Wholegrain Blueberry Pancakes

I recently purchased 20# of fresh blueberries.
Blueberries are the ultimate 'prevent all'.

• Blueberries help people to boost their immune systems.
• Blueberries are packed with vitamins C, E, riboflavin, niacin, and folate.
• Blueberries can help reduce people’s risk for cancer.
• Blueberries increase the production of feel-good dopamine.
• Blueberries help promote healthy digestive systems.
• Blueberries contain salicylic acid the natural version of aspirin.

So what will we do with all those tasty little things?

We have been consuming them:
fresh & frozen, adding to smoothies, adding to cereal, topping frozen berries with milk & eating, adding to yogurt, baking muffins, making pancakes...


.speaking of pancakes.

• 1 cup White Flour
  
• 1 Cup Whole Grain Wheat Flour - I have used fresh ground whole wheat, fresh ground spelt & fresh ground 7 grain, all taste great!
• 2 T sugar
  
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 lg egg
• 3 T butter, melted
• 2 cups buttermilk I make my own using 2 T lemon juice & milk to make 2 cups

• 1 - 2 tsp oil, for frying
• 1+ cup blueberries I have used fresh & frozen successfully, I use closer to 2 cups than one. We like blueberries :)
  

Mix lemon juice and milk if you are making your own buttermilk. Set aside to sour.
Mix dry ingredients together in a large bowl.
In another bowl, whisk together wet ingredients.
Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients, pour in wet ingredients & stir gently, some lumps should be remaining. Do not over mix.
Heat a skillet to medium heat.
Brush pan with oil.
Measure 1/4 cup batter for each pancake.
Sprinkle with blueberries.
Cook until large bubbles form on the surface. Flip and cook until golden brown on the second side.

Yield: about 16 pancakes. I normally double the recipe and freeze any extra.

I hope you like them as well a we do!

Melons

Cantaloupe, Honeydew, Watermelon...

Cold, juicy, crisp, sweet...nothing beats the refreshing taste of a melon on a hot summer day.

Have you ever watched someone pick out their melon? It makes me laugh. I've seen people shake, smell, examine, turn, thump, push on the end and tap the melon in question. They pick one up, turn it over, and set it down. Then proceed to dig to the bottom of the pile in search of the perfect one.
People watching is funny stuff.

The best melon we've had this year was picked by the following method...
Braden 'Mom, can I pick put the watermelon this time?'
Me 'Sure, if it's a bad one you owe me $4.'
Braden 'It's a deal!'
He looks at the stack, grabs one and says 'This is it. The best one in the bunch.' And it was :)

You can't take my son with you shopping, and his method has no guarantee, except money back, so I'll share a few tips I've learned about picking a good one...

• First look for a melon with good skin. Meaning no tears, scares, bruises or blemishes.
• Examine the skin color. Cantaloupe should have a golden or orange color underneath the webbing. If it is green, it isn't ripe. A watermelon should not be dark green and have stripes all around.
• Look for the 'field spot' on the bottom of the melon where it was laying on the ground. It should be a yellowish/white color.
• Feel it/Thump it. A cantaloupe shouldn't be soft, if it is, it is over ripe. A watermelon should sound hollow when thumped.
  
• Smell it. Cantaloupe and honeydew will smell sweet.
• Pick it up. The melon should feel heavy for it's size.
• Shake it. A honeydew should rattle with loose seeds when it is ripe.

What is your method of picking a good melon?

Rhubarb Pie

I'll just be honest...
Pies scare me.
I dread making them.
I am not very good at it.
I don't really like pie.
The crust thing is intimidating.
I'd much rather whip up a batch of cookies than a pie.

BUT,
my family likes pie,
I like a challenge,
and so I continue to try.
picture strategically taken so you cannot see the flaws :)

The Filling
3 cups diced rhubarb (I used a little more, maybe closer to 3 1/2 - 4)
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 T flour, rounded
1 LG egg
*Beat egg. Mix well with sugar and flour. The mixture will be thick. Spoon over rhubarb and mix well. Put in unbaked pie shell. Cover with a crumb mixture* or top crust. Bake @ 425* for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350* and bake for 25 - 35 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the rhubarb is soft.

The Crust: You have two options.
1. No roll pat in crust, my favorite, can we say, EASY!
1 1/2 cups flour
2 T sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 T milk
1/2 cup oil
*Mix together until it forms a ball. Pat into an ungreased pie pan. Top with a crumb topping mixture.
Crumb Topping
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter
*Combine sugar and flour. Cut in butter to make crumbs. Sprinkle on top of pie before baking. Cover with tin foil if it is browning too quickly.

2. Flaky Roll out crust.
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup very cold butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water (I measure out water and add ice chunks)

1. Mix flour and salt in a large bowl. Cut in shortening. The mixture should form small even crumbs.
   
2. Cut the cold butter in leaving pea sized or larger chunks of butter.
   
3. Add ice cold water 2 T at a time. Tossing with a fork to moisten dough evenly. You've added enough water when a chunk of dough, squeezed in your hand sticks together easily. You should see visible fat chunks. Don't over mix.
   
4. Divide the dough in half. Form into two balls, flatten to one inch thickness. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30+ minutes.
   
5. Unwrap dough and roll out on a floured surface. Roll the dough approx 3-4 inches larger than the inside diameter of your pie crust. Roll from the center outward with as few of rolls as possible.
6. Press into pie pan. Fill with filling. Bake as recipe directs.
   

With our extra dough, we like to make mini pastries. Cut dough with cookie cutters, sprinkle with cinnamon/sugar and bake at 415* for 8 - 12 minutes or until crispy.

Pizza Suace and Peaches, a preview of what's to come...

We've been working hard at canning again this week.
Peaches

Pizza Sauce

Next week I'll post a step by step and the recipes.

Strawberry Pie

Fresh strawberries, what could be better? Fresh picked from our own patch!

We started a strawberry patch last spring. It is fun to finally be able to eat from it. We have purchased most of our Berry Plants and Fruit Trees from a company called StarkBros. Their plants and trees are well grown. They ship according to your 'cold hardy' zone and are always available for 'cold zone' questions, planting questions, instructions and advise. They also offer a free replacement if you are not not completely satisfied with your purchase.

What do we do if we have extra strawberries? Make Fresh Strawberry Pie! This is an easy recipe, but always turns out delicious.

Strawberry Pie
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
4 T cornstarch
3 T strawberry Jello

*Mix sugar and cornstarch. Add to water. Boil until clear. Add 3 T strawberry Jello. Let cool.

*Clean and cut 3 - 5 cups strawberries. Pour cooled syrup over strawberries, and gently mix. Put strawberries and syrup in a pre-baked pie shell (recipe below). Chill for several hours until set. Serve with Whipped Cream.

Pre-Baked Pie Shell
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
2 T cold milk
2 T sugar
1/2 cup oil
*Mix dry ingredients. Add milk and oil. Stir until mixture forms a ball. Press into a pie shell. Prick all over with a fork. Bake at 400* for 12 minutes. Cool.

For more yummy berry recipes be sure to head to A Latta Talk