Fruit

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A cool solution: Mango Mint Flutie

June 30, 2010 in Fruit | 2 comments

For the past month Atlanta has been so hot that there are days that I’m convinced that I will melt. With each day as hot as the last, I was forced to come up with ways of staying cool. I would often visit the pool and sit in the water for hours on end just to beat the heat. In between I stay hydrated by drinking lots of water, and when I need something different I turn to popsicles. I love the instant relief that it brings, but always found that it has way too much sugar. I remembered growing up as a child in Guyana my mum would often make a puree out of fresh fruit and freeze it and cut them into blocks for snacks. We called this flutie. I decided to reach back into my childhood and make mango mint fluties. I used very little sugar in this recipe because I wanted a healthier snack, because I usually consume several of these per day. I made this in a muffin pan because I was afraid to put my glass pyrex in the freezer, but you can place this in a 8×8 pan and then cut into blocks. You can also scrape it with a fork and make granitas.

Mango Mint Flutie

2 medium ripe mangoes, skinned and chopped

4 mint leaves, chopped

1 cup water

juice of 1 lemon

4 tbsp sugar

Add all ingredients into a blender and puree. Pour into a 8×8 pan and freeze overnight. Cut into squares. This can also be poured into a popsicle mould.

Tags: flutie, mango, mint, popsicle, summer

Wine and Cheese…a perfect match.

May 23, 2009 in Dessert, Entertaining, Fruit | 8 comments

I know…it is spring and I should be doing a dessert with seasonal fruits, such as berries and mangoes but I had these pears sitting on the counter and this seemed like a good time to try this dessert. I’ve always wanted to try these wine poached pears. Something about wine and pears that seem intriguing and very elegant. My mom is also a huge fan of red wine and I thought she would appreciate this. The pears were poached until tender in wine flavored with cinnamon, vanilla and cloves. I made a simple honeyed cream cheese to serve along side the pears. A perfect and elegant grown up dessert.

Poached Pears with a Red Wine Reduction and Honey Cream Cheese

1 1/2 cup red wine

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cup water

2 sticks cinnamon

1 tbsp vanilla

1 tbsp cloves

3 ripe pears, peeled, halved and cored

Honeyed Cream Cheese

4 oz cream cheese

1/3 cup half and half

1 tbsp honey

Mix wine, water, sugar, cinnamon sticks, vanilla and cloves in a pot on a medium fire. Bring to a simmer. Add pear and cook for 20 to 25 mins until pears are tender. Remove pears from liquid and cook liquid for an additional 15 mins. The liquid will reduce to form a syrup.

While the wine reduces, mix room temperature cream cheese, half and half and honey. Beat with a mixer for 3 mins until light and fluffy. To plate place pears on plate and drizzle with syrup. Add a generous dollop of honeyed cream cheese on top. Devour!!

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Tags: cream cheese, Dessert, Fruit, pear, wine

Test Kitchen Tuesday…..Shortbreads and Strawberry

May 19, 2009 in Dessert, Entertaining, Fruit | 9 comments

heart21 Today for Test Kitchen Tuesday I decided to try a shortbread cookie. This recipe comes from www.Joyofbaking.com Originally I wanted to try the Linzer cookies but since I had no almonds I settled on these. I used 2 heart shaped cookie cutters to achieve the shape. I filled the cookies with strawberry jam and dusted it with confectioners sugar. The result was a buttery, flaky, delicious and not too sweet cookie. This recipe was a success, I will be making this again. This cookie will be great for entertaining, your guests will be both pleased and impressed.

Shortbreads with Strawberry

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup powdered (confectioners or icing) sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4-1/2 cup strawberry preserves

Whisk flour and salt together, set aside. In a separate bowl cream butter with a mixer for about 1 minute. Add sugar and beat until smooth for about 2 minutes. Beat in vanilla extract. Gently fold in flour until incorporated. Flatten into a disk, wrap with cling wrap and chill for at least an hour.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. On a lightly floured surface roll out dough to about 1/4 inch thick. Using a 2 to 3 inch heart shaped cookie cutter cut out the cookies. Place the cookies about 1 inch apart on the baking sheet. Using a smaller cutter (3/4-1 inch) cut out the centers of half of the cookies. Place the unbaked cookies on the sheet in the refridgerator for about 15 minutes. This will firm up the dough so the cookies can maintain the shape when baked. Bake for 10 mins or until the cookies are lightly browned. Cool on a rack.

Heat preserves in microwave for 15 seconds. Dust the cut-out cookies with confectioner sugar. Spread about 1/4 tsp of jam on the bottom surface of the full cookie. Place cut-out cookie on top of and gently sandwich together. With a spoon fill the cut out with a little more jam. Enjoy!

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