BERRY CRUMBLE PIE RECIPE

Hey Hey! Popping in to share this fabulous pie recipe with you. We are in full-on summer mode over here, living every hazy, hot moment to the fullest! Happy 4th of July tomorrow!

This Berry Crumble Pie could alternatively be named Impossible to Photograph Pie. The crumble topping is so, so good, but it doesn't cut through evenly, the berries roll all around, and well, it's just a mess. But worth it. It tastes fabulous! (It did retain its shape better after spending the night in the fridge.)

Yeah. Attempt #1 to get a good slice cut. HA

What You'll Need

Pie filling

3 cups fresh blueberries

1/2 - 3/4 cups fresh strawberries

1/2 cup granulated sugar

3 Tbsp cornstarch

1 Tbsp flour 

Crumb Topping

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup old-fashioned oats

1 tsp cinnamon

6 Tbsp butter, cubed, room temperature

pastry crust (frozen premade one would work fine, but I did attempt my own for this)

What You'll Do

Prepare pie crust if needed

Preheat oven to 425 F degrees

 Place berries in medium bowl; add the sugar, cornstarch, and 1 Tbsp flour, tossing gently to coat berries. Pour berry mixture into pie crust.

Combine the next ingredients for the crumb topping, cutting in the butter with a fork (I used the same bowl). Sprinkle all over top.

Place a baking sheet on the bottom shelf of oven to catch spills/juices. Bake pie at 425 for 12-14 minutes, then lower temperature to 350 and bake for about 35-40 minutes.

 Cool slightly before serving, and garnish with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Yum! (Or eat it straight from the fridge the next morning, plain and cold...it's got fruit in it, it counts as breakfast. Don't judge me.  ;) )

 Here are our other favorite festive desserts for celebrating the Fourth of July. Enjoy!

 Another variation Jonah made:

 

Jonah's Star-Spangled Fruit Cookie Tart

You can find the recipe for this cake in the link above.

Easy Patriotic Dessert: Star-Spangled Fruit Tart

I cannot believe that June is all over, and here we are knocking down the door to the 4th of July! So far, July has rung in the season with 90+ temps and enough humidity so that it and my expanding hair don't fit together in the same room. Yes, I promise you. It's that bad. ha ha

So onto dessert...I posted about this when my middle son, Jonah, first made it a couple of years ago, promising the recipe. And here it is! It's just fashionably late. =)

This fruit tart is so simple, your kids can make it...which is exactly what mine did. ;)

Here's What You Need:

1 package refrigerated sugar cookie dough

8-oz brick cream cheese, softened (I use reduced fat)

2-3 Tbsp sugar

dash almond extract

strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, cherries, etc.

tart pan or pie plate (or small pizza pan*)

Here's What You Do:

Preheat oven to 350F. Gently press sugar cookie dough onto ungreased pan, pushing dough up against the edge slightly. Bake 12-15 minutes or until golden brown; cool on wire rack. *Crust will be thinner, so it cooks a little bit faster.

In a small bowl, blend together cream cheese, sugar and almond extract; carefully spread over baked cookie tart and decorate with fruit however you like. We thought about doing a flag design but wanted to try the star, and it came out so well! I looooove this patriotic tart! Tip: mark out your design using a toothpick.

That's it! So simple, and quite the crowd-pleaser! Serve promptly and store leftovers in fridge.

This recipe was adapted from the one found here.

And while we're on the subject of fun, festive desserts, here is another summer staple in our family. This poke cake makes its way to parties and get-togethers at least half a dozen times throughout July and August. I thought that everyone and their Aunt Nancy knew about poke cake, but recently several friends have looked at me with those big, don't-have-a-clue eyes when I mentioned it. Girlfriends, this is for you!

Prepare and bake a package of vanilla or white basic cake in a 9x13 ceramic pan, following directions on box; cool on wire rack. Next, let your kids poke it with straws. For reals. 

Add 1 cup boiling water to a 3-oz packet of raspberry, cherry, or whatever flavor Jell-O and stir to dissolve; add 1/4 cup cold water. Carefully pour gelatin over the entire surface of the cake. If you want to blow their minds, use a red gelatin for half the cake, and a blue for the other. Whoa. (Just reduce the water amounts by a little for each kind.)

Let chill in fridge for 2-3 hours; cover with whipped topping, and garnish with berries. So good!

Please note that this cake is cut and served in the pan, so use a pretty one.  =)

I hope you enjoy the recipes! Happy 4th of July!

sharing with:
the New Mrs. Adventures
Tip Junkie

5 Minute Grasshopper Ice Cream Cake & a Happy Birthday

Good Saturday morning! It's a cold, rainy one here, but that's not going to stop us from celebrating the man of the house today! Happy Birthday Daddy!

