Lemon Blueberry No-Churn Ice Cream

My latest mash-up of recipes is Lemon Blueberry No-Churn Ice Cream! It’s a combination of two of my past recipes –  Lemon Ice and Blueberry Pie! Once I realized that the filling for the Lemon Ice recipe from one of Grandma’s old church cookbooks was basically a no-churn ice cream, my brain worked overtime trying to work out how many different kinds of no-churn ice cream I could make. The possibilities are endless! I wanted to just go with the basic Lemon Ice filling recipe first, just so I could really see how it would turn out, and I added the blueberries to make it taste like the blueberries and lemon in Blueberry Pie. I think it turned out pretty well! Let’s just say it disappeared pretty quick. In fact, you might say it vaporized! This recipe is just ridiculously easy to make, so I hope you’ll give it a try!

Here is the recipe as I made it:

Lemon Blueberry No-Churn Ice Cream

Beat together:

1 can sweetened condensed milk

Juice of 2 lemons

Grated rind of 2 lemons

1 cup blueberries (I used frozen wild blueberries)

Fold in:

1 pint whipping cream, whipped

Put mixture into bread loaf pan and freeze.

Let freeze several hours or overnight.

I whip the whipping cream first and keep it in the refrigerator while mixing the lemon mixture.

First, beat together the sweetened condensed milk and the lemon juice and lemon rind.

It makes a nice, smooth mixture.

Next, add the blueberries (I’m glad I used frozen wild berries – I think regular fresh blueberries might make big frozen chunks).

You end up with a bit of a lavender-colored mixture when adding the blueberries.

Then fold the whipped cream into the lemon and blueberry mixture.

I lined the bread pan with some parchment paper, and that wasn’t necessary, but I would cover the pan with some plastic wrap so it doesn’t take on that “freezer” smell or taste. Make sure you let the ice cream sit out for 5-10 minutes when you take it out of the freezer – that helps it scoop smoother. If you don’t do that, it will be pretty icy and hard to scoop.

My family enjoyed this ice cream the next day, and wow!

It is so, so good – absolutely delicious!

I wouldn’t say the no-churn ice cream is as creamy as regular ice cream, but it’s easy and fast to make (especially if you don’t own an ice cream maker), and it really is so, so good! It tastes just like the recipe I make for Blueberry Pie! My mind is whirling with all the ideas I have of what kind to make next. There are so many possible flavors to explore! Stay tuned – I’m thinking a Gingerbread type to come this fall! In the meantime, take advantage of the warm (some hot) days we still have left this summer, and make a batch of this icy and delicious Lemon Blueberry No-Churn Ice Cream – you’re gonna love how easy it is to make, and your family will love how tasty it is!

 

 

 

Lemon Ice

Today’s recipe for Lemon Ice is another one that comes from one of Grandma’s old church cookbooks. It sounds a lot like the recipes for no-churn ice cream that you see all over the internet right now, but the recipe says to just put it into the refrigerator. So we tried putting it in the freezer, too, and it was just as delicious! You really could enjoy it either way. These old church cookbooks – as I’ve said many, many, many times before – were only the best recipes that these women made for their friends and family, and apparently they were waaaaay ahead of their time, too! I say that because at some point, when making this, I realized that the filling is basically a no-churn ice cream recipe. Hmmm – I might have to be trying to make some of those recipes coming up soon. Keep an eye out for that!

Here is the recipe as I made it:

Lemon Ice

Mix together:

2 cups crushed graham crackers

1/2 cup melted butter

Pat into bottom of a 9″ x 9″ square pan.

Chill.

Beat together:

1 can sweetened condensed milk

Juice of 2 lemons

Add:

Zest of 2 lemons

2 cups whipping cream, whipped

Pour onto crust and chill in refrigerator until firm.

Serve with whipped cream and grated chocolate in top.

I am constantly amazed, and I’ve said this many times before, how such simple ingredients can make such delicious desserts. Graham crackers and butter for a crust – done! I made this first and put it into the refrigerator while I was making the rest.

I whipped the cream and put that also into the refrigerator while making the rest of the filling.

