Gotcha! This soup is absolutely perfect this time of year. Tis the season for corn. Try this and you will absolutely love it.
- 4 tbsp. butter
- 1/2 cup onion
- 4 cups corn, just cut from the cob
- pinch of kosher salt
- 1-2 tbsp. sugar
- 2-3 cups milk
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg, plus additional for garnish
In a saucepn, melt the butter and gently saute the onion for about 5 minutes until tender. Do not brown.
Add 3 1/2 cups of the corn and sprinkle with a pinch of kosher salt. Stir well and cook for about 5-6 minutes. Now stir in the sugar.
In a medium saucepan combine the milk and the cream and warm over medium heat until heated through. Pour the corn mixture over the milk and over medium heat, cook to just a simmer. Remove from the heat and let it cool slightly.
Pour about 1/3 of the soup in a blender and puree until smooth. Pour a fine strainer over a bowl and allow the soup to drain through. Repeat until all done. Transfer all the soup back into the saucepan and reheat, this time whisking in the nutmeg.
The corn is its own thickner but if you want it thinner, add a touch more milk. I love a nice thick soup so I find it quite lovely as it is.
Pour into warm soup bowls, and again lightly grate some nutmeg over top and place a tsp or two of the remaining corn on top. OMG this is yummy.
Serve with warm slices of honey corn bread and a chilled glass of white wine. If this is heaven, send me there!
Summer Berry Smoothie
I love smoothies, but I have never served a ‘diet’ smoothie. Nope, not this one either.
- 1/2 cup fresh blackberries
- 1 cup fresh raspberries
- 1/2 container raspberry yogurt
- 1-2 tbsp. honey
- 1-2 tbsp. orange juice
- 1/2 cup whipping cream
- 1 tsp. vanilla
Place all but the whipping cream in a blender and puree. Add the whipping cream and blend for a few seconds (don’t want butter, just thicker)
Pour into two glasses, add a dollop of whipped cream and a fresh raspberry and blackberry.
It doesn’t get any yummier than this.
Cheesecake Squares
My husband’s daughter gave this recipe to him and I would like to share it with you. It is a square, and if you are a cheesecake lover, you will love it.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- 1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 cup flour
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- 1/3 cup melted butter, not margarine
- 1 8 oz. pkg of Philadelphia cream cheese
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp. lime juice
- 2 tbsp. cream
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla
Mix brown sugar, flour and nuts in a large bowl. Stir in the melted butter and mix until light and crumbly in your hands. Remove 1 cup of this and set aside. Put the rest in a 8 inch square pan and pat it smooth. Bake for 15 minutes.
Beat cream cheese until smooth and add the sugar. Beat in the egg, lime juice, cream and vanilla. Pour onto the baked crust. Top with the reserved crumbs and return to the oven to bake for another 25 minutes. Cool thoroughly.
Cut into squares and serve with fresh berries and, if you wish, whipped cream….oh my! did I say that?
Overnight Fruit Salad
I love fruit salads and this is the “Queen of Them All” type of salad.
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup vinegar
- 2 tbsp. butter
- 1 cup seedless red grapes, cut in half
- 1 cup seedless green grapes, cut in half
- 2 cups mini marshmallows
- 1 can pineapple chunks, drained
- 1 can mandarin oranges, drained
- 2 firm bananas
- 2 cups whipping cream
- 1/2 cup chopped, toasted pecans
Cook and stir eggs, sugar and vinegar until thickened and reaches 160 degrees. Remove from heat and add the butter, stir to blend. Cool.
In a large bowl, combine all the fruit and add the dressing, stirring to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Just before serving, add the sweetened whipping cream and pecans. Mix together and serve in your prettiest bowls.
This will serve 8 comfortably or 4 hungary people. It is so yummy! Makes my mouth water just putting this together.
This bodes well for breakfast, served with fresh homemade muffins or for lunch with hot buttered buns. Oh yeah, here a glass of white wine will really finish it off.
Apple Puff
Ahh….weekend just hours away and this is a nice, lazy day kinda start to the long weekend.
- 2 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup butter
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- dash of salt
- icing sugar
- 1 cup whipped cream, flavoured with a sprinkle of cinnamon
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Saute apples in butter until soft. Now arrange in a pie plate, in a pretty overlapping pattern.
In a medium bowl, beat the eggs and slowly add the flour and beat until really smooth. Stir in the milk, vanilla and salt and pour over the apples.
Bake for 20 minutes until lightly browned. Quickly add the icing sugar, a dollop of whipped cream and Voila! You did it again. Oh yeah, serve immediately.
Hint: If you want to make it ‘adult’, add some Calvados to the butter when cooking the apples. Just sayin’…..
Breakfast Orange Cups
What better way to get your Vitamin C…..beats the standard orange juice by a mile.
