FEEDS: 8-10

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

Filling:

• 4 apples + 2 pears
• ¾ cups sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 Tablespoons cornstarch

Crumb Topping:

• 1/3 cup butter (room temp)
• ½ cup sugar
• ¾ cup pastry flour
• pinch cinnamon
• 1 C chopped walnuts

• 1 ready made pie crust

LET'S COOK

Filling:

Mix sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and cornstarch together. As you slice the fruit thin sprinkle with the sugar mixture.

Crumb Topping:

Combine butter and sugar. Add flour and cinnamon and mix up. Add walnuts and combine until you have a crumbly texture.

Place pie crust in a pie pan. Fill with fruit mixture and then spread crumb-mix on top of fruit.

Bake in preheated 400-degree oven for 10 minutes. Put pie on cookie sheet to catch any drips that might happen.

Turn temperature down to 350 degrees for another 45-50 minutes. It’s done when golden brown and bubbly.

MORE IDEAS:

You can use all apples if you prefer.

FEEDS: 2 dozen cookies

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

• 1/2 c. oil
• 1 c. sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 tsp. lemon juice
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1 1/2 c. cake meal
• 6 T. potato starch
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 c. walnuts, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 t cinnamon
• 1 tsp sugar

LET'S COOK

Mix oil and sugar together, then beat in 1 egg at a time. Add lemon juice and vanilla. Beat until all is combined well.

Mix together cake meal, potato starch and salt. Add this to the sugar mixture. Then add walnuts and mix all ingredients together well.

Let sit for a few minutes until it firms up some. Combine the cinnamon and teaspoon of sugar together.

Form dough into 2 long loaves about 3” wide and 2” high and place on well grease cookie sheet. Sprinkle with half the cinnamon mix.

Bake in preheated 350˚ oven for 40 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and carefully slice each loaf into 1/2” thick pieces and lay flat on another greased cookie sheet.

Sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon and sugar and return to oven for 5 minute. Turn oven off and leave for another 5 minutes.

MORE IDEAS:

Serve with coffee or tea.

FEEDS: 8-10

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

• 1 c. cake meal
• 1/4 c. potato starch
• 9 eggs - separated
• 1 1/2 c. sugar
• 1 tsp. orange grated rind (1 orange)
• 1/3 c. orange juice

LET'S COOK

Beat egg yolks then add sugar and beat until creamy and light in color. Add juice, grated rind and mix in.

Sift cake meal and potato starch together. Add in small amounts beating well to combine. Whip egg whites until stiff and shiny. Fold into batter gently.

Using a tube pan, cut out wax paper to cover bottom. Grease entire pan including wax paper with spray oil.

Preheat oven to 325˚ and bake for 55 minutes or when top springs back when touched or skewer comes out dry.

MORE IDEAS:

You can use lemon or a combination of lemon & orange.

Sliced strawberries with triple sec is a great compliment.

FEEDS: 2-4

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

• 1 ripe banana
• 2 soup spoons of crunchy peanut butter
• 2 teaspoons of strawberry jam
• 6 small flour tortillas
• handful of dark chocolate chips
• aerosol oil

LET'S COOK

Place the banana, peanut butter and strawberry jam in a heavy bowl. Using a dinner fork, mash the items together well.

Spread out the 6 tortillas and divide and spread the mix among them. Scatter chocolate chips on 3 of the tortillas. Cover with the other tortillas.

Spray them with aerosol oil, then turn them over and spray the other side. Place the stuffed tortillas in a sauté pan over a medium burner and toast on both sides to a golden brown.

Remove to a cutting board and cut into 8 wedges each. Serve right away.

MORE IDEAS:

You can use whole wheat tortillas, raspberry jam and even regular, smooth peanut butter. Consider using a mix of chocolate chips and butterscotch chips.

Try these warm, or, make them in advance and refrigerate them overnight. Then, cut and serve from the refrigerator. The chocolate crunches between your teeth.

