It has been quite an adventure moving to Idaho. Moving out of Los Angeles was bittersweet, we miss our friends and family, but we have fallen even more in love with this special place we call home now. Surrounded by blue skies, mountains, and nature has filled each of us with a bit more zen, and we are exploring new places every day.

On Facebook, we found a lovely lady who was selling fruit from her garden, so we drove over and picked up a few pounds of the most glorious little apricots. Her garden was overflowing with bounty, we have our eye on her last cutting of rhubarb in a few weeks and the plums were just starting to come in. Some of the apricots got tucked into a pie, some into a galette, and then these we paired with some blueberries for a bar to die for. We are huge apricot fans, apricot jam is literally our jam, and we love a good crumb bar. These came out just sweet enough from the blueberries, and tart from those tasty apricots. If you can't find any apricots as the season here is almost over, sub in plums, or nectarines!

Apricot Blueberry Crumb Bars
Makes one 9” x 13” Pyrex
 
1-cup brown sugar
3 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1-cup cold butter, cut into pieces
Zest of a lemon
2 eggs
1-cup blueberries
3-4 cups sliced apricots
1-cup sugar
4 tsp. cornstarch or tapioca flour
Juice of 1 lemon
1 ½ tsp. almond extract
 
Preheat oven to 375
 
Grease a 9 x 13” Pyrex baking dish.
 
In a medium bowl mix flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest. Then, add in the cold butter and eggs, cutting it in with a pastry cutter or fork.  You can also use your fingers to break up any larger pieces of butter. Once the mixture resembles crumbs, press half into the pan, making sure you have an even base.
 
In another bowl, add sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch and almond extract and mix. Carefully stir in fruit. Let the fruit sit for a few minutes.
 
Spread fruit with juices evenly on top of dough and sprinkle with remaining dough. You want some fruit peeking out.
 
Bake 40-45 minutes until fruit is bubbling and topping is golden brown. Cool before slicing.
 
 
 
 

We can't believe this is our 6th ingredient based Instagram collaboration! What began as a instagram friendship born from a love of the Santa Monica Farmers Market with Annie of Whatannieseating, has grown into a diverse and creativity instagram community that inspires us daily. The reason we started this blog and really love cooking and baking in general is the ability food has to connect people. In a world ever more intense, crazy and alienating, food can bring disparate groups of people together, around a table, to share space and conversation. You can sit down with anyone over a good meal and leave feeling more connected and more satisfied. While some may think this is simplistic, food is about nurturing, nurturing health, understanding, community. This was one of Anthony Bourdain's most admired threads. He understood that if you ate someone's food, sat at their table, listened to them, you had this direct line to understanding more about a culture, a family, a person then you could any other way. These collaborations with chefs all over the world is a testament to this common thread of humanity.

As it is summer, how could we keep ignoring the work horse of most kitchens, the tomato! Acidic, sweet, bright, tomatoes are a versatile and abundant summer ingredient. We had trouble narrowing down what we wanted to share as there are so many options, but this focaccia really stood out. Some of you may know, we have been trying to conquer our fear of yeasted breads, and constantly challenge ourselves to bake homemade breads. By adding the tomatoes, and shallots and herbs to our basic focaccia recipe, a delicious snack bread was born. We ate this along some roasted salmon for dinner, and made it into luscious sandwiches the next day. You could also serve with with some fresh ricotta or pesto as an afternoon snack. And, we think nothing says I love and appreciate you, more than homemade bread!

Be sure to check out our hashtag, #wesaytomatoes for everyone's summer tomato dish and below is a list with links to some amazing blogs and recipes! Get thee to a farmers market, grab some tomatoes and get cooking!!!


Heirloom Tomato, Shallot and Thyme Focaccia
Makes 2 8 inch rounds or 1 sheet pan with lip
 
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 3/4 cups warm water, should feel hot to touch
4 cups flour
2 teaspoons salt
4 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
2 tsp. fresh thyme, pulled from stems
1 cup of assorted heirloom tomatoes, sliced in half if using cherry tomatoes, or sliced in quarters or eights depending on size of tomato.
1 large shallot, sliced and separated into rings
About 1 tsp. flaky sea salt
 
In your stand mixer, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Let sit for five minutes until yeast starts to foam. Add the flour, salt, and two tablespoons of olive oil to the yeast. Using the dough hook, on medium fast speed, knead the dough for about 5-7 minutes until smooth dough forms.
 
Coat a large bowl with a little more olive oil and put dough inside. Cover with a warm, damp towel, and leave to rise in a warm place for about 2 hours. Dough should double in size.
 
Drizzle 1 tsp. olive oil in each round pan, or 2 tsp. into the sheet pan with lip and rub all over. If using two pans, split dough in half and push dough with fingertips to edges of pan, stretching gently. It may not reach all the way to the sides. If using one sheet pan, push into rectangle as best you can. Cover again with a cloth and let rest for 30 minutes.
 
While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 450°F with a racks spaced evenly in oven. Once the dough has rested and it has puffed up again, sprinkle dough with thyme, tomatoes and shallots. Gently using your fingertips, poke the dough, creating shallow dimples and trying to avoid smashing tomatoes.  With remaining olive oil, drizzle over dough and let it pool in some of the indentations you just made. You may need a bit more oil. Sprinkle with sea salt.

Place dough in the oven and immediately turn the heat down to 375°F. Bake about 20 - 25 minutes, checking after 15 minutes and switching dough placement. The focaccia is ready when it's golden-brown and edges feel firm.

​Remove bread from oven and carefully remove from pans. Use a wire rack to cool the bread. Eat warm or if eating later, you can reheat at 350 for a few minutes.
 