- 6 oranges
- 1/2 cup berry sugar
- 2 tbsp. cornstarch
- 1/4 cup (or more) Amaretto liqueur
- Whipped cream
- orange zest
Cut the top 1/4 of the orange off. Scoop out the juice and pulp and put into a saucepan. To be fancy, cut a pattern in the top edge of the orange cup. Discard any seeds or membrane, and set the cups aside.
Over medium heat, stir together the juice, pulp, sugar and cornstarch until it starts to boil. Add the Amaretto and cook, stirring constantly until it starts to thicken.
Pour equally into the shells and place in the refrigerator for at least one hour before serving.
Top each cup with sweetened whipped cream and top with a little zest and set a mint leaf in the cream..
Fresh Cantaloupe Mousse
Looking for new ways to eat fresh summer fruits such as cantaloupe…..here is a nice refreshing dessert (or you could use it as a first course).
- 2 tbsp. of unflavoured gelatin
- 1/4 cup cold water
- 1/2 medium cantaloupe, seeded, pared and pureed
- 2 cups whipping cream
- 4 egg whites at room temperature
- 2 cups berry sugar
To soften the gelatin, sprinkle over the cold water. Stir this over a double boiler with bottom pan full of hot water to dissolve.
Cool and add to the cantaloupe (already pureed). Beat the cream until soft peaks form and add 1 cup of sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form.
Beat egg whites until fluffy and add the remaining sugar gradually. Fold this into the cream mixture and put into 8 of your prettiest dessert dishes.
Chill for at least 1 hour before presenting to the table.
Add some diced cantaloupe on top . Yummy!
Potatoes Paquette
These are terrific with ham. We find them terrific with just about anything.
Serves 4
- 4 medium potatoes
- 3 tbsp. butter
- 1 garlic clove, grated
- Pinch of salt
- Pepper
- 3/4 cup of grated cheddar cheese
- 2 tbsp chopped parsley
- 3/4 cup whipping cream.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel and slice potatoes like French fries. Cut forty-eight inches of tin foil and fold in half. Place the potatoes in center, dot with butter, sprinkle remaining ingredients over the potatoes.
Pull foil edges up quite high and pour whipping cream over. Fold the tin foil very tight so it won’t leak, place on a cookie sheet to bake for one hour. Check to ensure they are cooked.
These have that “more please” temptation. Just sayin’……
Fresh Fig And Pear Strudel With Ginger Cream
Okay….so you are going to show off tonight. Why not? Do this and you will be…
Serves 8
- 1 1/2 lbs. fresh figs, stemmed, cut into 6 wedges each
- 1 1/2 lbs firm but ripe Anjou pears, peeled cored and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup frozen cranberry-raspberry concentrate, thawed
- 1 tsp grated lemon peel
Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Generously butter a large baking sheet. Place the fruit pieces on the baking sheet, sprinkle with sugar and roast for about twenty minutes until tender and just starting to brown. Remove from oven and transfer the fruit to a bowl to cool. Stir in the concentrate and lemon zest and chill until cold.
Strudel
- 6 tbsp dried bread crumbs
- 4 tbsp sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 10 thawed phyllo sheets
- 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
Butter another baking sheet. Mix the crumbs, three tbsp of sugar and one tsp cinnamon in a bowl. Place a clean kitchen towel on work surface. Place one phyllo sheet on towel with short edge toward edge of work surface. Be sure to cover the remaining phyllo sheets with a damp tea towel so they don’t dry out.
Brush phyllo sheet with some melted butter, sprinkle with one-eighth bread crumb mixture. Repeat this with two more phyllo sheets, first the butter then one-eighth of crumb mixture each. Top with the fifth phyllo sheet and brush with melted butter. With a slotted spoon, place one-half of the mixture along one short side of pastry stack. Be sure to leave a one inch border along the long sides. Sprinkle one-half tbsp sugar and one-quarter tsp over the fruit mixture.
Brush folded sides with butter. With short sides, start rolling being sure to enclose all the fruit. Brush all over with melted butter and place strudel with seam side down on baking sheet. Repeat the very same procedure with the second strudel.
This can now be wrapped with plastic wrap and stored in the fridge.
To bake, position rack in centre of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
Once again, brush the strudel with melted butter and bake about twenty minutes until golden in colour. Cool this for about ten minutes. Cut with a serrated knife on the diagonal, discarding the ends (yes, you can taste). Stand one piece on each plate and put a dollop of ginger cream on the side of the strudel. Serve this dessert warm.