FEEDS: Everyone

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

• 6 T unsalted butter
• 6 T (1/3 C) canola oil
• ½ c. light brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¾ cup shredded coconut
• 1 cup pastry flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1½ t. ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup rolled oats
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup raisins
• ½ cup chocolate chips

LET'S COOK

Cream butter, oil and brown sugar together in a large bowl until light and fluffy.

Stir in eggs, vanilla, and coconut. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg over butter mixture and blend well.

Blend in oatmeal, walnuts, raisins and chocolate chips.

Preheat oven to 3250 F. Lightly grease 2 baking sheets. Drop dough by rounded teaspoons onto pans.

Bake until edges are lightly browned and center pops back when touched about 20 - 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely.

FEEDS: 2 or more

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• banana
• Kahlua liqueur
• vanilla ice cream
• hot fudge sauce or chocolate syrup
• chopped nut meats of your choice
• Maraschino cherries

LET'S COOK

Slice the bananas in small pieces into individual serving bowls. Add a couple tablespoons of the liqueur and mix together to coat the fruit.

Place a sensible size portion of ice cream on the bananas. Drizzle with the hot fudge sauce, scatter with the nut meats and top with the maraschino cherry. Serve right away.

MORE IDEAS:

The bananas become a pleasant flavor surprise under the rest of this sundae. Try Vandermint, Creme De Cocoa, any sort of liqueur that strikes your fancy.

Get creative with the ice cream and try rum raisin or chocolate chip.

Do the same with the nut meats considering the mighty cashew or even macadamias, for an elegant touch.

Just like tulips and lilacs, strawberries signal the very beginning of the warm weather cycle and good things that come from the garden. Saturated with a rich history and tales of their first consumers, these crimson berries are both delicious and mysterious.

For me, strawberries are almost a weird fruit, the only one I know of with seeds clearly visible on their exterior. Most importantly, the sheer thrill of finding the very first ripe berries, contrasting with everything around them, is a prelude of good eating to come.

Sure, the fruit is tip top on the flavor scale, red ripe to their centers and fairly bursting with luscious flavors. But, with specific embellishments, strawberries become fantasy food, dessert of the gods.

One of my fondest memories of childhood gastronomy is a dish my Mom prepared. It began with peeled and chopped rhubarb. Placed in a pot with a few spoons of water, a slow cooking process would gently simmer the tart fruit to a sauce consistency, accentuated with a dash of sugar. While still hot, the rhubarb received a like amount of fresh, sliced strawberries. Stirred in gently, the heat was then turned off and the thick fruit stew was allowed to cool, then chilled. This colorful compote was served as a breakfast dessert, a dinner dessert, or, as I enjoyed it best, a snack before bedtime. That was all about early summer.

Strawberry shortcake is a treat that each and every family has it’s own recipe for. It’s all about the biscuits and their ability to sponge up the juices. But, for me, it’s still about the berries and how you prepare them. I like to begin by stemming 4 cups of gently washed berries, then slicing half of them into a bowl. A few tablespoon of maple syrup is added and then the berries are crushed well with a potato masher to release the juices. Then, I slice the remaining 2 cups of berries in, mix them up, cover and refrigerate for a few hours. The end result is a perfect blend of textures, ready to compliment any version of strawberry shortcake dessert.

For additional flavor enhancements, whip heavy cream with Grand Mariner, Triple Sec or just plain maple syrup and a touch of vanilla. Your taste buds will thank you for it. Just for fun, when strawberry season is in full bloom, serve strawberry shortcake as dinner.

An old friend had a decadent destiny for her fresh picked strawberries. After careful cleaning and stemming, Cinda would serve a mound of perfect berries next to a small bowl of sour cream and another of brown sugar. Guests were encouraged to dip a berry in the sour cream, then touch it with brown sugar before popping it into ones mouth. Delightful,delicious and absolutely delectable, berries served in this fashion always get rave reviews.