All that’s left is to make the lemon and sweetened condensed mixture.

Next combine the lemon mixture and the whipped cream.

That’s it – you’re almost done.

Pour the lemon mixture onto the graham cracker crust and into the refrigerator it goes. It didn’t take too long to firm up.

I did try the whipped cream and chocolate shavings on top, but I think lemon zest or sprinkles would also be nice.

This dessert is one of my new favorites. I put it into the freezer, just to try and see how it went, and it was perfect. It IS called Lemon Ice, even though it’s just a refrigerator dessert – that also made me think it should go in the freezer. That’s when it hit me that this is basically a no-churn ice cream. It sure tastes that way. It’s another very easy and very delicious dessert that’s perfect for a hot summer day. You, your family, your friends, associates, local business people, anyone will love this delicious dessert. Try this Lemon Ice and you tell me – refrigerator dessert or no-churn ice cream?

 

Lemon Poppy Seed Crumble Muffins

Today I’m sharing a recipe for Lemon Poppy Seed Crumble Muffins. This is one I made up and is a combination of a couple of recipes – Poppy Seed Bread and Rhubarb Crisp. Why wouldn’t that work? I love Poppy Seed Bread, and I love muffins, so why not just add a crumble to the top? How could that not work? We shall see (that’s another Grandma-ism – she used to say that all the time). I don’t know if I’d call these muffins, they’re more like a cupcake. But oh well, it’s ok to have a bit of a decadent muffin once in a while. Now, they didn’t turn out quite like I’d hoped, but they did end up delicious. I made one pan of muffins, and one loaf pan, and I’d have to say, the bread loaf turned out better than the muffins. Well, it was worth a try. I’m glad I had a cake mix, a box of pudding, and everything else I needed in my pantry!

Here is the recipe as I made it:

Lemon Poppy Seed Crumble Muffins

Mix all together:

1 lemon cake mix (a yellow cake mix would work, also)

1 package coconut instant pudding (I only had a package of vanilla instant pudding in my cupboard, so i added about 1/4 cup coconut, chopped)

1/4 cup poppy seeds

Zest of 1 lemon (only if using a yellow cake mix – I had a lemon cake mix, so I left this out)

4 eggs

1/2 cup oil (I used canola)

1 cup hot water

Beat 4 minutes (I used my big mixer for this).

Pour batter into muffin tin lined with papers and top with crumble topping.

Crumble topping:

Mix together coarsely:

1/3 cup butter

3/4 cup flour

1 cup sugar

Sprinkle crumble topping on top of muffin batter.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

This was where things started to go wrong. Well, not wrong exactly. Let’s just say they didn’t go great.

Since this was the first time I tried doing this, I just made 1 pan of muffins.

On went the crumble topping.

With the rest of the batter, I made 1 loaf – there was crumble left for that, too.

Here’s what happened after baking – the part that wasn’t great. The crumble didn’t really work well. I think I needed to mix the crumble up better in the beginning. The little “overflows” broke off and you couldn’t even tell it had happened – so they looked great. I may or may not have nibbled those little “overflows” that broke off later.

You can see the loaf in the background here. The crumble topping worked even better on the loaf than the muffins.

These muffins are a great treat. I don’t experiment very often, so I’m glad I just went ahead and tried this. I’d make them again – just making sure to mix the crumble better first. Next time you have a reason (or if you don’t have a reason, make one up), try these Lemon Poppy Seed Crumble Muffins and give your guests a delicious, decadent treat!

 

 

Apple Crumble

Today’s recipe for Apple Crumble is a modification of the recipes for Rhubarb Crumble and Blueberry Crumble that I’ve made before for Plenty Sweet Life. After making the Rhubarb Crumble, I tried substituting the blueberries for the original rhubarb, so why not try apple? Well – it worked! It was delicious, and I’m excited for you guys to try it, too! Because I used delicious Minnesota Honeycrisp apples in this, I thought it would be fun to share this brochure about Minnesota apples from 1960. A lot of those apples are still being grown here in Minnesota – and they’re still just as delicious!

