F&L Summer Fruit Cake
Moist and incredibly flavorful, this summer fruit cake comes together in just minutes!
Ingredients:
F&L summer fruit cake mix
2 eggs
2 cups of summer fruit or berries, diced if needed
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 350°. In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, eggs, diced fruit or berries, stirring well to combine.
2. Pour batter into a greased cake pan and back for 25-30 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly and serve warm.
Variation: This is also lovely baked in a cast-iron pan as an upside down cake. For this method, melt â…“ cup butter and â…“ cup sugar in a cast iron pan over medium-low heat, then pour in the mixed cake batter. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean. Remove from the oven and invert the pan on a rimmed plate. Let sit 5 minutes then carefully remove the pan from the cake.
Red Cabbage-Fennel Slaw with Cilantro
This light, fresh dish is fantastic on tacos, pulled pork sandwiches or simply served as a summery side.
Ingredients:
1 small head green cabbage, cored and very thinly sliced
2 baby fennel bulbs, trimmed of fronds, cored and very thinly sliced
2-3 carrots, coarsely grated
¾ cup freshly-chopped cilantro
½ cup sour cream or crème fraîche
½ cup milk
Juice from 1 lime or lemon
Fresh ground pepper and salt to taste
Method:
1. In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream or crème fraîche with milk and lime juice. Season to taste with fresh ground pepper.
2. In a separate bowl, combine cabbage, fennel, carrots and cilantro. Drizzle with dressing, tossing to coat. Season with more pepper as desired and salt to taste.
Beet & Snap Pea Salad
This colorful salad is perfectly complemented by a lemon-honey vinaigrette.
Ingredients:
1 bunch beets, trimmed of any greens, washed and scrubbed
½ pound sugar snap peas, trimmed
2 cups mixed salad greens
Lemon-honey vinaigrette (see recipe)
Method:
1. Preheat oven to 375°. Wrap the beets in aluminum foil. Bake until tender, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Cool. Peel beets and cut into wedges.
2. Cook sugar snap peas in large saucepan of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 1 minute. Drain. Rinse with cold water; drain well. Pat dry.
3. Line a serving platter with the greens Mix the beets and snap peas in a medium bowl with about ¼ cup of the honey-lemon vinaigrette, season with salt and pepper and then spoon the mixture over the greens. Drizzle with additional vinaigrette as desired.
Citrus-Fennel Salad
This classic Sicilian salad can be topped with any variety of citrus; try it with this week’s combo of grapefruit and Cara Cara oranges!
Ingredients:
2 cups citrus fruit
6-8 baby fennel bulbs
½ cup good quality olives, green or black
4 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt
Method:
1. Peel and slice orange or grapefruit into small segments, removing the membrane when you come across it. Reserve half to use for the dressing. Slice the fennel, ideally with a mandolin, or as thinly as you can. Reserve some of the green fennel tops for garnish.
2. Toss the fennel, orange slices and olives in a bowl together.
3. In a small separate bowl, combine citrus juice, the extra virgin olive oil and salt and whisk to form an emulsion. Dress the salad with this mixture and garnish with some fennel tops.
Meyer Lemon-Honey Vinaigrette
This lovely vinaigrette is bright with lemon juice, sweet honey and fresh parsley.
Ingredients:
4 tablespoons freshly-squeezed Meyer lemon juice
1 teaspoon Meyer lemon zest
3 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon fresh parsley
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove, pressed
¾ cup olive oil
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
Method:
1. Whisk together lemon juice, zest, honey, parsley, mustard and garlic in a small bowl.
2. Add oil in a slow, steady stream, whisking constantly until smooth. Use immediately, or chill for a later use. If chilled, allow vinaigrette to come to room temperature again, then whisk again to combine.
Grapefruit, Lime & Mint Yogurt Parfaits
These luscious and light parfaits are an excellent accompaniment to brunch fare!
Ingredients:
4 large red grapefruit, or a combination of grapefruit and other fresh citrus fruit
4 cups reduced-fat plain yogurt
2 teaspoons grated lime zest
2 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons honey
Torn fresh mint leaves
Method:
1. Cut a thin slice from the top and bottom of each grapefruit; stand fruit upright on a cutting board. With a knife, cut off peel and outer membrane from grapefruit. Cut along the membrane of each segment to remove fruit.
2. In a large bowl, mix yogurt, lime zest and juice. Layer half of the grapefruit and half of the yogurt mixture into 6 parfait glasses. Repeat layers. Drizzle with honey; top with mint.
Pan-Braised Radishes & Greens
Pan-braising radishes mellows their spice, lending tender texture to this side dish.
Ingredients:
1 large bunch radishes with greens*
1 shallot, minced
4 teaspoons butter
Water
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper
¼ cup fresh parsley or tarragon, chopped
Method:
1. Trim greens from radishes, leaving a bit of the green stem intact. Place greens and radishes in a large bowl of cold water and let soak for at least five minutes. Remove greens and set in a colander to drain. Dry off radishes and slice in half.
2. In a large sauté pan, melt three teaspoons of the butter and sweat the minced shallots over medium heat for a minute or so. Add radishes to the pan, season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Pour in water to almost cover the radishes. Bring to a simmer, partially cover the pan, and cook until the radishes are knife tender, about 5 to 8 minutes. Remove lid and add the greens to the pan. Cover and cook for a minute or two more, until the greens have somewhat wilted. Transfer greens and radishes to a large serving bowl, leaving juices remaining in pan.
3. Bring juices to a simmer, and reduce until no more than a quarter cup remains. Add a teaspoon more of butter and stir to incorporate it with the juices.
4. Finely chop the herbs and add it to the bowl. Pour reduced juices over top and toss to coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper as necessary.
*Feel free to use a mixture of this week’s trio of radishes for a beautiful array of color!
How-To: Cook Mayocoba Beans
You can enjoy these beans straight out of the pot, or save and prepare them refried-style later!
Ingredients:
2 cups dried Mayocoba beans
1 small onion
2-3 tablespoons bacon drippings (or butter or lard)
1-2 teaspoons salt (plus more to taste)
2-3 quarts water
Pinch of Mexican oregano (optional)
Method:
1. Sort through the beans and discard any rocks or shriveled beans. Rinse and drain well.
2. Add beans to a pot and cover with 2-3 quarts of water, or so the water level is 2 inches above the beans. Add the roughly chopped onion and 2-3 tablespoons of bacon drippings (or butter or lard).
3. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and partially cover. Let simmer for 1½-2 hours. Ensure that the water level is well above the beans by adding more water as they cook if necessary.
4. Start tasting them after 1½ hours. If they are hard or grainy they need a little more time. Once cooked add 1 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of Mexican oregano and simmer for another 10-15 minutes. Give a final taste for seasoning, adding more salt if necessary. Either serve immediately, or store for future use.