It’s Food Blog Friday and here I am writing about yet another lemon-infused recipe.  I can’t help it.  I love lemon.  I love this Lemon Buttermilk Pound Cake.  And I love Baking Bites, today’s featured food blog.

Nicole Weston has been writing Baking Bites since 2004 – way before I knew anything about food or baking blogs.  She updates the blog almost daily with recipes, baking tips, product reviews, recommendations, and what she calls “bites from other blogs” – links to interesting recipes and ideas from other blogs.  I just ordered a new ice cream scoop based on Nicole’s recent review of her Zyliss scoop. I love learning about great products from other bloggers!

I’ve been reading Baking Bites since I first discovered food blogs and I’ve tried several recipes over the years.  They’ve all been great!  When I was craving lemon cake this week, I knew I could trust Nicole’s Lemon Buttermilk Pound Cake even though I had never made it before.  I was right to trust the recipe.  This cake was perfect.

I had a couple pints of fresh raspberries from the Farmer’s Market that I wanted to pair with the cake – lemon and raspberry is such a great combination!  I used most of the berries to make a simple Raspberry Coulis and saved a few for garnish.  The cake and raspberry sauce were perfect together.

I really hope you head over to Baking Bites and give this simple and delicious lemon cake a try.  Make sure to look at Nicole’s other great recipes while you’re there!

Lemon Buttermilk Pound Cake at Baking Bites
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Other Recipes to try from Baking Bites:

• Chai Snickerdoodles
• Strawberry Goat Cheese Scones
• Cinnamon Raisin Beer Bread
• Soft Yogurt Sandwich Rolls
• Buttermilk Pie Bars

Previous Food Blog Fridays:

• Coconut Cupcakes with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting from Simply Recipes
• Lemon Poppyseed Zucchini Bread from 101 Cookbooks
• Fattoush from Kalyn’s Kitchen
• Spice-Rubbed Flank Steak from Blue Kitchen
• Lemon Buttermilk Popsicles from Whipped
• Apricot Almond Tart from Tartelette
• Blueberry Orange Cornmeal Pancakes from Satisfied
• Luscious Lemon Bars from Alpineberry

I’m thrilled to return to Food Blog Friday this week with these amazing Coconut Cupcakes from Simply Recipes. When I needed to make coconut cupcakes for a friend’s bridal shower, I knew exactly which recipe to use.  I’ve made these a few times before, and they’ve always turned out perfect – this time was no exception.

Simply Recipes was started by Elise Bauer in 2003 and for years it mainly featured family recipes that were cooked in her parent’s kitchen.  But you will now find contributions from a handful of other fantastic bloggers on the site as well – this coconut cupcake recipe comes from Garret McCord of Vanilla Garlic.

The cupcakes are moist, light, tender, and full of coconut flavor thanks to the combination of coconut milk and shredded coconut in the recipe.  They are by far the best coconut cupcakes I’ve ever tried.  The only change I made to the recipe was to use cake flour in place of all-purpose -  I used 2 1/2 cups of cake flour to replace the 2 1/4 cups of all-purpose.  I’ve made them with all-purpose flour before and they turned out great, but I do think the cake flour makes them slightly more tender.

I’ve used several of Elise’s recipes over the years and have come to rely on Simply Recipes like a trusted family cookbook.  The recipes are well-written, easy to follow, and printer-friendly.  But the best part is that the recipes really work.  A couple of my other favorites from the site are the Blueberry Muffins and Beef Stroganoff.

The next time you’re in need of a great cupcake, make sure you give these a try!

Coconut Cupcakes with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting at Simply Recipes
Follow Simply Recipes on Twitter
Become a fan of Simply Recipes on Facebook

Previous Food Blog Fridays:

• Lemon Poppyseed Zucchini Bread from 101 Cookbooks
• Fattoush from Kalyn’s Kitchen
• Spice-Rubbed Flank Steak from Blue Kitchen
• Lemon Buttermilk Popsicles from Whipped
• Apricot Almond Tart from Tartelette
• Blueberry Orange Cornmeal Pancakes from Satisfied
• Luscious Lemon Bars from Alpineberry

By mid-week I had managed to eat all of the beautiful heirloom tomatoes and sweet nectarines I bought at the farmer’s market on Saturday, but I found myself left with a pint of flavorful but not-as-sweet-as-I-would-have-liked blackberries.  I didn’t want them to go to waste, but I didn’t really want to eat them.  I finally decided that all they really needed was a sweet, buttery, crumbly topping.