As you can see, this brochure was well used. You even get a couple of bonus recipes! Yay!

Ok, ok, I love apples and we all know it. There’s no secret here. So let’s get on with today’s recipe and see just how the apples work in the crumble.

Here is the recipe as I made it:

Apple Crumble

For topping – mix and set aside:

3 Tablespoons butter, melted

2/3 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup nuts, chopped (I used walnuts – FYI – watch closely for shell – I’ve found 3 pieces of shell in 2 different bags of nuts recently)

Mix in order given:

1/3 cup margarine (I used butter)

2-1/3 cups self-rising cake flour (I never have this in the house, so I used 2-1/3 cup flour, 2-1/2 heaping teaspoons baking powder, 1/2 heaping teaspoon salt – whisked or sifted 5 times to make it light – I ended up having a problem at this point – more on that later)

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup nuts, chopped (I left them out of the batter – my family doesn’t care for nuts in cake)

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

zest of 1 lemon

juice of 1 lemon

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Fold in:

2 apples, cored and chopped (I left the skin on)

Spoon into greased 9″ springform pan.

Sprinkle topping over all.

Bake at 350 degrees for 60-65 minutes.

I had all the ingredients for this cake (and topping) in my cupboard – you probably do, too! BTW – the topping is totally the best part.

I used Minnesota Honeycrisp apples. They. Are. So. Good.

Full disclosure – here’s where I had a problem. The batter looked like it wasn’t thick enough – it didn’t look like it did for the Rhubarb Crumble and the Blueberry Crumble. It seemed weird, so I added an extra 1/2 cup of flour, just to be sure – but I couldn’t figure out why it seemed thinner. Into the pan it went, on went the topping, into the oven it went, I go to check the recipe. Aha – there’s the problem. Ugh! I put in 2/3 cup flour (plus the 1/2 cup later) when it should have been 2-2/3 cups! Ugh and ugh! Too late. Oh well – we’ll see what happens. Lesson learned – even after all these years of baking – check the recipe BEFORE you put it in the pan. Duh.

Did I mention that the topping is the best part? I did? Ok.

Here’s what happened in the oven. It’s a bit flatter than usual, and the top is a bit weird looking, but it seemed to come out ok.

This is how to cover the big mistake – sift a bit of powdered sugar on top! No one will ever know! And it’s so pretty!

See? Once it’s cut and served up on the plate, you and all your guests can just enjoy the cake as usual with a nice cup of coffee (or tea), and nobody needs to know there was ever a problem. Even though I told my husband about my leaving out some flour, I left the cake out so he could have a piece for breakfast the next morning. He left me a note that simply said, “Awesome!” Apparently no harm done, and that’s his totally unbiased opinion of exactly how delicious this cake is! Make this Apple Crumble, put in the right amount of ingredients, and let your friends and family enjoy the cake AND delicious (Minnesota) apples at the same time!

 

 

 

 

North Carolina Lemon Pie

My son was the one who sent me this recipe for North Carolina Lemon Pie. He had seen it somewhere, emailed me the link, and in so many words, wanted me to make it sometime. I found out it came from a website called Bless This Mess, and after reading the post about this pie, I learned that Melissa from Bless This Mess had found it in an old  issue of Cook’s Country Magazine. My son likes pie. All kinds of pie. He saw that this pie had a crust made with saltine crackers and he decided we should try it. Well, I was recently looking through old emails and found this recipe again. I thought it was, indeed, time to try it. Now, he is totally capable of making his own pie, and has made pie for us for years for Thanksgiving, but I think he may have forgotten that he sent me that email a few years ago (probably before I was sick with pancreatitis), and I decided to surprise him with it one Sunday when our kids came for dinner.

Here is the recipe as I made it:

North Carolina Lemon Pie

For the crust:

Pulse in the food processor:

1 sleeve of saltine crackers (4 ounces – weighing is best to be sure you get enough cracker crumbs)

1/8 teaspoon salt

Add:

1/4 cup corn syrup

10 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Pulse about 15 times.

Add the cracker mixture to a 9 inch pie plate, pressing the crumbs even and up the sides of the plate.

