Breads: Cinnamon Donut, Cinnamon Swirl Donut, Lemon Blueberry Loaf, Starbucks Lemon Loaf, Lemon Loaf, Lemon Cottage Loaf / Christmas Baking by Margaret Ullrich

Okay… we’re dashing down the icy Christmas highway.
It’s all going to hit the fan in seven days.


Unless you’ve managed to find something as life changing and important as the Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-shot Range Model air rifle from Jean Shepherd’s A Christmas Story, everyone’s main focus is going to be on what you are going to feed them.

Think about about all the most important Christmas movie scenes:
The Cratchit’s family dinner - the one with Tim’s big ‘God bless us, everyone’ scene - in each and every version of A Christmas Carol
The lime jello with cat food that accompanied the Griswold’s overcooked turkey that exploded in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation
Nora racing to get the last can of Mel's Hickory Honey Ham in Christmas with the Kranks
The reaction the whole neighbourhood had when Nora confessed that she couldn’t get the ham and they would have to feast on smoked trout

No doubt about it.
Your meal will have an audience who will be taking note and recording every little detail of your dinner, from soup to nuts.
Most likely they’ll also be posting pictures on Facebook.
No pressure.

Come to think of it, food played an important part in A Christmas Story.
Remember when, after the excitement from unwrapping the gifts was over, the Bumpus’s hound dogs broke into the Parkers’ home and devoured their turkey?
Destroying their chance of having turkey leftovers in all its tradition forms.
The last memory Ralphie had of that Christmas was the Chinese turkey they were introduced to in the Chinese restaurant.
THE. LAST. MEMORY.

Yes, food is THAT important.

If you haven’t baked a fruitcake, all’s not lost.
These breads don’t need to age.
They can serve as a brunch or as a dessert.

Well, it’s a start.


Hints:

If you do not have buttermilk add a tablespoon of lemon juice or vinegar to one cup milk and let sit five minutes. Stir and use.

About the Cinnamon Donut Bread…
For seasonal twists use pumpkin pie spice or cardamom instead of cinnamon.

This loaf is ideal for breakfast, snacks, or an after dinner dessert.
Wrapped, this loaf stays moist for up to three days. it can also be frozen for up to 2 months. Thaw at room temperature.


About the Starbucks Lemon Loaf (Copycat)…
For a brighter flavour use more lemon zest and a touch less extract.
Don’t overmix when you add the dry ingredients. Small lumps are okay.
Avoid overbaking for the moistest texture.
Store in airtight container to store at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Wrap cooled loaf tightly and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in fridge before serving.


About the Lemon Cottage Loaf…
Two lemons will be enough for both the juice and zest needed.

Start with one tablespoon juice, cream and sugar for the icing. Add more sugar if the icing is too thin, because you want the icing thick, but still pourable.
Add 1/2 teaspoon more of liquid if it’s too thick.

When the bread is completely cooled, and the icing is hardened store in an airtight container. You can store it at room temperature for 4 to 5 days.
Don’t store the lemon loaf cake in the fridge or it will dry it out quicker.
This lemon loaf can also be frozen for up to 6 months. Thaw at room temperature.

 

                      Cinnamon Donut Bread

Preheat oven to 350° F
Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan or line with parchment paper.

For the Cinnamon Sugar Topping:
1/2 Cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Stir together.

 

For the Donut Bread:
Place in a medium bowl
2 large eggs
1 Cup buttermilk
1/2 Cup unsalted butter, melted
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Stir together.

Place in a large bowl
2 Cups flour
3/4 Cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
Stir together.
Pour the wet mixture into the dry ingredients.
Stir gently until just combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring it to a wire rack.
Brush the top with
1/4 Cup unsalted butter, melted
Sprinkle over the top the cinnamon sugar topping.
Slice and serve warm or at room temperature with butter or honey.


                                      Cinnamon Swirl Donut Bread

Preheat oven to 350° F
Grease an 8x4-inch loaf pan.

For the Cinnamon Sugar Topping:
Place in a large plate.
1/4 Cup sugar
1/4 Cup light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Stir together and set aside.

For the Donut Bread:
Place in a small bowl
1 1/2 Cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Stir together.

Place in a large mixer bowl
1/2 Cup butter, softened
1 Cup sugar
Beat together until light and fluffy, about 1 minute.
Add
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 Cup sour cream or Greek yogurt
Mix until smooth.

Add half of the flour mixture to the bowl. Stir just to blend.
Then add
1/4 Cup milk
Blend together, then add
Add the remaining flour mixture. Stir just to blend.
Then add
1/4 Cup milk
Stir just to blend.

Remove 1 Cup of the batter and place in a small bowl.
Stir in
1 Tablespoon molasses
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Pour half of the original batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Cover with the cinnamon / molasses batter.
Pour the remaining original batter on top.
Using a butter knife, swirl the layers together a bit.

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Remove pan from oven, place on a wire rack and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Run a knife around the edge, remove the bread from the pan, and transfer bread to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.
Make sure the loaf is cooled completely before adding topping. Otherwise, it will be too soft and could break when you try to lift and dip it.

Brush the top and sides of the loaf with
1/4 Cup unsalted butter, melted
Dip the top and sides of the loaf into the sugar mixture.
Slice and serve warm or at room temperature.

