this cake.

That girl seriously loves watermelon!
 

When I told her that I was decorating a cake to look like a watermelon,

she excitedly asked, "Will it taste like watermelon too?"

Umm...

could I make a cake that tastes like watermelon?
After some brainstorming and research, the answer is "Yes!".

Watermelon puree and Jell-O give this cake it's flavor, and it is fantastic!
And the frosting is SO good...I just want to eat it with a spoon!

Watermelon Cake 

adapted from Chaos in the Kitchen

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Ingredients

Watermelon Cake

• 1 box white cake mix
• 1 (3 oz.) box of watermelon Jell-O powder (reserve 2 teaspoons for frosting)
• 1/2 cup watermelon puree
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup oil
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
• red food coloring

Watermelon Cream Cheese Frosting

• 8 oz. cream cheese (softened)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (softened)
• 5 cups confectioners' sugar
• 2 teaspoons watermelon puree
• 2 teaspoons watermelon Jell-O powder
• red and green food coloring

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottom of 2 eight inch round pans with wax paper, and spray the sides with cooking oil.

In a large bowl, combine cake mix and Jell-O. Add water and oil; mix on medium speed. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well. Add watermelon puree and beat until blended. Add red food coloring a little at a time, until you reach desired color. Place chocolate chips and a teaspoon of flour in a ziploc bag; shake to coat. Fold the chocolate chips into the batter. Pour into pans and bake for 30-35 minutes.

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter together. Beat in watermelon puree. Gradually add sugar and Jell-O, beating until smooth. Color 1/3 of the frosting green, color the remaining 2/3 the same color as the cake.

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Things to Note:

• To make puree: Cut chunks from the center of a watermelon and remove any seeds. Put them in a blender and hit the puree button!
• The chocolate chips in my batter sunk to the bottom while baking, and didn't quite achieve the "seeds" look I was going for. After I posted this recipe, several astute readers gave me the solution to that problem: Coating the chocolate chips with a small amount of flour keeps them from sinking! But I think I will leave out the chocolate chips in the future.
• Trim the brown edges off the cake before frosting.
• Use pink frosting between the layers and on the top of the cake. Spread green frosting on the sides and outer edge of the top. Press mini chocolate chips on top for seeds.

 

Enjoy!

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Bumbleberry Crumble

Bumbleberry Crumble

Who doesn't love a good crumble? Even though fresh, juicy, local summer fruits and berries are still a while away, thankfully we still had some frozen berries in the winter freezer which combined with a couple of fresh additions from the supermarket to make this phenomenal Bumbleberry Crumble. This recipe does not add a lot of sugar to the blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and cherries, letting the natural flavor of the fruits take center stage beside a nutty oatmeal crumble. We served this awesome dessert with some of our homemade Blueberry Ripple IceCream which took it completely over the top, to make what I would call the perfect summer barbeque dessert.

 Mix together:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp corn starch
• pinch salt

Pour this mixture over

• 4 cups mixed berries

Stir well and pour into a deep dish pie plate or 9x9 square baking pan.

For the crumble mix together:

• 1 cup oats
• 3/4 cup flour
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Using your hands rub in until crumbly:

• 1/2 cup butter

Sprinkle the crumble over the fruit and press down slightly. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes or until the crumble is evenly golden brown and the fruit is bubbling well at the bottom of the dish. Serve warm with good ice cream.

Orange Hoisin Leftover Pork Sandwiches

Orange Hoisin Pork Sandwiches

This is the kind of meal we like to refer to as a "Leftover Rescue Recipe" but the truth is we purposely grilled extra pork chops one evening in order to plan dinner for the next day, which promised to be very busy with not much time for cooking. These outstanding hot sandwiches are simply made with thin slices of leftover pork chops, which get tossed in a quick cooking Orange Hoisin Sauce which also can be made in advance if you prefer; just another way that a little simple meal planning can ensure a terrific dinner even on the busiest of days.

Serves 4- 6

• 4 large grilled center loin pork chops, thinly sliced ( you can also use quickly stir fried pork tenderloin slices)

To prepare the sauce, sauté together 

• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 3 tbsp peanut oil

When the garlic has softened but not browned add:

• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 1/2 cup hoisin sauce
• 1 tbsp grated ginger root
• 1/2 tsp five spice powder
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 1/2 tbsp honey

Stir and simmer until reduced and thickened to about the consistency of plum sauce. Toss the pork slices in the sauce over medium heat only enough to warm the pork and remove from the burner.

Serve on your favorite toasted sandwich rolls with 

sliced, roasted red pepper

Lemon Chive Grilled Corn Salad

Grilled corn is a bit of a summer staple at our house. My son in particular loves it and will even eat leftover grilled corn on the cob out of the fridge so we don’t often get to make this salad with leftover grilled corn but it is a great way to use up some if you have it. It is a delicious side dish addition to any grilled dinner this season. I make my own mayo for this recipe but you could easily use store bought and add the lemon zest and chives to that.

Don't be intimidated if you have never made homemade mayonnaise before; it is easier than you think .

Prepare your mayonnaise first.

In a blender or food processor, combine until thick and pale in color

2 large or extra large egg yolks
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
A pinch cayenne pepper
Zest of ½ lemon finely chopped

Add oil alternately with lime juice in three parts, adding the oil very slowly in a thin stream.

1 cup extra virgin olive oil
Juice of ½ lemon

This will produce a thick mayonnaise. Fold in two tablespoons chopped chives.

Toss together

3 to 4 large ears grilled corn, removed from the cob

2 large granny smith apples chopped

¼ cup finely diced red pepper

3 tbsp chopped green onion

½ to ¾ cup lemon chive mayo (or to taste)

salt and pepper to season

Chill the salad for an hour or two before serving.