Swedish Pancakes

On a cold, cloudy Sunday my favorite way to start the day is with a home cooked brunch. My secret ingredient to a successful brunch? Swedish Pancakes. I've never been a fan of fluffy buttermilk cakes, I don't like how filling they can be, and they are sooooo last century. If I'm going to make pancakes I prefer these light airy saucers from heaven that are a sweet accompaniment to the rest of the meal. They are similar to crepes but made with less egg and have a slight crisp to their exterior. The only downside is I wouldn't recommend them for a larger party as it takes about 6 pancakes to satisfy one person. On the upside, you won't feel the need for donning your sweatpants after consumption.

Swedish Pancake Recipe

Serves 4

• 1 cup Lund's Swedish Pancake Mix (can be bought at Ralph's or WholeFoods)
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 egg
• 1 tbs melted butter
• a pinch of salt

Directions

Mix ingredients together until smooth. Batter should be thin with no lumps. Pre- heat skillet. Temperature should be high due to the thinness of these pancakes. I find that putting the burner to a medium temperature works best. There is no need to grease the skillet as you have already added butter into the batter. Slowly pour batter into skillet and let cook until lightly browned on both sides. Top with maple syrup and fruit.

Sun Kissed

I love summer. It's the time where I come to life. All winter I sit inside, cold and lethargic, reading books and sipping tea. I often feel like I'm 80. Or a sloth. And then one day the sun is shining, the air is warm, and I wake up! I have energy, I smile more and just feel happier. I take advantage of the sunny weather and beautiful warm nights.

And this summer is no exception. Which is why I kicked it off with making my first batch of Sun Tea. Fresh iced tea that is easy, fun and environmentally friendly to make. You'll also feel pretty handy that you made it all-natural. If you ask me the tea tastes fresher and more delicious than any store bought tea and you don't have to heat up your kitchen to make it. Plus you can be creative and use fun teas like white peach with mint for a great summer refresher. Enjoy the power of the sun!

Sun Tea Recipe

Courtesy of Simple Recipes

Method:

Put 4 to 6 tea bags into a clean 2 quart glass container. Fill with water and cap. Place outside where the sunlight can strike the container for about 3 to 5 hours. Move the container if necessary to keep it in the sun. Add a few tablespoons of sugar. When the tea has reached its desired strength, remove from sun and put it in the refrigerator. You may or may not want to remove the tea bags at this point. I usually don't.

The tea will probably taste more mellow than what you are used to from using boiling water. The slow seeping has a way of bringing out a slightly different flavor from the tea. Also, because you didn't use boiling water, you should refrigerate the tea and drink it up pretty quickly - a day or two. It will not keep as well as iced tea made from boiling water.

I usually make sun tea with various forms of herbal tea. Sometimes you can put in a few sprigs of fresh mint as well.

Skip the Donuts

Yay it's Friday! I hope everyone has had a great week and is about to have an even better weekend!

I wanted to end the week off right, with a better-for-your-body recipe from our Health Nut contributer Sita. With the warm weather creeping up on us and longer sunny days ahead you know what that means? Skimpier clothes. No longer can we hide behind those layers of sweaters jackets and Uggs. Cankles will be seen! Now is the time to get your fitness on so that you can look good but more importantly feel awesome.

So in conjunction with this thought, I am making a promise to myself that I will attend 1 spin class over the weekend no matter how tired, hungover or lazy I am. I also encourage you to do something good for your body that you normally wouldn't do. Whether it's going on a hike, taking a spin or yoga class or doing a few sit ups in your living room, now is the time to begin your health regiment. The way I look at it is - you never regret a work out.

And if you find yourself craving something sweet, put down the ice cream, donut, or cookie and try this gluten free and vegan fruit tart. Cheers to a happy, healthy, lifestyle!

Fresh Fruit Tart

Essentially this is a raw vegan dessert but I added a few steps such as toasting the nuts and redusing the coulis to give it a little more umf. This a great refreshing and tasty spring dessert, which is vegan and gluten free.