                      Lemon Blueberry Loaf

Preheat oven to 350° F
Grease and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan.

Place in a small bowl
1 Cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1 Tablespoon flour
Toss together and set aside.
Place in a medium bowl
1 2/3 Cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
                                                      Stir together.

Place in a measuring cup
1/2 Cup milk
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon extract
Stir together.

Place in a large mixer bowl
1/2 Cup butter, softened
1 Cup sugar
Cream until fluffy.
Add, one at a time,
2 large eggs
Beat well after each addition.
Add alternately, making 3 dry and 2 liquid additions
the flour mixture
the milk mixture
Fold in
the floured blueberries

Pour batter into prepared pan.
Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack.
Run a knife around the edge, remove the bread from the pan, and transfer bread to a wire rack to finish cooling.

For the Lemon Syrup:
Place in a small saucepan
2 to 3 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 Cup confectioner’s sugar
Stirring constantly, cook over low heat until it thickens slightly.
Pour over the cooled bread and allow to cool completely before cutting.
 

           Starbucks Lemon Loaf (Copycat)

Preheat oven to 350° F
Spray a 9×5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray.
Set aside.

Place in a large mixer bowl
1 Cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 Cup sour cream
Beat until smooth.
While mixing on low speed, gradually add
1/2 Cup vegetable oil
Zest of 1 large lemon
2 Tablespoons lemon extract
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Beat to combine.
Stir in
1 1/2 Cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
Stir until just combined.

Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. If browning too much, tent with foil during the last 10 to 15 minutes.
Allow the loaf to cool completely in the pan.
Transfer bread to a wire rack to finish cooling completely before glazing.

For the Glaze:
Place in a medium bowl
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 Tablespoon milk
Stir together, then gradually add
1 Cup confectioner’s sugar (more if needed for consistency)
Beat until smooth.
Drizzle over cooled loaf.
Let set, then slice and serve.


                                      Lemon Loaf (Starbucks Copycat)

Preheat oven to 350° F
With a pencil, trace the bottom of the pan on a piece of waxed paper and cut out with scissors. Line the bottom of a 9x5-inch loaf pan with a piece of waxed paper. Spray the pan and paper with non-stick baking spray.
Set aside.

Place in a medium bowl
1 1/2 Cups flour
1 (3.4 oz. package) instant lemon pudding mix
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Stir to combine.

Place in a large mixer bowl
3 large eggs
1 Cup sugar
2 Tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Tablespoon lemon extract
1/3 Cup lemon juice
1/2 Cup oil
3/4 Cup plain Greek yogurt
Blend until evenly combined.
Gradually add the dry ingredients, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl, until just combined.
Pour batter into the prepared pan.
Bake for 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Remove pan from oven, place on a wire rack and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Run a knife around the edge, invert and remove bread from the pan, then remove the waxed paper from the bottom.
Transfer bread to a wire rack to finish cooling completely.

For the Frosting:
Place in a small mixer bowl
3 Tablespoons butter, softened
3 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon lemon extract
Beat to combine.
Gradually add
1 1/2 Cups confectioner’s sugar
Beat until smooth and creamy.
Evenly spread the frosting over the top of the loaf.
Refrigerate to let frosting set completely before slicing.
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

                                       Lemon Cottage Loaf

Preheat oven to 350° F
Grease an 8 inch square baking pan.

Place in a medium bowl
1 1/2 Cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Stir to combine and set aside.

Place in a large mixer bowl
1/2 Cup butter, softened
Cream until smooth.
Add
1 Cup sugar
Mix for 2 to 3 minutes, until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl as it mixes.
While mixing on low, add one at a time
3 large eggs
Add
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 Tablespoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon lemon extract (optional)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Stir until just combined.
Add in half the dry ingredients mixing until just combined.
Add
1/4 Cup buttermilk
Blend in, then slowly mix in the remaining flour mixture.
Add
1/4 Cup buttermilk
Blend in.
Spoon the batter into the prepared baking pan and smooth the top evenly with a spatula.
Bake for about 45 to 55 minutes until a toothpick can come out clean.
Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack.
Let cool in the pan for 1 hour, then carefully remove loaf to continue cooling on the wire rack.
When the loaf is completely cooled, prepare the icing.

For the Icing:
Place in a small mixer bowl
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 Tablespoon heavy cream
Stir to combine.
Gradually add
1 Cup confectioner’s sugar
Beat until smooth and creamy.
Add more powdered sugar if the glaze seems too thin.

Pour glaze over the loaf. Let the glaze set completely before slicing and serving.
Slice and serve.

                                                        ~~~

I also wrote the following essay about Christmas traditions for our CKUW radio show ‘2000 & Counting’.
Over the years our listeners asked for some seasonal stories to be repeated.
They seemed to like being reminded that we were all in the same holiday boat, a communal ship which made us feel like we were all sinking fast.

Ah… Christmas shopping, holiday customs, holiday baking…
Why do we do it?

I don't know about you, but as far as I'm concerned, there are two questions no one should ever ask a woman. 



The first is "How old are you?"

The second is "Have you done your holiday baking yet?”



Why is it that, when the thermometer falls, we're supposed to bake?  
Does the Queen whip up a fruitcake before writing her speech?


