Category: Summer
Watermelon Gazpacho {No Tomatoes!}
| July 24, 2011 | Filled under Fruit, One Pan, Quick Weeknight Meals, Soups and Stews, Summer, Vegetarian or Vegan |
Like most of the country, New York has been suffering through a heat wave for the past week. Quite frankly, it’s too hot to cook or even to eat anything very substantial. For the first few days I was content eating salads for dinner, but after more than two or three days of salad I start to get cranky so I tried to think of something that would satisfy my raving for real food without requiring me to actually cook (since the minutes I spent over the stove sautéing onions last night left me so hot that I couldn’t even enjoy the steak that Shawn grilled for me).
An ice-cold gazpacho seemed like it would hit the spot, but that suggestion was met with a resounding, “No way!” My effort to convince Shawn that gazpacho is basically just pureed salsa (the only way he’ll eat raw tomatoes) didn’t get me anywhere. Luckily, I had this recipe up my sleeve — a sightly spicy watermelon soup without a single tomato.
Peach Cobbler Pancakes
| July 20, 2011 | Filled under Breakfast, Fruit, Shawn's Favorites, Summer |
Has anyone else noticed that peaches have been fantastic this summer? Their sweet smell has completely overtaken the produce section of my local grocery store, and I find myself filling my basket with them every week — they’re soft and juicy and perfect. I’d almost go as far as to say that the great peach season makes up for the less than stellar showing that strawberries had earlier this year.
Needless to say, when General Mills asked me to develop a recipe that would “make something good, better” using Land O’Lakes’ new Cinnamon Sugar Butter Spread, it didn’t take me long to decide on a creation that featured fresh peaches. At first I considered making a peach cobbler, a staple of summertime cookouts and a dish that’s perfect for sharing with friends, but then I thought that if there’s anything better than peach cobbler, it’s peach cobbler that you can eat for breakfast. These fluffy whole wheat pancakes layered with stewed cinnamon sugar peaches capture all the flavor of the favorite summertime dessert and repackage it as perfect breakfast treat.
Prep time: 5 minutes, Total time: 20 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
- 2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
- 3 Tbs Sugar
- 1 tsp. Salt
- 2 Tbs. Baking Powder
- 4 Tbs. Land O’Lakes Cinnamon Sugar Butter Spread, separated
- 1 large Egg, beaten
- 2 cups Milk
- 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
- 3 Peaches, peeled and sliced
- Optional: Land O’Lakes Cinnamon Sugar Butter Spread and maple syrup for serving
Combine the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a mixing bowl.
Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet. Add the melted butter, egg, milk, and vanilla to the dry ingredients. Stir gently, being careful not to over mix the batter — it’s okay if it’s a little lumpy!
Add the remaining butter and peaches to a pot set over medium heat. Cover and allow the peaches to stew while you cook the pancakes.
Heat a lightly greased skillet or griddle over medium heat until small drops of water splashed onto the pan sizzle. For each pancake, spoon 2 tablespoons of batter into a small circle. Cook until bubbles form and the surface of each pancake starts to look dry (2-3 minutes). Flip and cook until the other side is browned (1-2 minutes).
Layer stacks of three pancakes with the stewed peaches. Top with additional cinnamon sugar butter spread and maple syrup, if desired.
Tip: For extra-fluffy pancakes, separate the egg yolk from the white. Add the yolk along with the other wet ingredients as in the original recipe. Use a hand mixer to beat the white until it is thick and foamy and holds a stiff peak (about 3 minutes). Gently fold the beaten white into the pancake batter just prior to cooking.
FTC Disclosure: Although I purchased the butter spread myself, I was compensated for developing this recipe which is being featured on the Betty Crocker web site. All product opinions are my own and, as always, all recipes are original.
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