I've been known as sweet, tart & always fruity...what am I?

A summer dessert with fruit, of course!

My dear Fried Okra is hosting her Top Recipe Thursday & as usual I'm adding my 13 cents. No not 2 but 13 as that's the number of recipes I came up with! Not all of them use fresh from the tree fruit but I think they're worthy of mention nonetheless. (What does nonetheless mean anyway? Sheesh, people who use words they don't know are annoying aren't they? *a'hem*)

My favorite way to eat fruit is fresh picked. Although I didn't grow up in Georgia or anything my gramma had a couple of peach trees & I grew up eating peaches over the sink cos they dripped so much. I can't hardly look at what they call a 'large peach' at the grocery. They're hardly bigger than a golf ball & about as hard, which I think is a crime. I know a victim of such crimes, my poor husband, who thinks that peaches taste best crunchy.
I know!!

But as much as I love fruit in all it's perfect, juicy, ripeness, this would not be a recipe post without recipes so here's a smattering of my faves.


Fruit Cream Cheese Dessert

Crust
¼ + 1 tbsp butter
1-cup flour - sifted
1 tbsp sugar

Mix & press into bottom of 9 x 13 pan
Bake @ 300 for 30 minutes or until brown

Filling
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 container of whipped topping (12 oz)

Mix cream cheese with powdered sugar
Fold in whipped topping
Spread on cooled crust

Fruit topping
Fruit, 3 packages frozen strawberries or fresh blackberries or raspberries (berries work best)
3 tbsp cornstarch
Drain fruit & reserve juice
Cook juice with cornstarch until thick
Combine fruit with juice mixture & spread on top of filling

This is Chris's favorite dessert. His mom makes it every time we visit & it's soooo yum.

Applesauce

5 lbs apples
¼ (heaping) honey
½ tsp (scant) nutmeg
½ tsp (scant) cinnamon
8 whole cloves

Peel & slice apples
Cover ½ way with water
Add honey & spices
Bring to a boil
Simmer covered 10 minutes
Mash with potato masher until reaches desired consistency
Leave cloves in but check each day to see how strong it is, take out after reaches desired strength. Freeze sauce you won't use in a week or so, this recipe makes plenty of extras.

I know I know, this is more of a fallish thing but it's a fruit recipe that I love so there ya go. I tweaked this from my MIL's recipe, she is the one who taught me it's ok to experiment & make a recipe your own. I love my MIL!!

The rest of these I haven't tried yet but the recipes sound like winners. I will try to give credit where credit is due but true to form, I did not write down my sources when I copied these.

Rhubarb Dream Bars (from Leah)

Crust
2 sticks butter
2/3 cup powdered sugar
2 cups flour

Mix together & pat into jelly roll pan. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes

Topping
4 eggs
½ cup flour
1 ½ tsp salt
3 cups sugar
4 cups rhubarb diced small

Beat eggs
Add flour & salt, mix
Mix sugar & rhubarb, add to egg mixture & stir
Bake at 350 for 50 minutes

I've had a lot of these lately thanks to Leah, who loves to bake them & force them on others give them away. Well, my taste buds love them but my fat cells love them more. (Get it? More as in more of them? HA - I kill me!) Really they are to die for, reminiscent of a lemon square. If there were just one left I might just fight someone for it - that's how good they are.
I've always loved rhubarb, my mom used to give us each a stalk for an all day snack/toy. (It's a fruit, it's an umbrella, it's rhubarb!) I think my parents have a picture of my sisters & I holding them with the leaves over our heads. Hours of entertainment!

~Disclaimer. Mom did make sure we understood in no uncertain terms that the tops are poisonous. Although I'm sure there were times she wished she hadn't! End disclaimer~

Blueberry angel food cake

Angel food cake mix
1 ½ cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tbsp lemon juice
Prepare cake according to directions, folding in blueberries
Bake & cool cake according to directions
Combine powdered sugar and lemon juice, stir well with a whisk
Drizzle over cooled cake

Not sure where the heck I found this one but it sounds good don't it?

