Plum Tarte Tatin

• 2 1/4 pounds sweet firm plums, halved, pitted
• 2 tablespoons plus 2/3 cup sugar, divided
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon peel
• 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
• 6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 sheet frozen puff pastry (half of 17.3-ounce package), thawed

1. Roll out puff pastry. Cut a 9 inch circle, and chill for up to one day.
2. Peel half of the plums. In a bowl, mix all the plums with 2 tbsp sugar, lemon juice, lemon rind, nutmeg and the seeds from the vanilla bean. Let sit for 30 minutes.
3. Melt butter in a ovenproof 9 inch skillet over medium heat. Once melted, sprinkle the remaining sugar over the butter.
4. Place the plums in concentric circles in the butter, cut side up. Pour the juices from the bowl over the plums. Simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. The syrup will have thickened slightly. Let cool for 10 minutes.
5. Heat oven to 400.
6. Once the plums have cooled, cover them with the puff pastry.
7. Bake for about 30 minutes, until pastry is golden. Let cool at least 30 minutes, up to 4 hours.
8. To flip onto a platter, heat the tarte for 3 minutes in a hot oven to loosen it. Place platter over skillet and flip (make sure you’re wearing an oven mit!) Let stand for 30 minutes.

Add the frozen berries, water and sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to boil without stirring. Mix together the potato flour and water to form a smooth runny paste and add slowly and stirring into the berry mixture. Let the soup come “to bubble”, and then take off the heat. Spoon into serving bowls and serve on its own or with porridge, you could even try it with a bit of natural yoghurt. If you’re not serving the soup immediately, sprinkle the top with a bit of caster sugar to avoid a “film” forming on the top.

Fruit Pizza with White Chocolate

ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 large eggs
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 (12-ounce) package white chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 pint strawberries, sliced
1/2 pint blueberries
1/2 pint blackberries
1/2 pint raspberries
1/2 cup white sugar
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 cup pineapple juice
1 tsp. lemon juice

instructions:
1.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 C).  Lightly grease a large (13×15 inch) baking sheet.
2.  Cream together butter, shortening, and 1 1/2 cups sugar with an electric mixer.  Beat in eggs.  In a separate bowl, stir together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt.  Beat flour mixture into butter mixture to form a stiff dough.  Press dough into a 1/2-inch thick rectangle on prepared baking sheet.
3.  Bake in the preheated oven for 14 minutes or until light brown.  Let cool on a wire rack.
4.  Meanwhile, in medium microwave-safe bowl, microwave white chocolate and whipping cream on high for 1 minute or until chips are melted and smooth after stirring.  Beat in cream cheese with electric mixer until creamy.  Spread on cookie crust.
5.  Arrange fruit over filling.  In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch, pineapple juice and lemon juice.  Stir and cook until sugar dissolves and mixture thickens.  Pour over fruit.  Refrigerate until serving.  Store leftovers in refrigerator.

Yield:  15 servings

Japanese Cucumber Salad

recipe by Shelisa ~ Big2Beautiful

1 English cucumber, thinly sliced
1 Diakon (Japanese radish), thinly sliced
1/2 cup Rice vinegar
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
1 tablespoon + 1/4 teaspoon salt, divided
8 ounces Imitation Krab Meat, chopped
8 ounces cooked Shrimp, butterflied
2 teaspoons Black Sesame Seeds

Using a vegetable peeler, remove the outer skin from the Diakon (radish). Use a mandolin, food processor or sharp knife to slice the radish and cucumber into very thin slices. Place the vegetables in a bowl with 1 tablespoon salt and 3 cups water. Let soak in salt water for 10 minutes, then drain and squeeze gently to remove any excess water.
Combine vinegar, water, sugar, ginger and the remaining salt in a medium bowl, whisk to dissolve. Place the cucumbers and radish is a serving dish, top with the krab meat and shrimp, pour the dressing over the entire dish and sprinkle the black sesame seeds.

Oatmeal Fudge Bars
Makes ~25 bars


Crust & Topping:
1 cup quick-cooking oats
1 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Filling:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 tsp instant espresso or instant coffee
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 large egg

1. For the crust and topping: Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 325F. Line an 8-inch square baking pan with a foil sling and grease the foil with nonstick baking spray.

