Frozen Yogurt with Summer Fruit - Master Recipe

I'll start this off by saying up front that you need an ice cream maker to make this, an item I realize lots of people don't have. But we acquired one a couple months ago and I have really been enjoying making our own ice creams and frozen yogurts using local ingredients. Fresh local cream - not ultrapasteurized - has so much more delicious flavor than you get in the kind from the store that will keep for weeks and weeks on the shelf.  And when you combine that with local berries or other fruits, well...

I've found I can make really excellent frozen yogurt as well, which is a bit more healthful of an option than the ice cream.  I make my own yogurt with local milk, but you can always use Sidehill Farm yogurt or any commercial variety. However, if you use a sweetened flavor - anything other than plain - you can cut back the sugar in this recipe to almost nothing.

You can use pretty much any soft fruit in this recipe, but if you use apricots, peaches, etc. I suggest peeling them first.  Raspberries are truly sublime here.

This recipe is intended for a 1 1/2 quart ice cream maker. In general, follow the instructions that came with your machine. Have the bowl solidly frozen ahead of time.

2 1/4 cup plain yogurt
1 - 1 1/2 cups chopped/mashed summer fruit
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and stir well. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or so.

Put the ice cream maker together with the frozen bowl and turn it on.  Pour in the yogurt mixture. Let the maker work for 15-20 minutes, until the frozen yogurt becomes too thick for the paddle to keep stirring it. It will have roughly the consistency of softserve.  Serve immediately or place it in a tupperware container and freeze.

To serve the yogurt after it has been in the freezer for several hours, let it thaw on the counter for 5-10 minutes to soften up.

Serves 4-6.

It's Blueberry Season

(Among many other things, of course!) The Benson Place in Heath is taking orders and scheduling pick-ups right now, so get in touch with them quick if you want a box of blueberries and you haven't yet. If you have any freezer space to spare at all, blueberries are wonderful to put up. Super easy to freeze and great in many uses through the winter: waffles, pancakes, cobblers, crisps, pies, smoothies, popsicles... My husband loves a sprinkling of frozen low bush blueberries (the small ones) over a bowl of Snow's Ginger ice cream.

Here's a past post on how to freeze them.

Whole Wheat Waffles with Local Fruit

Use whole wheat pastry flour - available from Upinngil Farm and Four Star Farms - for whole grain waffles that are light, crisp, and flavorful. Local berries and stone fruits are a year-round luxury if you buy them in bulk in August and freeze them. If you like, substitute buttermilk for some or all of the milk.

2 cups frozen blueberries
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups milk
2 Tbsp melted butter, cooled
1 tsp vanilla extract
Maple syrup for serving

Place the blueberries in a medium saucepan over low heat. Warm, stirring occasionally, until they are warm through and juicy. It's fine if they continue to simmer while you cook the waffles.

Brush your waffle iron lightly with oil and preheat while you put the waffle batter together.

Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a medium bowl. In a smaller bowl, combine the beaten eggs, milk, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine thoroughly.

Ladle batter into the center of the waffle iron. Close and cook until the indicator light show that it is done; if you like your waffles crispier, leave it another 30-60 seconds.

Keep waffles warm on a covered plate or in a low oven until ready to serve. Top with blueberries (and juice) and maple syrup at the table.

Serves about 4.

Variation: top with Blueberry-Strawberry Sauce, applesauce, or (in summer) fresh slice fruit.

Whole Grain Buttermilk Pancakes

It was a happy recent discovery to find that Mapleline Farm offers buttermilk in pint containers. Too many times in the past I found myself buying a quart to make some particular recipe, only to watch the rest of it go bad in the fridge. This time, my husband bought a pint in order to use 1/2 cup in a cake; the remaining 1 1/2 cups was just right for a batch of pancakes.