Place pie plate on a baking sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 17-19 minutes.

For the filling (make while crust is baking):

Whisk in a large bowl:

1 can sweetened condensed milk

4 large egg yolks

1/4 cup heavy cream

1 Tablespoons lemon grated lemon zest

Add:

1/2 cup lemon juice (about 3 lemons)

Whisk until well combined.

Leave the pie plate on the baking sheet, remove from oven, and add the filling.

Place back in the hot oven and bake until the edges are set but the middle jiggles, about 15-17 minutes.

Cool completely.

Refrigerate until completely chilled.

For the topping:

Whip until stiff peaks form:

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

2 teaspoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Spread over the top of the pie and serve chilled.

Press the crumbs up the side of the pie so there’s plenty of room for the delicious filling!

Mix up the filling while the crust is baking.

All the filling did fit in the crust – I was skeptical, but it all fit in!

All baked up and ready to chill.

I had some extra lemon zest leftover (and since I’m not one to waste anything) so after adding the topping, I sprinkled on some of the extra lemon zest.

Um, yeah. So this pie was absolutely delicious! The saltiness of the crust and the silky smoothness of the filling – absolute heaven. Just heaven. The whole family loved this pie. Grandma would have loved this pie (she did have a thing for lemon). My son has a good eye. He knows what he likes and he knows what we ALL like. Yeah – I’m just gonna go ahead and recommend that you all try this amazingly sweet, yet tart North Carolina Lemon Pie!

Easter Braid

This recipe for Easter Braid comes from the same cookbook that has the Hopping Bunny Rolls recipe in it. It was the Better Homes & Gardens Holiday Cookbook copyright 1970 that I got for my 12th birthday, and I’ve been using the holiday recipes in that book ever since. I make the Hopping Bunny Rolls every year – it’s now a family tradition – but I have never tried this Easter Braid. Mostly because I always make the Hopping Bunny Rolls, and we don’t need more sweet bread. Well, maybe just the two kinds. There may be a new tradition in my future. Oops – I forgot the third kind of sweet bread – Hot Crossed Buns. The more the merrier, I guess. I’m so glad I tried this bread. It kind of tastes like a Christmas bread, only strangely more like a spring time sweet bread. It must be the lemon rind that’s put in it. Whatever. I’m not going to over-analyze it, I’m just going to enjoy it.

This recipe takes some time, but it’s totally worth it!

Here is the recipe as I made it:

Easter Braid

Soften in 1/4 cup warm water:

1 package active dry yeast

Combine:

1 cup milk, scalded

1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 cup softened butter, margarine, or shortening (I used butter)

Cool to lukewarm.

Stir in:

about 2 cups of flour

Add:

2 eggs

Mix well.

Stir in:

softened yeast

Add:

2 teaspoons grated lemon zest

1/4 teaspoon mace (opt.-  I don’t use mace for anything, so I don’t keep that in my cupboard – I googled it and found out that allspice can be substituted, so I used that)

1 cup raisins

3 1/2 to 4 cups flour (enough to make a soft dough)

Let rest 10 minutes.

Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic.

Place in lightly greased bowl, turning once to grease surface.

Cover and let rise in a warm place until double (about 1 1/2 hours).

Punch down; let rise until almost double (about 1 hour).

Divide and round dough into 2 balls, one for each loaf.

Let rest, covered, 10 minutes.

For each loaf:

Divide one ball in fourths.

Shape 3 parts into strands 12 inches long, tapering ends.

Line up strands 1 inch apart on lightly greased baking sheet.

Braid loosely without stretching dough, beginning in the middle and working toward either end.

Seal ends well.

Divide remaining ball of dough into thirds.

Shape into strands 8-9 inches long, tapering ends.

Braid loosely and place on top of large braid, tucking ends of small braid into large one.

Cover and let rise until double.

Bake loaves at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

While warm, spread with Sugar Glaze.

Makes 2 loaves.

Sugar Glaze:

Mix until well blended:

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup hot water

1 teaspoon butter or margarine (I used butter)

Drizzle over warm Easter Braid.