 


​

​What Annie's Eating Pizza with Sungold Tomatoes, Burrata and Calabrian Chiles
Well-Fed Soul's Heirloom Tomato Galette with Basil Honey Ricotta
The Wood and Spoon's Roasted Summer Vegetable Quiche
Fufu's Kitchen Tomato Beef Skillet
Flour's in Your Hair Tomato and Roasted Garlic Mini Galettes
A Forkful of Yum's Fried Green Tomato Caprese Salad
The Cooking of Joy's Tomato and Eggs Over Rice 
​The Moody Loon's Tomato Juice Spheres
Always Eat Dessert's Heirloom Tomato Salad with Burrata and Grilled Bread
The Herb and Spoon's Za-atar Heirloom Tomato Tart
Retrolillies' Heirloom Tomatoes with Chili Oil, Pesto and Mozzarella
More Icing than Cake's Roasted Tomato and Malt Vinegar Slaw
Worthy Pause's Paleo Tomato-Basil Cauliflower Rice
Short Girl Tall Order's Roasted Heirloom Tomato and Vegan Pumpkin Seed Pesto Toasts
What Should I Make For's Tomato Shortcake with Whipped Ricotta
​​Smart in the Kitchen's Indian Spiced Marinated Tomatoes
Hola Jalapeno's Warm Salt Bagels with Rajas Cream Cheese And Tomatoes
Le Petite Eats Vegan Tomato Tart
​Six Snippet's Heirloom Tomato and Salted Egg Salad
​Rezel Kealoha's  Late Summer Tomato Pesto Pasta Salad
Marianne'es Kitchen Eggplant Bruschetta
Well Seasoned Studio's Sunday Supper Sugo Slow Roasted Pork Shoulder
Salt n' Pepper Here's Poached Shrimp and Tomato Salad
​​A Modest Feast's Turkish Eggs with Garlic Yogurt and Tomatoes
Baking the Goods' Heirloom Tomato Pimento Cheese Tart
Crumb Top Baking's Tomato Arugala and Mozarella Quiche
​Katie Bird Bakes Heirloom Tomato Tart
Lemon Thyme and Ginger's Tomato Mozarella Salad
​Baby Girl Yum's Beef and Tomatoes with Egg on Rice 
Sugar Salted Summer Tomato Salad with Balsamic Red Onion
Easy and Delish's Tomato Basil Caipirinha
Simple and Sweet Food's Pan Con Tomate
Knead Bake Cook's Roasted Tomato Sauce with Mini Meatballs
It's a Veg World Afterall's Roasted Cherry Tomato Sauce with Fresh Herbs 

Sometimes the best ideas and recipes come from tinkering with ingredients you have in the fridge or pantry. Sort of like playing your own version of Chopped, you are forced to reimagine and create. This ridiculously good galette was the product of just that mind set. We had roasted some beets earlier in the week and forgotten to eat them, had a sad bag of a few hazelnuts sitting around, and a sweet potato that never made its way into roasted sweet potato fries. We had been wanting to experiment with adding nuts to our pie dough, so figured why not try the hazelnuts, as they always pair well with the earthy sweetness of beets. We randomly had some Boursin and cream cheese, so bam, this galette was born! Having made a galette a few weeks ago with raw beets, the roasted ones proved to be a better idea, and by slicing the sweet potatoes super thin on a mandolin, they also had time to bake and get all creamy. Hitting the sweet, the savory, garlicky, creamy, and crunchy  notes, our guests inhaled this tart, coming back for seconds and thirds! 

Beet, Sweet Potato and Hazelnut Galette
Makes one Galette that serves about 6 
 
½ Batch Hazelnut Pie Dough
2-3 beets, roasted and thinly sliced
1/2 large sweet potato, thinly sliced on mandolin
1 package garlic and herb Boursin cheese
½ c cream cheese
1 tablespoon of olive oil
¼ cup hazelnuts, roasted and roughly chopped
1-tablespoon honey
1 egg, whisked

 
Dough
(Makes 2 9 inch shells)
1 cup chilled butter
4 tablespoons vegetable shortening
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup hazelnuts
1-teaspoon salt
1-tablespoon sugar
7 tablespoons ice water 
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
 
 
Dough- Put nuts into the food processor. Pulse until nuts are ground. Add butter, shortening, flour, sugar and salt into food processor. Pulse until you have small pea sized pieces. Add apple cider vinegar and chilled water to the flour mixture and pulse until dough just comes together. Flip dough onto floured surface and push into a ball. Divide into two, and gently flatten each half into a disc. Wrap in plastic and let rest in fridge or freezer until ready to use.  If freezing the dough, put in fridge the night before you want to make the tart.
 
*You can also make the dough by hand. Add ALL the dry ingredients to a bowl. Cut butter into smaller pieces and add the butter and shortening to the flour. Cut with a pastry cutter or two forks until you have pea-sized pieces and mixture looks sandy. Add all your liquids and stir until dough just comes together, then turn out onto plastic and push into ball. Divide in two and follow above.
 
*To roast beets, wrap in tin foil, creating a little packet, and roast at 400 degrees until easily pierced with a knife.
 
Preheat oven to 375
 
Mix the cheeses together and set aside.
 
Roll out one disc of dough on a well-floured surface.  Trim sides to get as close to a circle as you can then save the scraps. Move dough onto a parchment lined baking tray preferably without a lip.
 
Place cheese in center and spread out, leaving about an-inch rim around the sides. Alternating rings of beets and sweet potatoes, starting at the edge, leaving an inch, circle your vegetables, layering them slightly on top of each other until you have used them all. Drizzle with olive oil.
 
Brush with egg wash and start at twelve o’clock, folding the dough in. Work your way around the tart and use the egg wash to seal your folds. You will get about 6-8 folds resembling an octagon or hexagon.  You can stop here and brush with egg wash. Or, reroll scraps and have some fun with cookie cutters, using the egg wash to help stick your shapes to the tart. When done decorating, brush with egg wash.
 
Bake for 40-50 minutes until veggies are slightly browning and dough is brown.  If it browns too quickly cover with foil and keep baking.
 
Remove from oven and drizzle with honey and sprinkle the hazelnuts. Serve!
 
*You can also freeze before baking and then bake when you choose. It will take about 20 more minutes.

