weeknight gourmet

Category : Fruit

Summer Barbecue Menu: Kebabs, Corn, Salad, and a Blueberry Tart!

As I mentioned earlier we had some friends up to the Berkshires this weekend.  I decided that we would do two different types of kebabs, a salad, and — my summer favorite — grilled corn for dinner on Saturday.  We finished the meal with a relatively healthy desert option — a honey & yogurt blueberry tart.

I thought everything was delicious but the chicken kebabs were my favorites!

Links to all the recipes are below.  There is no recipe for the corn — Jared took charge of that.  He wrapped the ears in foil with some butter, salt, and sugar.  The corn was delicious!

Enjoy!

Menu

Yogurt-Marinated Chicken Kebabs with Aleppo Pepper

Ginger-Garlic Shrimp with Tangy Tomato Sauce

Artichoke, Cherry Tomato, and Feta Salad with Artichoke-Pesto Crostini

Grilled Corn on the Cob

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Honeyed Yogurt & Blueberry Tart

Summer Desserts: Honeyed Yogurt & Blueberry Tart with Ginger Crust

Here is a delicious (and healthy) blueberry tart recipe.

I made a few modification partly because of the ingredients I had on hand and partly because I thought it would taste good!

I only had whole wheat graham crackers on hand so I doubled the amount of sugar.  I probably should have increased the butter a tad too because these graham crackers were even lower fat than the typical graham crackers and the crust didn’t bind together as well as I would have liked.

I also added 1 to 2 tablespoons of lemon curd to the yogurt mixture which gave the filling a nice tart flavor!

Based on the fact the whole tart was eaten, I think it was a hit!

Honeyed Yogurt & Blueberry Tart with Ginger Crust
Food & Wine

10 whole graham crackers, broken into pieces, or 1 1/2 cups plus 2 1/2 tablespoons of crumbs
1/4 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped
1 tablespoon sugar
Pinch of salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg white
2 cups Greek-style nonfat yogurt, drained overnight
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 cups blueberries (9 ounces)

Preheat the oven to 350°. Spray a 14-by-4 1/2-inch rectangular fluted tart pan with a removable bottom with cooking spray. In a food processor, pulse the graham crackers with the crystallized ginger, sugar and salt until finely ground. Add the butter and egg white and pulse until the crumbs are evenly coated. Press the crumbs evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the tart pan. Bake for about 20 minutes, until the crust is lightly browned. Let the crust cool completely.

In a medium bowl, mix the drained yogurt with the honey. Spread the yogurt in the crust and arrange the blueberries over the surface of the yogurt. Cut the tart in slices and serve.

The baked crust can be wrapped in plastic and kept at room temperature overnight.

Summer Desserts: Fruit Salad with Limoncello

Here is a delicious, healthy & quick summer dessert.

I skipped the limoncello and sugar on the berries and just made the lemony yogurt dip which was delicious!

Fruit Salad with Limoncello
Barefoot Contessa

  • 7 ounces Greek yogurt (recommended: Fage Total)
  • 1/3 cup good bottled lemon curd
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 2 cups sliced strawberries (1 pint)
  • 1 cup raspberries (1/2 pint)
  • 1 cup blueberries (1/2 pint)
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 3 tablespoons limoncello liqueur
  • 1 banana, sliced
  • Fresh mint springs

For the lemon yogurt topping, whisk together the yogurt, lemon curd, honey, and vanilla and set aside at room temperature.

For the fruit salad, carefully toss together the strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, sugar, and limoncello. Allow them to stand at room temperature for about 5 minutes to let the berries macerate with the sugar and liqueur. Gently fold the banana into the mixture.

Serve bowls of fruit with a dollop of lemon yogurt on top. Top each with a sprig of fresh mint.

Bridal Shower Recipes: Chocolate Tulips filled with Berries Marinated in Chambord

chocolateshells

We filled these beautiful store-bought chocolate shells with blueberries and sliced strawberries that we marinated in Chambord and garnished the shells with a sprig of mint.

Impressive presentation and very delicious!

Perfect Summer Dessert: Fresh Strawberries With Almond Creme Anglaise

What’s better than strawberries and cream!

Mark Bittman provides a wonderful alternative to the traditional vanilla-flavored custard in this week’s Dining section in the New York Times.  I’ve included the recipe below but don’t skip the article — Strawberries, Coddled.   It provides some great tips on cooking the sauce.

Hopefully, my local market in the Berkshires will have some beautiful strawberries so that I can try the recipe this weekend!

Fresh Strawberries With Almond Crème Anglaise
Mark Bittman

  • 3/4 cup chopped almonds plus 1/2 cup lightly toasted slivered almonds
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 cup cream
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 6 to 8 cups strawberries, washed, hulled and quartered

Put chopped almonds in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook, shaking pan occasionally, until fragrant and beginning to toast, about 3 minutes.

Add milk, cream, sugar and egg yolks, and whisk well to combine. Cook, whisking almost constantly, until mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Do not let it boil.

While sauce is still hot, strain it through a sieve and let cool a bit. To serve, put a cup of strawberries in each dish, drizzle with warm sauce and garnish with slivered almonds. Sauce will keep, tightly covered, in refrigerator for up to 3 days.

6 to 8 servings.