I'm the winner ... I feel so random / winter fruit salad with pomegranate

"We are happy to let you know that your blog was randomly selected as the winner for this week's Foodie Blogroll "POM Wonderful Comment to Win Giveaway" giveaway!
You will receive a receive a package containing: 1 bottle of each flavor of POM Juice (100%, Blueberry, Mango, Cherry, Kiwi, Nectarine) 1 POMx Tea, 1 POMx Iced Coffee, a POM branded journal, a POM pen and a POM branded tote bag made from recycled goods!"



This is the email I recently received with the good news that I won a gift package from Pom Wonderful. I've been feeling kind of unlucky lately with my back and all, and this certainly cheered me up. The package came, and I'm excited to be sampling all the Pom flavors. (The iced coffee and the bars contain dairy so I won't be sampling them. And there wasn't a tote bag.)

First I tried the blueberry-pomegranate juice and it was delicious, though I thought the blueberry flavor was overpowered by the pomegranate. My son thought the opposite so I guess you'll have to taste that one for yourself. The cherry flavor, on the other hand, came through loud and strong. Mostly I just drink the juice rather than use it for cooking, but I did use some of the cherry-pomegranate juice for a fruit salad I was concocting for dessert.



Winter fruit salad with pomegranate
For the salad I used one large org. honey crisp apple, one large org. red bartlett pear, one large org. navel orange, two small org. bananas and one pomegranate. The apple and pear were cut into small cubes, the orange was peeled and each segment cut into thirds, the bananas were sliced. The pomegranate seeds were mixed into the salad except for about 1/3 cup which was held back and placed on top.

Before peeling the orange I zested about a teaspoon of the peel to use in the dressing. First, as the fruit was added to the bowl, it was mixed with the juice of half a small lemon to keep it from browning. When all the fruit was cut and mixed together, I made a simple sauce of about 1/4 cup of cherry POM juice with a small splash of vanilla, and the orange zest. This was mixed with the salad before it was topped with the extra seeds. The juice gave the fruit a mellow, rosy glow and a gentle, undertone of mysterious flavor. Along with small baked goods, it was a very pleasant way to end a casual company dinner.

Now I'm off to sample another POM flavor!

Plum crisp, easy and delicious

I was trying to clear out the refrigerator and make room for a new fruit share box and I was staring at a bag of red plums at the point of use 'em or loose 'em. When we signed up for a bi-weekly fruit share from our CSA, we didn't realize what we were getting into. We already split a veggie share with friends and we each take a box on alternate weeks, so it seemed we'd be able to use up the fruit in two weeks. Not so. We eat a LOT of fruit but it's never enough. With the plums, I meant to make a batch of plum and apricot chutney, but just plum forgot all about it. (sorry) As I looked at the bag, all I could think of was apple crisp made with plums. I should have looked on the Web for ideas but that would have meant another trip upstairs, so I just went at it, hoping for the best. I did keep track of what I did—pretty basic but really delicious.

Plum crisp
12 ripe red plums, cut in half and stones removed
two tablespoons sucanot
two tablespoons spelt flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Topping
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup sucanot (or other evaporated cane juice)
1/4 cup spelt flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch salt
two (or three if you want it richer) tablespoons vegan margarine (Earth Balance)

Lay the plum halves cut side up in a large baking pan. Sprinkle with two tablespoons sugar, two tablespoons spelt flour and 1 teaspoon cinnamon.
In a medium sized bowl, mix together the rolled oats, sucanot,spelt flour, cinnamon and salt. Cut in the margarine with a pastry blender (if you have such a thing) or two knives (or your clean fingers) until it looks like bread crumbs.
Spread the topping evenly over the plums.
Bake in a preheated 375˚ oven for about 40 minutes or until the plums are soft. If the topping starts to get too brown, cover with a sheet of foil.

Pancakes with blueberry topping

Every once in a while I need pancakes. But does anyone really need another pancake recipe? No, I don't think so, but here's one anyway. I made these without looking at a recipe - no following directions to tax my bleary morning mind - and they are pretty basic. My husband and I both enjoyed the results. You could use maple syrup on your pancakes but I prefer blueberries.

First make the topping. It's basically the same as for the french toast post except this time I measured. Makes about two cups of not-very-sweet topping. (Pour the cold leftovers over your morning oatmeal tomorrow.)
Blueberry topping
1 cup organic apple juice
2 cups frozen or fresh blueberries
2 teaspoons arrowroot plus 1 tablespoon water
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Heat juice and blueberries to boiling. Add arrowroot to water and stir to dissolve. Add to blueberries and bubble gently, briefly, until thickened. Turn off heat and add vanilla. I like this on the tart side but adding a tablespoon or two of maple syrup, agave nectar, or rice syrup will punch up the sweetness and enhance the flavor. If you like your topping thicker, use only 3/4 cup juice.

