Last week I put up a sneak peek of Andrea from Heavy Petal’s kitchen garden and today I just cannot resist sharing this adorable video of Andrea’s husband, Ben, and their daughter, Lila, making a Cherry Clafouti. Beware. Miss Lila is really cute. She will probably make you giggle out loud. She will also make you want to call up your favorite toddler and ask them if they feel like making a clafouti.

Lila and Ben entered their video in a contest at Better Together, a website that encourages families to cook together. If you want to vote for them, click right here.

This is my favorite time of year to cook because the both summer and fall vegetables share space in the garden. We have tomatoes (finally!), eggplant, and peppers ripening, and delicata and acorn squash, carrots, and beets are ready for harvest. The farmer’s market is full of greens, root vegetables, garlic, broccoli and cauliflower, plus cheese, yogurt and fresh pasta. I thought I’d share a couple of recipes that recently piqued my interest. And I’m curious, what do you like to make this time of year?

Brown Butter Tortelli

(Image via 101 cookbooks)

This recipe comes courtesy of the wonderful blog 101 cookbooks. I love it because it is so simple. Just pasta, butter, cheese and arugula. I often add arugula to pasta because I almost always have it in the garden and it’s spicy, nutty flavor plays well with cheese, butter and olive oil. Be sure to click through and read this recipe’s full post. It is full of beautiful pictures of Rome.

Savory Rugelach

(Image via Dana Treat)

Jon and I don’t have a TV. That doesn’t mean we don’t watch TV, we just use our lack of one as an excuse to visit with friends when we want to watch football or Mad Men. I found this recipe for cheese and olive stuffed rugelach on the wonderful Seattle-based blog Dana Treat. I am definitely using our next TV date as an excuse to make these little appetizers. I just started reading Dana’s blog over the summer and it quickly found its way into my RSS feed. Dana is a vegetarian, just like Jon, so her blog is the perfect resource for anyone looking to cook more vegetables.

Vanilla Apple Baked in Puff Pastry

(Image via Fennel and Fern)

The UK garden blog Fennel and Fern features beautiful garden tours, stunning photography, recipes and variety recommendations, which I always read with interest because the UK has a similar climate to the Pacific Northwest. These baked apples are my favorite kind of dessert—simple and not too rich. I cannot wait to make them!

Roasted Radishes

(Image via Leite’s Culinaria)

I’ve written before about my love for radishes and how I think they are unfairly maligned. So, when I came across this recipe for Roasted Radishes on Leite’s Culinaria a few weeks ago, I cursed our dog, Domino, for digging up the radishes I sowed in late August. Luckily most farmer’s market booths boast colorful radishes at this time of year. Roasting almost always makes any vegetable taste better. Radishes, I’m sure, are no exception.

If you listen closely, a collective sigh can be heard from gardeners around the West Coast. We had a royally bad summer. It was cold. It was cloudy. It was horrible tomato weather.

In the spirit of looking on the bright side, I’d like to think that this crummy season gives us the opportunity to try some new green tomato recipes. I asked for your ideas and you guys really came through, submitting recipes for everything from chutney, to sweet and savory pies, to green tomato jam, to fried tomatoes and “unfried” tomatoes.

So don’t throw all those rock hard tomatoes in the compost pile. Pick them and get creative. Who knows? Maybe you’ll find a recipe you love so much, you won’t miss ripe tomatoes. Thanks to everyone who submitted both their own recipes and published recipes. Let the cooking begin!

Celina loves the Squash, Bean and Cheese Enchiladas With Green Tomato Sauce from the Oregonian newspaper.

Sonia makes green tomato pickles with this recipe, but she substitutes green tomatoes for the cucumbers.

Monika likes this Green Tomato and Red Onion Relish recipe so much that she doesn’t even buy or make regular relish anymore.

Jessica recommends sauteing chopped green tomatoes with radishes and balsamic dressing and using the mix as a salad topping.

Sandy pointed out that the Ball Blue Book of Canning has a salsa verde recipe that calls for green tomatoes rather than tomatillos.

Flower thought that Green Tomato and Corn Salsa sounds good, and I totally agree. Probably because anything salsa related piques my interest.