I shared the recipe for No Bake Freezer Peanut Butter Pie earlier this week, and I've got another recipe to share with you! The easiest, fastest, most delicious 3-ingredient dessert ever...5 Minute Grasshopper Ice Cream Cake!

Here's What You Need
18-22 full-size ice cream sandwiches
8 oz tub whipped topping, thawed
your choice of mint filling- I crushed some Grasshoppers cookies and mint-creme Oreos, but you could use Thin Mints or any other minty-chocolate cookie

Here's What You Do
First, crush the cookies -- I simply chopped them with a knife because I wanted "chunkier" crumbs, but you could easily process them or place them in a plastic bag and crush them with a rolling pin if you want finer crumbs.

Unwrap ice cream sandwiches (the most time-consuming part of this cake!) and layer them in a 13 x 9 dish to completely cover the bottom- you'll have to cut a few in half to fit them in. Next, spread half the whipped topping over the sandwich layer, and add a layer of cookie crumbs over that. And repeat. It's that easy! This doesn't need to set so it's ready to go as soon as you are. You may want to pop it in the freezer for a few minutes if it's a little too squishy, as was the case with mine- it was a hotty-hot day, and it was divine when we devoured it enjoyed a slice or two.

 I chopped up some Peppermint Patties for the top layer but I didn't care for the gooey texture -- the crunch was much better!

I was also a little worried that the ice cream sandwiches might, well, fall apart and sort of collapse when cut into, but they didn't at all -- they sliced beautifully!

So easy! So good! Go make one today!

Adapted from this terrific recipe.

Lastly, I thought I'd share some fun (or funny-looking, ha) pictures of the Man of Honor.

 

Have a great Saturday!

Sharing with//

Chef-in-Training 
Sugar Bee Crafts

Birthday Party Recap & a Cake Recipe!

We all knew it must be getting time for Ethan's birthday party when the skies darkened and the lightning started flashing above.

Every.Single.Year. (Except for his 10th birthday.) Same story.

I'm noticing a trend.  =)

Now this is supposed to be a celebratory, happy little post, but I do have one teensy nugget of contention to share:

It is not cool to not RSVP.

Is it really that difficult, folks?

I mean, does the 30 seconds it takes to call, email, FB, text just seem too overwhelming?

My main issue isn't that it's hard to plan not knowing how many to expect, but mostly that it is SO disappointing for the guest of honor, who in this case, was constantly asking me if so and so was coming, and what could I tell him?

It was awful seeing the disappointment register on his face, but of course we did have a wonderful time with those who were able to come celebrate with us.

Moral of the story here - don't leave people hanging. It's no fun.

 It's okay. We had fun without you. Kidding, totally kidding, kinda...

Here are  few snapshots of the big day...

 13 candles in the shape of...13!

This is seriously the best chocolate cake in the universe...I've got the recipe below.

I spent many hours coloring in those 13 signs. We taped them all over the walls & they looked really fun and festive.

Here are some other shots of the decorations.

13 year old boys don't care much about themes and such, so we just made things look bright and cheery.

I've learned not to put the birthday kid in a spot that's difficult to take pictures of.

The far corner was optimal, so that seat got tons of balloons.

And I just tackle anyone who gets in my way now. Lesson learned.

I was running around and never got a good photo of the food table. Shame on me!

Looks kind of pitiful. There was more, I promise!

And it was so yummy!

My serving bowls are pretty, right?  =)

I've got another recipe to share for later, too- fresh salsa!

I still cannot believe that my firstborn son is now a teenager!

He is such a wonderful boy, and I'm very thankful to be his Mom!

Aunts and Uncles...and adorable baby cousins!

Thank you everybody!!

Okay, onto that fabulous cake...

Here's what you need

• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 1 3/4 cups flour (we use unbleached)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa 
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup oil
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup boiling water

**The recipe I pinned is found here. I simply changed the sugar amounts.

 Here's what you do

• Prepare 2- 9" round cake pans with shortening and flour
• Preheat oven to 350 F degrees
• In large bowl, combine all dry ingredients together
• Next, add liquid ingredients except boiling water and mix on medium for 2-3 minutes
• Add 1 cup boiling water and stir by hand until blended- it's the water that's magic! It makes the cake so fudge-y!
• Pour even amounts of batter into pans; bake 30-35 minutes
• Cool and decorate

That's it! Easy peasy! This is the fudgiest, yummiest, richest chocolate cake you will ever sink a fork into!

**The frosting is super easy too, but I have to admit I don't follow the directions to the letter here. I toss in a softened stick of butter, a splash of vanilla, about 1/2 - 3/4 cups cocoa powder, and massive amounts of confectioner's sugar, plus 1/4 cup milk. I play around with all this until I get the taste and consistency I want. I can't even tell you how good it all is! This is one of those cakes you must make and try for yourself!