Mini-Skillet Breakfast Tarts

My Hubbers and I recently returned home from a long weekend along the central California coast. Our "home" for the getaway was our 38-foot motorhome. We love traveling in our RV, taking our bed and creature comforts with us, and the flexibility it gives us to stop and stay wherever we decide. We were lucky enough this trip to grab a spot on a little bluff overlooking Avila Beach and the pier. What a view! Each morning I would drink my latte and watch the fishing boats head out to sea, as well as the kayakers and paddle boarders cruising around the bay.  We spotted some otters and the sea lions were always making noise.  The Harbor Patrol deputy told us whales had been spotted but we were never fortunate enough to see any of those majestic creatures.

Life slows down when we're in the RV.  On a regular day at home we are rushing to go to the gym, to work, to run errands, so breakfast is usually a bowl of cereal or toast.  In the RV we eat late leisurely breakfasts, usually no lunch, and early dinners. We play cards, go for long walks or bike rides, drink wine and watch the views.  It's a great pace for relaxing.

Our RV is pretty well stocked with the basic kitchen essentials but I usually bring along specialty items from home for certain dishes I want to make. I love my mini skillets and use them often, they add a little cuteness to a dish that makes it a little more special. I threw them in the motorhome as I wanted to make this breakfast dish with puff pastry.  I always have puff pastry sheets in my freezer.  They are great for last minute appetizers, desserts, and breakfast dishes.  Here the puff pastry works as a substitute for toast, muffin or biscuit. I plated with some fruit and a few pieces of bacon. The bacon could easily be crumbled into the egg dish, as well. This egg dish is very easy and so very good!

Mini-Skillet Breakfast Tarts

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
Grated cheese (any kind, I used sharp cheddar)
4 medium eggs
Salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Unroll thawed sheet of puff pastry and divide into 4 equal squares. Place each square into a mini skillet and prick holes all over the bottom of each.  Bake for about 8 minutes or until barely browned and puffed.

Remove from oven and, using a spoon, make a little indentation in the puff pastry.  Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons cheese into the indentation and fill with a cracked egg.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and an additional 2 tablespoons of cheese.

Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees and bake tarts for 7 to 9 minutes, or until the pastry has browned and egg whites are set, but yolks are still slightly runny.

Hummingbird Bread

I don't know why, but ripened bananas always brings out the frugality in me.  I have this urge to save them, to bake with them.  I hate to throw away bananas!  My Hubbers and son love banana bread so I make it quite often.  It freezes well, too, so I usually have a loaf in the freezer.  But I get tired of baking the same ole thing. Every now and then I have to mix things up! This hummingbird bread is just a little variation from regular banana bread.  The addition of crushed pineapple and coconut gives it more of a tropical vibe. In fact, many breads called Hawaiian bread or tropical bread are basically this same recipe.

Hummingbird Cake is a classic southern cake.  I have no idea why it's called what it is but as a lover of hummingbirds, I approve of the name!  The cake recipe is Southern Living magazine's most requested recipe of all time; it's that popular.  I've made the cake a time or two; it's a 2-layer cake filled and topped with cream cheese frosting.  It takes an army to eat all of it!  The same ingredients, made into a loaf bread, is a little more manageable!  Of course, you can't omit the cream cheese frosting.  I swear that stuff makes anything taste good! I took this bread to the office and we all enjoyed it with our morning coffee and tea.

Hummingbird Bread

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups mashed, ripe bananas (about 3-4 medium bananas)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
8 oz. can crushed pineapple (with juice)
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1/3 cup chopped pecans

Cream Cheese Frosting:
1/4 cup butter, softened
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Chopped pecans for garnish, if desired

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour (I use baking spray) a 9x5 loaf pan.

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add in eggs and vanilla and mix well.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.  Add to the butter mixture, stir until just combined.

Add in the pineapple, coconut and pecans; mix until combined.  Add mashed bananas and mix until combined.

Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a cake tester or skewer comes out clean.  Cool on wire rack for 20 minutes, then remove from pan to cool completely.

For the frosting, beat cream cheese and butter together until fluffy.  Add in vanilla extract and mix again.  Add in powdered sugar and mix until well combined. 

Spread frosting over cooled bread and sprinkle with chopped pecans, if desired.

I use an old-fashioned potato masher to mash my bananas!