FEEDS: 4-6

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• 2 pints fresh strawberries
• 3 T. granulated sugar
• 1 T. cornstarch
• 3 T. orange juice
• 9 Pecan Sandies
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• dash nutmeg
• 3 T. melted butter

LET'S COOK

Slice the cleaned berries into a bowl. Drop in the granulated sugar, cornstarch and the orange juice. Mix it all together well and then set aside. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Place the cookies in a plastic bag. Using your fist, crush them to an even texture. Pour the cookie crumbles into another bowl. Add the brown sugar, walnuts, nutmeg and the melted butter. Stir it up with your hands until it’s an even texture.

Pour the strawberries into a glass baking dish (8”x11”) and spread them out evenly. Scatter the cookie topping evenly over the berries, then gently stir it in a bit with a fork. Pop into the oven and bake for 15 minutes.

MORE IDEAS:

Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top. You could do this with blueberries or even some raspberries. You can also use chopped pecans in place of the walnuts.

FEEDS: 2

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• 1 T. butter
• 2 C. fresh strawberries, cleaned and sliced
• pinch of salt
• 2-3 T. orange liqueur such as Triple Sec or even Grand Mariner
• 1/3 C. maple syrup
• vanilla ice cream
• chocolate sticks and mint sprigs

LET'S COOK

Drop the butter into a heavy gauge sauté pan over a medium high burner. When the butter is melted, add the sliced, fresh berries, the salt and stir them around to coat them in the butter. Add the orange liqueur, stir it in and then ignite it either by tipping the pan on a gas burner or with a long match on an electric stove.

When the alcohol burns off, pour and stir in the maple syrup. Turn off the burner and allow it to sit while you get the serving dishes ready. Spoon the berries and the sauce into the two dishes, place a tiny scoop of the ice cream on top, arrange a chocolate stick on the side of the ice cream, garnish with a mint sprig and serve it up with great pride.

MORE IDEAS:

Try this with sliced fresh nectarines or peaches for a seasonal twist. Use a good quality vanilla ice cream that has chocolate-coated almonds in it. Or, rum raisin is fun, too.

FEEDS: 3-4

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• 2 T. butter
• 2 apples, peeled, seeded and sliced thin
• 1 pear, peeled, seeded and sliced thin
• pinch of ground nutmeg
• pinch of ground cinnamon
• ¼ C. pecan pieces
• ¼ C. raisins, plumped in hot water and drained
• ¾ C. real maple syrup
• rum raisin ice cream

LET'S COOK

Melt the butter in a saute pan. Add the sliced apples and pear, season with a pinch of both the nutmeg and cinnamon and cook over a medium high burner just until the fruits are tender.

Add the pecans, the drained raisins and then the maple syrup. Stir it all together and cook just until the maple syrup begins to boil and foam. Turn off the burner and allow it to sit a few minutes. To serve, spoon the warm fruits and some of the sauce into attractive serving bowls. Top each one with a small scoop of the ice cream and serve right away.

MORE IDEAS:

It’s best to slice the apples and pear in advance and drop them into a bowl of water mixed with a tablespoon or so of lemon juice. Just before cooking, drain the fruits and gently dry them in a towel to remove the excess moisture. You can substitute vanilla ice cream for the rum raisin, or use your favorite flavor. For extra flavor, soak the raisins in rum instead of water.

FEEDS: 4-6

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• 1 pumpkin, pie type, 3-4 pounds
• 2 T, brown sugar
• 1 t. ground cinnamon

Filling:

• 3 large eggs
• 2 C. milk
• 3/4 C. sugar
• pinch of salt
• 3 T. Quick Cooking tapioca
• 1 T. vanilla extract

LET'S COOK

Cut the top of the pumpkin as you would for a jack-o-lantern and scoop out the seeds. Mix the 2 T. of brown sugar and the cinnamon in a bowl, drop into the pumpkin and turn it to coat the inside. Put the pumpkin on a pie plate and bake, with the lid on, in a 350-degree oven for 40-45 minutes.