This recipes sounds like a good excuse to make a batch of corn bread—Nicole has tried making Green Tomato Soup with Country Ham and reports that it is good, but she doesn’t blend it because she likes a chunkier consistency.

The word on the street is that the green gazpacho recipe in Molly Katzen’s “The Enchanted Broccoli Forest” cookbook is good. I haven’t tried it, but I do love the broccoli forest recipe. It’s such a classic.

Amy wants to try the No Sugar, Salsa-Like Green Tomato Relish recipe. It has apples, cider vinegar, onions, and peppers in it. Yum!

Terry pointed out that Lynn Rosetto Kasper had a great column in the Seattle Times with a bunch of green tomato recipes. The slow-grilled ribs basted with green tomato jam sound totally tasty.

Kathy from Texas found that the Food Network has a lot recipe ideas for green tomatoes, including Emeril Lagasse’s Hot-n-Spicy Green Tomato Soup, Paula Deen had both a Green Tomato Pie and a Green Tomato Cake with Brown Butter Icing. Seriously, leaves it to Paula Deen to somehow combine brown butter and green tomatoes! I think I’m definitely going to try that recipe.

My friend Amanda also makes green tomato pie, she doesn’t really use a recipe….but kind of eye-balls it. The basic ingredients are a whole pile of green tomatoes, sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice and pie crust. She says it kind of tastes like very lemony apple pie!

Elizabeth’s Green Tomato Chutney

This recipe was shared by Elizabeth of La Vida Desconocida

For those of us living in less-than-hot climates where we’re often left with tons of green tomatoes at the end of the season and no pleasing recipe to do away with them, I present to you: Green Tomato Chutney. Yum. The first time I made it I used a variety of cherry, Roma, and bigger variety tomatoes, so literally any green tomato you have can participate in this delicious sauce.

Here is the recipe, more or less. All the ingredients are based on how many tomatoes you use but luckily it is not an exact science.

Green tomatoes (as many as you have – I used about 2 lbs in this one), diced (no need to de-skin)

1-2 green apples, diced (depending on how many tomatoes you’re using)

Chopped onion (1 medium or large)

Raisins (1/2 cup or so)

Apple cider vinegar (about 2 cups, or until the liquid covers most of the ingredients)

Brown sugar (about 1 cup)

Fresh chopped or zested ginger (not too much – about a teaspoon)

Salt and pepper to taste

Start by “caramelizing” the onions in a bit of sugar and a splash of vinegar for about 10 minutes. Then toss everything else in, cover and simmer until it tasted delicious (about an hour). You need a good amount of vinegar, which should turn syrupy and thick with the sugar. If it’s too liquidy you can simmer with the lid off and then let stand, uncovered, for the first 20 minutes while it cools.

This is delicious served hot or cold with sausages and any grain, especially wheat berries or farro. Also, you can jar it since it doesn’t have any butter or oil in it!

Fried Green Tomatoes

This recipes was shared by Deb.

Ingredients:

3 or 4 medium size green tomatoes, they should be a milky green color, on the verge of turning orangey/pink, but still very firm
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
6-8 fresh basil leaves, snipped or chopped finely
– about 1 Tbsp dried and crumbled basil
oil for frying – canola or olive, but the pan needs to be very hot and the olive oil may ’smoke’. About 1/4 cup, of either.

Procedure:

Wash and core the green tomatoes, slice about 3/4 inch thick. Cover the bottom of the pan with the oil for frying, and heat till a drop of water dropped into the oil, spatters and hisses. The oil needs to be very hot in order that the tomoato slices do not get mushy as they cook. Combine cornmeal and parmesan cheese, mixing well, and dredge or coat the tomato slices on both sides (a plastic bag works well). Drop tomato slices into hot oil, turn after about 3 minutes, to brown the other side. Serve immediately.

Unfried Green Tomatoes

This recipe was shared by Jenny Fox of the Svelte Gourmet. She also recommends substituting these unfried tomatoes for eggplant in an eggplant parmesan recipe!