Wouldn’t it be great if all problems could be solved with sweet, buttery crumbs?

I used whole wheat flour in the topping because I enjoy the extra flavor it adds.  Whole wheat flour, rolled oats, brown sugar, and butter are an excellent combination – try using whole wheat pastry flour in your next batch of oatmeal cookies if you don’t believe me.  I also added lemon zest and a bit of cinnamon to the topping and it’s the hint of lemon that really makes this crisp something special.

This recipe makes a small batch – perfect for when you need a homemade dessert fix but don’t want to be tempted by too many leftovers.

Blackberry Lemon Crisp
adapted from Taste of Home
Serves 3-4

2 cups fresh or frozen and slightly defrosted blackberries
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar
1 scant tablespoon + 1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
pinch of salt
1/3 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
3 tablespoons cold butter, chopped into small pieces

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Butter a 1-quart baking dish (or 3 6-oz individual baking dishes or 4 4-oz ramekins).

2. In a small bowl, toss together blackberries, lemon juice, sugar, scant tablespoon of flour, and small pinch of salt.  Pour berry mixture into a greased 1-quart baking dish or divide between 3 or 4 individual baking dishes or ramekins.

3. In a separate small bowl, stir together oats, 1/3 cup flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and lemon zest.  Add pieces of cold butter and cut in using a pastry blender or two knives (or rub in with your fingertips) until crumbly.  Sprinkle topping over the berries.

4. Place baking dish(es) on a sheet pan and bake, uncovered, at 375 degrees for 20 – 25 minutes, or until filling is bubbly and topping is lightly browned.  Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Related Recipes:

• Peach Cobbler
• Raspberry Almond Thumbprint Cookies
• Rhubarb Blueberry Turnovers
• Blueberry and Strawberry Buttermilk Cake

Around the Web:

• Blackberry Pie Squares from Amanda’s Cookin’
• Blackberry Pie Bars from Joy the Baker
• Blackberry Muffins from Simply Recipes
• Blackberry Ice Cream from Seriously Good

Fresh tart cherries are a lot harder to find on the west coast than in some other parts of the country.  We have tons of sweet cherries available, and while I love sweet cherries, I’m always on the lookout for the tarts.  Also known as sour or pie cherries, these beautiful bright red gems are mainly used for cooking and baking.  When mixed with a bit of sugar, they have an extraordinary flavor that outshines all the sweet cherries I’ve encountered.

I had never even tasted a fresh tart cherry before my trip to Michigan last year where I attended the National Cherry Festival in Traverse City.  It was there that I learned about the fantastic nutritional benefits of this antioxident-filled fruit.  I also toured beautiful cherry orchards, ate the best cherry pie I’ve ever tasted in my life, fell in love with tart cherry juice concentrate, and met some of the friendliest people around.  I really can’t wait to get back to that part of the country someday!

But until then, I satisfy my cravings with delicious dried tart Montmorency cherries from Trader Joe’s, smoothies and drinks made with tart cherry juice concentrate (I order it online for now, but am hoping it will become more widely available soon), and the occasional jackpot of fresh tart cherries when I can find them.

I felt like I had struck gold when I found some fresh tart cherries at an international market here in Fresno recently.  They weren’t labeled as tart cherries, but I could tell from the shape that they weren’t the usual sweet cherries I find around here.  I had no clue what variety they were and there was a bit of a language barrier between myself and the woman behind the register, so I never did figure that part out.  I just knew I had to buy some.  They were rather expensive, so I only grabbed about a pound.  While a pound of tart cherries isn’t enough for a pie, I knew I’d figure out something fun to do with them.