I don't think so.  



Holiday baking has been with us an awfully long time. 
Did you know that ginger was popular in Greece over 5,000 years ago? The Egyptians were eating gingerbread when the great pyramid of Cheops was just a brick and a prayer. I wonder what their gingerbread men looked like.


A few years after Egypt's building boom, an English King and his hunting party got lost in a blizzard on Christmas Eve. Well, they were clever lads full of English pluck, so they threw everything they had - meat, flour, sugar, apples, ale and brandy - into a bag and cooked it. Wallah!! Plum pudding. The Iron Chef would've been proud.  



On Christmas Day in 1666, Samuel Pepys wrote in his diary that he had risen earlier than his wife Who was desirous to sleep having sat up till four this morning seeing her maids make mince pies. 

I really admire Mrs. P. She just sat and watched her maids do the work, yet her husband felt guilty about her workload. How did she get him to suffer like that?



Some Christmas carols seem a little too focused on food. For example:

            Now bring us some figgy pudding and a cup of good cheer!

            We won't go until we get some, so bring it out here.
Those were somebody's friends? Somebody should've called the cops.


Holiday baking has followed us into modern times. The 1970s was the decade of old time family television shows like The Waltons and memoir books. 
Have you ever browsed through a memoir book? They reminded us of times like this...


Evenings when a cold blustery wind howled outside were perfect for sorting through recipes. They were cozy times. The children were sitting at the oak table helping Mama chop fruit and raisins. Papa was cracking and shelling nuts and crushing fresh spices in the grinder.

Isn't that sweet? Sentences like that convinced me that if we did things just like people did before television was invented, the world would be a kinder, gentler place.



We'll never know. Paul told me, in no uncertain terms, that he was too busy to grind nuts for a cake he didn't even want. 
Alright. Scratch Paul grinding his nuts. I bought ground nuts.


Step two... the batter had to be mixed. Back to that memoir...

When all the fruits were in, Grandmother called, 'Come, stir the batter!' 
We all took turns giving it a stir - clockwise for good luck - and made a wish.



I made a batter, threw in the fruits and called out, "Come, stir the batter!"



Carl pointed to the electric mixer sitting on the counter and said that he was staying on the eighth level of his computer game, The Temple of Ra. He also told me, in no uncertain terms, that he was too busy to stir batter for a cake he didn't even want.



I stirred the batter, clockwise.


Don't ask what I wished.



It's been downhill ever since. Do you know about the charming Swedish custom of hiding a whole almond in a serving bowl of rice pudding? The lucky person who finds the almond has to get married or do the dishes. Either my husband or my son - the fink never confessed - managed to swallow the almond every time.



I tried the German version - whoever finds the almond receives a marzipan pig. By then Paul and Carl had their own tradition: swallowing the almond. I felt so guilty looking at that poor rejected pig. 
I started my own tradition and ate him... along with the cake.



 
There's a Christmas carol that goes
Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat...


Well, the goose isn't the only one.

Anna Sultana’s Blueberries: Pie, French Toast and Clafoutis / If I Name It, It Can Stay

Blueberry Clafoutis

 

In Manitoba Monday is Terry Fox Day.
On the first Monday in August we honour athlete and cancer research activist Terry Fox, who was born in Winnipeg in 1958.

Monday is also a holiday in a few other provinces, but they just call it August Civic Holiday.

Ah, well, a holiday is a holiday.
It’s time to relax and enjoy life.
And that means food.

A brunch dish adds a bit of dash to the holiday weekend menu.
Clafoutis is a French breakfast dish that is easy to prepare.
It has been described as a flan, pancake and soufflé in one, with a texture between a custard and a cake.

Prices have been crazy for the past couple of years, thanks to Covid-19.
Blueberries are in season, and are also available in the frozen food section.
Our Safeway has them on sale, so it’s a good time to use them.

These recipes also work with any other berries or stone fruit that are in season…
or in your freezer.
Whatever you have or observe, enjoy the holiday!


Hints:

About the Blueberry Pie…
You can also use a frozen pie crust.

Blueberry Refrigerator Pie is also easy to prepare
https://imturning60help.blogspot.com/2018/06/blueberry-refrigerator-pie-margaret.html


About the Blueberry French Toast…
You can use a one pound loaf of any type of bread.

Just a heads up - prepare this dish the day before you want it.


About the Blueberry Clafoutis…
If you don’t have buttermilk place 1 Tablespoon vinegar in a measuring cup and add enough milk to make one cup. Let it sit for about 10 minutes.

You can also use fresh blueberries in this recipe.

Clafoutis can be made up to one day in advance. Cool to room temperature and refrigerate, covered, overnight. 

It can be served warm, at room temperature, or cold. You can briefly reheat it in the oven at the same temperature it was originally baked. It's traditionally not served with any accompaniment.

Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to three days. It does not freeze well.

If your clafoutis seems rubbery reduce the cooking time 5 to 10 minutes or turn the oven down by 10 degrees.

                        Easy Blueberry Pie
 
Preheat oven to 425º F          

Place in a 9 inch pie pan
1 1/2 Cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar         
3/4 teaspoon salt
Mix together.

