Peach Crumb Bars

Peaches are one of those fruits that just scream summer. The smell alone is something rather intoxicating, reminiscent of picnics, playgrounds and ocean side daytrips. This recipe captures the magic of the peach and combines it with nutmeg and cinnamon, creating a spicy peach pie-like filling. The buttery crust is more on the crumbly side, which makes it a delightful substitute for coffee cake and, let’s face it, a really good excuse to eat dessert for breakfast (although not having an excuse has never actually stopped me from eating dessert for breakfast.) These bars are also perfect for potlucks or picnics, so feel free to spread the summery goodness with your friends and family.

My New Addiction

Everyone by now should know how much I love butter and sugar (and if you don’t you clearly have not been reading this blog), so you might be surprised to learn that my new addiction is…gasp!... healthy. Although I try to maintain a good balance between healthy food and decedent deliciousness, I have sometimes justified tipping the balance to the later by sighting that Paula Deen is still alive and well. Paula may be alive, but unfortunately, not so well. With my favorite Southern lady’s announcement of her Type II Diabetes I decided to take a good look at my diet and see where I could incorporate more nutrient-dense foods. This won’t be the end of Bombshell Baking and all the delicious fatty sugary wonders that brought me to the kitchen in the first place, but I thought I’d share one of my new favorite things: fruit and veggie smoothies.

These smoothies are kind of amazing. It helps me get more fruits and veggies into my diet, and I can tell how much better my body feels after I drink one. At first they tasted a little weird, but now I find them delicious. I’ve gotten to a point where if I don’t have one, I miss it. It’s like getting your body used to exercise then taking a day off. I definitely have noticed a difference since I started making these, and it makes me think that maybe eating healthy isn’t so bad. So, thanks Paula.

Basic Green Smoothie

What you need…

• ½ frozen banana
• Handful of baby spinach
• 2-3 ripe strawberries
• ½ cup orange juice

What to do…

• Slice frozen banana and strawberries to pieces manageable for your blender
• Combine all ingredients in blender or food processor until smooth

I have also been playing around with adding in other fruits and veggies into the smoothies to get a variety of nutrients (drink the rainbow, if you will), including: blueberries, blackberries, mango, kiwi and kale. I recommend playing around with this recipe to find what you (and your body) like best. 

Rainbow version: strawberries, banana, orange juice, spinach, kale, blueberries and blackberries

Pie, Cheesecake, Wine and Deep Conversation

Baking can often be a really wonderful “me time” activity, one which allows me to push myself into trying new things, feel accomplished and, at times, even relax. However, sometimes it’s wonderful to try new things with a friend. My dear friend Tracie and I have made food a few times together before and it’s always a pleasure. On this particular day, we couldn’t decide between fruit pie and cheesecake, so we opted to do both. So among conversations of oppression and change and lots of red wine, we tried two recipes that were new to both of us. And, with Tracie cheering me on, I made my first homemade pie crust! Hooray!

More pictures and recipes after the jump…

Lemon Blueberry Bread

Upon the arrival of my roommate’s organic fruit box, I was thrilled to see the plethora of lemons that lay in waiting among the apples and oranges. Lemon flavored things are among my favorite to eat, and, as I make what I like to eat, bake with. After opening the box, I went on a search for some lemon-themed recipes and came upon this one for Lemon Blueberry Bread. Blueberries and bread also number among my favorite things, so trying this recipe seemed like a natural. The original site states: “this bread is best served on the day it is made” but I can’t tell you if that is true or not because the bread never made it to day two. If that isn’t a good review, I don’t know what is. 

Lemon Blueberry Bread (from Joy of Baking)

What you need…

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated white sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
1/2 cup milk
1 cup fresh blueberries
Lemon Glaze:
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

What to do…

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place the oven rack in the center of the oven. Butter the bottom and sides of a loaf pan (9 x 5 x 3 inch).
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.
Beat the butter with a stand or hand mixer until softened (about 1 minute). Add the sugar and continue to beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla extract and lemon zest. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture (in three additions) and milk (in two additions) alternately, starting and ending with the flour. Mix only until combined. Gently fold in the blueberries.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 55 to 65 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, bring the 1/4 cup (50 grams) of sugar and the 2 tablespoons of lemon juice to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
When the bread is done, remove from oven and place on a wire rack. Pierce the hot loaf all over with a wooden skewer or toothpick and then brush the top of the loaf with the hot lemon glaze. Cool the loaf in the pan for about 30 minutes then remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.
Makes 1 loaf.

