Blackberry Limeade

I made a pretty awesome drink with blackberries and limes. The first time I made the drink, I made it with sour blackberries from my friend's garden. I wanted to post the recipe, but then I realized that the drink had WAY too much sugar in it to mask the sourness of the berries, so I remade the drink with store bought berries. You don't even want to know how much sugar was in the first batch I made...

Last night I made the blackberry limeade to go along with dinner. It's really tasty and refreshing - make sure to serve it over ice! Enjoy.

4 ounces of Blackberry Limeade over ice -
SO tasty & refreshing!

Recipe for Blackberry Limeade

INGREDIENTS:
For the blackberry syrup:
4 cups of blackberries (fresh, not frozen)
1 cup of granulated sugar
3 ounces of water
For the lime syrup:
1 medium-sized lime, cut in very thin slices
1/2 cup of granulated sugar
1/2 cup of water
To mix in:
1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lime juice
5 1/2 cups of chilled water

DIRECTIONS:
For the blackberry syrup:
Put the blackberries in a medium-sized saucepan. Pour the 3 ounces of water and 1 cup of sugar over the berries, and gently stir. Place the saucepan over medium-high heat, and bring the mixture to a boil. Continue to boil for 5 minutes, stirring the mixture constantly. After 5 minutes, lower the heat to medium. Continue to boil the mixture on medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove the saucepan from heat and turn off stove. Carefully pour the mixture, in small batches, through a fine mesh sieve into a heat safe bowl. After pouring a small batch into the sieve, press down on the berries with a spoon or fork to extract as much juice as possible into the bowl, then discard the berries before pouring the next batch (you do not want any berries in the bowl, all you want is the liquid). Let the blackberry syrup cool at room temperature.
For the lime syrup:
Pour the 1/2 cup water and 1/2 cup sugar into a small saucepan. Put the saucepan over medium heat and allow the sugar to dissolve. Once the sugar dissolves and the mixture simmers, lower the heat. Add the thin lime slices to the sugar/water mixture, and arrange in a single layer. Allow the mixture to simmer on low for 20 minutes, flipping the limes over halfway through the process. After 20 minutes, remove the saucepan from heat and turn off stove. Carefully pour the mixture and limes into an airtight container and set aside to cool.

Once the blackberry syrup and lime syrup have cooled, pour them into a 2-quart drink pitcher. Make sure to add in the limes from the lime syrup. Add in the 1/2 cup of fresh lime juice. Pour in the 5 1/2 cups of chilled water. Stir. Put the pitcher in the fridge to chill for about an hour before serving. When ready to serve, pour into glasses filled with ice. I think 4 - 6 ounces is a nice treat - but Greg said he'd be able to drink 32 ounces of the blackberry limeade. Do what you think is best!

-Original Recipe-

Cantaloupe Sorbet

Wow, it is hot for the end of August! I started back to work last week and it seemed like it was cooling down, but it is a much different story this week. I started working at a new elementary school, and I am in a "relocatable" - otherwise known as a portable or trailer. Today I had to walk back and forth between the "relocatable" and the school building all day long. Now I am home and I am craving something cool and sweet, so I think I'm going to make this cantaloupe sorbet. Greg has been working on difficult house projects and other tasks all day, and he deserves some sorbet too!

I first made this sorbet about a month ago, and it was really good. Greg's parents came for a quick visit and they gave us a cantaloupe that was on the verge of being too ripe to eat, so I decided to make the sorbet. The sorbet was best on the day it was made. Although it was still good the next day, it became pretty rock solid and was difficult to scoop! I'm excited to make it again. Enjoy!

Don't you think Greg deserves
some cantaloupe sorbet? I sure think he does!

Recipe for Cantaloupe Sorbet
INGREDIENTS:
1 large & very ripe cantaloupe, peeled and seeded
1 1/2 Tbsp. of freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 Tbsp. of cooking sherry
3 Tbsp. of sugar syrup (see directions below)
3 Tbsp. of cream

DIRECTIONS:
Cut the melon into 2-inch pieces and pulse in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade until smooth. Add in the lemon juice, cooking sherry, sugar syrup, and cream. Process until the mixture is completely smooth. Pour mixture into a bowl and cover. Refrigerate for at least one hour.

Once chilled, carefully pour the mixture into the bowl of an automatic ice cream maker and make sorbet according to ice cream maker manufacturer directions.

To make the sugar syrup: Combine 1/2 cup of granulated sugar and 1/2 cup of water in a small saucepan. Put the saucepan over medium heat and stir mixture until the sugar is dissolved. Simmer the mixture for about 5 - 8 minutes, or until it is syrupy. Allow the syrup to cool completely before using in the sorbet mixture.

Extra sugar syrup can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

Recipe Adapted from: The Pleasures of Cooking 

Peach Kuchen

Last week I spent some time with my parents, since I was trying to avoid the craziness of my home renovations. On Wednesday I went to PA with my parents and a friend. We lived large in York, PA. First we hit a discount department store, then we ate at Five Guys, and before we left town we stopped at not one but TWO farmer's markets. We came home with apples, nectarines, and tons of peaches.

