I ❤️ Watermelon!

Yes!  I love watermelon.  When we were living in Belize, watermelon was available year round.  So guess what?   We ate watermelon everyday.

Please pass the watermelon

 

Berry Meringue

Ingredients

4 large egg whites (1/2 cup) or 1/2 cup refrigerated pasteurized egg whites

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 cup plus about 2 tablespoons sugar

4 cups blackberries, raspberries, or blueberries (or some of each)

1 cup whipping cream

How to Make It

Preheat oven to 225°.


In a large bowl, with a mixer (preferably fitted with wire-whisk attachment) on high speed, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy. Gradually add 1 cup sugar, about 1 tablespoon at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping sides of bowl occasionally, until stiff, shiny peaks form (see tip 2 below).


Line two 12- by 15-inch baking sheets with cooking parchment or coat sheets with cooking-oil spray or butter. Mound meringue in eight equal portions (a scant 1/2 cup for each) on sheets, spacing at least 3 inches apart. Shape each into a 4-inch round (follow tip 3 below).


Bake in preheated oven until meringues sound hollow when tapped and feel firm to the touch, about 1 1/2 hours (1 1/4 hours in convection heat); switch sheet positions halfway through baking. Turn heat off and leave meringues in closed oven until completely cool, 2 to 2 1/2 hours longer. Remove from sheets.


Shortly before serving, rinse and drain berries; pat dry with a towel. In a bowl, with a mixer on high speed, beat whipping cream just until soft peaks form. Turn mixer to low and beat in sugar to taste (about 2 tablespoons).


Set meringues on dessert plates. Top with whipped cream and berries.


Tips for the perfect meringue


A wire-whisk attachment introduces air evenly into whites and creates small bubbles, which are both stronger and more flexible. Make sure the bowl and beaters are clean; any fat can interfere with the formation of the foam.


Beating the whites with an acid, like cream of tartar or vinegar, helps coagulate the egg-white protein. You want stiff, shiny peaks. The mixture should feel smooth when you rub it between your fingers.


Shape meringue mixture into bowl-shaped rounds with a small, thin spatula. The edges should be a little higher than the centers.

We had some friends from our college days over for dinner last night and they brought this fun dessert.  The recipe came from this site.  Enjoy!

Fruit Leather

Puree fruit in a blender. Today I used figs from my friend's tree, but I have also used apricots and strawberries.

Tape parchment paper (I purchased mine at Walmart. It is pictured above) to a baking sheet. I found that painter's tape works the best. (You can use plastic wrap instead of parchment paper, but be sure that it is very thick plastic wrap [ie: Saran Wrap brand]. If the plastic wrap is too thin, it will stick to the dried fruit leather.)

Pour the puree onto the covered baking sheet.

Tilt the cookie sheet from side to side to make the puree thin.

Put the cookie sheets outside in the sun to dry into fruit leather. It will take several hours.

Once completely dried, pull the leather off in strips. Enjoy!

I learned how to do this when I was a college student. You can make fruit leather out of any summer fruit. You can also add a banana to your fruit puree to sweeten it up a bit (I always add banana to my strawberry puree).

Cranberry Salad

2 large (6 oz) pkg. Raspberry Jello

2 cups boiling water

1 cup sugar (can use less)

2 Tbs lemon juice

1 can 20 oz crushed pineapple, undrained

2 cups cranberries (fresh)

2 oranges peeled

2 apples

2 cups chopped walnuts or pecans

Dissolve jello in water. Add sugar, stirring until dissolved. Add lemon juice and pineapple. In food grinder, grind cranberries, oranges and apples together. (Or you could use a grater or put in a food processor.) Add cranberry mixture and nuts to jello mixture. Chill until set in 9x13 pan.

This is a Magnusson Family recipe from Great Grandma Cula Magnusson that is traditionally served at our Magnusson's Thanksgiving meal. My friend, Melissa, requested that I post this recipe.

Fruit Salad

Hello Fall! Goodbye summer!

Fall is my favorite season. I love the fall weather, starting of a new school year, and planting my fall vegetables garden.

The one thing I will greatly miss about summer are the summer fruits. Almost EVERY DAY for dinner this summer I have served a fruit salad. Below is a picture of one we had last night.

Included in this salad is:

• Watermellon
• Cantalope
• Honey dew melon
• Green grapes

Other fruits that I have included in other salads are:

• Pineapple
• Bananas
• Strawberries
• Kiwi
• Red grapes
• Apricots
• Peaches
• Nectarines
• Mango

In our town of Duarte, we have local food markets that sell produce at a fraction of the cost of grocery store chains. I can go into one of these markets and for $20 have a basket full of fresh fruits and vegetables to last the week.

We have a lime tree in our neighbor's yard that hangs over our fence. We love to slice a few up and squirt some lime juice our our fruit salads to give it a lime zip to the salad.

Lisa served fruit for a work event the other day. She said she served about 100 people for $22. She went to a local market that sold fresh fruit. She bought watermelon, cantaloupes, honey dew melons, grapes, and pineapple. She said she would have bought strawberries but the market didn't have any that day. Then she cut the fruit into big chunks and put them on skewers, and served the skewers off a serving platter. That was a great idea to serve lots of people fruit.

Goodbye summer and fruit salad. Hello fall and homemade apple sauce and apple crisp. (Made from apples grown on our apple tree in our back yard.)

Pasta Veggie Fruit Salad

This is a super dish to make up in the morning. Then, when dinner time comes and everyone is hot and tired, just set this dish on the table. Voila! Dinner is served.