Rhubarb is one of those things that can be a little confusing. Technically, it is a vegetable but "legally considered" a fruit...Now what the heck does that mean? To us, it sort of is like a tomato, which is technically a fruit but eaten as a vegetable. Either way, rhubarb is something special, and if you have never tried it, these bars are an easy way to indoctrinate you into its sweet, tart unique flavor. Raw, it is stringy and super sour, but coupled with some sugar and acid, and baked, the layers of flavor unfold. The mulberry is a perfect counterpoint as these berries are super sweet when ripe, but lack that acidic kick that let's say a blackberry has. So, together you have sweet and tart, and with the oats in the crumble, you have created this delicious dessert that can be breakfast, snacks or topped with ice cream to end a meal. Try it soon, before both are out of season! 

Rhubarb and Mulberry Oat Bars
makes 1 8inch square baking dish
 
½ cup brown sugar
1-cup flour
½ cup rolled oats
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
½ cup butter cut into small pieces
1 egg beaten
Zest of 1 lemon
1 cup diced rhubarb about 8 stalks
1-cup mulberries
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tsp. tapioca powder or cornstarch
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp. cinnamon
 
 
Preheat oven to 375
 
Grease an 8’ inch cake or Pyrex baking dish.
 
In a medium bowl mix flour, brown sugar, oats, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest. Then add in the cold butter and egg, cutting it in with a pastry cutter or fork.  You can also use your fingers to break up any large pieces of butter. Once the mixture resembles crumbs, press half into the pan.
 
In another bowl, add sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch or tapioca powder and Vanilla extract and mix. Carefully stir in fruit.
 
Spread fruit with juices evenly on top of dough and sprinkle with remaining dough. You want some fruit peeking out.
 
Bake 40-45 minutes until fruit is bubbling and topping is golden brown. Cool before slicing.
 
 
 
 

The kids are obsessed with snickerdoodles, so to keep things interesting for us, we had to play around with the flavors. While we are solidly on team chocolate chip, the addition of the chai influenced spices took this cinnamon sugar cookie to new heights. By adding the ginger, cardamom, cloves and allspice, the cookie went from a childhood favorite to something a little more grown-up. We will make this version any time.

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Salted Butter Chai Spiced Snickerdoodles
Makes about 12-15 cookies
 
½ cup room temperature salted butter
¾ cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/3 cup flour
½ tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cream of tartar
½ tsp. salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. ginger
¼ tsp. cloves
¼ tsp. allspice
¼ tsp. cardamom
 
Preheat oven to 350
 
Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.
 
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
 
While the butter and sugar beat, in a bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt.
 
Add egg to sugar and butter and mix well, then add the dry ingredients. Mix until incorporated.
 
Mix rest of sugar and spices in a bowl.
 
Pinch off a piece of dough and roll into about 1 inch balls. Roll until covered in cinnamon sugar and place on baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Cookies will spread.
 
Bake for about 9-11 minutes and cool on tray.
 

We are so excited to participate again in #margaritaweek organized by Kate Ramos of @holajalapeno. Last year, we did a strawberry margarita cookie which proved to be a delicious surprise, so we thought, hey, let's try to bake something else! While we do love a great margarita, they aren't in heavy rotation here as Mom is a vodka lady and I truly am a beer girl at heart. But, we both love a good cookie. This is a riff on the classic gluten-free coconut macaroon. We've added lime and tequila so you can imagine you are drinking your favorite Mexican cocktail while you scarf down a few cookies. They are not the prettiest cookie on the block, but they are chewy, sweet and have just a hint of citrus tang. Try them and dream of your next beach vacation! Be sure to check out the hashtag and Kate's website, for over a hundred recipes all through the week! Check them out here!

Put the Lime in the Coconut Margarita Macaroons
Makes about 18-20 cookies
 
14 oz. sweetened shredded coconut (one package)
14 oz. condensed milk (one can)
1-tablespoon tequila
2 egg whites
¼ tsp. salt
2 tsp. lime juice
Zest of 1 lime
 
Preheat oven to 325
 
Stir together the coconut, condensed milk, lime zest, lime juice, and tequila until incorporated.
 
In a mixer, beat the egg whites and the salt until you have stiff peaks. Fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture.  (If you loosen the mixture with a little egg white first, then add the rest you maintain more loft.)
 
On a parchment lined baking sheet, drop 1 tablespoon of mixture, leaving about 2 inches between cookies. Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown.
 
Cool completely on tray. 

We normally are not snickerdoodle fans, our love falls somewhere in the dark chocolate peanut butter cookie zone. But, the kids, and some of the big kids, meaning the adults in the family certainly are. The littlest requested this cookie after many batches of Alison Roman's Instragram famous Salted Butter Chocolate Chunk Shortbreads found their way into the cookie jar. To be fair and kind, we said yes and got making the snicks as we like to call them. However, we needed a little twist on this cookie to satisfy our more salty palate, as a snick can veer to the sweet side. So, thinking about one of the reasons why we loved her cookie so much, we experimented with using salted butter and boom! Heaven! The cookie gets just a little salty bite mixed in with all that cinnamon sugar goodness. These are easy to make and the kids loved rolling them in the sugar, so get baking!! 



Salted Butter Snickerdoodles
Makes about 15 cookies
 
½ cup room temperature salted butter
¾ cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/3 cup flour
½ tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cream of tartar
½ tsp. salt
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
 
Preheat oven to 350
 
Line a baking sheet with parchment and set aside.
 
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
 
While the butter and sugar beat, in a bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt.
 
Add egg to sugar and butter and mix well, then add the dry ingredients. Mix until incorporated.
 
Mix rest of sugar and cinnamon in a bowl.
 
Pinch off a piece of dough and roll into about 1 inch balls. Roll until covered in cinnamon sugar and place on baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Cookies will spread.
 
Bake for about 9-11 minutes and cool on tray.
 

