Bastille Day – Cherry Clafouti

David holding up the finished product – Cherry Clafouti on Bastille Day!

Last Saturday, David and I made a brunch to celebrate French Independence.  Okay, actually we just used Bastille Day as an excuse to make the most perfect of French recipes – a Cherry Clafouti.  One website listed the definition for clafouti as a rustic French baked dessert made by baking cherries in a custard-like batter similar to pancake batter.  Typically, the clafoutis is made from unpinned cherries which when cooked create a much more intense flavor, but this recipe calls for pitted cherries.  It is quite simply the easiest dessert to make on a whim because it takes very little prep time (everything goes in the blender) or cook time.

David pitting cherries with an opened paper clip.

Cherry Clafouti

From Clean Eating Magazine’s July 2011 issue.  I added the almonds on top, and I think they make the recipe perfect.  Enjoy! 🙂

The finished product puffed up right out of the oven – it will deflate!

2 eggs

2 egg whites

1/4 cup sucanat, divided

3/4 cup almond milk

1/2 cup spelt flour

1/2 tsp almond extract

1/4 tsp salt

olive oil cooking spray

30 cherries, pitted

1/4 cup sliced almonds

Mix batter ingredients in blender, …

Preheat oven to 425.  Place eggs, egg whites, all but 1 Tbsp of sucanat, flour, milk, almond extract, and salt in blender and combine.  Heat cast iron skillet on medium high.  Spray skillet with cooking spray and throw in cherries and remaining Tbsp of sucanat; when sucanat begins to melt (45 seconds), pour batter over cherries.  Top with almonds and place skillet on middle rack in oven.  Bake for 20 minutes until center is set.  Serve warm.

…cook cherries until sucanat begins to melt,…

…pour the batter over the cherries and bake in oven…

The finished product – post deflation!

Mimosa Brunch Redux

Matt and a helping of Apple Strudel with Cinnamon Honey Cream Cheese Sauce!

I mentioned in Thursday’s post that I made three new recipes between brunch and dinner that day – the third recipe was “Apple Strudel with Cinnamon Honey Cream Cheese Sauce” from The Best of Clean Eating 2 (p. 214).  I made the recipe for desert paired with the “Portuguese Roast Chicken” for dinner; there were a few problems because my phyllo dough was old and dried out.

Apple Strudel #1 - Burnt and Dried Out

So, I saved the second half of the filling until my fresh box of phyllo dough could thaw.  For brunch, I tend to start with something sweet, fruity, and baked (muffins, scones, biscuits, bismarcks) followed by something savory and eggy (omelets, huevos rancheros, frittatas).  So, today I decided to combine the “Brussels Sprouts and Potato Frittata” with the “Apple Strudel” – and with Nick’s Coconut Water Mimosas, it was a great meal.

Nick, Matt, and David

Apple Strudel with Cinnamon Honey Cream Cheese Sauce

This recipe comes from The Best of Clean Eating 2 (pp. 214-15).  Remember that with phyllo dough, it’s best to thaw it in the refrigerator overnight; and please remember to keep it fresh – once it has been opened it doesn’t last too long in the freezer.  This recipe makes two rolls like those pictured here, but I made one on Thursday and kept the mix in the refrigerator until Saturday morning and it was still amazing and (maybe) sweeter.

Strudel

2 1/2 lb. golden delicious apples (about 5), peeled, cored, and roughly chopped

1 cup unsweetened raisins

1 cup chopped unsalted walnuts, toasted (you can toast them on a cookie sheet for 3-4 minutes at 350)

3 Tbsp raw honey

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

12 sheets frozen whole-wheat phyllo dough, thawed

4 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup whole-wheat bread crumbs (I’m going to try wheat germ next time – Nick’s suggestion – or maybe ground flaxseed)

 

Cinnamon Honey Cream Cheese Sauce

1/2 cup (4 oz.) low-fat plain cream cheese (I used neufchatel)

2 Tbsp honey

2 Tbsp skim milk (I used almond milk)

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

In a small bowl, beat together all ingredients for topping sauce – cream cheese, honey, milk, cinnamon – until evenly blended and smooth.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow flavors to meld.