Pancakes - makes about 16 medium
1-1/2 cups soy milk
1 tablespoon cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
pinch cinnamon
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon sucanot
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Put the soymilk and vinegar into the blender to sit for a minute and curdle. Add the rest and buzz a few times. Scrape down the sides. Don't over-blend or the pancakes could be tough. We don't want that. Heat a non-stick griddle until drops of water hiss. Pour the batter into 3 or 4 inch pancakes. When the edges begin to look dry and bubbles form on the surface, flip the pancakes and cook briefly until the bottom is golden. (Flours differ in moisture content so you may need to add a bit more liquid to get the right consistency.)

What's for dessert?: baked apples

It was a grey, gloomy, unusually warm day. Since we're still buried under heaps of snow, the warm air in contact with the snow caused a dense fog. This kind of dense, damp, dreary day makes me want an old-fashioned, comforting dessert – like baked apples. Baked apples are so ordinary that no one ever thinks of making them, or serving them to company, but that's also what makes them special. They are so cheerful that when people see them they are always surprised and delighted. And they are as easy to make as a dessert can be.

Use baking apples. (Cortlands are really good but don't use red delicious.) Core the apples. The easiest way to core apples is with an apple corer. Set the apple on a wooden board and place the corer into the apple at the stem so that it is perpendicular to the board. Don't worry if the apple is tilting. Aim straight down.

Peel the top inch or so of each apple. Put the cored apples in a baking dish, and fill the centers with raisins or other dried fruit. (Chopped apricots are more tangy.) Carefully lift and turn each apple upside down and stuff more fruit into the hole. When all the apples are stuffed and in the dish, put about 1/2 inch of water into the dish and place into a pre-heated 400˚ oven.

Bake about 30 to 45 minutes. Different types of apples have different baking times so after 30 minutes, check each five minutes or so until they are soft but still holding their shape. Baste the apples with the liquid a few times during baking if you remember. If not, baste when you take them out. At this point you can sprinkle with a little cinnamon and serve the apples warm or chilled.

I threw a handful of cranberries into the dish for the last ten minutes of baking time (I baked my apples for 45 minutes) intending to use the berries for decoration on the serving plate. At the last minute, I decided to make a sauce instead.
I put about 1/4 cup of brown rice syrup into a small saucepan and warmed it up. To this I added the liquid and cranberries that were in the baking dish. I dissolved about a teaspoon of arrowroot in a tablespoon of water and added it to the bubbling syrup, cooking until clear and slightly thickened. I removed the pot from the heat, stirred in a teaspoon of vanilla and poured the sauce over the apples. Beautiful and yummy.

Fresh seasonal fruit: pears

A friend in Florida sent us a box of organic apples and pears for the holidays. The pears are in a bowl, ripening, and I've been imagining pear desserts like poached pears with cranberries and caramel, pear upside-down cake and pear crisp. We'll see. They may all be eaten fresh!

French toast for breakfast

What's come over me. I was lying in bed thinking about french toast and how I would make it if I weren't so lazy and the next thing I knew I was in the kitchen. No company, no kids — just two of us and I was pulling bread out of the freezer and grabbing for the blender.

First I made a simple topping starting with frozen wild blueberries (hey, it's winter) and apple juice, thickened with arrowroot. I didn't measure, sorry, but there was probably about 3/4 cup each of fruit and juice and a level tablespoon of arrowroot softened in a tablespoon of water and added to the bubbling fruit mix and cooked until clear and thickened. I ended up with leftovers.

Here's the recipe for french toast
Whole wheat bread slices (there's probably enough batter for 6 to 8 slices)
1-1/4 cups soymilk (plain or vanilla)
1/2 cup raw cashews
1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon evaporated cain juice (Sweeten to your personal taste. If you're going to top the French toast with maple syrup or jam, you might want it less sweet. I used 1 teaspoon)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (to your taste)
pinch salt (optional)

Blend everything (except the bread, of course) for 2 to 3 minutes until it's liquified. Put the bread slices in a shallow pan and pour the batter over. Turn the bread to soak up the batter on both sides. You'll have to coat the bread in shifts, soaking the remaining bread while the first batch sizzles on the stove.

Spray a non-stick griddle (or cast iron pan or wok or whatever you have) with canola oil and heat until a drop of water sprinkled on the surface, hisses. Cook the slices over medium heat until nice and brown and no longer wet. Turn several times for even cooking. Put on plates and pour on the topping of your choice — blueberry sauce, maple syrup, all-fruit jam. Enjoy.