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We had an amazing luck with stone fruits this year; they are sweet, juicy and fragrant. While I really enjoy eating them the way nature intended, the baker in me makes me go into the kitchen and bake all kinds of baked goods. When I came across this recipe on wendyinkk, I knew I had to try it, I bookmarked it immediately and soon after we received a lunch invitation. I quickly volunteered to make dessert and made it this morning; we took the pictures and left home while the cake was still warm. We had it after the fabulous lunch Karima had prepared for us; she sent us home with some the delicious food, the recipes and a piece of the cake so we could post the picture of the sliced cake as well.
After tea and dessert, I asked everyone what they thought about the cake and came to the conclusion that if I want an honest opinion, I will ask not ask anyone over the age of 10! My little (okay not so little anymore in case he is reading) friend Khalil gave me an 8 out of 10; I took it as a compliment as I know he has quite a refined pallet!
The cake batter is relatively small compared to the amount of fruit but it works really well, at first I was worried that there wasn’t enough batter but once it went into the hot oven, it spread beautifully. I used ripe but firm peaches, apricots and a plum and I will definitely be making it again.
- 1 (113 grams) stick butter at room temperature plus more to grease the pan
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 vanilla bean
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 2/3 tsp baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- Extra sugar for sprinkling
- 2 large peaches, 5 apricots and 1 plum, or any other stone fruit
Preheat the oven to 350°F, line the bottom of a 10 inch cake pan with parchment paper, butter and flour the sides of the pan, set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer cream butter, sugar and the seeds of a vanilla bean until light and fluffy, scrape the sides of the bowl often, add the eggs 1 at a time, add the flour, baking powder and salt.
Spread about 2/3 of the batter on the bottom of the cake pan, top with the fruit and place dollops (I used a cookie scoop to dollop the batter) of the remaining batter and bake for about 35 minutes or until the cake looks golden and firm.
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This is my go to fish recipe when I have last minute guests coming over for dinner. It looks fancy enough to be served to company, yet it’s just creamed spinach and pan fried fish fillet. There is no need to run to the grocery store for last minute shopping since I always have frozen spinach and fish fillets in the freezer, and dinner is ready within 20 minutes. I don’t always use cod, in fact any firm white fish fillet works great. The creamed spinach is very simple, I don’t make a roux, don’t use any thickeners, just a little half and half and some goat cheese. The cheese gives the dish a little tang which goes beautifully with fish.
Fish:
- 4 cod loins
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Spinach sauce:
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 garlic clove, peeled
- 2 10 oz. package spinach, thawed
- ¼ cup half and half or sour cream
- 3 oz. soft goat cheese
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Nutmeg
- Garnish: sliced toasted almonds
To prepare the sauce, squeeze the excess liquid from the thawed spinach, set aside. Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat, add the onion and the whole garlic clove, sauté until the onion is soft, remove the garlic clove, add the spinach and cook for about five minutes stirring frequently, add the half and half and the goat cheese, cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and nutmeg. Cover with a lid and keep the spinach warm while you cook the fish.
To prepare the fish, pat dry the fillets with paper towels, season with salt and pepper, heat olive oil over high heat in a skillet large enough to hold the fish fillets, place the fish presentation side down and cook until it looks golden brown on one side, turn and continue cooking until the fish is cooked through but not overcooked.
To serve, divide the spinach sauce amongst the plates, place the fish on top of the sauce and garnish with almonds.
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I love upside down cakes; they are all about the fruit! This one is loaded with fresh Ontario peaches, this year they are especially sweet and fragrant, the addition of ginger and cinnamon makes them that much more flavourful. The cake is good at room temperature but best slightly warm soon after it comes out of the oven
- 3 tbsp butter
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
- 4-5 medium peaches
- 1 stick (113 grams) butter, at room temperature plus more for the pan
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3 eggs, room temperature
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 tsp fresh ginger, grated
- 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- ½ cup all-purpose flour plus more for the pan
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ cup toasted sliced almonds
For garnish: sliced almonds or icing sugar
Preheat the oven to 350F, line a 9 inch springform pan with parchment paper, butter and flour the sides, wrap the springform pan with aluminum foil, set aside.
To prepare the peaches, bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan, make an X cut on the peaches and drop them in the boiling water, leave for about 30 seconds, remove and place them in an ice bath (a bowl filled with cold water and ice), peel and slice the peaches into half moons.
Meanwhile melt butter in a skillet, turn off the heat, add the brown sugar and toss the peach with the butter and sugar mixture. Arrange the peach slices on the bottom of the springform pan.
In the bowl of an electric mixer cream the butter and sugar until light, add the eggs 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition, add the sour cream, vanilla extract and ginger, mix again. In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. Add the dry mixture and mix until just combined, fold in the almonds with a spatula and spoon the batter over the peach slices. Bake until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean, let it cool for about 15 minutes in the cake pan and then turn it upside down onto the serving platter, remove the parchment paper carefully. Garnish with almonds or icing sugar or both and serve warm or at room temperature.
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I don’t know how to make good pasta dishes! Sure, I can boil water, add the pasta, follow the instructions on the back of the package and make a meal but I rarely make pasta dishes other than a few staples, and I never make it when we have company, okay, hold on, I may have made it for company once and I now refuse to remember the details. I love making lasagnes and fresh ravioli from scratch, they always work but not simple pasta dishes with a good home made sauce, maybe I need more practice! A pasta salad is different though, especially if I have the sauce and the vegetables in the freezer waiting to be tossed together with freshly cooked pasta.
- 13 oz. package pasta (I used whole wheat rotini)
- 1 ½ cup shelled and peeled fava beans
- 1 ½ cup peas
- ¾ cup pesto or store bought pesto
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into long strips
- ¼ cup finely grated parmesan cheese
- Salt and Pepper
Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add salt and the pasta, cook according to the instructions on the package, about 2 minutes before the pasta is done add the fava beans and peas. Drain the pasta and the vegetables but do not rinse!
Return the pasta, fava beans and peas to the pot, add the pesto, red bell pepper and the parmesan cheese, toss everything together, season with salt and pepper and transfer to a serving bowl. Serve cold or at room temperature.
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This moist quick bread is heavy on the zucchini and rather light on sugar and flour. I have been making the carrot bread recipe from the Bread Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum for years. This is actually a variation of her carrot bread; I have made a few minor changes over the years and this is the version we make as soon as the local zucchini is available. It’s easy to make, keeps well, not too sweet and the addition of walnuts oil gives it a delicate aroma.
- 1 ¾ cup whole wheat pastry flour plus more for the pan
- ½ tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup brown sugar (I used turbinado sugar)
- ¼ cup oil (I used walnut oil)
- ¼ cup apple sauce
- 3 cups grated carrots
- 1 cup chopped toasted walnuts
- Butter to grease the pan
Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour a loaf pan, set aside. In a bowl sift all the dry ingredients. In another bowl, mix the eggs and sugar with a whisk, add the apple sauce and oil, fold in the grated zucchini and walnuts. Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 55-60 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle of the bread comes out clean. Let it cool in the pan and wrap well in plastic wrap for about 24 hours before serving.
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