Whip the eggs in a saucepot, add the sugar, milk, salt and the tapioca. Blend it all up with a whip and set aside for 10 minutes. Next, over a medium high burner, cook the tapioca mix, stirring constantly with a spatula, until it thickens. Take the cooked pumpkin out of the oven, remove the lid and pour in the tapioca. Sprinkle it with some cinnamon, put the whole thing back in the oven, uncovered, with the lid on the side of the dish and bake another 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, allow to cool for 10 minutes or so, then serve on a tray with the lid propped on the side of the pumpkin.

MORE IDEAS:

Scrape some of the interior of the pumpkin as you serve it since the earthy flavors nicely compliment the tapioca. A small scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side is also tasty.

FEEDS: 3-4

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• ¼ C. defrosted orange juice concentrate
• ¼ C. maple syrup
• ¼ C. fruit liqueur such as apricot or even blackberry
• fresh seasonal fruits such as blueberries, strawberries, melon and even bananas

LET'S COOK

Mix the three liquid ingredients in a small bowl. Add whatever fruits you choose to use, mix it gently and cover and refrigerate to allow the flavors to blend. Spoon some of the mix into a bowl, top with a small scoop of your favorite ice cream or sorbet and serve garnished with a mint leave.

MORE IDEAS:

Always be sure that whatever fruits you use are peeled, pitted and cut into bite size pieces.

FEEDS: 4

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• 1 ½ C. red Zinfandel wine
• 1/3 C. granulated sugar
• 1/3 C. red currant jelly
• ½ t. vanilla extract
• 5 cloves
• Pinch of ground cinnamon
• 4 D’Anjou pears, peeled, cored and cut into edible pieces

FOR PRESENTATION:

• Mint chocolate chip ice cream
• Specialty cookies
• Mint sprigs

LET'S COOK

Pour the wine, sugar, jelly, vanilla, cloves and cinnamon into a saucepot. Bring it to a boil, stirring occasionally. Drop the peeled, cored and cut pears into the pan. Bring it back to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

At this point, taste one of the pear pieces to be sure it’s tender enough for you. If it’s not to your liking, cook another 5-10 minutes. When the pears are done to your liking, remove them from the pan with a slotted spoon. Discard the cloves.

Bring the sauce back to a boil and reduce or boil it down for about 8 minutes. Add the pears back to the pan turn off the burner and allow it to sit for about an hour. Doing this a day in advance is even better.

When it’s time to serve, divide the pears and sauce evenly among 4 nice dessert dishes.

Top with a small scoop of the mint chocolate chip ice cream, add a specialty cookie and a mint sprig and serve with great pride.

MORE IDEAS:

Any sort of ice cream will work, plain vanilla, chocolate, even rum raisin.

FEEDS: 4-6

WHAT YOU’LL NEED:

• 10 oz. package frozen raspberries in syrup
• 1 T. orange liqueur
• juice of half a lime
• ½ C. fresh or frozen whole raspberries
• chocolate syrup
• fresh pastries
• mint leaves

LET'S COOK

Place the defrosted berries in syrup, the orange liqueur, lime juice and fresh berries in a food processor. Whip to a frenzy. Strain the sauce thru a sieve over a bowl to remove the seeds. What you have now is a raspberry coulis, or raspberry fruit sauce.

To prepare a fun dessert, begin with a smear of the raspberry coulis across 4 large plates. Drizzle with some chocolate syrup for flair. Slice the individual pastries into four equal pieces and place one of each on the dessert plates. Add a pile of fresh berries such as blueberries, garnish with a mint sprig and serve immediately.

MORE IDEAS:

Shop for a brownie or fudge nut bar, a lemon square, even a small individual cheesecake to cut into quarters for your final dessert presentation. You might even add a small scoop of your favorite ice cream for more visual and taste treats. Get creative!