Serves 4

2 large green tomatoes

1 egg

1 cup Parmesan cheese (shredded, NOT grated)

1 cup panko breadcrumbs

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

Pinch cayenne pepper

Olive oil or cooking spray

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mist a baking sheet with olive oil or cooking spray. Slice tomatoes between 1/8 and 1/4 inch thick. Beat egg. Combine Parmesan cheese, panko and spices. Dip each tomato slice in the egg, then into the breading mixture, pressing to coat both sides. Place breaded slices in a single layer on the baking sheet. Mist tops with olive oil or cooking spray and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. No need to flip them.

Green Tomato Mincemeat

From Deb.

An old-fashioned favorite, without the suet. Requires about 2 hours of slow simmering and 25 minutes in a water bath canner, but can also be frozen, once cooled.

Ingredients:

6 pounds green tomatoes

2 pounds tart apples

2 cups raisins

4 cups brown sugar

2 cups strong brewed coffee

1 lemon, grated rind and juice

2 tsp grated orange peel

1/2 cup vinegar

1 tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp ground allspice

Procedure:

Wash and core the tomatoes and apples, removing any blemishes and cutting into quarters. Add raisins and coarsely chop or process in a food processor. Place in a large, heavy bottomed kettle or pot, add the remaining ingredients and simmer over low heat for about 2 hours. Be sure to stir often or it will scortch. Pack into hot pint jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace, seal and process in boiling water bath canner for 25 minutes. Allow to cool, undisturbed for 24 hours, check for seal and then store.

Serving Size:

8 to 10 pint jars

Green Tomato and Sausage Pie

This recipe comes from Grace.

Who doesn’t like pie? And everything tastes better with bacon. I always make GREEN TOMATO AND SAUSAGE PIE. The recipe probably came from Cook’s Illustrated many years back, and has survived some modifications. Here is how I make it:

1 9″ pie crust (recipe below)

1 lb breakfast sausage, chorizo or bacon

6-12 cubed Green Tomatoes or Tomatillos (i.e. goes well with chorizo, etc.)

2 cups sliced mushrooms, any kind

1 medium onion, diced

3 T flour

1.5 cups grated swiss cheese (or jalapeno-cheddar, etc.)

Make Pie Crust (double it and freeze half for later …)

1.5 cups flour

1 T sugar

0.5 tsp salt

0.5 cup frozen unsalted butter (1 stick)

3 T cold water

Mix dry ingredients

Grate butter with a cheese-grater (refrigerator-cold works too, but frozen butter results in flakier crust)

Gently mix butter into flour with cold spoon

Add cold water and gently roll into a ball and flatten.

You can chill for 30 min at this point, or just roll out.

Place in pie-plate and pre-bake at 350^F for 20 min [Cover with foil and weigh down with dried rice, beans or pie-weights].

Make Pie Filling

Brown sausage (cook completely) and set aside.

Saute onions in 1-2T remaining sausage grease.

Add mushrooms and cook down, set aside.

Cook tomatoes and let some of the water evaporate.

Add the flour to thicken the tomato juice, then add the mushrooms, onion, and sausage together.

Put the sausage-tomato-mushroom filling into the pre-baked pie-crust and cover with cheese (or put half the cheese into the hot pie crust, layer on the filling, and add more cheese to the top).

Bake at 400^F for 20 minutes

Eat hot, or freeze for later.

Green Tomato Relish

Cari reports that this relish recipe from Whole Foods Cooking (Goldbeck, Nikki & David) is tried and true.

Ingredients:

3 pounds green tomatoes, chopped (about 7 cups)

2 medium onions, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 large green bell pepper, chopped (about 3/4 cup)

1 cup cider vinegar

6 Tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon celery seed

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

Directions:

Chop vegetables by hand or in a processor. Combine with remaining ingredients in a 3-quart pot and bring to a boil.

Simmer uncovered, for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Ladle into warm, sterilized half-pint or pint jars, leaving 1/4 to 1/2 inch headspace.

Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Makes 4 1/2 pints

Green Tomato Sauce

Cari hasn’t tried this recipe, but notes that is from the same cookbook as the relish recipe above and that she has 54 tomato plants, no cloche and freezer space, so she is willing to try any green tomato recipe!