INGREDIENTS:

Coulis

½ cherries, fresh (pitted) or frozen (thawed)

1/3 fresh orange juice, about 1 medium orange

¼ orange zest

2 Tbs raisins

1 tsp honey or maple, only if needed

1 pinch salt

Crust/Topping

½ oz pitted dates

1/3 cup toasted walnuts

1/3 cup toasted pecans

¼ tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp vanillas extract

1 pinch salt

Filling

1 cup thinly sliced apricots ( or other stone fruit when in season)

1 cup thinly sliced strawberries

1 tsp lemon juice

1tsp honey

¼ tsp grated ginger

¾ tsp vanilla extract

PROCEDURE:

1. COULIS: Place all of the ingredients in a bowl and let sit until the raisins soften slightly, about 30 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the crust and filling.
2. Add the mixture to a blender and pure on high until smooth.
3. CRUST/TOPPING: Add the dates to a food processor and pulse until broken up. Add the rest of the ingredients and pulse until combined and the nuts are slightly chunky. Set aside.
4. FILLING: Combine all of the filling ingredients in a bowl and mix well
5. TO ASSEMBLE: Split the crust/topping mixture into two portions. In a small casserole dish, remekins, or on individual plates (using a few mold rings), sprinkle one portion of the nut mixture on the bottom and lightly compact. Evenly distribute the filling and then top with the other portion of the nut mixture. Use the coulis to decorate the plate.

Coconut Easter Cupcakes

Spoondles apologizes that it has been slacking this week. I wanted to have these Easter Cupcakes done by today but it looks like I will be making them tomorrow. This is one of my favorite recipes by Ina Garten. I've made them before and I absolutely love them, which is no surprise since my 3 favorite "c" things in the world are cream cheese frosting, coconut and cupcakes. To add an Easter flair I am going to dye the coconut shreds different colors to decorate on top. This is an easy and quick way add easter flair to your brunch or dinner. Here is the recipe in case anyone is looking to make an Easter sweet treat today.

Ingredients

• 3/4 lb unsalted butter at room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 5 extra-large eggs at room temperature
• 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 ½ teaspoons pure almond extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 14 oz sweetened, shredded coconut

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2. In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. You can also do this with a hand held mixer
3. With the mixer running on low, add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix well.
4. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In three parts, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry.
5. Mix until just combined. Fold in 7 oz of coconut
6. Line a muffin pan with paper liners. Fill each cup to the top with batter
7. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow time to cool in the pan for 15 minutes.
8. Remove to a baking rack and cool completely. Frost with cream cheese icing and sprinkle with the remaining coconut (click here to see directions for dying coconut shreds)

Cream Cheese Icing

• 1 lb cream cheese at room temperature
• 3/4 lb unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1 ½ lbs confectioners' sugar, sifted

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment or a hand held mixer, blend together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla and almond extracts. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix until smooth.

Recipe courtesy of Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

Eye Popping Popovers

As Christmas approaches and the feasts begin, I would like to give you a recipe for something a little different but that can be incorporated into your holiday meal. Popovers! These are puffy muffin-size bread with a crisp brown crust and a somewhat hollow, moist interior. They are absolutely delicious for breakfast, tea, dessert, or anytime in between, and are ridiculously easy to make. This recipe is for a sweet popover with apples and cranberries but you can also make savory ones by adding cheese, herbs or spices and substituting them for traditional rolls. They are called popovers because as the batter bakes and expands it “pops over” the sides of the pan and results in a very impressive looking puff ball that will wow your guests.

Please enjoy and happy holidays!

Juicy Apple Popovers
Yield: 10 to 12

2 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons plus 8 tablespoons butter
1 Granny Smith apple or similar, peeled, cored, and cut into ½ inch cubes
1 cup raisins currants or cranberries (whichever you prefer)

1. Heat the oven to 450 degrees
2. Add eggs, milk, four, salt, sugar and 2 tablespoons melted butter in a blender and blend well until everything is combined
3. In each cup of a regular sized muffins tins, divide cold butter, apple and raisins. Place the muffin tins in the oven for 5 minutes to melt the butter and cook the apples slightly.
4. Remove the tins from the oven and pour the batter into each cup filling them half way up. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 325 degrees and bake until puffed and golden brown, 15-20 minutes more. Serve hot.

Recipe courtesy of Sur La Table