Pasta Veggie Fruit Salad

1 1/2 cups uncooked spiral pasta
1 1/2 cups chicken, cooked and cubed
1 1/2 cups celery, chopped
1 cup green grapes, halved
1 can (11 oz.) mandarin oranges, drained
1 can (6 oz.) water chestnuts, drained
1/4 cup green pepper, chopped
1/4 cup red onion, chopped

Dressing

1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup ranch dressing
Salt and pepper to taste

Cook the pasta. While it is cooking, chop rest of ingredients and mix. Mix dressing together. Add pasta and mix everything. Chill. Garnish with toasted slivered almonds if desired.

Living on a Dime Newsletter has done it again. I found this in my email and it looks like a great, easy, delicious summer time dish. www.LivingOnADime.com

Pies Baked in a Jar

I ran across this recipe by accident. It looked so clever and cute I had to post the link to the recipe. Click here to see how to make these pies in a jar.

Freezer Jam

There are a couple of signs that let us know when spring is here at the Mag Pad.  One, is when the flowers on our front hill are in bloom. (click onto the picture to get a better view of the flowers)

Another sign of spring is when we replenish our strawberry jam supply.

Making homemade freezer jam is so easy. Just follow the directions that come in the Sure-Jell Fruit Pectin box for freezer strawberry jam. I buy the Sure-Jell Fruit Pectin box from Smart and Final along with the 8 oz plastic containers that I put the jam in. You can be sure we always make enough jam to last us until next the spring.

Please pass the peanut butter and jelly sandwich. (made with homemade strawberry jam, of course!)

March 18, 2024

The last few times I bought the Sure-Jell package, the paper with  recipe isn't included inside the box, so I found the recipe online here.  

Ingredients

• 2 cups crushed strawberries (buy 1 qt. fully ripe strawberries)
• 4 cups sugar, measured into separate bowl
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 pkg SURE-JELL Fruit Pectin 

Instructions

Step 1

Rinse 5 (1-cup) plastic containers and lids with boiling water. Dry thoroughly. Remove and discard strawberry stems. Crush strawberries thoroughly, 1 cup at a time. Measure exactly 2 cups prepared fruit into large bowl. Stir in sugar. Let stand 10 min., stirring occasionally.

Step 2

Mix water and pectin in small saucepan. Bring to boil on high heat, stirring constantly. Continue boiling and stirring 1 min. Add to fruit mixture; stir 3 min. or until most the sugar is dissolved. (A few sugar crystals may remain.)

Step 3

Fill containers immediately to within 1/2 inch of tops. Wipe off top edges of containers; immediately cover with lids. Let stand at room temperature 24 hours. Jam is now ready to use. Store in refrigerator up to 3 weeks or in freezer up to 1 year. (If frozen, thaw in refrigerator before using.)

Fruit Biscotti

Click on the above picture to see a larger version of the recipe.

I got this recipe from my Sister-in-law, Lynn, when I asked if she had a good "healthy appetizer". When she sent this recipe, she said, "It tasted yummy and wasn't very hard either. It was a little card we get in the mail, every so often, from our Real Estate guy."

I just made this recipe and in the section for the top/filling I replaced the 1/4 cup sugar with 1/2 cup powdered sugar. It made the white top/filling a little more light and fluffy.

Strawberry Salsa

SALSA:

2 granny smith apples

1 kiwi

1 cup strawberries (fresh is best, frozen will work)

2 TBS jam (raspberry/strawberry)

2 TBS orange juice

Chop fruit into tiny pieces. Mix in jam and orange juice. Let set in fridge for at least one hour.

CHIPS:

10-15 medium sized flour tortillas

butter

cinnamon sugar

Butter entire tortilla. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top, covering entire tortilla. Cut into chip-sized pieces. Place on cookie sheet. Heat in oven at 375* for 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool completely before serving.

Oh my heavens! If it's this delicious in the middle of January when the fruit is out of season, I can't wait to try it during the summer!  I found this recipe in my former roommate's family cookbook. (Thanks, Nancy!)

Yakima Fruit Paste (Home remedy for constipation)

Home remedy for constipation
DOSE: 1 – 2 tablespoons per day

1 lb raisins
1 lb prunes
1 lb figs
4 ounces Senna tea (herbal tea – caffeine free - look for it in your health food store)
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup lemon juice

1. Prepare tea – use about 2 ½ cup boiled water added to tea and steep 5 minutes

2. Strain tea to remove tea leave and add only 1 pint tea to a large pot, then add fruit

3. Boil fruit and tea for 5 minutes

4. Remove from heat and add sugar & lemon juice. Allow to cool.

5. Use hand mixer or food processor to blend fruit mixture into smooth paste

6. Place in plastic container and place in freezer (paste will not freeze but will keep forever in freezer.)

7. Spoon out what you require each day

Enjoy eating it straight off the spoon.
Spread it on toast or add hot water and make a drink.

If the fruit paste is not working (you are not having bowel movements), then you need to increase the amount of fruit paste you are taking.

If the fruit paste makes you have very loose stools, then you need to cut down on the amount of fruit paste you are taking. Perhaps even taking it every other day in some cases.

I ran across this recipe from my past. I made this recipe a lot when I was serving as Relief Society president and was helping the older sisters in our ward. I think the best way to eat is is as a spread on their toast. Anyway, it's one of those recipies that is nice to have on hand.