1 medium onion, cut up

1 clove garlic

1 hot chili pepper

1 1/2 pounds green tomatoes, cut up (about 5 cups)

1/4 cup parsley

2 fresh basil leaves

1 teaspoon salt

Combine all ingredients in a processor fitted with a steel blade or in a blender. It may be necessary to do batches in a blender. Puree until evenly mixed but still somewhat chunky.

A little water may need to be added if using a blender.

Transfer to a pot and bring to a quick boil.

Use what you need and freeze the rest, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.

Yesterday morning I made a small batch of orange rosemary jelly for the April installment of the Tigress Can Jam. My kitchen filled with a bright citrusy scent as the jelly began to bubble. I thought to myself, “I am really getting the hang of this whole canning thing.” Then I caught a whiff of something burning. So I gave the pot a quick stir. Everything was fine there. I checked the burner. Nope. Nothing was sizzling on it. Then I looked over to the other side of the stove. The top of my candy thermometer was melting all over the bright red burner.

Doh.

Despite that setback the jelly turned out very pretty. And tasty, too!

I’m not much of a baker, mainly because I love savory food so much more than sweets. I’d choose macaroni and cheese as a treat over a piece of cake any day. But something about the holidays brings out the urge to bake cookies. Lots of cookies! In the past week I’ve made peanut butter cookies embedded with a chocolate kiss, hazelnut crinkle cookies, and Norwegian lemon bonbons. These buttery, crumbly, bite-sized cookies are a classic in my family. Every December my grandmother would send a tin stuffed with her famous Million Dollar Fudge and lemon bonbons, both of which vanished in a matter of minutes.

Why the cookies are called Norwegian lemon bonbons is a mystery, since lemons aren’t exactly a native fruit in Norway, but why they taste so good is more obvious: the recipe calls for two sticks of butter. My grandmother’s original cookie only has five ingredients: butter, powdered sugar, corn starch, flour, and pecans. I’ve since added salt and lemon zest to the equation. Either way these cookies taste best with a cup of tea in hand.

I hope you all have a very happy holiday! I’ll be back next week, hopefully with a couple of new cookbooks to review.

Norwegian Lemon Bonbons

Makes 4 dozen cookies

Since this cookie is almost all butter, splurge on a good one, such as Pelugra. As the cookies bake, your kitchen will fill with a decadent buttery, citrusy scent. It’s irresistible!

You’ll need:

1 cup butter (2 sticks), plus one tablespoon for the glaze

1 1/3 cup powdered sugar

3/4 cup cornstarch

1 cup flour

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Zest of one lemon

1/2 cup pecans, finely chopped

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Blend 1 cup of the butter, 1/3 cup of the powdered sugar, cornstarch, flour, sea salt, and lemon zest together. Cover and refrigerate for 1/2 hour. Place the chopped pecans in a shallow plate. Scoop out teaspoon-sized bits of dough, shape them into a ball, and then roll in pecans. Space the cookies 2 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake for 15 minutes, or until their bottoms are golden brown. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for two minutes before carefully moving them to racks.

To make the tart lemon glaze, beat together the remaining powdered sugar with 1 tablespoon of butter and the lemon juice. I like to drizzle the glaze over the cookies while they are on the racks (be sure to place a piece of parchment under the racks to catch any glaze that falls through). After the glaze soaks in, add additional layers. The cookies keep well for up to a week if stored in an airtight container.

Going…

Going…

Gone.

Here is photographic evidence that I seriously need a fire pit in my backyard.

I made this perfection of a confection on a recent family camping trip in the Wind River mountains of Wyoming. Observe the perfectly toasted marshmallow—tawny and puffed and oozing out of its graham cracker confines. And the chocolate. That’s two squares of Hershey’s Special Dark, softened on a hot rock until it reached the consistency of frosting. It was, perhaps, the best thing I ate this summer.

My mom’s innovation of the toasted marshmallow brownie bite S’more took 2^nd prize.

We also marinated the trout my dad caught in the lake in limejuice and garlic, dipped them in flour, and cooked the little guys up in a cast iron skillet over the fire.