When the dough is mixed up, put it into the lightly greased bowl and flip it over. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise.

Let rise until double – about 1 1/2 hours.

Punch down and let rise another 1 hour.

Divide the dough into two balls, cover, and let rest 10 minutes.

Cut each ball into 4 even parts. Roll 3 of the parts into logs about 12 inches long and braid together loosely. tucking under the ends. Cut the remaining part into 3 parts, roll those 3 parts into logs about 9 inches long, braid those loosely, and put on top of the larger braid, tucking in the ends. Cover and let rise until double.

After the loaves are baked, drizzle on the Sugar Glaze. What a perfect place for an action shot!

I don’t know – is that enough glaze? What do you think? I think it’s a good thing this recipe makes 2 loaves, that’s what I think.

I really don’t know why I’ve never tried this recipe before. It’s weird – for all the years I’ve had this cookbook. I’m just glad I decided to try this one now, and I WILL be making this one again. It’s amazingly delicious and I can’t wait to try it as a sandwich with our Easter Ham. This is the year –  try this Easter Braid and “wow” your family and friends!

Lemon Sherbet

We’re still doing lemon recipes with the lemons my daughter brought from California. Let’s just continue to let the sun shine in until spring actually comes. Well, maybe not that long, but at least for one more week.

I was looking through some of Grandma’s old church cookbooks recently, and found recipes where she had written notes on them. There were some she had made: some good ones and some she marked as not so good. There were even some with check marks where she had written “try this one”. Some of them even had the year she made them. I love that we have her remarks on those recipes. It’s almost like still having her here to chat about them and tell us which ones to try and which ones to let well enough alone. Which ones to change or tweak just a bit, and maybe how to make them a bit better. It makes me not miss her quite so much.

I found the recipe for today in one of those old books, and even though it wasn’t in a cookbook from her church, it’s one of those great recipes you always find in those old church cookbooks. I still say everybody put their best recipes in there, so they’re always just the best ones! This recipe for Lemon Sherbet is no exception. Wow.

Sherbet? Naw – this is more of an ice cream.

Here is the recipe as I made it:

Lemon Sherbet

Beat until lemon colored:

2 eggs

Add gradually:

1/2 cup sugar

Beat until thick.

Add:

1/2 cup corn syrup

1 teaspoon lemon rind

1/4 cup lemon juice

2 cups top milk (I would say this is cream, or you could also use half-n-half or whole milk)

Mix well.

The recipe says to pour into a shallow refrigerator pan. When soft in the center only, beat quickly, and refreeze. I used our ice cream maker and it took about 30 minutes to freeze.

Because this recipe uses raw eggs, I recommend using the freshest eggs you can find, or use pasteurized eggs. We didn’t have a problem with the raw eggs.

Make sure you beat the eggs until lemon-colored.

Add the sugar, and then squeeze those beautiful, bright lemons for the lemon juice. Don’t forget to take the rind off FIRST.

Mix in the top milk. Haha! Now we know that this is a very old recipe. I used cream, but I’m sure you could use half-n-half or even whole milk.

I put the mixture into our ice cream maker, and then I put the frozen mixture into a chilled container before putting into the freezer. Because this recipe includes corn syrup and eggs, it stayed easy to scoop, even after freezing for a few days. It didn’t get icy or crystallized at all.

I wouldn’t call this sherbet. It really is ice cream. It’s so lemony and so creamy and so good and so EASY to make. You’re not going to believe this amazingly delicious ice cream. I recommend you make this right away. Now. You won’t be sorry!

 

 

 

Lemon Dessert #2

The recipe for today is one of the most delicious recipes I’ve done to date. I’m so grateful to my daughter for hauling home the lemons and for her college roommate for letting her pick the lemons off of the tree in her backyard. Those lemons have definitely brightened up our winter.

Today’s recipe for Lemon Dessert #2 is very similar to another Lemon Dessert I posted about a couple of years ago. But this one is better! I just have to say up front – that this dessert is the most delicious thing I’ve eaten in years! I’m not even kidding. I wouldn’t kid you about a thing like this. It is – and I don’t use this word often – AMAZING.  My family decided it was like eating baby angels. So ridiculously “melt in your mouth” good. This dessert is a lot like a Pavlova, only it’s in a cake pan instead of on a baking sheet.

