My spiced pear cake screams Fall. Right now you can find pears and peaches everywhere. Eat them raw, toss them on top of a salad, poach them in wine or bake a cake. If you don't have pears handy, substitute peaches or apples!
I rarely make a cake with frosting, (must cut back somewhere). It's as though, if there is no frosting, there is not as much guilt! This cake is filled with juicy pears and so moist. Who needs that gooey frosting?
Spiced Pear Coffee Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Use a 9 inch round cake pan greased with coconut oil and dusted with flour.
2 pears, peeled and thinly sliced
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 trial bottle (airplane size) spiced rum (optional)
1/8 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup flour
1 Tbsp cinnamon
For the topping:
a handful of chopped pecans
1 Tbsp sugar and a dash of cinnamon
In a large bowl mix eggs, sugar, milk and spiced rum, if using. Add half of the pears to the batter and blend well. Save the nicer looking pears for the top. Add the salt, flour and cinnamon stirring well. Pour into the greased pan and place remaining pears on top in a "wheel" pattern. Sprinkle the nuts, sugar and cinnamon on top.
Bake for about 55 minutes. This cake tastes great warm but even better cold.
By now those of you who planted a garden have been in the "harvest mode" and you're wondering what to do with all your bounty. I think this year my zucchini harvest will go down in history and into the record books. And I don't even want to mention the prolific tomato harvest, yet! I've given quite a bit away to friends, neighbors and family, but I don't seem to be putting a dent in the zucchini! I've made almost everything imaginable, except a pure and simple zucchini soup. Here goes...
Cream of Zucchini Soup
3 medium size zucchini, chopped
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
32 oz. of veggie or chicken broth
1 tsp herb de Provence
Place all of the above ingredients into a large pot, bring to a boil, turn down the heat to low and simmer for at least 20 minutes. Puree in a blender (cover the blender top with a towel and puree in batches to avoid overflow) Then, return the soup to the pot. At this point I refrigerated until dinner time. The flavors just get better, too. Reheat, and season with salt and pepper. To make it "creamy" I added 2 Tbsp of fat free sour cream or yogurt cheese which is plain yogurt that has been strained in a coffee filter overnight. The consistency is thick and not as tart.
It serves about 4 and would be even better with the addition of rustic home made croutons.
Once again, I've been away too long! In that case I owe you a dessert recipe! I broke a tradition this year and experimented with this cake instead of making my son's triple chocolate cake. He made his own and created an ice cream around it. I didn't get to taste it, so, I guess we're even, huh? I'm sure it was great as is all his flavors of ice cream!
Please forgive me for not making this from scratch. German chocolate cake with that gooey buttery coconut frosting was one of my favorites while growing up! If I had chosen to frost this snack cake, I could have been in serious trouble; It's too good to have around my house....danger! I liked the results (and hubby did, too) even without the frosting.
German Chocolate Snack Cake
15.24 oz German chocolate cake mix
1 pkg (3.4 oz) coconut cream instant pudding
3 eggs
1/2 c vegetable oil
1 1/4 c water
1/2 c chopped pecans
1/2 c mini chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees (for a glass pan, 13 x 9 inch) Grease the bottom only.
Add the cake mix, pudding, eggs, oil and water into a large bowl. Mix well. Then add the nuts and chocolate chips, pour into the glass pan and bake for 30 minutes. Test with a toothpick in the center. If it comes out clean, it's done. Cool. May be frosted but it's good the way it is. It doesn't hurt to dollop some ice cream on top,though! Cover and refrigerate.
Tabouleh, where have you been all my life? Perhaps I led such a sheltered life or my home town which was primarily Italian or of Slavic descent, did not import from Tabouleh's country of origin. Mostly from Lebanon and Syria this grain is loaded with high fiber, magnesium and Vitamin C. It boasts no cholesterol and is low in saturated fat!
Tabouleh is the name for a salad dish made from bulgur. Nowadays, you can readily find it in any store. I like it because it seems to curb cravings while filling me up. I cheated a bit and bought the brand Near East Tabouleh which already has a spice pack inside. Next time it'll be from scratch! Try it....you may like it!
Tabouleh Salad
1 box "Near East" Tabouleh
6-7 cherry tomatoes, chopped
1 green onion, chopped
1 roasted red or yellow bell pepper, chopped
1 heaping tsp of fresh parsley, chopped
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1 Tbsp olive oil
handful of pine nuts for garnish
In a large bowl put tabouleh and packet provided with box. Add 1 cup of boiling water, stir and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients mixing well. Chill for at least an hour or better yet, overnight as the flavors blend. Serve with more pine nuts (optional). Soooo good!
For those of you, not in the know, ratatouille is actually the name of a French Provencal stew. It's what you do when the zucchini, tomato and eggplants in your garden have decided it's time for a coup. A take over! Several years ago I had a VERY prolific tomato plant about the size of one of those "smart cars" you see around. It virtually attacked and claimed a corner of my yard and even though it was attacked by the dreaded spiny looking tomato worm, the plant still provided pound after pound of huge juicy tomatoes.
Enter the heirloom black zucchini plant! In my neck of the woods, high desert and usually dry, we don't plant most veggies in the ground until late May or early June. Even then, weather can be fickle with bouts of dry, alternating with snow and quick freezes. My zucchini plant struggled at first and while I went on a short vacation my dad watered and watched over my garden. Now, I don't know what he said to these plants, but upon my return, Magic! He's always had a green thumb. I began to grow zucchini in a big way, picking consistently two or 3 a day. I also planted one Japanese eggplant which was almost nibbled to the ground by a resident rabbit. Thanks for the trim! Now, it thrives, too.
This ratatouille recipe is great when your garden is going gangbusters! While I had measurements, you don't have to be so exact. You're not baking a cake, it's a stew! Ratatouille is even better the next day as the flavors blend.
2 cups, chopped peppers (I used an assortment of colors)
1 cup chopped yellow onion
3-4 small Japanese eggplant. (no need to peel, chop into 1/2 inch pieces)
2 cups zucchini, chopped into 1/2 inch or bite size pieces
1 1/2 -2 cups chopped fresh tomatoes
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 c of diced canned organic tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1 tsp herbs de Provence
1/2 tsp thyme
a handful of chopped parsley (optional)
salt and pepper to taste
Once everything is chopped up this dish is easy. I started with 2 Tbsp of olive oil to get the veggies cooking. Add the peppers, onions, eggplant and zucchini, stirring until the onions begin to soften. Add the tomatoes, garlic, canned tomatoes, bay leaf, herbs and thyme. Cook for about 10 minutes on medium heat.
Cover and reduce the heat to low. Let it simmer for another 30 minutes or longer, checking to see if the liquid has evaporated. You can add a bit (1/4 cup) of water or broth to keep them moist. Salt and pepper to taste. Make sure you let a spoonful cool,; the veggies are very hot at this point!
You can serve after letting it cool a bit or refrigerate for the next day. I like to put a dollop of goat cheese on top...delicious!