Ginger Cream
- 1/4 cup water
- 3 tbsp minced peeled ginger
- 2 1/4 tbsp Berry sugar
- 1 cup whipping cream
Combine the water and ginger in a small saucepan and stir over medium heat until the sugar melts. Simmer this now for about five-six minutes until it becomes syrupy. In a medium bowl whip the cream until stiff peaks form and carefully fold in the ginger mixture.
This can be made earlier in the day (about four hours before) and kept chilled in the fridge.
After serving this, your guests will have gone home, picked up their sleepingbags and returned. They really will not want to leave.
Shrimp and Crab Sampler Bisque Shots
This can be used as a snack when sitting down for a night’s television with family or having friends over….or it can be served as an Appetizer for 6. It is easy to make and will be a real hit.
- 2 lb. jumbo shrimp, heads intact
- 6 tbsp. butter
- 1/2 cup white onion, chopped
- 1 medium carrot, peeled and chopped
- 1 sweet red pepper, seeds removed, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 4 cups reduced sodium, reduced fat chicken broth
- 1 cup Unico crushed tomatoes (I find these to be the best)
- 1 sprig fresh tarragon
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp. cayenne pepper
- 1/4 cup Sherry
- 1/3 cup Grand Marnier
- 2 tbsp. flour
- 1 lb. lump crabmeat
- 8 oz. light evaporated milk
- 8 oz. whipping cream (oxymoron, isn’t it?)
- pinch of salt and pepper
Parmesan Croutons
- 6 slices white bread, crusts removed and cut in 1″ cubes
- 2 tbsp. good olive oil
- 1/3 cup grated Asiago Cheese
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
For the croutons, toss the bread cubes with olive oil. Combine all the other ingredients and sprinkle over the bread, tossing gently to coat. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 8-9 minutes. When golden, remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Now peel, devein (clean) the shrimp and remove the shells and reserve them. Pat dry the meat and set aside.
In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat and add the onions and cook until tender (about 3-4 minutes)
Add the chicken stock, tomatoes, bay leaf and cayenne. Carefully add the Sherry, Grand Marnier and shrimp shells. Bring to a boil then reduce the heat and simmer for about 40 minutes. Strain into a clean pot and place over a medium heat. Whisk the flour in slowly and simmer for about 5 minutes. Add the shrimp and crabmeat and again, cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the evaporated milk and whipping cream.
Season to taste. IF the correct thickness for you, divide into shot glasses or small glasses. Garnish with the croutons and serve immediately. Use small spoons (cocktail spoons).
This will make about 12 of the most amazing hors d’oeurves.
Mocha Cream Pots
This is a classic French dessert and with the addition of coffee, it is completely amazing.
- 1 tbsp. instant coffee
- 2 cups milk
- 6 tbsp. sugar
- 8 oz. plain chocolate, chopped
- 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp. Tia Maria liqueur
- 7 egg yolks
- whipped cream
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place 8 half cup ramekins in a roasting pan.
In a medium saucepan, mix the instant coffee with the milk and add the sugar. Set the pan over a medium heat and bring to a boil stirring constantly, making sure the sugar and coffee are completely dissolved.
Remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate and stir until completely smooth. Add the vanilla and Tia Maria.
In another bowl, whisk the egg yolks and slowly add to the chocolate mixture until well blended. Pour this into a jug or bowl and strain the chocolate equally into the ramekins.
Add boiling water in the roasting pan until it is about half way up the outer sides of the dishes. Bake for approximately 35 minutes until the custard is just set. Remove the dishes from the pan and set on a cookie sheet to cool complately. Cover the tops with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerater. When ready to serve, add a dollop of whipping cream, flavoured with a touch of Tia Maria and sprinkle some coffee curls on top.
Very yummy. Your guests will talk about this one for a long time.
Double Chocolate Mousse
This is really a mousse for adults. If you want, you could make two…one without the liqueur (for any children who are present).
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1/3 cup Godiva Dark Chocolate liqueur
- 1/4 lb. semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
- 2 cups whipping cream
- 2 egg whites, room temperture (they fluff up more in volume)
In a small pot, over medium heat,stir the sugar and liqueur until the sugar dissolves. Do not let it boil. Remove from heat.
Fill a medium sized saucepan with water about 2 inches up the sides of the pan. Bring to a boil and then turn down to a simmer. Place the chocolate in a metal bowl and let it sit above the water, but not touching. With a spatula, slowly stir until it becomes smooth. Stir in 2 tbsp. of the cream and all the liqueur. Set it aside to cool (about 20 minutes).
Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Whisk the remaining whipping cream until soft peak form.
Gently fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Now gently fold in the cream until just combined.
This should be equally divided into 6 of your fanciest dessert bowls. You can serve with whipped Shortbread and Lacy Delights.
If you still have room, a cup of dark roast coffee would complement the dessert.
In a word (or two) yummy, yummy. OMG this is “chocogasmic.