​​We haven't made banana bread for awhile, so when we spotted some brown bananas in the fruit bowl, it was time to revisit the trusty favorite. However, then we realized while we had the right bananas we had no flour, too much pie and bread making going on! We did have a bag of gluten-free flour on hand from out gluten-free pie dough experimenting, so we thought we would give it a try. As we were experimenting anyway, we tried adding in some tahini and flax to play with texture and flavor. There have been a lot of recipes we have read lately using tahini is sweets, and we are digging the nutty sesame flavor it imparts. So far, as the loaf is half-way gone, no one has even suspected it is gluten-free, and the tahini gives it this unexpected buttery flavor. Looks like a win all the way around!!!  


Gluten-Free Tahini Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips
makes one loaf
​
1 1/3 cups gluten-free flour (we use Cup4Cup)
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cinnamon
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons tahini
1 tablespoon flax seeds
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs lightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 very ripe bananas, mashed
½ cup chocolate chips or you can omit chocolate and add ½ cup chopped nuts
 
Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 6-cup loaf pan, or line with parchment.
 
Whisk all dry ingredients together in medium bowl. In a stand mixer or using a large bowl and a hand-held mixer, beat on high speed the butter and the sugars until lightened in color and fluffy. Add Tahini and mix well. Add the dry ingredients and beat until the mixture resembles sand, making sure to scrape down the sides.
 
Slowly add in the beaten egg, a little at a time, and then add vanilla. When combined, carefully fold in banana and chocolate chips (or nuts). Scrape into prepared pan and bake about 60 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let cool entirely before unmolding.
 
If you omit the chocolate chips bump sugar up to ½ cup sugar, and ½ cup brown sugar.
 
Also, if the bread is browning too quickly, cover with tinfoil and continue baking
 
 

Rainbow Carrot and Ricotta Tart
Makes one 9 inch square tart
Serves 6-8
 
1/2 batch of your favorite pie dough, or store bought, enough for 1 disc
Filling
6-8 oz ricotta
2 tablespoons milk or cream
zest of 1 Meyer lemon
2 teaspoons Meyer lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
 
24-30 baby rainbow carrots, peeled (or you could use about a dozen larger)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon fresh thyme
1 tablespoon toasted pine nuts and carrot top sprigs for garnish
 
 
Preheat oven to 375
 
In a large steamer working in batches of the same color carrot, steam carrots whole until just tender, about 7 minutes depending on size. Remove and place in cold water to stop cooking. Slice carrots in half and toss carrots with Olive Oil, salt, pepper, maple syrup and thyme and set aside.
 
Roll out your dough on a well-floured surface. Lay into a tart pan, making sure you get dough into the corners.  Prick bottom with a fork a few times. Add pie weights or beans and blind bake the crust for about 20 minutes until it just starts to brown. Remove from oven.  (If you don’t have a tart pan, use a shallow pie dish) 
 
Add filling ingredients in a small bowl. Mix well.
 
After your shell has cooled to the touch, spread your filling and then arrange the carrots on top. We did a herringbone pattern but you can just lay on top careful not to overlap too much, filling in all the holes.
 
Bake again for about 20 minutes until carrots have begun to caramelize, and crust is golden brown.
 
Remove from oven, cool for 10 minutes and remove from tart shell. Sprinkle with pine nuts and some carrot top sprigs and serve.
 
 
 
 Here are all the wonderful collaborators! 

The Cooking of Joy’s Candied Carrot Rose Tart
Figs and Flour's Thai Peanut Pizza
Cocoa and Salt's Classic Carrot Cake
Jojoromancer's Carrot Pie
​Julie Jones' Mum's Carrot Cake
Lemon Thyme and Ginger's Sweet n' Spicy Herbed Carrots
Better with Biscuits’ Carrot Souffle
This Healthy Table’s Beet and Carrot Galette
Always Eat Dessert’s Carrot Cake Squares with Orange Glaze
What Annie’s Eating’s Roasted Carrots with Carrot Top/Herby Salsa Verde
Fufu’s Kitchen’s Oven Baked Carrot Fries Drizzled with a Tahini Sauce
Flours in Your Hair’s Carrot Pecan Cookies
Hola Jalapeno’s Roasted Carrots with Chipotle Honey Butter
A Worthy Pause's Paleo Thai Curry Carrot Soup
Battered n Baked's Baked Carrot Cake Donuts
Anna Jitlin's Carrot Muffins with Persimmon Topping
Lemon Thyme and Ginger's Sweet and Spicy Herbed Carrots 
Something New for Dinner’s Minted Sous Vide Carrots with Balsamic Vinegar and Goat Cheese
What Great Grandma Ate’s Paleo Carrot Mug Cake
My Love at First Bite's 
Rezel Kealoha's Turkish Yoghurt Dip
​Cosettes Kitchen's Sumac Spiced Carrot and Feta Salad
More Icing Than Cake's Spiced Quinoa & Roasted Carrot Salad
Measuring Cups Optional's Carrot Curry Soup 
Hot Dishing It Out’s Carrot Whoopie Pies with Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting (vegan)
Bee and the Baker's Glazed Carrot Rosette Tart with Honey Ginger Mascarpone
Lady and Larder’s Carrot Crudite Board with Z'atar Hummus
Khabakom's 
Katie Bird Bakes’ Carrot Cake Scones
Jessie Sheehan Bakes' Chocolate Carrot Loaf Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Whipped Cream
Marianne Cooks’ Carrot and Zucchini Mini Muffins with a Cinnamon Frosting
Baking the Good's Roasted Carrot and Herby Feta Galette
Laurel Street Kitchen's 
Confetti Kitchen’s Harissa-Roasted Carrots with Lentils and Yogurt
Prickly Fresh’s Carrot Cake Blondies with Cream Cheese Frosting
Forty-nine Figs' Carrot Pie
​Loko Kitchen's Miso White Carrot Pie with Black Sesame Crust
Gobble the Cook's 
Butter Loves Company’s Iced Carrot Cake Cookies
Champagne and Cookies' Savory Carrot and Cauliflower Crumble with Za'atar and Herbed Feta
Easy and Delish’s Carrot Spaghetti
Suburban Pie and Treat’s Carrot Pineapple Raisin Pie
Catgrammer's Triple Ginger Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Hello Flour’s Macro-Friendly Carrot/Tomato Soup w/ Grilled Cheese
Le Petit Eats’ Carrot Cake Breakfast Bars w/ Maple Coconut Icing
​Dukkah Queen's Carrots and Friends Salad (pickled, raw and roasted)
Amanda Skrip's Rainbow Roasted Carrots with Citrus, Fennel and Arugala
Flotte Lotte's Carrot Apple Pie
Cook Til Delicious’ Mini Carrot Cake
Smart in the Kitchen’s Curried Carrot Ginger Soup (Whole30)
Candace Nelson of Pizanna’s Vegan Carrot Birthday Cake
Farm and Coast Cookery's Carrot and Herbed Ricotta Phyllo Tart
Pie Girl Bakes’ Five Spice Carrot Bundt Cakes with Bourbon Cream Cheese Glaze
Zestfulkitchen's Moroccan Stuffed Portobellos
Mom’s Kitchen Handbook’s Salad with Miso Ginger Carrot Dressing
What’s Karen Cooking’s Spiced Cornbread w/ Carrots, Pecans & Chili Butter
Diane Morrisey's Harissa and Maple Roasted Carrots and Lemon
Rumbly in my Tumbly's Carrot Chai Pie
Sweet Pillar Food’s Carrot and Date Salad with Tahini Vinaigrette
Week Night Bite's 
Pies and Prejudice's Carrot Pie with Maple and Cardamon
Feed The Swimmer's Air Fried Rainbow Carrot Chips with Tzatziki
Plum Lucky Pie Pi's Roasted Carrot Pot Pie
​Smoothies and Sundaes’ Carrot Cake Sourdough
Blossom to Stem's Caramelized Carrots with Fennel, Ricotta, and Walnuts
Kate Aliberti's "Hop Scotch" Pie- Carrot Custard with Brown Sugar, Honey, Cinnamon and Scotch
​Annie Madison's Morning Glory Muffins
The Dirty Whisk's Carrot and Herbed Ricotta Tart
Jill Salama's Carrot Latkes with Cranberry Aioli (Paleo)
Food By Mars' Paleo Carrot Walnut Loaf Cake 
The Olive and Mango's Carrot Cake Roll
​Easy Gourmet Living's 
A Modest Feast's Pomegranate-Molasses-Glazed Carrots With Crispy Chickpeas and Feta
Seed and Mills' Carrot Cake with Tahini Caramel Frosting
Its a Vegworld Afterall's Zesty Carrot Spirals