Place in a measuring cup
1/2 Cup oil
3 Tablespoons cold milk
Beat together until creamy, then add to the flour mixture, stir together and pat in to fill the pan.
Prick crust, place in oven and bake 15 minutes.
Remove from oven and set aside.

Place in a medium saucepan
2/3 Cup sugar
1/4 Cup cornstarch
1 Cup water
Combine well.
Add
1 1/2 Cups blueberries
Cook over medium heat, 7 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the mixture is thick.
Stir in
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
2 Tablespoons butter
Remove pot from heat and let cool in the saucepan for 1 hour.
Stir in
2 1/2 Cups blueberries
Taste and add more sugar if you wish a sweeter taste.
Pour into the baked pie shell and chill until firm.
Serve with sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, if you wish.


                        Blueberry French Toast

Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking pan

Remove the heels of
1 loaf Italian bread
Slice on the diagonal to create eight 3/4-inch thick slices.
Arrange bread slices in prepared baking pan.

Place in a bowl
4 eggs
1/2 Cup milk
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Stir together until well blended.
Slowly pour mixture over the bread, pressing down slices for full absorption.
Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Overnight is best.

Grease another 9 x 13 inch baking pan
Place in this prepared pan
5 Cups blueberries

Place in a bowl
1 Cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons cornstarch
Stir together and sprinkle evenly over the blueberries.

Place oven rack in centre of oven.
Preheat oven to 425° F

Place the bread slices over the blueberries, wettest side up.
Brush bread with
1 Tablespoon butter, melted
Bake  for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown.

Place slices of the toast berry-side down on warmed plates.
Scoop remaining berry mixture in the baking dish over the toast.
Sprinkle with
1/4 Cup confectioners' sugar


                        Blueberry Clafoutis

Grease a 9 inch pie pan with butter

Place in the prepared baking dish in an even layer
10 to 16 ounces frozen blueberries

Place in a small bowl
9 Tablespoons flour
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
Combine.

Preheat oven to 350º F

Place in a large bowl
1 Cup buttermilk
3 large eggs
6 Tablespoons white sugar
Beat together.
Add flour mixture to buttermilk mixture.
Stir until batter is smooth.
Add
1 teaspoon grated orange zest or 1/2 teaspoon orange extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Carefully pour mixture over blueberries in the baking dish.
Bake in the preheated oven 30 minutes.
Sprinkle with
1 tablespoon brown sugar, or more to taste
Return to the oven and bake until sugar is lightly browned, 10 to 15 minutes.
Serve warm or cold.

                                                             ~~~

This is a piece I wrote for my CKUW show in Spring, 2006.
The rhubarb plants are still with us, while the aspens were removed when they were in danger of falling over from old age. We now have milkweeds for the butterflies, and a basil plant near our tomatoes.
Gardening continues to be a learning experience for me.


   I'm trying to be a good Manitoban, but 20 centimetres of snow is not my idea of Spring.  In the movie Camelot they did not have snowball fights while singing The Lusty Month of May.  Who knew we could get travel advisories in the middle of May?  What the heck was that?  

   Okay, enough venting.  The snow melted.  It is Spring.  We have passed the Victoria Day Weekend.  It is time to get serious about gardening right here in River City.  Gardening in Manitoba is like being a Senior.  It ain't for wimps.

   My husband Paul and I are from New York.  People do garden there.  But it isn't as exciting as here.  Okay, New Yorkers get a hurricane or two, but for the most part it's just muggy in the summer.  Hydrangeas love it.

   This area was once a dairy farm.  Paul and I have tried to make our 35 by 100 foot piece of former farmland beautiful.  Our home was only four years old when we bought it in 1988.  We'd heard about its first owners.  After they'd installed a lawn, the wife planted a small tree, the husband yanked it out and then they filed for divorce.

   We fought the Karma.  After a priest blessed our home, we went to the nursery and picked up three cotoneasters, six evergreens, a grapevine, three lilacs and three michaelmas daisies.  We also got trees: two chokecherries and two Swedish aspens.  They were the cutest little things - Paul was taller than the aspens.  How big could they get?  Yeah…  

   We also bought five rhubarbs, something for homemade desserts while our son was in the hollow leg stage.  The clerk assured me that they - the rhubarbs - only lived about ten years.  Perfect.  That's all we'd need.    
 
   I read books.  According to a best seller, The Postage Stamp Garden Book, I could become Lady Bountiful dripping with fresh produce.  My garden would look like a miniature rain forest.  I could grow it all in very little space by intensive gardening techniques.  Translation: ignore the cute little stickers and cram everything together.  I bought 24 tomato plants, along with baby onions and zucchini, carrot, green bean and lettuce seeds.  I intercropped - that's planting seeds among the plants.  When the seeds sprouted, they looked about as hopeful as the folks in steerage on the Titanic.  They survived about as well.  The tomatoes didn't do much better.  My garden looked more like compost than a rain forest.  I tossed the book.