Incorporating the blueberries into the batter

Love the color of the blueberries with the lemon

Strawberry Scones

This is one of those recipes that I’ve made before and keep returning to. I have made them as a great addition to morning meetings (everyone needs a little help in the AM), or a treat at family breakfasts (they’re eggless and my niece adores them). They’re easy, fruity, moist and not too sweet. Mine definitely don’t look as pretty as the ones on Confessions of a Tart, but I trust that in time, I will become a master of the scones.

Strawberry Scones (From Confessions of a Tart)
(makes 6 large scones or 12 minis)

What you need…

1 cup strawberries (or other fruit)
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons butter, in cubes, slightly softened
2/3 cup half-and-half or cream or cold buttermilk

Topping:
1 tablespoon sugar

What to do…

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a cookie sheet.

If using larger fruit, cut into bite-sized pieces. Sprinkle fruit with 1/2 tablespoon sugar; set aside. Be sure to make the pieces small, or they tend to fall out of the dough. They'll still be plenty prominent in your finished scones.

Combine remaining sugar with flour, baking powder and salt. Add butter, using a pastry cutter or 2 knives to cut in butter (you may want to use your fingers to be sure butter is evenly mixed into flour). Stir in fruit; then add cream/half-and-half/buttermilk all at once. Use spatula to gently stir dough until it holds together.

Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times to incorporate dry ingredients. Be gentle so you don't break up the berries and don't overwork the dough. Sprinkle dough with flour if it gets sticky.

Press (pat) the dough into a circle 3/4 inch thick. If any berries peek out, push them into dough. Cut circle into 6-8 wedges, then transfer wedges to the cookie sheet, leaving at least 1/2 inch of space between them. Bake 15 minutes.

Sprinkle with sugar and bake 5-10 more minutes or until the tops are beginning to brown and spring back when you push them. 

Sprinkling the part-baked scones with sugar on Christmas Eve

Super pretty? No. Delicious? Yes.

Peach-Browned Butter Pie

Since summer is on its way out and fresh summer fruit will not be around anymore (yes, I am a tad late but Berkeley Bowl had peaches so it was ok) I decided to make something that would allow me to savor the last bit of summer flavors. I for some reason lost my lemons in my refrigerator, so I ended up using orange peel. I would defiantly recommend using the lemon, as I think it would brighten up the flavors a bit. I also ended up using 3 good sized peaches, because to me fruity desserts should actually be fruity. If I were to make this pie again, I would use fewer eggs in the browned butter mixture for a better texture (in my humble opinion). Also, I totally used a pre-made pie crust since this is only my second fruit pie ever. I think I would make this pie again when yummy summery fruit comes back in season.

Peach-Browned Butter Pie (from Ultimate Desserts Magazine 2010)

What you need…

• Single Pie Crust (you can either use a pre-made or make your own…I used pre-made)
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup rolled oats
• ¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted
• ¼ cup butter
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ¾ cup butter
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups peeled and sliced fresh peaches (2 medium)
• ½ cup sliced almonds, toasted (optional)
• 1 teaspoon finely shredded lemon peel
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

What to do…

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• For streusel topping, in a food processor combine ½ cup flour, oats, ¼ cup almonds, 2 tbs. granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, ¾ tsp. nutmeg, and ¼ tsp. salt. Process until mixture resembles course crumbs.
• In a small saucepan heat ¾ cup butter over medium-low heat until melted. Continue heating until butter turns a light golden brown. Remove from heat. In a medium bowl whisk together eggs, 1 cup granulated sugar, ½ cup flour, vanilla, and ¼ tsp. salt. Whisk in browned butter; set aside.
• In a large bowl toss together peaches, ½ cup almonds (optional), lemon peel, and ¼ tsp. nutmeg. Transfer mixture to pastry shell. Pour browned butter mixture over peach mixture. Top with streusel topping.
• Place pie on baking sheet. Bake for 50-55 minutes or until filling is set and golden. Cool on wire rack.

Melting then browning the butter



Streusel topping



Boiling the peaches for easy skin removal



Skinned peaches



Pie!