 
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We have been adding cranberries to many a thing this past month, pies, applesauce, you name it, as we love the tart, acidic punch they give. So, when we found a bag of fresh cranberries tucked in the back of the refrigerator, (probably from Thanksgiving) we experimented with our trusty crumb bar recipe. Playing off the classic combination of cranberries and orange and knowing that the cranberries would need a bit more sugar then lets say a mixed berry crumb bar,  we tweaked the recipe a bit and came up with this delicious cookie/bar. Its sweet, tart, and sort of feels like breakfast without the carb load of a big cran-orange muffin, not that we have anything against a good cran-orange muffin:) Try these before you forget that you love cranberries, and have to wait until next Thanksgiving to enjoy them!

Cranberry Orange Crumb Bars
Makes 16 bars

1/2 cup Brown Sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into cubes
zest of 1 orange
1 egg
2 cups fresh cranberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons corn starch
juice of one orange
1/2 tsp. almond extract

Preheat oven to 375
 
Grease an 8’ inch cake or Pyrex baking dish.
 
In a medium bowl mix flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and orange zest. Then add in the cold butter and egg, cutting it in with a pastry cutter or fork.  You can also use your fingers to break up any large pieces of butter. Once the mixture resembles crumbs, press half into the pan.
 
In another bowl, add sugar, orange juice, cornstarch and almond extract and mix. Carefully stir in cranberries.
 
Spread fruit with juices evenly on top of dough and sprinkle with remaining dough. You want some fruit peeking out.
 
Bake 40-45 minutes until fruit is bubbling and topping is golden brown. Cool before slicing.
 

You asked, and we delivered. Here is the recipe for these yummy soft pretzels! We tweaked the original a bit as we gleaned it from a video, but the results were delicious. Yes, they have yeast, and yes, you have to let them rise, and yes, you will be nervous that they are not going to work, but push through the fear! Cooking and baking is all about trying, failing, trying again, tweaking, tasting, experimenting. Nothing is perfect, but that is ok. We never have really played around with yeast, and are trying to conquer the fear. The first attempts were flat, rock hard rolls that no one ate. Then, we made a successful challah, then another, then these, then cinnamon rolls! Have patience and you will be rewarded, especially with these soft pretzels. Salty, with a little tang, and super good to dunk in mustard!We especially loved them topped with Trader Joe's Everything Bagel Spice mix, but use what you have.

Soft Pretzels
Makes 10
 
1-½ cups warm water
1-tablespoon salt
1-tablespoon sugar
1 packet active dry yeast
4-¼ cup flour
2 tablespoons oil plus a little to coat bowl
2/3-cup baking soda
About 8 cups water
1 egg, whisked
 Salt and seeds for sprinkling
 
 
Mix in a bowl the warm water, salt and sugar. Whisk, and then add the yeast. Let sit for 5 minutes until foamy. Add flour and oil and knead about 5 minutes until dough is smooth and comes together.
 
Place in oil-coated bowl in warm place for 1 hour until doubles.
 
Preheat oven to 450
 
In a large pot boil water then add the baking soda (this will foam so make sure you have room in pot) Turn heat to medium high.
 
Turn dough out and cut in half, then each half into 5 pieces. Roll into long rope about 18 inches long.  Bring ends to each other, twist, and attach at bottom forming the pretzel shape. You can also cut into pretzel bites. Place on parchment lined baking sheet.  One at a time, drop into the water bath with the baking soda. Simmer about 30 seconds per side.
 
Remove and place on tray. Brush each with egg wash and sprinkle with desired topping.  Bake for 12-15 minutes until brown and puffed.
 
Serve with your favorite mustard.