Use any type of frozen or fresh fruit you like in these, depending on the season and what you have on hand. Frozen or fresh blueberries are classic, and with good reason, but other options would be good, too. You can also substitute cornmeal or another type of flour (regular whole wheat, oat flour, buckwheat...) for up to half of the whole wheat pastry flour.

Local whole wheat pastry flour is available from Four Star Farms (sold at Green Fields Market) and Upinngil Farm (sold at the farm store, open year round).

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp sugar (or honey or brown sugar)
1 egg
1 1/2-2 cups buttermilk
1-2 cups frozen blueberries (or other fruit of your choice)
Butter or oil for cooking
Maple syrup for topping
Applesauce for topping (optional)

Preheat your frying pan(s) by placing them on the stove and turning the burner on low while you put the batter together.

Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, beat the egg, then stir in the buttermilk. Stir the liquid ingredients into the dry ingredients, then fold in the blueberries or other fruit.

Turn the heat under your frying pan(s) up to medium. Melt a little butter or heat a little oil, then ladle out the pancake batter. Cook for roughly 3-4 minutes per side, until golden brown and cooked through.

Serve topped with maple syrup and/or applesauce at the table.

Serves about 4.

Freezing Blueberries

Blueberry season is approaching its end, so if you haven't stocked up on blueberries yet, now is the time!

We just picked up a 20lb box of low bush blueberries from The Benson Place in Heath and packaged them all for the freezer. (If you're wondering, 20 pounds of blueberries makes about 13 very full quart freezer bags.) Low bush blueberries are smaller and milder in flavor than their high bush cousins. They are very good for baking, particularly for muffins, pancakes, etc.

We also just picked up a 12-pint flat of high bush blueberries from one of the farms along River Road in Whately (alas, I don't know which one - my husband just stopped in on a whim and got the berries as he went by). We'll freeze most of these, too - with stronger flavor, they're great for smoothies and fruity desserts like pies and cobblers.

Freezing blueberries is super easy. If they're clean, just package them as is in freezer bags. If you need to wash them first, let them dry a bit before packaging. They don't stick together much, so you can fill a bag completely and then just remove whatever amount you need as you go along.

Peaches

Clarkdale Fruit Farms has its first peaches of the season available - check them out at the Greenfield Farmers Market tomorrow. The farm stand should be open soon, too.

And speaking of local fruit, there are lots of berries in season right now, too. My husband and son just went down to Nourse Farms in Whately this morning and came home with strawberries (!), red raspberries, black raspberries, three kinds of currants, and two kinds of gooseberries. They had blueberries for picking and for sale as well - we didn't get any because our own bushes are still producing.

All this fruit is fantastic fresh, but we were also eager to get some more into the freezer for use in smoothies and popsicles, which we go through at quite a rate at this time of year.

Blueberry Lassi

I was tempted to call these smoothies, but really the consistency is much more like that of a lassi you might get at an Indian restaurant. It's a yogurt-based drink with some fruit added, rather than mostly fruit with some yogurt added. My two-year-old easily drank it with a straw. You can, of course, reverse the proportions or adjust them however you like. Likewise, you can use different fruit, or a combination. I've been using blueberries because we still have a bunch of them in the freezer and since they don't stick together that much when frozen it's easy to use a small amount at a time--plus they are quick and easy to process this way.

For each serving:
1/4 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup yogurt (maple, plain, or vanilla - or your choice)

Blend in a blender or food processor. These proportions make for large-ish kid servings or moderate adult servings.

Variations: virtually infinite. For a sweeter lassi, add a touch of honey or maple syrup. Try other easily processed frozen fruit. In fresh fruit season, use that - try peaches or strawberries.

Blueberry Bacon Pizza

And why not? If this sounds odd to you, give it a try anyway. The flavors actually work really well together. Use "wild" low bush blueberries if you can; they are smaller and their flavor is milder, serving more as a pleasing undertone than a star.