 
   People on gardening shows are so happy digging and planting.  We need someone who'll say, You idiot!  Stop doing that!  One of our first gardening purchases was a hose reel.  It had a short hose to attach the faucet to the hose.  We thought there was a safety reason for that.  Paul nailed the reel to the fence near the faucet which was nowhere near the garden.  For 14 years we shlepped around half the perimeter of our house lugging 150 feet of hose every time we had to water the garden.  With all that hose around it looked like we were fighting a four alarmer.  Two years ago the fence board keeled over.  Finally, it hit me.  We're talking water.  Why can't the reel be near the garden?  We could use a longer hose to attach the faucet to the hose.  Why isn't there someone to help the gardening impaired?  Don't they know some of us are clueless?  
      
   When we became empty nesters I got buggy and bought a butterfly starter kit.  I believed: if I plant it, they will come.  I also picked up some lovely pastel pansies.  Well, the butterflies did come.  They pigged out on the liatris, echinacea, sedum and rudbeckia.  My pansies disappeared.  From a CBC radio gardening segment I learned that butterflies lay their eggs in pansies.  Basically I had created a butterfly cheap motel - they came, got drunk on the flowers, then had unsafe sex in my pansies which their rotten kids then devoured.  Of all the nerve!  

                          
   Last year I got another gardening book.  The author had been on a Canadian show.  He promised we could have beautiful CANADIAN gardens with no work at all.  Yeah, that sounded like jumbo shrimp,  but he was serious.  All we had to do was plant perennials.  They'd come back every year.  Isn't that nice?  So I got one of every perennial available.  I was so pleased.  The cerastium, asters, pearly everlastings, black-eyed susans, mallows and yarrows just took over the place.  The dozen creeping jennies filled in all the bare spots.  Our two dogs, Popcorn and Bobo, couldn't kill a single plant.  I'd gone to garden heaven.  Then a neighbour dropped by.  I poured coffee.  She got down to suburban business.

   Eh, Marg, when are you going to get rid of the weeds?

   Weeds?  Okay, our lawn had an occasional dandelion, but let she without a single dandelion cast the first stone.  I was miffed.  I pulled out the little stickers that had come with my perennials.  See, I'd actually paid good (Okay, Canadian) money for my perennials.  My neighbour pulled out a dog-eared Golden Guide for Weeds.  There, along with a page on dandelions, was a page for each of my perennials.  My beloved pearly everlasting, with the oh so proper Latin name gnaphalium margaritacea, was a cudweed.  I felt like John Cleese in the Monty Python dead parrot sketch.  I was stuck with a yard full of dead parrots.  Beautiful plumage my Aunt ZuZu!!

   I had to face facts.  One may be closer to God in a garden than anywhere else on earth, but the guy at the nursery just wanted to make a buck.  How else does one explain catering to 'zone denial'?  They're selling plants that belong in zone ten, not our own zone three.  They're selling magnolias.  Did Scarlet O'Hara just come waltzing in?  Of course they won't guarantee the magnolia's health beyond this summer.  It's a miracle the plant survived crossing the border.  Those rhubarbs which were supposed to live ten years are now old enough for learners' permits.  The clerk would've said whatever I wanted to hear.  

   Okay.  The garden gloves came off.  I got a copy of the weed guide.  Time for me to apply some Yankee ingenuity to my garden.  It has been a while since cows roamed my yard so I wasn't worried about yarrows tainting anybody's milk.  The yarrows, along with his buddies, are staying.  If I can name it, it can stay.  Since I didn't need pedigreed plants for a garden show I decided I'd help myself to nature's hardy perennials.  Along the roads where I walk our dogs the fields are alive with perennials.  Armed with spade and bucket I got perennials that are as hard as nails.

   I now have an herb garden of mustard, winter cress and anise.  There's chicory for coffee and chamomile for tea.  Who needs basil for pesto?  Daisies - English, fleabane, field and shasta - thrive where I once struggled with fussier plants.
       
   One man's weed is another's cash crop or freebie.  This summer I plan to read Harlequin romances in a little corner where I've sown my love lies bleeding, also known as pigweed.  I've sown my wild oats.  Life is good.

Anna Sultana’s Blueberry Lemon Upside-Down Cake

This has been a very different summer in Manitoba.
We’ve been surrounded by forest fires, which gave the sky a surreal hazy appearance, turning the setting sun and moon orange.
Day and night, it smelled like we were always gathered around a campfire.
Take my word for it… after a day that 'campfire smell' loses its appeal.
We’ve also had to endure 35 days of temperatures above 30º Celsius, matching the record set in 1988, which was another miserably hot summer.

We needed to get away.

After we got double vaccinated we joined McCarthy’s Party to tour Newfoundland and Labrador, a marvelous place to explore.
One of the places we visited was Auk Island Winery which makes wines from Newfoundland berries and fruits, as well as some specialty wines using Iceberg water.
It’s worth the trip.

They gave us lists of their products and allowed us to sample their blends.
A little hint if you’re with your spouse:
Choose ten drinks your spouse didn’t pick and share each sample.
Now you know. It never hurts to get a two-fer.

Auk Island has explored every way one could add a bit of a kick to their local fruits.
Newfoundland and Labrador will probably become the province with the healthiest, oldest Canadians.
Picture it. Seniors gathered together and enjoying wines blended with:
Partridgeberries (lingonberries) which increases the body’s red blood cells and liver enzymes, key factors in antioxidant protection.
Bakeapples (cloudberries) a juicy berry that fights infections and colds, slows the aging process and boosts the immune system.
Crowberries (Newfoundland Blackberries) which is an excellent source of manganese, copper and vitamin C.
Blueberries which are full of antioxidants, and has been one of the top ten health foods for the past decade.