Here is the recipe as I made it:

Lemon Dessert #2

Beat for 15 minutes:

8 egg whites

2 cups sugar

1/2 Tablespoon vinegar (I used white vinegar)

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Put into a 9″ x 13″ pan and bake at 275 degrees for 1 hour.

Turn oven off and let stand in oven for 20 minutes.

For filling:

Cook in a double boiler until thick:

8 egg yolks, beaten a little

1 cup sugar

Grated rind of 2 lemons (Grandma noted that she didn’t use this, but I did)

6 Tablespoons lemon juice

Cool both crust and filling.

Whip:

1 pint whipping cream (it doesn’t say to add any sugar to the whipped cream, but I added about 2 Tablespoons – it seemed weird to me to not have it sweetened just a bit)

Put about half of the whipped cream on top of the crust, then the lemon filling, then the rest of the whipped cream.

Sprinkle coconut on top of everything and refrigerate overnight.

This is my double boiler – a glass bowl sitting on top of a pan of simmering water. Does anyone use double boilers anymore? This works just fine.

Here are more of those beautiful lemons!

There was so much meringue for the crust that it almost overflowed in the oven! I pushed it down a bit around the edges so I could get the other goodies on top.

The filling doesn’t seem to get thick when you’re mixing it in the double boiler. I cooked this for about 20 minutes and finally just decided to take it off the heat. It did firm up and got thick as it cooled a bit.

So beautiful – layer by layer.

Not everyone in my family loves coconut. I do. Love it.

Here it is – like eating baby angels. I’m not even kidding.

You’re going to want to try this dessert. It takes some time to make, but it’s very easy to do. You’re going to have to trust me on this one and just do it. You’ll be glad you did and you’ll love having this recipe in your arsenal. It’s a very elegant and very delicious dessert – just ask the baby angels.

 

 

 

 

 

Lemon Meringue Pie #2 (Filling Made in the Microwave)

We’re continuing the lemon recipes today and letting the sun shine in with a great pie recipe.

I found this photo from sometime in the 1950’s of almost all of the family – Grandma’s siblings and their spouses and children – and I had to share it today when we’re making a recipe that sounds perfect for a family gathering.

You can see that even without absolutely everybody there, they were a large group. I imagine that when they got together, they would share their best recipes and make the most delicious ones for the family. This is just that kind of recipe.

This recipe for Lemon Meringue Pie #2 (Filling Made in the Microwave) came from Grandma’s youngest sister, and it sounded like another easy one. When getting ready to make this, I knew that I have done a Lemon Meringue Pie post here already (I shared it in my last post), so I thought I’d better check that recipe before starting this one. The funniest thing happened! They are the SAME recipe! Well, I had to try it both ways, so I made this one, too! In the other pie recipe, Grandma wrote it out for me, and indicated that she got if from someone else. Maybe it’s a totally different recipe, or maybe she left out that little part about it being done in the microwave. Either way – and funnier still – it worked both ways!!! You can do it in the microwave, or do it in a saucepan on the stove! They both work! That being said, it was so easy to do this in the microwave, that I’ll never do it in a pan again.

Note the “V Good” connotation on this one!

Here is the recipe as I made it:

Lemon Meringue Pie #2 (Filling Made in the Microwave)

Get a 9″ baked pie crust ready (wanting to try something different, I used a graham cracker crust for this one).

Combine in a 2 quart bowl:

1 1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup cornstarch

1 1/2 cup cold water

1/2 cup lemon juice

5 egg yolks (whites reserved)

Stir until smooth.

Add:

2 Tablespoons butter

Cook on high until mixture thickens and boils – 7 1/2 to 8 minutes – stirring 2-3 times.

Stir in:

1-3 teaspoons grated lemon peel

Let stand, uncovered, 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meringue:

In a large bowl beat until foamy:

5 egg whites

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Add:

1/2 cup sugar, 1 Tablespoon at a time

Beat constantly until sugar is dissolved and whites are glossy and stand in soft peaks.