1 14-inch pizza crust
olive oil
2-3 oz. shredded Edam or medium cheddar
1 medium shallot, minced
6 slices cooked bacon, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup blueberries (frozen is fine)
Black pepper to taste
2-3 oz. shredded or cubed mozzarella

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Lightly paint the pizza crust with olive oil, then spread the Edam or cheddar over it. Sprinkle the shallot over the cheese, then add the bacon and blueberries, evenly distributed. Add a grind of black pepper, then top with mozzarella. Bake for about 15 minutes, until the crust is done and cheese begins to brown.

Serves 3-4.

Blueberry-Chipotle Chutney

After seeing Tinky Weisblat's recent post on chipotle cranberry sauce, I was inspired to try a chipotle-fruit chutney. After the happy results I had with blueberry salsa, some of my frozen blueberries seemed like a good base. The resulting chutney is sweet and hot and savory all at once--delicious. Try it with chicken or pork, or perhaps with soft cheese and crackers or bread.

I canned some of this, but you could also freeze it. Or just refrigerate--it should keep for a few weeks.

5 cups frozen blueberries
2 medium apples, cored, peeled, and finely chopped
1 medium red onion, finely chopped
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (2 if you really like heat), finely minced
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 - 1/2 cup sugar
Salt to taste

Combine blueberries, apples, onion, chipotle, and cider vinegar in a Dutch oven. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer. Simmer until the fruit is well cooked, then add 1/3 cup sugar. Taste and add more if desired. Continue simmering over low heat until the chutney thickens to desired consistency (it should be jammy). Add salt to taste.

Makes about 4 cups.

Baked French Toast

This is an easy but festive breakfast/brunch meal to serve a crowd. Make the most of our local milk and eggs! To make the morning assembly easy, slice the bread and combine the other ingredients in a bowl the night before and store in the fridge.

This is fantastic with blueberry-strawberry sauce, but also great with maple syrup. This recipe is adapted from on in Didi Emmons's Vegetarian Planet.

Update, 9/15/12: I have made this with other types of bread with great success.  Any moderately soft loaf will do, and whole grain bread works fine.  I made this once with whole wheat cranberry walnut bread and it was fantastic.  Oatmeal bread is good too, as is buttermilk wheat.  Feel free to experiment, especially if you prefer something with some whole grain in it.

5 eggs, beaten
4 cups milk (I used a combination of whole and skim, but use whatever you have)
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 baguette in 1-inch slices (about 24 slices), preferably slightly stale

Butter a 10x15-inch baking pan and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger in a bowl.

Lay the bread slices out in the baking pan, overlapping slightly. Pour the custard mixture over it. If you have time, let it soak for 30 minutes or so before baking. Bake for about 35 minutes, until custard is set.

Serve with maple syrup, butter, and/or fruit sauce.

Serves about 6.

Blueberry-Strawberry Sauce

We had friends over for brunch this morning and I made this sauce to go with baked French toast. Superb! The berries were all frozen - blueberries from The Benson Place and strawberries from Upinngil Farm.

3 cups frozen blueberries
3 cups frozen strawberries
1/4 - 1/2 cup sugar
Up to 1 tsp grated fresh ginger

Combine all ingredients in a wide-bottomed pan (such as a Dutch oven). Add a splash of water and simmer over low-medium heat until the berries soften and the sauce thickens to desired consistency (30-60 minutes).

Serve with French toast, pancakes or waffles, or over ice cream.

Crock Pot Chicken with Blueberries and Chutney

If it wasn't for my crock pot, I would probably never make it out to the Y after work to exercise. I love to do chicken because it is as simple as taking frozen chicken parts out of the freezer and putting them directly in the crock pot - no browning or other treatment needed. And the result is always delicious; this is a flavorful way of preparing chicken even if you only season with salt and pepper. I put it on in the morning, then set the rice cooker going before leaving for the Y in the late afternoon. When I come back an hour-plus later, dinner is ready.