Cranberry and pineapple desert

Drain juice from a large can of crushed pineapple and add 1 can of whole berry cranberry sauce, 3/4 cup chopped walnuts and 1 small container of cool whip. Mix together and freeze. Remove 1/2 hr. before serving

My mom made this for Thanksgiving dinner last year & it seemed like it would be a difficult recipe but it only takes like 5 minutes. Who knew?

Crepes with bananas and hazelnut chocolate sauce

1-cup flour
1 tbsp sugar
¼ tsp salt
1 ½ cups fat free milk
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
Cooking spray
¼ cup nutella
2 tbsp fat free milk
¼ tsp vanilla extract
2 large firm unpeeled bananas (about 1 ¾ pounds)
Powdered sugar

Place flour, sugar and salt in a medium bowl; stir with a whisk
Combine 1 ½ cups milk and eggs, stirring with a whisk
Add milk mixture to flour mixture, stirring with a whisk just until smooth
Cover batter; chill for 15 minutes
Heat a 10-inch nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium high heat
Remove pan from heat
Pour a scant ¼ cup batter into pan; quickly tilt pan in all directions so batter covers pan with a thin film
Cook about 1 minute
Carefully lift edge of crepe with a spatula
The crepe is ready to turn when it can be shaken loose from the pan and the underside is lightly browned
Turn crepe over; cook 30 seconds
Place crepe on a towel; keep warm
Repeat procedure until all the batter is used
Stack crepes between single layers of wax paper or paper towels to prevent sticking
Combine the nutella 2 tbsp milk, and vanilla in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring with a whisk until smooth, keep warm
Peel bananas and cut in half lengthwise; cut each half crosswise into 2 pieces
Heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium high heat
Arrange 4 banana pieces in a single layer in pan
Cook 1 minute or until lightly browned
Turn pieces over; cook 1 minute
Remove banana pieces from pan; keep warm
Repeat procedure with remaining banana pieces
Place 1 banana piece in center of each crepe; fold sides and ends over, and place, seam side down on clean surface
Repeat procedure with remaining banana pieces and crepes
Spoon about 1 tbsp sauce onto each of 4 plates, spreading to cover center of plates
Arrange 2 crepes on each plate
Sprinkle with powdered sugar

I think this is from Cooking Light.

Fresh peach croustades

¼ cup sugar
¼ cup water
¼ cup small mint leaves
1 sheet puff pastry
2 cups sliced peeled peaches

Preheat oven to 400
Combine sugar and water in a small saucepan
Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute or until sugar dissolves
Cool completely
Place sugar mixture and mint in a blender; process until smooth
Combine mint mixture and sliced peaches in a bowl
Cut 4 (2 inch) circles in puff pastry using a sharp round Cookie cutter
Roll each circle of dough into a 4-inch circle on a floured surface
Place on a baking sheet
Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown
Top with peach mixture

Sounds so fluffy & full of peachy yumminess. Most likely from Cooking Light.

Harvest pear crisp

6 cups Anjou* or Bartlett pears, cored and cut lengthwise into ½ inch thick slices (about 3 pounds)
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 ½ tsp ground cinnamon, divided
1/3 cup all purpose flour
½ cup packed brown sugar
½ tsp salt
3 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1/3 cup regular oats
¼ cup coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375
Combine pears and lemon juice in a 2-quart baking dish, toss gently to coat
Combine granulated sugar, cornstarch, and 1 tsp cinnamon; stir with a whisk
Add cornstarch mixture to pear mixture; toss well to coat
Place flour, ½ tsp cinnamon, brown sugar, and salt in a food processor; pulse 2 times or until combined
Add chilled butter; pulse 6 times or until mixture resembles coarse meal
Add oats and walnuts; pulse 2 times
Sprinkle flour mixture evenly over pear mixture
Bake for 40 minutes or until pears are tender and topping is golden brown
Cool 20 minutes on a wire rack; serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla ice cream if desired
*Anjou pears hold up best

Like the applesauce, this is more of a fall thing but worth the wait I think. Cooking Light again.