P.S. You can freeze these after you bake them and warm them up in a 400 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.
​

We are addicted to Peanut Butter. It is one of our desert island foods, so we are constantly looking for ways to enjoy it. This grown up version of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich was inspired by a large batch of organic Costco concord grapes on the verge of being purged. On a whim, we cooked them down into this ridiculously good jelly, sweet, tart and bright, and then threw the jelly into these bars. Yes, it does involve an extra step, but it is well worth the effort. Next time, we are trying it with green grapes!!! 

Peanut Butter and Jelly Oatmeal Bars
Makes 1 dozen
 
1-cup flour
1-cup oats
1/3-cup brown sugar
1/3-cup sugar
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. baking soda
½ cup peanut butter
½ cup butter, room temperature
1-cup fresh grape “jelly”
 
Grape “Jelly”
3 cups grapes, any kind
¼ cup sugar
1-tablespoon cornstarch
¼ cup water plus 1 tablespoon
½ tsp. vanilla extract
 
For the grape jelly place all the grapes, sugar. Vanilla and ¼ water into a saucepan over medium heat. Stir grapes until they start to break down and release their juices.  About 5-8 minutes. Dissolve cornstarch into tablespoon of water and pour into grapes. Turn heat up slightly and let grapes bubble and thicken for about 2 minutes. Turn off and cool.
 
Preheat oven to 350
 
Grease an 8x8 square baking dish and set aside
 
Place the oats, flour, salt, baking soda, and sugars in mixer with a paddle attachment. Add peanut butter, then butter and mix until evenly combined.
 
Take 2/3 of your crumble and press into your prepared pan.  Bake for about 20 minutes until slightly brown.  Spread grape jelly on top and cover with remaining crumble, letting some grape jelly poke through.  Bake for another 20-25 minutes until brown and bubbling.
 
Let cool entirely before slicing.
 

​While we feel like we should be sick of pumpkin by now, we aren't! These bars are bananas, everything you love about pumpkin pie in a bite sized bar. The filling is luscious, creamy and full of all those holiday spices. We did a mash up of a few recipes to get here, and now we can't stop making them. Planning on trying a butternut squash version next...we shall see!! Also, if you use gluten-free graham crackers it is a great gluten-free dessert/cookie to take to any holiday party!

Pumpkin Pie Bars
Makes 12-16
 
¼ cup brown sugar
½ cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. ground cloves
¼ tsp. ginger
¼ tsp. nutmeg
¼ tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 15 oz. can pumpkin puree
1 12 oz. can evaporated milk
1 ¼ cups graham cracker crumbs (about 9 rectangles)
½ cups pecans
2 tablespoons brown sugar
5 tablespoons melted butter
 
Preheat oven to 350

Line 9x13-baking pan with parchment, with some overhang. Set aside.
 
In food processor pulse graham crackers, or crumbs with pecans until they are a sandy texture. Add sugar and melted butter and pulse until combined. Press firmly into pan on bottom and slightly up the sides. Bake for 9 minutes and set aside.
 
Whisk together the sugars, spices, and salt. Whisk in eggs, pumpkin puree, and evaporated milk and mix until smooth.  Pour into prepared crust and bake for 30-35 minutes until it no longer jiggles.
 
Remove and cool. Place in refrigerator for at least an hour before cutting. Lift out parchment and cut into 12-16 pieces.

Can be kept in the refrigerator for up to a week.
 

And, last few days of the Holiday Sale! Cards are running out, only a few more sets left, so grab them while you can!  

These bars are always a hit in our house. We have done every sort of variation and these lemon blueberry ones were one of the tastiest combos. The acidity of the lemon plays nicely with the sweet berry, and the almond extract brings a nutty undertone. You can easily double this and freeze half which is what we do, and you can easily sub in any fruit. Check out our Mixed Fruit Crumb Bars for ideas! We also do a Raspberry Lime one that is worth a try!

Blueberry Lemon Crumb Bars
Makes one 8 inch cake pan or one 8 inch square Pyrex
 
½ cup brown sugar
1 ½ cups flour
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
½ cup cold butter, cut into pieces
Zest of a lemon
1 egg
2 ½ cups blueberries
½ cup sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp. almond extract
 
Preheat oven to 375
 
Grease an 8’ inch cake or Pyrex baking dish.
 
In a medium bowl mix flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest. Then add in the cold butter and egg, cutting it in with a pastry cutter or fork.  You can also use your fingers to break up any larger pieces of butter. Once the mixture resembles crumbs, press half into the pan.
 
In another bowl, add sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch and almond extract and mix. Carefully stir in fruit.
 
Spread fruit with juices evenly on top of dough and sprinkle with remaining dough. You want some fruit peeking out.
 
Bake 40-45 minutes until fruit is bubbling and topping is golden brown. Cool before slicing.
 
 
 

Sometimes recipes happen due to necessity. The heat we have been having is wrecking havoc on any fruit we forget to put in the fridge! The plums were on the verge and we had some leftover ricotta from pizza night, so boom, muffins it was! We always like baking with plums as the fruit has a complex flavor, both sweet and sour, and here in Los Angeles we have varieties galore. Some plums are more acidic, some more mild, so you can adjust your sugar content after tasting. These were made with some yellow plums with low acidity, and medium sugar content. The combination of spices nudges you towards fall and offer a nice contrast to the fruit. For another delicious plum recipe try out Plum Snack Cake with pecans! 

​Spiced Plum and Ricotta Muffins
Makes 10-12
 
½ cup oats
½ tsp. ground ginger
1 tablespoon honey, warmed
2 cups flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. cardamom
¼ tsp. nutmeg
½ tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. salt
1 tablespoon of ground chia
1 tablespoon flax seeds
½ cup brown sugar
½ cup ricotta
½ cup olive oil
2 eggs, whisked
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup diced plums
 
Preheat oven to 350 and line a muffin tin with paper liners or spray with non-stick spray
 
In a small bowl mix oats, ginger and warmed honey and set aside for topping
 
Stir together in a large bowl the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, ground chia and flax seeds.
 