4 chicken legs (frozen is fine; if thawed, reduce cooking time)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup chutney (I used my tomato-ginger chutney)

Place the chicken legs in the crock pot and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Spread the chutney over the meat, then sprinkle in the blueberries.

Cook on Low for 8-9 hours.

Serves 4.

Thanksgiving Pie Ideas

Pie for Thanksgiving is a big deal in my family, especially on my husband's side. Not only does there need to be plenty for the big day, with family sticking around all weekend, there needs to be plenty of leftovers! Apple and pumpkin are non-negotiable necessities and not to be messed with, but we always do at least a couple other kinds as well and there is always room for a little creativity. Peach, blueberry, and cherry are all frequent additions to the table. Last year I made a triple cranberry meringue pie (I think I found the recipe on the New York Times website), which was quite tasty but involved too many steps to make again for a holiday where food prep time is at a premium. Here are some other ideas to jazz things up without straying too far from tradition:

1. For apple pie, add a handful of cranberries
2. For pumpkin pie, add minced candied ginger or substitute maple syrup for some or all of the sugar
3. For peach pie, add some minced fresh or candied ginger
4. For peach, cherry, or berry pies, top with streusel topping instead of pastry crust
5. Mix apple and pear in a pie, or apple, pear, and poached quince
6. Mix different berries in one pie (e.g. blueberry, strawberry, and blackberry)
7. For berry, cherry, or peach pie, add a teaspoon of almond or hazelnut extract to the pastry dough
8. Combine peaches with blueberries or blackberries

And, of course, don't forget to have plenty of Snow's or Bart's ice cream on hand for the a la mode part. Vanilla is classic, of course, but we have found that Snow's ginger goes really well with most fruit pies - skeptical relatives have been converted!

Blueberry Maple Cornbread

This you must try.

I used Whole Milk Maple yogurt from Sidehill Farm, which you also must try if you live in the Pioneer Valley and have somehow missed it so far. I also used a mix of ground sweet corn and regular cornmeal, which is lovely, but all regular cornmeal is good, too.

Butter for the pan
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup maple yogurt
1/4 cup maple syrup (ideally grade B for best flavor)
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 egg, beaten
1 cup frozen blueberries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8x8-inch baking pan.

Combine the cornmeal, whole wheat pastry flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Combine the yogurt, maple syrup, oil, and egg in a smallish bowl. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, then gently stir in the blueberries. Scrape the batter into the greased pan and smooth out as best you can.

Bake for 20-30 minutes, until golden on top and cooked through in the middle. The end result will be moist.

Serves 5-6.

Variations:
1. Just blueberry: use plain or vanilla yogurt in place of maple yogurt and substitute sugar or honey for the maple syrup.
2. Just maple: leave out the blueberries.

Blueberry Scones

Another excellent use for frozen blueberries. I especially like the low-bush variety because they are small. But you can use high-bush as well, or other types of small frozen fruits, such as strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, or cherries, if you have them.

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup heavy cream
1/3 cup whole milk plain yogurt
1/4 cup white sugar, plus more for the top if desired
3/4 cup frozen blueberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Whisk dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Stir in blueberries so they get coated with flour. Add cream and yogurt and stir until just combined. Drop by large spoonfuls onto a baking sheet (I use a baking stone). If desired, lightly sprinkle the top of each scone with a little sugar.

Bake for about 20 minutes, until golden brown on top.

Makes about 8-10 scones.

Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Muffins

And while I'm on the subject of blueberry muffins...this is another favorite recipe. Again, you can use fresh or frozen berries, but frozen actually work a bit better.

1 cup white flour
1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp lemon juice
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup plain yogurt
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Preheat the oven to 400°. Grease muffin tins to make 12 muffins.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the white flour, whole wheat pastry flour, sugar, poppy seeds, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Add the lemon juice, vegetable oil, and yogurt to the dry ingredients and combine thoroughly. Stir in the blueberries. Do not overmix. The batter will be fairly thick and slightly spongy.

