Apricot Bars by Grammy Fitzgerald

417.  It was 1980, my college roommate had long beautiful hair and wore hand knit woolen sweaters.  We munched on homemade granola and other fine treats smuggled into our room made expertly by maternal family members.  One of those treats will forever be a delightful memory and truly a gift during those long, hungry stretches of time between breaks and money in the mail.

In my memory lingers the taste of "Grammy Fitzgerald's Apricot Bars"!  Perfection of sweetness, crunchiness, tartness, and dessert satisfaction, they were.  We would cut each into tiny pieces and portion out a small bite daily savoring every bite.  When the tin would grow lighter, it was washed and set aside to send back home for the next batch of delights.  And, I was so grateful to my roommate for sharing her trove.  It helped bring delight to those college famine days. 

It is hard to recollect my thinking for having the presence of mind to ask Grammy Fitzgerald for the recipe.  One of my hobbies over the years has been to collect recipes and recipe books.  I'm pleased to say after sending Grammy a note, she mailed the recipe to me in her own handwriting.  What a treasure!

This recipe was on my dessert menu for Easter and is a recipe to categorize under "Special".

This dessert brought many compliments.  

Here are a few pictures of my process.

"Did I offer peace today?  Did I bring a smile to someone's face?  Did I say words of healing?  Did I let go of my anger and resentment?  Did I forgive?  Did I love?  These are the real questions.  I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world and the life to come."

~ Henri Nouwen

Custard Tart with Apricots

383.  When you find a full-proof recipe that checks off all the boxes - boxes being:  tasty, delicious, satisfying, surprising, second-helping necessary...you know you have to share it.  Now, I'm not a huge fan of custardy desserts unless they hold flavor and are not gummy or slimy.  (I don't like that word slimy!)  The beauty of this recipe is that it is versatile and could be made in one large pan or 6 small tart pans for individual servings.  You could also choose any fruit you would like:  cherries, plums, apricots, peaches, figs, apple quarters, or make it savory by omitting the sugar and extracts and adding a pinch of chopped basil or parsley with tomato, zucchini, squash, or eggplant.

The secret...fresh ingredients!  This would make a lovely brunch item to serve as the main dish or as dessert.

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I used frozen apricots I had in my freezer and some of the fruit was slightly frozen.  You could also use fruit from the freezer section of your market.  You could substitute the coconut oil for butter and the heavy cream for coconut milk but the consistency will be softer.

The crust was perfectly browned and risen slightly.  And it had a wonderful nutty flavor.  While the custard was perfectly set and it cut easily.  You couldn't ask for a more perfect slice!

"Anything with dairy, yogurt, milk, cream or eggs - any custard or flan - how can it be bad?

~  Alex Guarnaschelli

Apricot Sorbet

378.   It's summer and what better use of fresh apricots than to make a refreshing sorbet.  I found a recipe that was simple with a small amount of ingredients.  It was delicious and so satisfying.

With a bowl filled with apricots that ripened overnight, I selected the softest ones.  I cut them in half, pitted them and placed them in a 4 quart pot with a bit of water.  Brought to a boil and then simmered them until they became a smooth mixture.  In order to remove the skins, I pressed the mixture through a sieve.  It separated the skin and fibers from the beautiful pulp once the apricot mixture became soft.

This helped the texture to be consistent and smooth.  Then, added honey and vanilla and tasted for sweetness, placed the mixture into a freezer safe container and placed in the freezer.  It took about 5 hours to harden the sorbet.

The small amount following a delicious meal was so perfect, a pallet cleanser.  It was sweet, tart and the apricot flavor was so authentic and beautiful with a small shot of espresso.

"Keep calm and eat Sorbet!" ~ Anonymous

Apricots

377.  An adventure took me to a small fruit farm in Red Bluff, CA.  It was once a well-loved property with walnut trees, apricot trees and on the property were beautiful rose bushes in multiple colors whose scents were intoxicating! and an enormous palm tree.   The homestead sat in the middle of orchards but had since been rented out and the owners no longer living there.  The sweet renter's home was surrounded by 12 apricot trees that were bursting with fruit.

The trees were large and very old.  Because the now-renters live on this borrowed property, the trees are not sprayed or cared for causing the fruit to have blemishes. These blemishes are called blight or corundum blight or shot-hole.  The fruit had small brown specks over most of the surfaces and they looked daunting, but could still be eaten, they just weren't as aesthetically pleasing.  So we picked quite a few.  We gave them a water bath with Thieves cleaner 

and then separated them into over-ripe, ripe and under-ripe piles.

The process was labor intensive but rewarding.  I then made a batch of "Apricot Fool" or Kisiel Morelowy which is a Polish dessert or used in baking as a filling for donuts and sweet bread.

Then halved about 2 dozen apricots and placed them in my dehydrator and the rest, filled 4 quart and 2 gallon zip-locks for the freezer and later recipes.  There was still a good sized bowl remaining that we will eat for snacks as they ripen.  

Although the skins were unsightly, the flesh inside was divine!  And the sweetness was unmatched.  You barely need sugar due to the natural sweetness.

And the view on our way home was stunning with Mount Shasta in the distance.  This was a productive day and I am saving a few apricot pits to hopefully start my own trees some day.

"All things are God's already; we can give Him no right, by consecrating any, that He had not before, only we set it apart to His service.  Just as a gardener brings his master a basket of apricots, and presents them; his lord thanks him, and perhaps gives him something for his pains, and yet the apricots were as much his lord's before as now."

~  John Selden

Coconut Chicken with Apricot Sauce

262. Hats off to my fellow bloggers who post fabulous recipes!!! This is one of those jewels!

We found this recipe and just had to make it. We were not disappointed. The recipe is for Coconut Chicken with Apricot Sauce from Pennies on a Platter's Blog. This is a keeper and would be great on skewers or bamboo sticks as an appetizer. The recipe was easy, with several ingredients and came together within 40 minutes.

Coconut Chicken with Apricot Sauce

Yield: 4 servings 1 egg 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes 1/2 cup flour 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper 4 boneless chicken breasts trimmed and cut into strips, pat with paper towels to dry 1/2 cup butter, melted 1/4 cup apricot preserves 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard or deli mustard

Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Lightly beat the egg in a medium bowl; set aside. Mix the coconut, flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a shallow bowl. Working with one chicken breast at a time, dip the chicken in the bowl with the beaten egg and then coat with the coconut mixture.

Place on the baking sheet. Once all chicken breasts are coated and on the baking sheet, evenly drizzle with the melted butter. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, flipping once halfway.

To prepare the apricot sauce, mix the apricot preserves and the Dijon mustard in a small bowl. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Serve with rice and a vegetable. The apricot sauce is just wonderful!

"The discovery of a new dish does more for the happiness of mankind than the discovery of a star. "

~Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

"Hunger is the best sauce in the world."

~Cervantes