Tag Archives: summer berries

Happy Fourth of July! – A Red, White and Blue Breakfast

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Happy Fourth of J-J-J-July.

As a child, this is how I said it.

I didn’t have a stutter, or any kind of speech problems. But when the 4th day of the 7th month rolled around, that’s how I said it.

I could say July. But it was always 4th of J-J-J-July.

I have no explanation for this.

But 20-odd years later, my parents still say it like that to each other.

Shrug.

I was an odd child.

I blame it on not having siblings.

But back to breakfast.

Let’s kick off the day with a patriotic, red, white and blue burst of yogurt and summer berries.

A bowl of Chobani vanilla yogurt, striped with bright red raspberries and crisp and tart blackberries.

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What’s more American and more summery than a bowl of berries?

Happy 4th to you all.

Enjoy a day of barbecues, beach, and most importantly, family.

Bushberry Cake – Slightly Modified

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Earlier today I was extolling the virtues of summer berries. And then, as if they read my mind, Chatelaine posted this amazing recipe.

Bushberry Cake

You may scratch your head when you read the name, but when you read the ingredients and how easy it is, you will just say oh my gosh I need that.

Now, admittedly, I changed up this recipe a bit. The original calls for cranberries and I used dried cherries. It also calls for a whiskey butter sauce. Now, I love me a good boozy sauce as much as the next gal, but remember that over-indulgent weekend we had? Yea, we’re still working it off. So I ditched the sauce and turned the Bushberry Cake from dessert to breakfast pastry.

I hope you don’t mind my creative license, Chatelaine.

If you want to make it the real way, here’s the recipe.

I pretty much followed the cake part of the recipe as listed.

  • 1.5 cups flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • .5 tsp salt
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter
  • .5 cup sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • raspberries
  • dried cherries (the recipe calls for cranberries, but the grocery store didn’t have them. dried cherries give the same tart notes, plus I already had them)

Preheat the oven to 400.

In a large bowl cream together the butter (room temperature) and the sugar and the vanilla.

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Measure out the flour and baking powder in a small bowl. (I just used my measuring cup to save bowls)

Pour the milk out into another small bowl.

Alternate adding the flour mix and the milk to the butter and sugar, stirring well with each addition, until all of the ingredients are combined.

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Gently stir in the raspberries and the cherries.

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Pour the mix into a 9×9 greased baking dish.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the cake is golden brown.

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My kitchen smelled like butter and sugar and fresh raspberries.

Who needs scented candles when you have warm, summery baked goods in the oven?

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The beauty of a glass dish is seeing the little punctuation marks of berries scattered in the batter.

Summer Berries

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My other summer obsession?

The explosion of bright, tangy, sweet, tart berries!

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Really does anything say summer more than a bowl full of berries?

Sweet juicy strawberries sliced in half, bright pops of a blueberry exploding in your mouth, bright tart raspberries.

My new favorite addition to the mix, dried tart cherries.

They really punctuate the brightness of the berries with their chewiness.

Instead of yogurt, try cottage cheese.

Yummm.

Breakfast on the Fly

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Good, good, goooood… good morning! ba ba ba abababa.

No I’m not this chipper in the morning. But that’s what I wake up to.

My alarm sings good morning.

Isn’t that so much better to wake up to than some high pitched beeping?

It makes me giggle before I’ve even opened my eyes.

So why am I setting an alarm on a Saturday?

Well, we have to head to Jersey for some family time. So it’s up and breakfast and coffee and out the door.

Breakfast is my favorite meal. I can eat breakfast foods all day. Speaking of which, breakfast for dinner hasn’t happened in a while… hmm… maybe this week.

It doesn’t even have to be some fancy homemade breakfast to make me happy. I’m such a cereal junky. I could eat cereal all day. All day.

I love opening the cabinet, pulling out a box of cereal and transforming it. Transform cereal? Yup. Add some fruit or some chopped nuts. Change up your milk. A hint of coconut milk over otherwise boring bran flakes and you have a tropical start to your day. A sprinkle of cinnamon and some peaches over corn flakes and you have a peach cobblery start to your day.

This morning?

It’s summer and it’s berry season.

Blueberries and raspberries tumbled over some honey nut Cheerios. A tiny sprinkle of chopped hazelnuts for a nod to Italian flavors.

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He, on the other hand, is the egg master. Check out those perfectly yellow, gooey yolks! Those red flecks? Armenian red pepper. Does it have a real name? Yes. Can I even begin to spell it or say it? No.

But any Middle Eastern food store would know what you mean. It’s spicy. And it gets spicier as you cook it. (I learned that the hard way the first time I added it to my lentil soup.)

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It took us maybe ten minutes to brew coffee, make eggs and concoct a cereal blend. You have ten minutes in the morning. And if you don’t, it’s totally worth waking up a little earlier to have your breakfast at home, on your couch, instead of while walking to work or while sitting at your desk.

Try it!