Honey peach and blackberry cobbler

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour, divided
8 cups chopped peeled peaches (about 4 lb)
¼ cup honey
3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
¾ tsp salt, divided
3 cups blackberries
Cooking spray
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 tbsp grated lemon rind
1 tsp baking powder
6 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
1 ¼ cups low fat buttermilk
2 tbsp turbinado sugar

Preheat oven to 400
Combine ¼ cup flour, peaches, honey, juice and ¼ tsp salt in a large bowl
Toss gently & let stand 15 minutes
Fold in blackberries
Spoon mixture into 13 x 9 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray
Combine 2 cups flour, ½ tsp salt, granulated sugar and baking powder in a medium bowl
Stir with a whisk
Cut in butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal
Add buttermilk and stir until just moist
Drop dough onto peach mixture to form 12 mounds
Sprinkle mounds with turbinado sugar
Bake for 40 minutes or until bubbly and golden


Peach cobbler with a cinnamon crust

¼ cup all purpose flour
1-cup sugar
¾ tsp ground cinnamon, divided
6 cups sliced peeled fresh ripe peaches or 2 (16 oz) packages frozen sliced peaches
Cooking spray
2 tbsp sugar
1 (15 oz) package refrigerated pie dough
1 large egg white, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 350
Combine flour, sugar, and ½ tsp cinnamon in a small bowl
Place the peaches in an 11X7 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray
Sprinkle with sugar mixture & let stand 30 minutes
Combine ¼ tsp cinnamon and 2 tbsp sugar in a small bowl
Unfold 1 pie dough, reserving remaining dough for another use
Brush with egg white & sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar mixture
Cut the dough into 16 wedges
Place the dough wedges coated sides up on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray
Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown, set aside
Bake beaches for 30 minutes or until bubbly
Arrange crust over peaches, serve warm

I'm remembering now an edition of Cooking Light with an article about fresh peaches. I remember getting very hungry while reading it. Right now I can't wait for peach season. Think I might have to visit my sis in Richland & get me some peaches from an orchard.

Peach ginger crisp

½ cup all purpose flour
¼ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup packed brown sugar
3 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
2 tbsp sliced almonds, toasted
6 cups sliced peeled peaches (about 3 lbs)
1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp lemon juice
¾ tsp minced peeled fresh ginger
Preheat oven to 375
Combine flour, ¼ cup granulated sugar and brown sugar in a bowl
Cut in butter with a pastry blender until crumbly
Stir in almonds
Combine peaches and remaining ingredients in a bowl
Spoon peach mixture into an 8-inch square baking dish
Sprinkle with flour mixture
Bake for 45 minutes or until lightly browned and bubbly

Sounds like a Cooking Light recipe to me.

Peach raspberry sorbet

1 16 oz can sliced peaches in heavy syrup
¾ cup fresh raspberries, frozen
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp superfine sugar
Freeze unopened can of peaches until solid, at least 18 hours
Submerge can of peaches in hot water 1 minute
Open can and pour any syrup that has melted into food processor bowl
Slide frozen peaches from can and cut into chunks
Place in processor with remaining ingredients
Process, pulsing on and off until smooth
Serve immediately or transfer to a bowl and freeze until ready to serve

I know this one isn't Cooking Light but it is from a magazine. Don't remember which one of course!

Rhubarb custard bars

Crust
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
1/8 tsp salt
9 tbsp chilled butter, cut into small pieces
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350
Combine flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl
Cut butter with a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal
Press mixture into a 13x9 inch baking dish coated with cooking spray
Bake for 15 minutes or until crust is golden brown

Filling
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 ½ cup sugar
1 ½ cups 1% milk
3 large eggs
5 cups (1/2 in) slices fresh or frozen rhubarb (un-thawed)

Combine flour and sugar in a large bowl add mild and eggs stirring with a whisk until well blended
Stir in rhubarb; pour rhubarb mixture over crust
Bake for 40 minutes or until set
Cool to room temp

Topping
½ cup sugar
½ cup (4 oz) block style fat free cream cheese
½ cup (4 oz) block style 1/3 less fat cream cheese
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 cup frozen fat free whipped topping, thawed

Place sugar, cheeses, and vanilla in a bowl, beat with a mixer at medium speed until smooth
Gently fold in whipped topping, spread evenly over baked custard
Cover and chill at least 1 hour

And back to Cooking Light. (Do ya think I liked that magazine?)

There you go, there you have it, my favorite summer fruit desserts. Feel free to copy & paste at will but if you use any of these please let me know how it turned out.

Happy cooking y'all!