French Crepes

My older daughter made this recipe at church's summertime wed nights...she loved it so much she begged me to keep the recipe so we could make it again sometime.  She was 8 when she helped make it...

CREPES:                                                                CHOCOLATE SAUCE:
7oz flour                                                                     1 c semisweet chocolate chips
1 egg                                                                          3/4 c whipping cream
1/2 qt (15oz) milk                                                       1 tsp vanilla
1 oz melted butter                                                   Whipped Cream
pinch of salt
3 Tbs sugar
1 Tbs vanilla

In a lg mixing bowl, combine flour, salt & sugar.  Make a well in the flour & put a whole egg in the middle.  Melt the butter & slowly mix in milk.
Fold gently until you incorporate all the flour (You may not need all the milk!)
Now that the batter is soft but not liquid, mix well to eliminate all the lumps & making it a thin mixture.
Finish pouring milk slowly while mixing.  Add vanilla
Leave batter in the fridge for 1 hour before cooking.

Mix batter before using. 
Heat a non stick pan, but some butter in the pan & swirl to coat it well.  Pan must be hot enough to hear the butter fry, but not so hot that it turns the butter brown.
Pour a small ladle of the batter into the pan, swirling it to distribute evenly.  Don't forget, crepes must be VERY thin!
Cook until golden brown, turn the crepe to cook other side the same way.
Put it on a lg plate, stuff it and fold it 4 times, or roll it.
Do that again for each crepe

CHOCOLATE SAUCE
in sm saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate chips & whipping cream, stirring constantly. 
Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until chocolate is melted & sauce is smooth.
Add in vanilla.

The kids had a blast making up their own creations of crepes, whipped cream, then topped with chocolate sauce.  I have had crepes that are filled with sliced fruits (strawberries, grapes, kiwi, etc) the creppe folded over on itself once, then drizzled with melted chocolate & a side of whipped cream...

Sunny Fruit Fiesta

Fresh fruit...summer time...that combo says breakfast, lunch, dinner, and any time in between to our crew!

Serves 6

1 cantelope, halved & seeded
1/2 honeydew, seeded
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c fresh lime juice
2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp grated lime peel
1 c sliced strawberries
1 c black or red seedless grapes

Using a melon baller, scoop flesh from cantelope & honeydew into balls; set aside.
In a lg glass or ceramic bowl, combine the sugar, lime juice, lemon juice, & lime peel.
Stir well to disolve sugar.
Add the cantelope & honeydew balls, strawberries & grapes.  Toss gently to combine.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap & refrigerate for at least 1 hour stirring once or twice.
Spoon the fruit into serving bowls or hollowed out melon halves, dividing evenly.
**can also use kiwi, pineapple, papaya, or mango.
**Add a touch of ginger & maybe coconut too

Be creative & have the kids help pick out fun combos of fruit!

Best of Summer Fruit Salad

Our kids love having fruit with our meals, to them, a big bowl of fruit with some granola is the greatest breakfast...works for me!  This recipe helps to combine 4-6 different fruits in one fantastic dish.
If you use bananas, make sure you don't slice & mix in till you are pretty much ready to eat or they will turn brown on you!

1/3 c sugar (or 3/4 c agave nectar)
1/4 c fresh mint or lemon verbena leaves (optional, but def. adds fantastic flavor, very easy to grow in a pot!)
2 Tbs lemon or lime juice
2 c seedless grapes, halved
2 peaches, or nectarines, cut into 1 1/2" pieces
1 c sliced strawberries and/or whole raspberries
1 c blueberries
bananas, apples, kiwi, etc...

Bring sugar and 1/2 c water to a boil in a saucepan.  Simmer 2 min.  Remove from heat, stir in mint & lemon juice (or lime).  Steep 15 min.  Strain out mint.
Combine fruit in a lg bowl.  Stir in sugar syrup.
Cover & chill 2 hours or overnight.

be creative, let the kids help pick out fruit & if old enough, chop up & mix it all together.  Helping out in the kitchen generally helps get more of it on their plates & into them!

Rich Biscuit Shortcake

SO...sometimes you just want a great desert that doesn't require you to bake & toil in the kitchen...if that is you, here is a quick way to enjoy a shortcake...if its not you, feel free to bake up your very own biscuits!!

Buy (or make) as many biscuits that you need
If they are cold, warm them up in the oven, split then spread one half with a little butter.
Use about 1/2-3/4 c sliced, crushed, or sweetened berries for each serving.
Put fruit between halves, top with other half of biscuit, then more fruit on top
Top with a dollop of whipped cream

***If you had made up the pound cake also on this blog & frozen it, you would use the same amount of fruit over one slice topped with whippped cream***

Mom Burgess' Fruit Pizza

This recipe comes from my high school bf's mom.  It is a fantastic dish to take to carry in's, get togethers or just to treat you & your family!  One of my all time favorites!!

CRUST:
1 c flour
1 stick butter
1/4 c 10x sugar

Mix & press into pizza pan.  Bake 350 for 8-10 minutes.

CREAM:
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/3 c sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix together & spread over the crust.  Chill 15-20 minutes.

FRUIT:
strawberries, bananas, kiwi, grapes, blueberries, etc...

Slice these up (except the blueberries and other small berries you may use)  Grapes in half, kiwi into slices, etc  Spread these all over the cream layer...fill it up good!

GLAZE:
1 c pineapple juice
2 Tbs cornstarch
1/2 c sugar
1 tsp lemon juice

Heat in small saucepan over med heat until thickened & spread over the fruit.

Chill & serve...

This is a great way to get the kids to help in the kitchen.  Have them help pick out fruit they want on the pizza at the grocery store, if they are old enough, have them cut up the fruit while you get other things mixed.