We enjoyed partridgeberries, bakeapples and crowberries in drinks and desserts.
But now we’re back in Manitoba and only have blueberries.
So it goes…
Blueberries are good, and available year-round in the frozen food section.
Good to know and good to bake in delicious desserts.
About seven years ago I posted the recipe for Anna Sultana's Blueberry Cake.
It’s time I posted another of Ma's blueberry cake recipe.


Hints:

Fresh blueberries work best.
You can add 1 teaspoon lemon extract to the cake batter for extra flavour.

If you’d like to use cranberries use 1 teaspoon almond extract instead of vanilla.
Don’t top with more cranberries.
You can have some on the side if someone likes a really tart dessert.

For that matter, the blueberry cake is delicious without the whipped cream.
Also a little bit healthier.

After you have covered the cake with whipped cream and berries, serve immediately.
If you’re having a slice or two at a time, add the topping to the cake slice just before serving.


                        Blueberry Lemon Upside-Down Cake

Preheat oven to 350° F
Grease a 9-inch round cake pan.

For the blueberry topping

Place in a small bowl
2 Cups blueberries

1 Tablespoon sugar

2 Tablespoons lemon juice
Toss to coat.
Pour mixture into the prepared pan and spread the fruit into an even layer.

For the cake

Place in a medium bowl

1 3/4 Cups flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt
Whisk together.

Place in a large mixer bowl
1/2 Cup butter, softened

1 Cup sugar

1/2 Cup lightly packed brown sugar
Beat together until light and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes.
Add, one at a time
2 large eggs
Add
1 teaspoon lemon extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Beat until combined.
Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, beating until just combined.
Pour in
3/4 Cup milk
Mix until well blended.
Add remaining dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
Pour cake batter over the blueberries and smooth with a spatula.
Bake for 45 to 60 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Let cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
Gently run a knife around the edges of the cake to loosen it from the pan.
Carefully transfer the cake to a serving platter and allow to cool.

While the cake is cooling

Quarter
3 slices lemon
Set aside.

Place in a medium mixer bowl

1 Cup cold heavy cream

2 Tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
Beat until stiff peaks form.
Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Just before serving, spread the whipped cream over the top of the cake.
Garnish with

1/4 Cup fresh blueberries
The quartered lemon slices

Serve immediately.

Anna Sultana’s Lemon Blueberry Muffins and Fried Green Tomatoes

Happy October first!
COVID-19 has been with us for over six months.
It’s been a half year like no other.

But some things have stayed the same, such as tonight’s Full Harvest Moon.
It got its name because the Autumn Equinox happened on September 22nd.
The full Moon that comes nearest to the equinox is the one called the Harvest Moon, and it can occur in either September or October.
The full moon rises above the horizon around sunset, about 30 minutes later each night.
This extra light gave farmers extra time for harvesting, giving it the name Harvest Moon.

Here in Manitoba we’re also at risk of getting more frosty nights.
I harvested the tomatoes that were still on the vine.
Some were ripe, but most weren’t.
No problem - I’ll just make some Fried Green Tomatoes.


Last April I posted the recipe for Anna Sultana's Lemon Cranberry Muffins.
They’re delicious, but since we’ll be having cranberries as a side dish with a holiday meal - or two - it’s time to make muffins with blueberries.

Stay safe and well!

Hints:

You don’t have baking powder? Save yourself a trip and make your own.
Cream of tartar combined with baking soda is an excellent baking powder substitute.
For 4 teaspoons baking powder:
Combine 1 teaspoon baking soda with 2 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar.
To make it shelf-stable add 1 teaspoon of cornstarch to the mixture.

These muffins, unglazed, also freeze well.


                        Lemon Cranberry Muffins

Line 24 muffin cups with paper muffin liners, or grease them

Melt
1/2 Cup butter
Set aside and allow to cool slightly.

Sift together in a medium bowl
3 Cups flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Place in a medium bowl
1 1/2 Cups frozen blueberries
Coat the berries with
1/4 Cup flour

Place in a larger mixer bowl
1 1/3  Cups sugar
1 1/4 Cups milk
1 Cup sour cream
the melted butter
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon lemon extract
Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until blended.
Fold in the flour mixture until batter is just moistened.
Fold in the coated blueberries
Stir just enough to blend. Do not over mix.

Preheat oven to 350º F
Fill the prepared muffin cups 3/4 full.
Bake in preheated oven 30 minutes, or until golden brown.
A toothpick inserted into a muffin should come out clean.
Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan to a wire rack.

If you want to dress up your muffins you can makes this lemon glaze:
Combine in a small bowl
1 Cup confectioners’ sugar
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
Stir until smooth.
Place the muffins on a plate and drizzle with the glaze.

                                  ~~~
                        Fried Green Tomatoes

Combine in a shallow bowl
1/2 cup flour
salt and pepper to taste

Slice 1/2-inch thick
4 to 6 firm green tomatoes

Place in a skillet
1/2 cup vegetable oil or shortening
Heat over medium high heat.