Beat in:

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Pour filling into pie crust.

Cover filling with meringue – all the way to the edges.

Bake at 325 degrees for 25 minutes.

I just laughed out loud when I realized that the two recipes were the same, and worked both ways! Too funny!

It seems weird to just add a chunk of butter, but remember that this will be going into the microwave and it will melt.

It’s so fast to do and comes out so thick and delicious – THEN you also add the lemon rind!

I tried something different using a graham cracker crust for this one. I would use a regular crust next time, but my family didn’t seem to mind the graham cracker one. They loved it even though for some reason, it did get a little wet (I read that sometimes that happens when you overbeat the egg whites).

I used too small of a pie pan, so I also made a couple of “pudding” cups.

The meringue is fluffy and delicious – don’t forget to top the “puddings”, too!

I am now a lover of lemon pudding. You can always do this instead of using a crust.

The pie is beautiful and so amazingly delicious!

This was so easy to do in the microwave. It’s one of my new favorites – I love it this way. Try this recipe at your next family gathering. You’ll never go back to doing Lemon Meringue Pie on the stove again!

 

Poppy Seed Scones

I love summer and it’s hard to believe that it’s moving along as fast as it is. This photo of Grandma and Grandpa was taken in the summertime, and might have been the summer of 1936 – the year before they were married. That was a hot one! Any time they show heat records during the summer, it seems like it was the year 1936. I remember reading somewhere that it was the hottest summer on record.  They must have been more used to heat than we are now! I’m sure there wasn’t any AC, so there had to be a lot of sweating going on, and a lot of fanning with hand-held fans. Of course, we happen to live in the land of 10,000 lakes, so we know that people would have been in a lake if they could.

Lots of us do head out to the lake in the summer, or head out to visit family or friends, or head out on vacation. If you’re looking for something easy and absolutely delicious to take along with you to share, this recipe for Poppy Seed Scones is perfect! I think this recipe originally came from an old Martha Stewart magazine years ago and it’s still on the website today! It’s always nice to make things that can be ready ahead of time, and these can be ready the night before you want to bake them. If you’re off on an adventure, you can have the two parts mixed up and ready to go, and then take them with you! Oh boy – these are delicious!

Here is the recipe as I made it:

Poppy Seed Scones

Sift together in large bowl:

3 cups flour

2 Tablespoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon sugar

Stir in:

2 Tablespoons poppy seeds

zest of 1 lemon

Whisk together in a separate bowl:

1 large egg

2 Tablespoons butter, melted

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

Combine all ingredients with a few quick strokes.

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured board and knead once or twice.

Pat out to 3/4″ thick and cut into rounds using a 3″ cutter.

Reroll scraps and cut again until used up.

Place scones a few inches apart on a greased baking sheet.

Sprinkle with sugar (I brushed on a little milk and then the sugar to help it stick better).

Bake at 425 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until golden.

Serve warm.

You can get these ready the night before by mixing the dry ingredients and the liquid ingredients separately. Refrigerate the liquids. When ready to bake, combine the two.

The only thing I’m not sure about doing the night before is the melted butter. I’d maybe wait to melt it the next morning.

Combine the ingredients – they don’t have to be too combined. The kneading brings it all together nicely.

The recipe says to roll out and cut them out with a cutter, which is great, but I like to do it this way because it’s easy – pat it into a circle about 1/2″ thick and cut them into wedges.

On to the baking sheet . . .

. . . then brush with a little milk or cream and sprinkle with coarse sugar. This step is not necessary, but the little crystals of sugar are so pretty!

Here they are – ready for breakfast, a snack, or your afternoon coffee or tea! They are so beautiful!

I brought this batch of scones on one of our adventures to my mom’s house. They were delicious warm with butter and a bit of homemade blueberry jam. The lemon and poppy seeds paired with the jam was amazingly delicious. Bring these with you on your next adventure – even if you bake them before you go, your hosts will invite you back again!!