"Ahoy, It's a Boy!" Baby Shower

My sister is about to become a first-time grandmother.  She has 3 step-grandchildren, whom she adores, but it's a totally different experience when your daughter is about to become a mom. We hosted a baby shower for my niece and her soon-to-be born son, Connor.  The baby nursery has been decorated in a nautical theme so we decided to do the same thing for the shower. We chose the traditional nautical colors of red, white and blue and got to planning.  We spent a few hours one Sunday afternoon browsing through Pinterest and found lots of inspiration.  We spent another few hours one Sunday working on a diaper wreath (in the shape of a lifesaver ring) and decorating beverage mason jars.  My sister shopped for this 'n that and raided the baby's nursery for props, as well as making the centerpieces.  I spent time in my craft room making a paper banner for the mantle and a cloth banner with the baby's name.  My Hubbers (bless his heart, he puts up with all my crazy ideas!) spent 3 nights helping me convert our dining room table into a sailboat.  It shouldn't have taken that long but it kept falling down from the ceiling! Lots of packing tape later, we got it to stay! Of course, I had to make sugar cookies, this time little sailor-boy onesies.  I ordered the cake from my favorite local decorator, she is amazing and the cake was, too! We hosted 24 at the shower and my niece is beyond blessed with all the gifts and diapers she received.  Now to wait for baby's due date to arrive so we can shower him with kisses instead of gifts!

This post is extra-heavy with pictures, there are so many cute elements to share. Besides the joy of throwing this shower for my niece, it was nice to spend the planning time with my sister.  We both lead busy lives, don't see each other like we used to.  It was wonderful to share this special time with her.  She is beyond excited about the upcoming arrival of baby Connor!

My granddaughter colored the wrapping paper and made the tag.  Inside were 3 flannel burp cloths that she helped me sew!

The cake was amazing!

Gift from my daughter.  The wagon converts to a walker, too.  It was filled with all sorts of goodies!

Quite the haul on the Connor sailboat!



My sister and I are both avid 49ers fans.  Her grandson must have a 49ers sleeper! I love these little swings, my grandchildren enjoyed theirs so much!

My go-to baby shower gift is a bathtub that I fill with diapers and all kinds of needed supplies.

A little display of the parents-to-be baby pictures!

We made the boat out of plastic tablecloths and painters' tape.  The Connor banner was made with fabric.  My niece will use it in the nursery.

A Mermaid Party!

My girlfriends and I were supposed to have a Girls' Weekend at the beach.  My Hubbers is still recovering from a stroke and Rheumatoid Arthritis issues and we've had family drama that has emotionally drained us.  I thought it best I stay home with him so I cancelled on going with the girls (we are trying to reschedule something!) My daughter asked if my granddaughter's birthday party could be held here, she wanted a Mermaid-themed swimming party.  Being that I was now staying home, I said yes.

Well, if you know me, you know I can't have a party here and not get creatively involved! Off to Pinterest I went, looking for inspiration.  First up was a banner.  Using my Silhouette Cameo machine I cut some mermaid tails.  I then punched umpteen-million circles.  Ugh, that was a drag! With the assistance of my granddaughter, we glued all those circles to make the tails look like they had fins. I glittered the fins.  I should've known better than to do this in my craft room as I had glitter everywhere!  Eventually, I wisened up and finished the task on the back patio! The banner served as the backdrop to the candy/snacks table that my daughter set up (and I neglected to get a picture of the finished table, only one while it was in process!)

Next up was sugar cookies.  It's become my trademark to make sugar cookies for family parties.  I already had a mermaid cookie cutter from another granddaughter's birthday a few years ago.  It took me all day to decorate the cookies as each design element had to be done in steps. I'm slow and not the best decorator but they looked like mermaids! The birthday girl loved them and each of her guests got to take one home.

Finally, I made cupcakes. They turned out just how I envisioned them! I used a fondant mold to form the melted chocolate into the mermaid tails, then dusted them with edible glitter.  A buttercream frosting and lots of sprinkles completed them. They were a hit!

My daughter found this clamshell pool float on Amazon.  She set up a photo booth area with a lot of little props.  The kids did that for a while but eventually the float ended up in the pool where it was used by all. We also set up an inflatable pool slide, which got a lot of action, too.  There was so much laughter and yelling in that pool, I'm sure my neighbors were glad when the party was over!  But, what fun to hear the laughter of children!

Before the party, while she was waiting for the guests to arrive, my granddaughter looked around and said "I'm going to have the most awesome party!" I think she did!

Raspberry-Lemon Meringue Tart

I think raspberries are probably my favorite berries.  I love raspberries and peaches together but a close second would be a raspberry-lemon combination. Lemon meringue pie is one of my favorites pies so I knew this tart would satisfy my sweet tooth.  What surprised me was how much my Hubbers loved it.  He ate 2 pieces for dessert and had another piece before bed! (He then rode 30 miles on his bike the next morning!) This pie may seem a little fussy as you have to make the crust, 2 fillings, and meringue.  The crust and raspberry filling can easily be made the day before to ease the work load.