What I decided to do was sprinkle them over the top of a chocolate cake batter.  We all know that chocolate and cherries go really well together.  But I feel that chocolate and tart cherries are a match made in heaven.  Remember my tart cherry chocolate chip cookies? I didn’t have any particular recipe in mind, I just wanted to try adding some fresh tart cherries to a basic chocolate cake batter.  I ended up adapting a recipe from Baking Bites and making a plain square chocolate cake.

First I pitted the cherries by squeezing them between my fingertips.  There’s really no need for a cherry pitter, the pit comes out quite easily!  Next, I sliced all the cherries in half.

After adding the cake batter to the pan,  I just sprinkled the fresh cherry halves evenly over the top of the batter.  I didn’t even bother pressing them in.

Finally, I just baked the cake as usual.  I was surprised that the batter didn’t rise up and over the cherries much, but I’m kind of glad it didn’t.  I love the way the cake looked with the cherries visible on top.  The cake turned out to be absolutely delicious!  The tart cherries were such a great contrast to the sweet chocolate cake and just as I expected, the flavors were perfect together.

So as the title of this blog post suggests, this isn’t an actual recipe, just a recipe idea.  If you already have a favorite chocolate cake recipe, I suggest baking it in a sheet pan and sprinkling some fresh tart cherries over the top.  You won’t even need to bother with frosting.  I think it might be fun to try with brownie batter, too, although you might want to actually push the cherries into the thicker brownie batter before baking.

Let me know if you try it!

Related Recipes:

• Dark Chocolate Cherry Chews
• Green Beans with Bacon and Tart Cherry Balsamic Glaze
• Cherry Banana Muffins with White Chocolate Chips
• Cherry Pecan Bran Muffins

Around the Web:

• Sour Cherry Slab Pie from Smitten Kitchen
• Persian Rice with Sour Cherries from My Persian Kitchen
• Sour Cherry Jam from Food in Jars
• Tart Cherry Crumb Cake from Sophistimom

Since I’m still seeing tons of nice strawberries around, I decided to pull my favorite strawberry shortcake recipe up out of the archives.  This was originally posted back in May of 2007 when I was still living in Sicily.

The strawberry shortcake I grew up eating was always assembled using those little yellow sponge cake cups that can be found right next to the strawberries in almost any grocery store in the country.  As a child, I thought those little prepackaged treats were wonderful topped with strawberries and freshly whipped cream. But after tasting homemade strawberry shortcake for the first time several years ago, I walked away from those little yellow cakes and never looked back.

Strawberry Shortcake

4 cups fresh strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and sliced
4 – 6 tablespoons sugar (adjust to suit your own taste)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
4 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup cold butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup cold milk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
whipped cream (I prefer the real thing)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

In a medium bowl, stir together the strawberries and sugar.  Set strawberries aside to macerate while you prepare the shortcakes.  In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and sugar.  Using a pastry blender or your fingertips, and working quickly, cut or rub the butter into the flour until it resembles coarse crumbs.  Add milk and vanilla all at once to flour mixture and stir until just combined.

Using a large spoon, drop mixture into four equal piles on an ungreased baking sheet.  Bake 12 – 15 minutes at 425 degrees.  Remove biscuits to a rack and let cool for a few minutes.  To serve, split a warm biscuit in two, spoon 1/4 of the berry mixture over the bottom half (make sure you include lots of the juice), top with whipped cream and the other half of the biscuit.

This was a simple but lovely treat on an extremely hot summer afternoon.  I had been snacking away on my first figs of the season when I remembered the bag of frozen bananas in the freezer.  Combined with whole milk, fresh figs, and a touch of local honey, I had a feeling that one of those bananas would turn into a unique and delicious shake.  I was right.

Fresh Fig and Banana Milkshake

6 ounces whole milk
1 frozen banana, cut into chunks
4 fresh mission figs, quartered (remove stem first)
1-2 teaspoons honey (optional)

Place all ingredients in a blender; process until smooth.  Serves two.

Related Recipes:

• Fresh Strawberry Milk
• Healthy Banana Milkshake

Around the Web:

• Fresh Fig and Rose Smoothie from Chocolate and Zucchini
• Fresh Fig Sorbet from Ms. Adventures in Italy
• Fresh Fig Cake from Food Blogga
• Fresh Fig Tart from Macheesmo

I love buttermilk.  I love lemons.  I love really tart, creamy, sweet things.  I also recently received this popsicle maker in the mail and had been trying to decide what to freeze first.  So when I ran across a recipe for these Easy, Creamy, Lemon Dream Popsicles at Whipped, I knew they would be the first ice pops to come out of my freezer.