Spoon the batter into the muffin tins. You can fill them fairly full.

Bake for about 14 minutes, until the muffins turn golden on top and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Makes 12 muffins.

Blueberry Oatmeal Muffins

Blueberry season will be ending before long, but if you're like me, you have stockpiled berries in the freezer to use through the long winter. I find that frozen berries actually often work better than fresh in muffins and other baked goods, which is a happy coincidence since summer is not prime baking season. I love the blueberry cinnamon combination in these muffins, which also give you a good dose of whole grains. If you have fresh buttermilk available, you can use it in place of some or all of the milk.

1 generous cup rolled oats
1 generous cup milk
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
2 large eggs, well-beaten
1 tsp vanilla (optional)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 Tbsp powdered buttermilk (optional)
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 400˚. Grease muffins tins to make 12 large or 18 medium muffins.

Mix the rolled oats and milk together in a large mixing bowl. Let stand for 5-10 minutes.

Stir the eggs, vanilla (if using), vegetable oil, and brown sugar into the oatmeal and milk mixture.

In another bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, powdered buttermilk (if using), cinnamon, and salt. Add to the oatmeal mixture and mix until well blended. If using fresh or frozen blueberries, stir them into the batter.

Spoon the batter into muffin tins, filling them about three-quarters of the way. Bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the muffins comes out clean.

Makes about 12 large or 18 medium muffins.

Blueberry Salsa

I had a hankering to do something savory with blueberries--something that could go with chicken, perhaps--and this is what I came up with. I've had fruit salsas before, but never with blueberries. They work well, though! Try this with grilled chicken or pork, or even as a dip for tortilla chips. You can use fresh or frozen berries.

1 1/2 cups blueberries (whole if low-bush, halved or quartered if high-bush)
1 1/2 Tbsp lime juice
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 hot pepper, such as jalapeno, minced (or more to taste)
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
Salt to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Mash the blueberries a bit with the back of a spoon. Let sit for an hour or more for the flavors to mingle.

Makes about 2 1/2 cups, enough to serve with meat for 4-6 people.

Freezing Blueberries

This afternoon, Donovan and Nate are going up to The Benson Place to pick up the 20 pounds of blueberries that we ordered. Which means I'll be working on getting them into the freezer over the next day or two (realistically, probably two, as I won't have much time before Saturday). Fortunately, freezing blueberries is ridiculously easy. Just wash and freeze. If you like, dry them in between those steps to prevent them from sticking together (though even without drying they're not too bad). Package in freezer bags in quantities you'll want to use at one time. Then, all fall and winter and spring: blueberry muffins, blueberry pancakes, blueberry cobbler, smoothies, mixed fruit compotes...

If you're wondering about drying blueberries, I looked into and decided it wasn't worth it. They don't dry well unless you sugar soak them first, which means a) that they are soaked in sugar and b) that it takes four days to prepare them for drying.

Peach-Blackberry Crisp

We have been enjoying lovely ripe peaches from Clarkdale, along with blackberries purchased at the farmers market on Saturday. We ate about half the pint on the way home, but the rest made it into a crisp.

4-5 cups sliced peaches
1-2 cups blackberries
1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp corn starch
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 - 1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
dash of nutmeg
5 Tbsp cold unsalted butter, plus more for the pan

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Lightly butter an 8x8 pan or 10-inch deep dish pie pan.

In a large bowl, gently toss the fruit with the sugar and corn starch. Transfer to the buttered pan.

In a food processor, combine all other ingredients and pulse until crumbly but not powdered (you can also do this by hand with a pastry cutter or two knives, but it's harder). Spread over the fruit.

Bake for about 30 minutes, until topping is crisp and fruit is bubbly. Serve warm or hot. Great with ice cream, especially Snow's or Bart's Ginger.

Serves about six.

Variation: substitute blueberries for the blackberries.