Dip tomato slices in flour and place in hot skillet.
Brown tomato slices thoroughly on both sides.
When tomatoes are finished, add to the skillet
1/2 cup milk
Stir to make a gravy.

Pour gravy over tomatoes and serve as a side dish.

Blueberry Refrigerator Pie - Margaret Ullrich

Yippee!!! It’s almost July!

Time for folks north and south of 49th parallel north to celebrate their home and native lands.

Holidays like Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas come with their own menus.

Skip an item and the family never lets you forget it.

New ideas don’t stand a chance against years of tradition. Really.

But the July holidays are a bit more free wheeling.

For starters, there’s the weather.

If you have nice weather, it’s time to fire up the barbecue.

If you don’t, it’s time to fire up the broiler, or oven.

And - yes, it finally happened - the kids have finished another school year.

Schedules, books and lists have been tossed out the window.

The mood is totally spur of the moment.

A friend calls and says she’s having a pot luck.

You laugh uproariously and offer to bring the dessert.

Yeah… What were you thinking?

Don’t panic.

Right about now blueberries are on sale, or in your freezer.

The other ingredients are usually on your kitchen shelves or in your fridge.

This recipe is easy. You can do it. Really.

Throw it together and par-tay!!

Hint:

In a rush? Use 1 1/3 Cups graham cracker crumbs.

A 9 inch springform pan is just as good as the tart pan.

This recipe also works with Saskatoon berries, or any other berries that are in season… or in your freezer.

Don’t like lemon? You can also use orange zest and juice.

Don’t have zest? Use another tablespoon of juice or a teaspoon of extract.

Thawed whipped topping is also good with this.

Taking this to a pot luck? 

Don't add the topping until you get there.

Or you can add a scoop of vanilla ice cream on each serving. 

Or leave as is. They'll never know.

                        Easy Blueberry Refrigerator Pie

Finely crush

50 Nilla Vanilla Wafers

You need 1 1/3 cups of crumbs.

Place in a medium bowl.

Melt

6 Tablespoons butter

Add the melted butter to the crushed wafers and mix well.

Heat oven to 350°F. 

Press the crumb mixture onto the bottom and up the sides of a 9 inch tart pan with a removable bottom. 

Bake 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool. 

Combine in a small bowl

2 Tablespoons corn starch 

3 Tablespoons water 

Place in a large saucepan

1 1/2 Cups blueberries

2/3 Cup sugar 

2 Tablespoons water 

Stirring constantly, bring to boil over medium high heat. 

Whisk the cornstarch mixture into the blueberry mixture. 

Stirring constantly, simmer over low heat 2 minutes, or until thickened. 

Remove from heat. 

Add 

1 Tablespoon butter
1/4 teaspoon lemon zest 

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

Stir until the butter is melted. 

Stir in 

3 1/2 Cups of the blueberries 

Pour the blueberry mixture into the crust.

Top with 

1 Cup blueberries 

Refrigerate 4 hours, or until firm. 

Remove side of pan before serving. 

Top with

1 1/2 Cups whipped cream (more or less)

Anna Sultana's Blueberry Cake / Berry Cake

Peaches, plums, nectarines…

And the berries!!

Fresh fruit is in season.

Why not take advantage of the sales?

Blueberries have been getting a bit of attention, science-wise.

They reduce brain damage and may influence blood pressure.

Blueberry juice may benefit the brain, improve memory and learning in older adults, and possibly reduce blood sugar and symptoms of depression.

So, buy that big clamshell of blueberries and keep the family healthy!

Ma had a nice simple recipe that she always used in the summer.

It works well with raspberries, too.

I’ve also found that it works with cranberries.

Perfect for when cranberries are on sale during the holidays.

Hints:

Fresh blueberries work best. 

If you’re using frozen, allow extra baking time for the extra moisture.

You can add 1 teaspoon lemon extract to the cake batter for extra flavour.

If you’re using cranberries use 1 teaspoon almond extract instead of vanilla.

Don’t top with more cranberries.

You can have some on the side if someone likes a really tart dessert.

For that matter, the blueberry cake is delicious without the whipped cream.

And handier for picnics and packed lunches.

If you have covered the cake with whipped cream and berries, serve immediately.

If timing is a problem, store covered at room temperature until ready to serve.

Leftovers will keep well in the fridge for up to three days.

                        Blueberry Cake

          

Grease a 9 inch pan

Preheat oven to 350º           

Bake 45 to 60 minutes  

Sift together in a medium bowl

2 1/2 Cups flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

Set aside.

Have on hand

3/4 Cup milk

In a large mixer bowl place

1/2 Cup unsalted butter

1 1/4 Cup sugar

Beat until light and fluffy. 

Add 

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 large eggs

Mix until blended.

Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix until combined.

Add 1/2 of the milk and stir to combine.

Add another dry, then wet and then the final dry addition.

Stir after each addition until the batter is smooth.

Spread half of the cake batter in prepared baking pan.

Place on top of the cake batter

3 Cups fresh blueberries

Sprinkle over the blueberries

2 Tablespoons sugar

Gently spread the remaining cake batter on top of the blueberries.

Bake for 45 to 60 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. 

Let cool in the pan for 15 minutes.

