No bake cheesecake

No bake cheesecake! For when it's too hot to turn on the oven.

The crust is what sold me on this recipe. It was made from pretzels, sugar, and butter. 

The filling was a mixture of cream cheese, vanilla, sugar and cool whip. 

I marinated the strawberries in a Tablespoon of elderflower liquor. Add strawberries on top of pie just before serving. 

Strawberry Jam

Got this recipe for strawberry refrigerator jam from my Grandma.  

Only 4 ingredients!

First add the strawberries and mash them up a little. Then add the other ingredients and bring to a boil. 

Boil for 15-20 minutes. Stir often. 

Let jam rest 5 minutes then spoon into jars. 

My initial reaction to tasting it is that it is too sweet. Next time I would probably use 1/2 a cup less sugar.

Spicy watermelon pops

I can never tell how to pick a good watermelon. My go to method as of now is to look at the color and pick one that is a healthy dark green all around.  Then I use my knuckles and knock on the melon while holding it and listen for a certain hollow sound. I'm sure that people at the grocery store must think I'm insane as I assess my melons. I mean a cantaloupe you can just pick up and smell if it's ripe, but a watermelon.. Who the hell knows ?

Anyways this time I got lucky.

Combined puréed watermelon with the juice of two limes, and some simple syrup. 

Into the bottom of the Popsicle molds I poured some Tajin. I was hoping that it would stay at the bottom of the molds, but when I poured in the watermelon purée it seemed to mix throughout, also the more foamy watermelon juice stayed on the top. Will have to taste test tomorrow and see how these came out!

Summer Fruit Tart

Nectarine and strawberry galette.

Chop strawberries and nectarines. I added some orange zest and juice. 

 

Add sugar and some flour

Dough was made from flour, butter, sugar, salt and water. Refrigerate dough for 1 hour. 

Roll out dough into a circle. 

Put fruit mixture in the center.  Be sure to leave an inch at the edge. 

Fold edges up to encase the fruit. 

Brush edges with egg white and sprinkle with sugar. 

Bake at 375 for around 50 minutes.

Jalapeño Poppers

I had the urge to make some jalapeño poppers. Pretty simple- you can stuff them with any variety of cheese. I have also made these before with a bread crumb topping. This time I went with cream cheese and cheddar cheese.

I try to select peppers that aren't too crazily shaped trying to keep in mind that I want them to be able to lay flat on a baking sheet. 

First halve peppers, then use a spoon to scrape out seeds and veins. 

Mix together cream cheese and shredded cheddar. I also added a touch of garlic salt. 

Stuff peppers with cheese mixture. I would recommend lining your baking pan with foil or parchment paper for less mess.

Bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes. 

Jalapeño Poppers

I had the urge to make some jalapeño poppers. Pretty simple- you can stuff them with any variety of cheese. I have also made these before with a bread crumb topping. This time I went with cream cheese and cheddar cheese.

I try to select peppers that aren't too crazily shaped trying to keep in mind that I want them to be able to lay flat on a baking sheet. 

First halve peppers, then use a spoon to scrape out seeds and veins. 

Mix together cream cheese and shredded cheddar. I also added a touch of garlic salt. 

Stuff peppers with cheese mixture. I would recommend lining your baking pan with foil or parchment paper for less mess.

Bake at 400 for 20-25 minutes. 

Date Bars

It all started with some dates...

I bought them impulsively and then wondered how will I eat all these dates?!

Date bars! A Classico have never made before. Most recipes combine chopped dates, water, and brown sugar. 

Mix ingredients, bring to a boil, and simmer for 10 minutes. 

Mixture will thicken and form a delightful paste! 

The crust is flour, oats, brown sugar,

Baking powder, salt, and butter. 

 

Press half into bottom of greased pan. 

Top with date mixture and then top with remaining crumble/crust. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. 

Pretty good! Forgot to bring them to work though :/

More date bars for meeeeeeee

Chive Flower Vinegar

I saw this recipe on food gawker. It caught my attention because my chive plant was is bloom. I never thought of using the flower for anything. Once I picked them, I smelled them and they had a distinctive chive smell!

The recipe says just put them into vinegar  in a jar and shake everyday. Eventually discard the blossoms. 

The recipe said you could use whatever vinegar you prefer. I just used some extra plain white vinegar I had in the cupboard and threw it into an old jelly jar. 

Here is the results after a few days.  

The vinegar takes on a light pink hue.  Think I will let it brew a bit longer.  The recipe suggested using the vinegar for salad dressings.