Seriously, I think food tastes better when you eat it outside. So, with summer’s days dwindling, I’m going to be eating as many meals as possible on our back deck. It doesn’t have a fire pit or a mountainous backdrop, but I’ll take it.

I’ve gotten to know Willi and DigginFood through my older sister Betsy, whose posts you’ve read on Raspberry Clafoutis, Summer Risotto and Basil Ice Cream over the past few weeks. Between the two of us, Betsy is the more devoted chef. Although I love to cook (and eat), I very regularly find myself heading over to Betsy’s house for her Sunday night, family dinners or stopping by to grab one (several) of the latest baked goods she’s made. Although I can’t quite compete with my sister’s culinary repertoire, I made a discovery last summer that I hope the readers of DiggnFood will enjoy as much as I have — the discovery was grilling fruit.
 
I learned how to barbecue from my dad, whose barbecuing was a regular dinner ritual growing up (and is, to this day, on our visits home). The ritual typically included sitting on the steps to the back yard across from my dad, often smoking a cigar, reading the news paper and listening to sports radio. In between our “news hours” as we liked to call them, my dad would tend to his Weber and teach me the ways of the charcoal grill.
 
Although a bit more high maintenance than gas, I love grilling with charcoal. Below is a really simple way to get a charcoal grill going (with a chimney, an indispensable barbecuing tool) and some tips that my dad taught me during our many hours in the backyard.
 
In addition to the grilling, there is the fruit. Last summer I was home in San Francisco and my parents had some peaches from the market as well as some figs from my grandfather’s fig tree in Stockton, California. We were barbecuing some halibut and I mentioned to my dad it would be interesting to try the peaches and the figs on the grill, to which he agreed. Onto the grill with the fish went the peaches and figs sliced in half, which resulted in a delicious summer dinner.
 
The fruit charred and caramelized, enriching the peach and fig flavor and textures. Both worked perfectly with the fish and could also marry well with any kind of meat or chicken, not to mention a large scoop of ice cream. I’ve also often thought the figs would be incredible with a rich, salty cheese as well. It is such a simple combination, a grill and some fruit, and yet is incredibly delicious, healthy and versatile.
 
Enjoy and have fun grilling!

Barbecue How To

-Fill the top of the chimney with charcoal and stuff the bottom with 2 sheets of newspaper

-With the chimney sitting in the barbecue with the grill off, light the newspaper and tilt the chimney up against the side of the barbecue

-Check the chimney every 5 minutes to make sure it is heating up, in about 15 or 20 minutes there should be flame above the briquets and to the top of the chimney

-Using the handles on the chimney, carefully pour the briquets into the barbecue (I usually pour them in a mound in the center)

-Put the grill back on the barbecue and let it heat up for about 10 to 15 minutes

-You will know when the grill is hot enough when you put your hand over the heat and can’t hold it there

The Fruit

-I bought some peaches, apricots and cherries at the farmer’s market to grill but numerous other fruits will work well

-After washing and halving the fruit, place the halves face down on the hot grill and cover the grill (anywhere from 5 to 10 minutes depending on how hot your fire is)

-Flip the fruit and cover the grill for another 5 to 10 minutes

-Depending on how cooked you like your fruit, you can leave it on the grill for a bit more, or remove it and enjoy!

My husband Grant and I decided to try a summer CSA last year.  We would pick up weekly boxes of fresh vegetables every Sunday from the Dog Mountain Farms’ stall at the Capitol Hill Farmer’s Market.  To end the summer, we attended a farm dinner at Dog Mountain Farms in Carnation, WA.  We sat in the field amongst fruit trees and rows of vegetables and enjoyed a delicious five course meal.  The most memorable dish was the dessert, a berry panna cotta. 

The panna cotta was wonderful but what was most surprising was the basil infused whipped cream that was served with the dish.  The whipped cream had a clean sweet flavor that was so refreshing on a hot summer day.  So when we had leftover basil after making pesto this weekend, Grant decided we should make a basil ice cream.  It would be the perfect accompaniment to the apricot, cherry and blueberry galettes I was making for a dinner party Sunday night.