Gently run a knife around the edges of the cake to loosen it from the pan. 

Carefully transfer the cake to a rack.

Allow to cool completely, then place cake on a stand or plate.

While the cake is cooling

In a small mixer bowl place

3/4 Cup heavy cream

Whip until soft peaks form.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Just before serving, spread the whipped cream over the top of the cake.

Top with

1/4 Cup fresh blueberries

Cranberry Crumb Bars by Margaret Ullrich (Blueberry Crumb Bars)

Guess the fellow in the produce department finally noticed.

The cranberries at regular price weren't moving.

Just sitting there.

Getting dusty.

So he marked them down.

Finally.

Now's the time to snatch up those babies.

No, I know you won't be cooking a turkey for quite a while.

No problem.

Cranberries freeze well.

Just toss the bag into the freezer.

Not all of them.

Leave a bag out to make some cookies.

Yeah.

                    Cranberry Crumb Bars

grease a 9 x 13" pan         

preheat oven to 375º           

bake 45 min.

Wash and drain

4 Cups cranberries

Mix together

3 Cups flour

1 Cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Cut in (for coarse crumbs)

1 Cup margarine (or 1/2 Cup margarine + 3 ounces oil)

Stir in

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon almond extract

Combine 

1 Tablespoon cornstarch

1/2 Cup sugar

Toss with the prepared cranberries

Press 2/3 of the crumb mixture in the prepared pan.

Cover with the berries.

Sprinkle the remaining crumbs on top.

Bake - cool - cut into bars.

This recipe also works with blueberries.

And tastes better when the berries are on sale.

I mean, don't they always?

Carmela Soprano's Panna Cotta with Raspberry Sauce and Blueberries

Wasn't Ma's Prinjolata easy to make?

It uses ingredients you can keep in the pantry.

It can be prepared in advance.

And it's easy on the budget.

Yah, Ma!!

Okay... now we'll have a recipe from Carmela.

Check out the Dinner for Twelve chapter of Carmela's Entertaining with the Sopranos.  There's a recipe for Panna Cotta with Raspberry Sauce and Blueberries.

Carmela has a different approach to entertaining.

Well, not everything from Carm is as sensible as last week's Eggplant Fritters.

This is a bit of a hassle.

To be honest, I think she has someone else whip this up.

Oh, well, Panna Cotta is pretty.

And seasonal, what with the fresh berries.

I used vanilla extract when I made this recipe.

If you have vanilla beans, this recipe uses one.

Carmela simmered a bean with the heavy cream, then removed it, slit it with a small sharp knife, and scraped the seeds out.

She then stirred the seeds into the cream mixture.

Yeah, sure.

Oh, and she used 6-ounce ramekins.

Now you know.

Like I said, I think she had someone else whip this up.

And it wasn't Meadow. 

                             

                              Panna Cotta with Raspberry Sauce and Blueberries 

Panna Cotta

Into a small bowl, pour

1/2 Cup cold water

Sprinkle 

Three   1/4-ounce envelopes unflavored gelatine

Set aside to soften the gelatine.

Combine in a medium saucepan

1 quart half-and-half

2 Cups heavy cream

one 3-inch strip of lemon zest

1/3 Cup sugar

Bring to a simmer over medium high heat.

Remove from heat.

Discard the lemon zest and add 

the softened gelatin

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Stir until gelatin is completely dissolved.

Divide the cream mixture among 12 custard cups.

Cover and refrigerate overnight.

(You want it firm to hold its shape.)

Raspberry Sauce

Mix together

1 teaspoon cornstarch

2 Tablespoons water

Puree in a blender

Two  10-ounce packages frozen rasperries with syrup, thawed

2 Tablespoons sugar (more or less - remember the syrup is sweet)

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Strain the mixture into a medium saucepan.

Bring to a simmer over medium heat.

Add cornstarch mixture to the simmering rasperries.

Cook, stirring regularly, until slightly thickened.

Remove from heat and let cool.

Pour into a sealable container and refrigerate.

It can be stored up to 3 days, after that it separates and ain't pretty.

To Serve

Dip the bottom of a custard cup into a bowl of hot water for 10 seconds.

Run a knife around the edge of the cream.

Invert onto an individual dessert plate.

Repeat with the other 11 custard cups.

Spoon some of the sauce around the cream.

A dot on top is nice, too.

Garnish each serving with some of 

1 Cup blueberries 

SERVE IMMEDIATELY.

Not my idea of fun when I have guests whooping it up in the living room.

Like I said, I think she has someone else whip this up.

While she's chatting with Janice.

Would I make Panna Cotta with Raspberry Sauce and Blueberries again?

Hell, no.

The raspberry sauce, maybe.

But I wouldn't bother straining it.

It's raspberries.

Folks know it comes with seeds.

And I'd spoon it over vanilla ice cream.

And top with any berries on hand.

Like fresh raspberries or strawberries.  

Or sliced peaches.

Unless I was dishing this up for the Fourth of July.

You know... red, white and blue.  

Whoopee!

This recipe reminded me of the scene in the movie Bridget Jones's Diary.

The one where she killed herself cooking for her birthday party.

And ended up with blue soup and marmalade.

Well, live and learn.

Another recipe down.  Seventeen more to go.