2. Whisk the oats, brown sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Stir in the melted butter until combined. Reserve 3/4 cup of the oat mixture for the topping.

3. Sprinkle the remaining oat mixture into the prepared pan and press into an even layer with the bottom of a measuring cup. Bake the crust until light golden brown, about 8 minutes. Let the crust cool completely on a wire rack, about 1 hour.

4. For the filling: Whisk the flour, sugar, instant espresso, and salt together in a medium bowl. Melt the chocolate chips and butter together in the microwave, stirring often, 1 to 3 minutes. Transfer the chocolate mixture to a large bowl and let cool slightly. Whisk in the egg until combined. Stir in the flour mixture until just incorporated.

5. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 325F. Spread the filling evenly over the cooled crust and smooth the top. Sprinkle with the reserved oat topping. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached and the filling begins to pull away from the sides of the pan, 25-30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking.

6. Set on a wire rack and let the bars cool completely in the pan, about 2 hours. Remove the bars from the pan using the foil, cut into squares, and serve.

Nut and Zucchini Crackers

1/2 cup golden flax seeds - ground
3/4 cup purified water
1 medium zucchini - roughly chopped
2 cups walnuts or pecans - soaked in purified water for 4 hours
handful of fresh mint (optional) - chopped
poppy seeds for sprinkling

In a bowl, combine the ground flax and water and let sit until the water is absorbed. In a food processor, pulse the zucchini into small pieces and add to the flax. Chop the nuts in a food processor until finely ground and add to the bowl. Add the chopped mint and mix thoroughly with your hands. Spread on Teflex sheets. Sprinkle with poppy seeds and embed them into the cracker with wet hands. Dehydrate at 115F for 6 hours. Remove the teflex sheets, flip, and dehydrate for three more hours. Cut into desired cracker size, and dehydrate for 11 hours or until crisp. Keep refrigerated in an air tight container.

Cauliflower Green Pea Spread

1 head cauliflower - florets only
1/2 cup cashew or macadamia nuts
1/2 tablespoon garam masala (a spice blend that can be found at any Indian market)
2 teaspoons chunky chat masala (a spice blend that can be found at any Indian market)
1/2 tablespoon chopped ginger
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 cup filtered water
salt and pepper to taste
1 cup fresh or thawed frozen peas
handful of fresh mint or cilantro - chopped

In a food processor, pulse the cauliflower to make small pieces. Put the nuts, spices, ginger, lime juice, and water into a blender and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper. In a shallow dish, combine the cauliflower, peas, and the blended nut creme. Dehydrate at 115F for 2 hours, mix occasionally. Place the mixture into a food processor and blend until spreadable but with texture. Place into a bowl and mix in the mint or cilantro. Keep refrigerated in an airtight container.

Eggplant Spread
Marinade:
1 teaspoon chopped ginger
6 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons lemon juice
5 tablespoons nama shoyu
1 teaspoon sesame oil
3 tablespoons agave syrup
1 clove of garlic - chopped

The rest:
2 Japanese eggplants or 1 peeled large conventional eggplant - sliced
2 teaspoons salt
1 red or yellow bell pepper - thinly sliced
10 cherry tomatoes (optional) - cut in half
2 tablespoons sesame tahini
black pepper and salt to taste
1 bunch of dill or parsley
1/2 cup walnuts (optional) - chopped
2 cloves of garlic - chopped

Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a bowl and set aside. Put the sliced eggplant into a bowl, mix with 2 teaspoons of salt, and let sit for 30 minutes. Rinse with water and gently squeeze out the extra liquid. Place the eggplant into a shallow dish and pour about 2/3 of the marinade over it. Mix thoroughly. Place the dish in a dehydrator at 115F for 6 hours, mix occasionally. Pour the rest of the marinade over the sliced bell pepper, mix, and place in a dehydrator at 115F for 2 hours, mix occasionally. To intensify the flavour of the tomatoes, dehydrate them 115F until they shrink a little. After dehydration, drain the excess liquid and put the eggplant, bell pepper, and tomatoes in a food processor and pulse until roughly chopped. Add the tahini, pepper and salt (if needed), and blend until smooth. Transfer to a mixing bowl, add the dill, walnuts, and the remaining garlic. Mix and store in a refrigerator in a glass container.