The most prestigious drag race of the year falls on Labor Day.  I was tuned in to the live coverage as (1) drag racing is my passion and (2) we had local friends who were advancing in the rounds (one won the race!) So, my attention was split between the TV and making the tart crust.  I neglected to put the unbaked crust on a baking sheet.  When I removed it from the oven, the tart ring loosened and I was stuck holding a hot tart shell.  The ring burned my arm and the crust went crashing to the ground.  Argh!  I was frustrated and told my husband we were having hot fudge sundaes for dessert (we were having company over).  He told me he's seen me whip out pie dough in no time and the pie sounded good, so he convinced me to make another pie shell.  This time I remembered to place it on a baking sheet!  I'm glad he convinced me to keep going, we all enjoyed this pie!

Ooops!

Raspberry-Lemon Meringue Tart

1 unbaked pie dough disk, homemade or refrigerated (such as Pillsbury)

Raspberry Filling:
1 bag (12 oz.) frozen whole raspberries, thawed, reserve juice
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch

Lemon Filling:
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups water
3 egg yolks, beaten
1 tablespoon grated lemon peel
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon butter

Meringue:
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/3 cup water
3 egg whites
1/8 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Using a 9-inch tart pan with removable bottom or 9-inch glass pie plate (see note below), arrange pie dough in pan and flute edges. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until lightly browned.  Cool on cooling rack.

In a 2-quart saucepan, mix 1/4 cup sugar and 2 tablespoons cornstarch. If necessary, add water to reserved raspberry liquid to measure 1/2 cup; gradually add raspberry mixture to sugar mixture. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened. Gently fold in raspberries.  Cool 10 minutes. Spread in crust.

To start on the meringue, mix 1/3 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon cornstarch in a 1-quart saucepan. Stir in 1/3 cup water; cook and stir over medium heat until thickened.  Cool completely by placing in freezer about 15 minutes.

In a 2-quart saucepan,, mix 1 cup sugar, 2 tablespoons cornstarch, the flour and salt. Gradually stir in 1 1/2 cups water, stirring until smooth. Heat to boiling over medium heat; cook and stir 1 minute longer.  Remove from heat. Quickly stir about 1/2 cup hot mixture into the beaten egg yolks; mix well.  Gradually stir egg mixture back into the hot mixture.  Stir in lemon peel and juice.  Cook over medium heat about 5 minutes, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Add butter and stir until melted.  Let stand about 10 minutes (as you finish making the meringue).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, beat egg whites and 1/8 teaspoon salt with electric mixer on high speed until soft peaks form. Add the cooled cornstarch mixture, beating on medium speed until stiff peaks form.

Carefully pour hot lemon filling over the raspberry mixture in crust. Gently spread meringue over filling.  Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until meringue is lightly browned. Cool 2 hours; refrigerate until serving time. Remove side of tart pan.

Note: My tart pan was very full and it started oozing over when I added the meringue.  I will use a pie pan the next time I make this. If you do use a tart pan, don't forget to put it on a baking sheet to bake!

Summer Strawberry Salad with Creamy Poppy Seed Vinaigrette

With the passing of Labor Day many people consider summer to be over. Perhaps in other parts of the country it is starting to feel like fall, but out here in the central California valley we are sweltering under 100+ degree temps.  All the stores have their fall decor out (some even have Christmas!) but we're still trying to stay cool in the pool!  With the temperatures as hot as they are I don't plan menus around the BBQ (and my Hubbers thanks me for that!) Standing over a hot stove or warming up the house with the oven isn't very pleasant either.  Consequently, meals on sweltering days often involve a salad.  This salad is one of my favorites, I love all the fresh fruit in it. I add grilled chicken as my Hubbers likes a little protein in  his main-dish salad, but it can easily be left out.  The dressing makes enough for leftovers, it's also good on a spinach salad.

Summer Strawberry Salad with Creamy Poppy Seed Vinaigrette

 

For the dressing:

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

¾ cup sugar

2 tablespoons minced shallot

¼ teaspoon dry mustard

1 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons mayonnaise

3 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice

6 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 ½ teaspoons poppy seeds

 

For the salad:

Romaine lettuce, spinach and/or any other type of lettuce, washed and dried

Strawberries, hulled and sliced

Blueberries

Mandarin orange segments

Fresh pineapple, cubed

 

Directions:

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the vinegar, sugar, shallot, dry mustard, salt, mayonnaise and orange juice.  Process to blend well.  With the feed tube open and the processor on, add the vegetable oil in a steady stream and continue processing until incorporated.  Add the poppy seeds and pulse briefly just until blended.  Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate until ready to use.

 

To make the salad, chop the lettuce or other greens into bite-size pieces. Plate individual servings of the lettuce in salad plates.  Top each serving with strawberries, blueberries, mandarin oranges and pineapple cubes as desired.  Drizzle lightly with the poppy seed dressing and serve immediately.