My mom and I decided to make a peach kuchen, which is something my mom used to make years ago during the summer. It was delicious. I invited my aunt over to try the peach kuchen. At first glance, she told my mom she had never tried it before, but once she had her first bite the memories came rushing back. She told my mom that she could remember her making it and she recognized the taste. Dana described the peach kuchen on my Facebook page: "The peach kuchen was wonderful. Flaky pastry, creamy custard and sliced peaches. Tasted like summer on a fork!" Now, doesn't that make you want to go and make some peach kuchen for yourself? It doesn't get much better than summer on a fork!

Recipe for Peach Kuchen

INGREDIENTS:
For the crust:
1 1/4 cup of all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. of salt
1 stick of unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 8 pieces
2 Tbsp. of sour cream
For the custard filling:
3 egg yolks
1/3 cup of sour cream
1 cup of granulated sugar
1/4 tsp. of salt
1/4 cup of all purpose flour
4 ripe medium-sized peaches - peeled, pitted, and cut into thick slices

DIRECTIONS:
For the crust:
Put the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse briefly to just combine. Scatter the butter pieces evenly in the flour mixture. Pulse several times until the mixture resembles crumbs. Add in the sour cream and turn on the food processor; mix until a ball forms. Carefully take the dough out of the food processor. Shape it into a flat disc and then place the dough in a 9" removable tart pan. Press the dough evenly on the bottom of the pan and on the sides of the pan.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. While oven is preheating, rinse and dry the bowl of the food processor. Bake the crust at 375 in the center rack of the oven for 20 minutes. Remove the pan after 20 minutes and transfer it to a cooling rack. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
For the custard filling:
While the crust is cooling, put the egg yolks, sour cream, sugar, salt, and flour in the bowl of the food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse for several seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and pulse for about 10 - 15 more seconds. Pour 1/2 of the custard filling mixture over the cooled crust. Put the peach slices over the crust. Start on the outside and work your way in to the center, slightly overlapping the peaches as needed. Pour the rest of the custard filling mixture evenly over the peaches. Cover the outside edges of the tart pan with foil to avoid the edges of the crust from burning. Bake for about 50 - 55 minutes, or until the top is set and no longer runny. Serve the kuchen warmed or at room temperature. No need to top with any extras - it's perfect as it is! Enjoy.

Source: The Pleasures of Cooking 

NOTE: My mom taught me something new while we were making the peach kuchen. You can easily peel the peaches if you blanch them first. To blanch the peaches, bring a pot of water to a boil. Drop the peaches in the boiling water, make sure they are submerged, and boil for 40 seconds . Remove the peaches with a slotted spoon and let cool for about one minute. Pat the peaches dry with a paper towel. Now the peaches should much easier to peel!

*If you want a chance at winning an Amazon gift card, please check out my giveaway page!*

Who Likes to Win Prizes? I know I do!

Oh, how I love these coconut truffles! It is definitely my favorite recipe that I have posted thus far. My favorite healthy recipe that I have posted would have to be these sweet potato tacos. Mmm!

I am so happy that I started this food blog. It has been a lot of fun to share recipes with you, and it is great to have a place for me to keep all of my favorite recipes. I wish I could just cook, blog, and eat all day long. Unfortunately, I have to go back to work.

My summer has ended. I am feeling totally bummed about this. I had tons of things that I wanted to accomplish over the summer, but they did not get done. I am overwhelmed about all the money we are spending on home projects (and hoping they get done right), starting back to work, and going back to SCHOOL for the first time in over 6 years! I thought it would be fun to run a contest - to help to cheer me up & maybe it'll cheer you up too. Because contests are fun!

I am giving away one AMAZON gift card, which will be delivered to the winner's email box. Do you want to win? If so, read on for contest details:

OFFICIAL RULES:
-The contest will start on Sunday, August 19th at 4:30 PM EST and end on Friday August 31st at 8 PM EST.

-You may enter by leaving a comment on your favorite recipe on the blog OR by pinning your favorite recipe to your Pinterest page (by the way, now everyone can register with Pinterest & you do not need to wait for an account invite). It can be either a favorite recipe that you have tried, or one that you want to try. 

-If you leave a comment on a blog post, please use your first name and last initial. If you leave it anonymously, I will not know who you are. If you pin a recipe to Pinterest, please leave a separate comment on THIS post to let me know you did so. 

-If you would like the chance to enter TWO TIMES, then you can leave a comment on your favorite recipe AND pin your favorite recipe. Remember to comment on this post if you pin a recipe. 

-You can also get another contest entry if you like Bake It and Make It with Beth on Facebook. If you already have liked the page prior to today's post, you will automatically qualify for this extra entry. Please note, you do not get one entry just simply by liking the page - you must comment or pin - this just qualifies you for an automatic extra entry.

-The winner will be selected by random on August 31st. I will post the winner on the blog shortly after August 31st, and the winner will be notified. 

-The grand prize will be a gift card to Amazon.com in the amount of $25, which will be delivered to the winner's email box.

I hope you will participate! This will be fun :0)

* This contest is fully sponsored by Bake It and Make It with Beth and is not affiliated with Amazon.com.*