In another bowl mix the sugar, ricotta cheese, olive oil, eggs and vanilla.  Add the dry ingredients and mix until just blended. Fold in the diced plums.
 
Fill the muffin tin with the batter and top each muffin with a sprinkle of the oat mixture.
 
Bake about 30-35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool
 
*This muffin can be easily changed up depending on what you have at hand. Whole wheat flour can be a substitute and chia seeds can be used instead of ground chia.
 

We have to admit that we were shocked that these worked and by worked we mean that the kids ate them and thought they were doughnuts! We are always looking for ways to get more fiber and protein in the kids and while you may think buckwheat is just that, wheat, but it isn't! Buckwheat is actually a seed, so for those that are gluten sensitive, it is gluten free, grain free. We didn't replace all the flour with the buckwheat, so this recipe is not gluten-free, but we did cut down quite a bit of it, and the buckwheat imparts a nutty, earthy flavor to these baked doughnuts. The kids preferred the chocolate drizzled ones, and we liked the powdered sugar so make some of each! 


Buckwheat Chocolate Chip Banana Bread Doughnuts
Makes about 6-8
 
1 c. flour
½ c. buckwheat flour
¾ tsp. salt
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. nutmeg
½ tsp. cinnamon
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1/3 c. sugar
2 tablespoons honey
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. Vanilla extract
2 ripe bananas, mashed
½ cup dark chocolate chips
¼ cup semisweet chocolate chips
 
Preheat oven to 350
 
Grease doughnut pan
 
In a bowl, whisk all the dry ingredients together. In a stand mixture beat butter with sugar and honey until light an fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add dry ingredients and mix until resembling sand. Add a little bit of egg at a time, scraping down the side of the bowl. Add vanilla and mix. Fold in the mashed bananas and then the chocolate chips.
 
Carefully fill the doughnut pans and bake for 25-30 minutes, checking at 25 to see if a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for ten minutes then remove from pan.
 
Dust with powdered sugar or drizzle with melted chocolate and sprinkles. 


Be sure to check out our Etsy store for our BAKED GOODS blank notecards! 

​

​We love a good corn muffin and this recipe was help conceived by the 11 year old of the family. She has gotten our baking bug, or really she has had it all her life as if there was a girl who loved sugar and chocolate that was her! She has become quite a proficient baker and these were just sweet enough without being cloying. Serve them with chili or any summer grilled meat, and you have a home run! 

Corn Bread Muffins
Makes about 18 muffins
 
½ cup butter, cut into cubes
3 eggs, beaten until light and foamy
2 cups of milk
1 tsp. lemon juice
14 ¾ oz creamed corn
1 ¾ cups corn meal
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
 
Preheat oven to 425
 
Grease or spray the muffin tins.
 
Mix all dry ingredients in a large bowl. In another bowl where you have beaten the eggs until light and foamy, add the wet ingredients and whisk. Then, pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk until incorporated.
 
Place a small cube of butter into each muffin cup and add one ladle, about a cup, of muffin mixture to each.
 
Bake for about 18 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
 
Serve with honey and butter!


And, don't forget, we have our wonderful cards for sale on our Etsy site! Get these muffins in out baked goods set, and check out the latest edition, a larger greeting card of your favorite farmers market finds with recipes on the back! And, for the next few days, we are having an end of summer sale where everything is 15% off!

The affinity for this dip rests primarily in its luscious color! Who can resist that shade of fuchsia as we certainly eat with our eyes! Beets are a true superfood and a wonderful way to add sweetness to any dish, that aforementioned color, and a ton of vitamin c, fiber, potassium and manganese.  Using them in hummus gives a nice twist to a mediterranean classic. 


​Beet Hummus
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed
2 garlic cloves
1 large red beet, roasted, peeled and cooled*
1 tsp of salt
2 tablespoons tahini
1/2 cup Olive Oil
1 tsp Zaatar
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest


​Place all ingredients into a food processor and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve with chips, pita or veggies. 

*to roast beets, remove stems and leaves and wrap in tin foil. Place in 400 degree oven and roast until easily pierced with a knife. Rub off skin and cool. 


​

Strawberry Margarita Cookies
about 1 dozen cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup of sugar
1 egg
2 tsp Tequila
1 tsp lime juice
1 tsp lime zest
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups of flour
1/8 cup diced fresh strawberries (dice small and if you have a little more its ok)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Cream together the butter and the sugar. In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and lime zest. Set aside.

When sugar and butter has lightened in color and become fluffy, add the egg, the lime juice and the tequila. Mix and then add the flour a little at a time until it is incorporated. Add diced strawberries and mix just until evenly placed in batter. 

Roll dough into 1 to 1 1/2 inch balls in your hand and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for about 15-16 minutes until the bottoms just begin to brown. 

We are always game to trying something new and when Zest Tea, @getzesttea, sent us some apple cinnamon tea to try, we thought "why not bake with it?" The results were by far the best muffins we have made in awhile. Adding the additional layer of flavor the tea imparted to the butter, really made these muffins sing! The apple cinnamon flavor was pronounced, not lost in the baking. We are definitely going to play around with some other flavors of tea and will let you know how they turn out! A friend suggested ear grey and cherries.....yummy!

Apple Cinnamon Tea infused Muffins
Makes 10-12
 
½ cup or 1 stick of unsalted butter
¼ cup loose apple cinnamon tea
​1 ½ cups flour
¾ cups sugar plus 1 tablespoon
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon plus ½ tsp.
½ cup milk
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
1 egg
1 cup grated apples, about 1 large apple.
 
 
Preheat oven to 375
 
Grease muffin pan with cooking spray or butter and set aside.
 
To make your tea infused butter, melt butter then add the tealeaves.  Let heat over low for about five minutes, it will continue bubbling. Remove from heat and set aside for another few minutes.  Butter will look a little green, but don’t worry! Using a fine meshed strainer or sieve, pour butter through and push on leaves, squeezing out all you can.  Set aside.
 