We were inspired by a recipe in Gourmet magazine however the recipe calls for pureeing the basil into the cream.  I didn’t think a green ice cream would look ideal with the galettes so we opted to strain the basil leaves out of the cream before putting the mixture in the ice cream machine.  The result was a crisp take on a vanilla ice cream with a surprising bite that would be perfect for any fruit or shortbread dessert. 

Basil Ice Cream

What you will need…

2 cups whole milk

1 cup basil leaves

½ cup sugar

Pinch of Salt

4 large egg yolks

½ cup well-chilled heavy cream 

Heat milk, basil and ¼ cup sugar, with a pinch of salt, in a heavy saucepan.  Bring to a boil stirring constantly.  Once the mixture comes to a boil, remove from the heat and let steep for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes, pour the mixture through a strainer to remove the basil leaves.

With a hand-held mixer, beat the yolks and remaining ¼ cup sugar in a bowl until thick and pale (about 1 minute).  Add the milk mixture in a slow stream and beat until combined.  Pour mixture into a clean saucepan and cook over moderate heat.  Be sure to stir constantly.  The mixture will begin to thicken and is ready when it coats the back of a wooden spoon – this will take around 6 minutes of stirring.  Do not let the mixture come to a boil. 

Remove from the heat and poor in to a small bowl.  Place the bowl in a larger bowl of ice water and stir until cold, around 12 minutes.  (I recommend making the ice bath before you cook the custard over the stove – the custard will cook quickly and, if you don’t cool it down immediately, you risk curdling the mixture).

Stir in the cream and freeze in the ice cream maker.  Once frozen, place the ice cream in an airtight container and put in the freezer to harden for at least 2 hours before serving.  Enjoy! 

When Willi emailed my sister, Dinah, and me about the opportunity to be guest bloggers on DigginFood while she was on vacation, neither of us hesitated to say yes.  Dinah and I grew up in San Francisco and have spent time on the East Coast and in France before both settling in Seattle.  We love to cook and have been known to travel far distances in search of the perfect baked good.  

It seemed fitting, since our first entry falls on Bastille Day, to start our posts with a French recipe.   I have a bad habit of buying as many cookbooks as I do shoes which mean both my closet and kitchen shelves are overflowing.  There is a fabulous French bakery in San Francisco called Tartine.  I have made several trips there when visiting my parents and, after having dreams about their morning buns, decided to buy their cookbook.  The cookbook, which is filled with sweet and savory creations, was a natural place to start when looking for a French dessert to bake.  From there, it was an easy decision to make a clafoutis.

Clafoutis is a traditional French baked custard that you can find in almost any boulangerie in France.  The dessert uses fresh fruit and is quick and simple to make. I first discovered the dessert when I was living in Paris.  There was a neighborhood restaurant around the corner from my shoebox studio in the 7^th arrondissment.  It was run by an older couple; the husband cooked in the back room and would pass all the food through a tiny window into the restaurant where the wife would serve everyone.  The restaurant sat no more than 15 people and there were only 2 desserts on the menu – a fruit salad and a seasonal clafoutis.  Anytime I felt homesick, I would walk around the corner to the restaurant, which you could easily miss if you weren’t looking for it, and order steak frites followed by the clafoutis. 

The recipe below is taken from the Tartine cookbook.  Their recipe calls for cherries, which is traditionally how the dessert is prepared, however you can easily substitute other fruit that is in season (raspberries, apricots, pears…).  I decided to make the dish with raspberries – I couldn’t pass them up at the farmer’s market and, short on time, it was easier to use raspberries than have to pit 2 cups of cherries.  A clafoutis is a simple dessert that is easy to make and a great way to enjoy whatever fresh fruit is in season.

Bon Appétit! 

Raspberry Clafoutis (from the Tartine Cookbook)

What you will need:

2 cups whole milk

¾ cup sugar, plus ¼ cup for topping the dessert

Seeds from half a vanilla bean*

Pinch of salt

3 large eggs

1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon flour

2 cups raspberries

*You can save the vanilla pod after scraping out the seeds and put it in an airtight container covered in sugar.  After a few days, the pods will flavor the sugar to create vanilla sugar. You can use vanilla sugar on crepes, in cocktails, coffee, etc.