Raspberry White Chocolate Scones
Makes 8 scones


16 tablespoons unsalted butter (2 sticks), frozen whole (you’ll only wind up using 10 tbsp, but need all 16 for this to work. I promise it makes sense.)
1 1/2 cups frozen raspberries
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus additional for work surface
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt
zest of one lemon
1/3 cup white chocolate chips
turbinado sugar to sprinkle on top

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Score and remove half of wrapper from each stick of frozen butter. Grate unwrapped ends on large holes of box grater (you should grate total of 8 tablespoons, or half of each stick). Place grated butter in freezer until needed. Melt 2 tablespoons of remaining ungrated butter and set aside. Save remaining 6 tablespoons butter for another use. Place raspberries in freezer until needed.

2. Whisk together milk and sour cream in medium bowl; refrigerate until needed. Whisk flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and lemon zest in medium bowl. Add frozen butter to flour mixture and toss with fingers until thoroughly coated.

3. Add milk mixture to flour mixture; fold with spatula until just combined. With rubber spatula, transfer dough to liberally floured work surface. Dust surface of dough with flour; with floured hands, knead dough 6 to 8 times, until it just holds together in ragged ball, adding flour as needed to prevent sticking. Handle as little as possible to get the job done.

4. Roll dough into approximate 12-inch square. Fold dough into thirds like a business letter, using bench scraper or metal spatula to release dough if it sticks to countertop. Lift short ends of dough and fold into thirds again to form approximate 4-inch square. Transfer dough to plate lightly dusted with flour and chill in freezer 5 minutes.

5. Transfer dough to floured work surface and roll into approximate 12-inch square again. Sprinkle raspberries and white chocolate chips evenly over surface of dough, then press down so they are slightly embedded in dough. Using bench scraper or thin metal spatula, loosen dough from work surface. Roll dough, pressing to form tight log. Lay seam-side down and press log into 12 by 4-inch rectangle. Using sharp, floured knife, cut rectangle crosswise into 4 equal rectangles. Cut each rectangle diagonally to form 2 triangles and transfer to parchment-lined baking sheet.

6. Brush tops with melted butter and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Bake until tops and bottoms are golden brown, 18 to 25 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and let cool 10 minutes before serving.

To Make Ahead:
After placing the scones on the baking sheet, either refrigerate them overnight or freeze. When ready to bake, for refrigerated scones, heat oven to 425 degrees and follow directions in step 6. For frozen scones, heat oven to 375 degrees, follow directions in step 6, and extend cooking time to 25 to 30 minutes.

Almond Milk
2 cups almonds - soaked overnight
6 cups water
4 dates - pitted
2 tablespoons agave
1/2 vanilla bean pod without beans OR 1/4 whole vanilla pod(I like to save the vanilla pods after I’ve scooped out the beans for other desserts. I usually keep the pods in the same glass jar as the almonds.)
Separate the ingredients in half, otherwise the blender will overflow. In a high speed blender, combine half of each ingredient at a time until thoroughly blended. Strain through a nut bag, carefully squeezing all the liquid out and reserving the pulp. Drink chilled within two days.

Almond Cookiespulp from the almond milk
1 tablespoon raw honey3-4 tablespoons raw agave nectar
2 tablespoons coconut oil
2 tablespoons coconut butter (can be substituted with 2 more tablespoons of coconut oil)
4 tablespoons mesquite powder
2 tablespoons maca powder
6 dates - pitted

Fillingsdried mango freeze dried sour cherries pistachios and 2-3 tablespoons raw cacao powder(The possibilities here are endless)
Cut the filling ingredients into small pieces and set aside. In a bowl, thoroughly mix all the cookie ingredients with your hands to form a smooth cookie dough. Taste for sweetness before forming the cookies, add more agave if necessary. If using different fillings, divide the dough into three even parts. Mix the fillings into the dough accordingly and form cookies of any shape and size of your liking. Keep refrigerated. Best enjoyed within a couple of days.