In a medium bowl, add flour, ¾ cups of sugar, baking powder, salt and 1 tsp. of cinnamon.  In another bowl, add egg and gently whisk. Add to egg, the vanilla, tea infused butter, and milk and mix.  Add to flour, with the apples and stir until all is incorporated.
 
Mix remaining sugar and cinnamon in small bowl and set aside.
 
Scoop batter into muffin cups, filling about ¾ of the way.  Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture.
 
Bake for 20-23 minutes until slightly brown on top and a toothpick comes out clean. 
 
Cool in pan, then remove and serve.

These cookies are nutty and chocolatey, two things that are always a win. We have been playing around with different nut butters and different flours, and this cookie is a nice addition to your arsenal as it gives you the feel of a chocolate chip cookie and is good for your gluten-free friends or family. We have a version on the site with peanut butter that does not have any type of flour whatsoever in it, but the almond flour in this cookie gives the cookie a heartier bite. Maybe we can then eat them for breakfast? 

Gluten Free Chocolate Almond Cookies
Makes about 1 dozen cookies
 
2 eggs
1 cup almond butter
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup almond flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup dark chocolate chips
 
Preheat oven to 350
 
In a medium bowl whisk the eggs, then add the rest of the ingredients. Once dough comes together, roll into about inch size balls. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 11-13 minutes depending on your oven. Let cool on the sheet pan as cookies are crumbly when they are removed from the oven. 

When the kids hear they can have cookies for breakfast, they are super psyched! And, well, these cookies pack enough punch to get them fueled up while they think they are pulling one over on us.  They are sort of like the cookie version of loaded oatmeal, filled with lots of oats, dried fruit and coconut oil. You could add a tablespoon or two of almond butter or a 1/4 cup of chopped nuts to the dough if you wanted a hit of protein, but we leave them out as the kids school is nut free and these are also great as school snacks.


Breakfast Cookies
Makes about 1 dozen

½ cup applesauce
​½ cup dried cherries or cranberries
½ cup oats
¼ cup oat flour
½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. nutmeg
½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 tbsp. coconut oil
1 egg
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ c mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350

In a large mixing bowl whisk egg, oil, and applesauce. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until incorporated.

Chill in refrigerator for 20 minutes

Scoop dough into about 1 inch balls and place on cookie sheet

Bake for 14 minutes


​

We have made banana bread too many times to count as somehow when you have little kids around, you always have overripe bananas! My mom and I argue about this recipe all the time and go back and forth over who's we like better. This recipe is our compromise!

​Banana Bread with Chocolate Chips
 
 
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon cinnamon
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup sugar
​1 tablespoon honey
2 large eggs lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 very ripe bananas, mashed
½ cup chocolate chips or you can omit chocolate and add ½ cup chopped nuts
 
Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 6-cup loaf pan. Whisk all dry ingredients together in medium bowl. In a stand mixer or using a large bowl and a hand-held mixer, beat on high speed the butter and the sugars until lightened in color and fluffy. Add to sugar and butter the dry ingredients and beat on medium speed until resembling sand. Slowly add in the beaten egg, a little at a time, then add vanilla. When combined, carefully fold in banana and chocolate chips (or nuts). Scrape into prepared pan and bake about 50-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let cool before unmolding.
 
If you omit the chocolate chips bump sugar up to ½ cup sugar, and ½ cup brown sugar.
 
 

 

We are always playing around with ways to get more fiber and food into the smallest child in the morning. These oat based muffins are filling and tasty, a great start to the day. And, the chocolate tricks him into eating more then a single raspberry for breakfast! 

Chocolate Oatmeal Breakfast Muffins
Makes 12
 
1-cup flour
½ cup oat flour
½ cup rolled oats
¼ cup oat bran
½ cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
½ tsp. salt
1-tablespoon baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. cinnamon
¼ tsp. nutmeg
¼ cup cacao powder
2 eggs
1-cup sour cream
¼ cup milk
4 tablespoons melted butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract
½-1 cup chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
 
Preheat oven to 400
 
Line muffin pan with paper liners or grease with butter or spray with non-stick baking spray
 
In a bowl whisk flour, oat flour, rolled oats, oat bran, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda, spices and cacao powder.
 
In a smaller bowl whisk eggs, sour cream, milk, melted butter and vanilla.
 
Add liquid to dry ingredients and mix with a few strokes to combine. Mixture will be thick. Fold in chocolate chips.
 
With an ice cream scooper fill muffin tins and bake for 14-16 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
 
 

Not sure about you, but we tend to overbuy at the Farmers Market this time of year, as the fruits just seem to beckon with their siren call. This means we are always looking for ways to use up fruit that is on the verge. You can make this treat with really any combo of berries and stone fruits. This bar hits all the right notes, sweet, tart, chewy with a little crunch.  The addition of the almond extract instead of our go-to vanilla gave the bar a surprising undertone that was tasty. The kids had seconds! We made a second version a few days later with raspberries, strawberries and plum and used lime instead of lemon as we had no lemons. It was tangy, sweet and even better! You make the call based on the citrus you have on hand, may try orange next time!


Mixed Fruit Crumb Bars
Makes one 8 inch cake pan or one 8 inch square Pyrex
 
½ cup brown sugar
1 ½ cups flour
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
½ cup cold butter, cut into pieces
Zest of half a lemon
1 egg
2 cups mixed berries and or stone fruit cut into small pieces  (this had blackberries, strawberries and plums)
½ cup sugar
2 tsp. cornstarch
Juice of ½ lemon
1/2 tsp. almond extract
 
Preheat oven to 375
 
Grease an 8’ inch cake or Pyrex baking dish.
 
In a medium bowl mix flour, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest. Then add in the cold butter and egg, cutting it in with a pastry cutter or fork.  You can also use your fingers to break up any large pieces of butter. Once the mixture resembles crumbs, press half into the pan.
 
In another bowl, add sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch and almond extract and mix. Carefully stir in fruit.
 
Spread fruit with juices evenly on top of dough and sprinkle with remaining dough. You want some fruit peeking out.
 
Bake 40-45 minutes until fruit is bubbling and topping is golden brown. Cool before slicing.