Whipped is a food blog written by Caroline in Chicago and I’ve been a fan for a few years now.  She has lots of great recipes featuring buttermilk and even created a page listing them all. That’s my kind of food blog.  You might also want to check out her Greek Favorites page – lots of temptation there!

But let me tell you more about these popsicles.  They are a cinch to make and super delicious!  You should probably be a fan of lemon if you are going to make these because they pack some serious lemon punch.  The recipe includes lemon juice and lots of lemon zest so a microplane grater will come in handy.

If you think you aren’t a fan of buttermilk, please don’t run from this recipe.  The buttermilk adds a creaminess and tang that complements the lemon perfectly!  Trust me.

If lemon just isn’t your thing or I haven’t convinced you that buttermilk popsicles are the greatest thing ever, you should still go check out Whipped.  Perhaps some classic White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies or a Rhubarb Maple Crisp will tempt you.  I know I’ll be trying the cool, crisp Napa Cabbage Slaw soon – it will be perfect on a hot summer evening.

Easy, Creamy, Lemon Dream Popsicles from Whipped

Previous Food Blog Friday Posts:

• Apricot Almond Tart from Tartelette
• Blueberry Orange Cornmeal Pancakes from Satisfied
• Luscious Lemon Bars from Alpineberry

Spring is turning into summer, temperatures are soaring, and the time for strawberry ice cream is now.  I’ve been buying beautiful, sweet, local berries at the Farmer’s Market for weeks now and this week is no exception.  Last week I ate the strawberries fresh as a snack, as dessert, in salad, and even blended a few into a salad dressing.  But this week, with 100 degree heat quickly approaching, I needed something frozen.

This ice cream might seem a bit extravagant with the heavy cream, egg yolks, and vanilla bean, but homemade ice cream is meant to be a treat and I like it rich.  Perhaps next week I’ll give you a more figure-friendly sorbet recipe, but there’s nothing wrong with splurging on real ice cream from time to time.  Enjoy!

Fresh Strawberry Ice Cream

1 pound strawberries, washed and stemmed
1 cup sugar, divided
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 cups heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 vanilla bean pod (or 1 teaspoon real vanilla extract)
4 egg yolks

1. In a medium bowl, lightly mash strawberries with 1/4 cup sugar and the tablespoon of lemon juice.  Toss to combine and set aside.

2. In a saucepan, stir together cream, remaining 3/4 cup of sugar, and salt.  With a sharp knife, split the vanilla bean pod in half lengthwise and using the tip of the knife, scrape the seeds into the pot of cream (if using extract instead of vanilla bean, you will stir it in later); add the pod halves to the pot, too.  Bring the cream mixture to a simmer over medium heat, then turn the temperature all the way down to low.

3. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks until smooth.  Slowly add a ladleful of the hot cream mixture to the egg yolks, whisking continuously.  Slowly pour the yolk mixture back into the pot of cream and whisk until incorporated.  Bring the liquid back to a simmer and cook, stirring, for 5 – 6 minutes until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.  Strain the mixture through a sieve into a medium bowl.

4. Puree the strawberry mixture in a blender or food processor until smooth.  Stir the strawberry puree into the cream mixture until completely incorporated.  If using vanilla extract instead of vanilla bean, stir extract in now.  Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming while cooling.  Place bowl in the refrigerator and allow the mixture to cool completely – at least two hours.  After it is well chilled, freeze mixture in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer directions.

Recipe notes: This recipe works for a 1 1/2 quart or larger ice cream maker.  I use the Cuisinart ICE-20 and have been very happy with it.  My ice cream was soft-serve consistency after about 25 minutes.  I placed it in a plastic container in the refrigerator for another couple hours to firm up.