Preheat oven to 400 and arrange rack in center position.  Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.  In a large bowl, combine apples, raisins, walnuts, honey, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg; set aside.

Arrange 1 sheet of phyllo dough on a clean work surface, long edge parallel to the counter’s edge.  Lightly spray organic olive oil cooking spray on the sheet and sprinkle evenly with 2 tsp of bread crumbs.  (Clean Eating suggests using a pastry brush and olive oil to “to brush a minimal amount of oil onto phyllo” – I don’t have a pastry brush.)  Top with another phyllo sheet and repeat for 5 sheets; when you place the sixth sheet on top, do not put oil or crumbs on it.   Instead, spread half of apple filling into a long long on top of phyllo sheets, leaving 1 inch at bottom and sides of phyllo.  Fold in the sides (as shown in pictures below) and roll snugly into a log.

Spray with olive oil cooking spray (or brush) and bake for 30-35 minutes.  Allow to cool before cutting into six servings.  Top with cream sauce and serve.  Enjoy! 🙂

Filling at the center of phyllo dough about to be rolled up.

Rolled up and ready for the oven.

Mimosa Brunch on a Thursday!

It’s Spring Break; and that means it is perfectly acceptable to make brunch for your friends and serve Grapefruit Mimosas in the middle of the week – so I did.  I haven’t made Saturday Brunch in two or three weeks, so David and Matt came over today for a “Thursday Brunch”.

And what a brunch it was!  I decided to try out this new recipe, and think that it may be my new favorite frittata combination – Brussel Sprouts and Potatos!  I was so inspired by how delicious this recipe was that I tried (successfully) two more new recipes for dinner tonight (check Friday’s Post for those recipes).

Brussels Sprouts and Potato Frittata

Brussel Sprout and Potato Frittata

I got this recipe from Eating Well magazine (Jan/Feb 2012 p. 28); of course, I’ve tweaked it a bit!  It was originally written to be made in 4 separate ramekins, but I used my cast iron skillet.  Enjoy! 🙂

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cups shredded potatos (pat/squeeze the moisture with a paper towel)

2 cups brussel sprouts, trimmed and thinly sliced (6-7 ounces)

1/2 cup chopped red onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

8 eggs (you could also substitute egg whites using the “2 to 1” ratio)

1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/4 cup almond milk (original recipe called for low-fat milk)

1 tsp dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400.  Heat oil in cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.  Add potatoes, Brussels sprouts, onion, and garlic and cook, stirring, until softened and beginning to brown, about 6 – 10 minutes.  Whisk eggs, cheese, milk, thyme, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl.  Pour the egg mixture over the potato mixture and gently stir to combine.  Transfer the skillet to the oven.  Bake until the eggs are set – about 20-25 minutes.

Brussels Sprouts and Potato Frittata

Family Brunch!

As I mentioned yesterday, my Mom and Aunt Kathryn are visiting for the weekend to see Crazy For You, and we have been running around town all day.  But this morning, we had a wonderful brunch with Beth and Kelly – lots of laughs and great food.  I also made my favorite muffins, but I’ll have to post the recipe later this weekend when time permits.

Mom helping me make my favorite muffins for today's brunch.

Aunt Kathryn helping me make a Clean Eating sweet potato dish for this morning's brunch.

I hope that your Saturday has been filled with as much joy and laughter as mine!  We’re off to see the show; have a great Saturday night!

Aunt Kathryn, Kelly, Beth, and Mom around the table waiting for the frittata and sweet potato casserole to show up at the table.

A Little Off My Game

Brunch this morning wasn’t a total disaster, but it wasn’t something I really want to write about yet.  I know what I did wrong with the frittata, and I know how to fix it.  Suffice to say that the idea was good; however, the execution was amateur indeed!  The idea was for a hash-brown crust, but the execution was a soggy mess of oversalted potatoes topped with a perfectly cooked egg and vegan mozzarella on top.  I have a better idea, and I’ll fix it tomorrow…or some time soon.

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I did however make some improvements on my dairy-free whole wheat biscuits by adding a cup of blueberries that I froze this past summer.  Now, I just need to add 1-2 tsp of sucanat, and they’ll be perfect!

Whole Wheat Drop Biscuits with Blueberries!