Preheat the oven to 425° and butter a 10-inch pie dish.

Combine the milk, ¾ cups sugar, vanilla bean, and salt in a small saucepan.  Place over medium heat and whisk until the sugar dissolves and small bubbles appear. 

While heating the milk mixture, mix one egg with the flour in a heatproof bowl.  Once mixed, add the other two eggs and whisk until smooth.  This will be a workout for your arm but it is important to whisk the mixture until it is smooth otherwise the custard will be lumpy when baked.

Once small bubbles appear around the edges of the milk mixture, take the saucepan off the heat and slowly ladle spoonfuls of the hot liquid into the egg and flour mixture.  Whisk constantly while adding the hot liquid – it is important to whisk the mixture so the eggs don’t curdle in the heat. 

Once you have mixed in all the liquid, pour the custard into the prepared baking dish and evenly distribute the raspberries throughout.  Put the baking dish in to the oven and cook for 30 to 35 minutes until the center is just set and the edges are lightly browned. 

Take the custard out of the oven and increase the oven temperature to 500°.  Sprinkle the custard evenly with the remaining ¼ cup of sugar and return the dish to the oven for another 5 to 10 minutes until the sugar caramelizes.  Watch the dish carefully at this point as the sugar will burn quickly.

Remove from the oven and let sit for 15 minutes before enjoying.

Today I’m so excited to introduce you to one of my very favorite places to visit, beautyeveryday. A collaboration of three Athens, Georgia based artists, Kristen Bach, Rebecca Wood, and Rinne Allen, beautyeveryday is a kind of online inspiration notebook. The talented trio behind the site work together at R. Wood Studio Ceramics—a pottery that turns out truly stunning hand shaped and painted dinnerware. Kristen, Rebecca, and Rinne post about the little bits of beauty they see everywhere. Each day brings a new vantage point. A photo of purple thistle against a bright blue sky. A look into a wonderful strawbale home. A recipe for strawberry preserves.

I love to visit because it’s a peek into a world so different—and more lovely—than my own. So I asked Kristen at beautyeverday if she would share a little inspiration with us, and she graciously delivered a batch of beautiful photos and her recipe for peach cobbler.

I can hardly wait for our local peaches to ripen. I hope you’ll have fun stopping by beautyeveryday. And enjoy the cobbler. I promise you’ll be back for more of both. ~ Willi

We are so thrilled to be posting today on DigginFood. Good food grows everywhere…  Today’s post is coming from the Southeast where the peaches just started to ripen.  Summer is officially here, the upper 90 degree temps have been hinting that too. I made a quick trip to the country where you can find peach stands by the dozen. I picked up a bucket of peaches that were picked earlier this morning and also walked through Thomas Orchards to see the lovely trees displaying the season’s bounty.

My visit to the orchard inspired me to make a cobbler, the true dessert of the South. You can use whatever fruit is in season and serve it up with some fresh whipped cream or ice cream.  Some make their cobblers with a crumb topping, but I prefer using a sweet biscuit topping. ~ Kristen Bach

Kristen’s Peach Cobbler

You’ll need:
6 cups peeled and cored peaches
1/2 cup sugar
5 tablespoons unbleached flour
——
1 3/4 cups unbleached flour
6 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 tablespoons butter or non-dairy butter-cold
1/2 cup milk or dairy-free milk
——-
2 tablespoons butter or non-dairy butter
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cardamon

Instructions:
Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. Peel and core the peaches and put them into a cast iron frying pan. Mix in the 1/2 cup sugar and 5 Tbsp flour. Set aside.
——
Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt. Add the cold butter and milk and stir until mixed. Spoon the biscuit mixture over the peaches.
——
Brush the melted butter over the cobbler. Mix the sugar and cardamon together and sprinkle on top of the cobbler. Put into the oven and bake until the top browns, about 45-50 minutes. Cool for about 20 minutes and serve with fresh whipping cream or ice cream

Be sure to visit beautyeveryday for more Southern seasonal recipes and beauty!