Related Recipes:

• Strawberry Shortcake
• Strawberry Milk
• Peach Sorbet
• Cinnamon Vanilla Ice Cream
• Rhubarb Blueberry Turnovers
• Blueberry and Strawberry Buttermilk Cake

Around the Web:

• Fresh Strawberry Ice Cream from Eating Out Loud
• Strawberry Ice Cream with Balsamic Vinegar from Delicious Days
• Strawberry Buttermilk Ice Cream from Satisfied
• Strawberry Sorbet from The Sophisticated Gourmet
• Watermelon Strawberry Sorbet from Baking and Books

When my friend Ruby called me the other day and told me her mom’s apricot tree was overflowing and that we each had a bag of fresh-picked fruit waiting for us, my first thought was apricot cobbler.  But then I remembered the tart pan I purchased last year that still hadn’t been used and decided an apricot tart was in order.

At first I was planning on making this simple apricot tart at Orangette.  I’m sure I’ll still make that one someday, but my original plan changed after a friend on Facebook shared a link to Tartelette’s Apricot Almond Tart. Not only was the tart beautiful, it was a perfect excuse to bake with some of the local honey I had just picked up at The Vineyard Farmer’s Market. Plus, I knew the almond cream filling would be perfect with the tart-sweet apricots.

Tartelette most likely does not need an introduction.  It’s one of the best baking blogs around, which is no wonder since it’s written and photographed by Helen, the supremely talented Pastry Chef, photographer, food stylist, and writer.  Tartelette features some of the most beautiful desserts I’ve ever seen and Helen is so warm and welcoming, I feel as if I’ve been invited over for coffee each time I read one of her posts.

This tart was simple to put together and the results were not only beautiful, but absolutely delicious.  The honey and almond flavors were amazing with the fresh apricots.  I enjoyed a slice (okay, maybe two slices) with a side of lightly sweetened whipped cream flavored with a touch of almond extract.  Perfect.

One of the great things about this recipe is that the crust can be made gluten-free.  I chose to use wheat flour, but the original recipe is completely gluten-free.  Helen gives instructions for both versions.  Well, what are you waiting for?  Head over to Tartelette and start drooling!

Apricot Almond Tart Recipe from Tartelette

I really hope you’re enjoying these Food Blog Friday posts because it’s really been a pleasure for me to taste and share these recipes.  I look forward to it more and more each week!

Previous Food Blog Friday Posts

• Blueberry Orange Cornmeal Pancakes from Satisfied
• Luscious Lemon Bars from Alpineberry

Welcome to Food Blog Friday!  I’ve decided to start a series dedicated to sharing recipes that I’ve tried from other food blogs.  I plan on tempting you with a fantastic recipe from a different food blog each week.  This is how it will work:  I’ll try out the recipe myself, show you a photo of my results, then send you over to the featured blog for the recipe.  It will be a great way for all of us to learn more about what’s happening in the food blogosphere.

This week I reached way back into the past and dug up Alpineberry’s recipe for Luscious Lemon Bars. Alpineberry is a wonderful baking blog that I’ve been following for a few years now.  In addition to tempting us with her own creations, Mary has been an active member of The Daring Bakers since early 2007.  That’s a lot of daring baking!

I’ve been craving lemon bars like crazy lately and once I read Mary’s description of a perfect lemon bar, I knew I would have to give her recipe a try.  But this recipe did more than satisfy a craving – these are the best lemon bars I’ve ever tasted!

I followed the recipe exactly, although I used regular lemons where she uses meyer lemons because I prefer extra tart lemon bars.  The recipe worked perfectly and for once, I wouldn’t change a thing!

I do have one little trick I’d like to share with you.  When I lined the pan with parchment paper I left two long sides to hang over the edge of the pan.  This made it simple to pull out the whole thing once it was cooled, which in turn made for easier slicing.

Although I did sprinkle them with powdered sugar for decoration, I found that the bars were best with only a light dusting.  They are pretty much perfect on their own.

If you’ve been looking for a fantastic lemon bar recipe, I highly recommend you head over to Alpineberry and give this one a try!  And while you’re there, you should check out some of her other delicious treats like Triple Threat Lemon Cupcakes, Nutella Cheesecake Brownies, or Blueberry Hand Pies.

Luscious Lemon Bars recipe at Alpineberry