Fruit

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Emily Stokes
I'm a lady who loves cheese, sour cream, & ice cream, but I recently became lactose intolerant. My key focus in recreating dairy recipes is taste, but I try to be as health conscious as possible. Some of my recipes are low lactose rather than dairy free. I'm also a writer, teacher, nanny, dog mom, housewife, native Yinzer, current Californian, and social organizer extraordinaire.

Fruit

Honey Fruit Salad

Veggies & Sides, , ,

I made up this fruit salad for one reason alone: to use up fruit leftover from entertaining visitors. It was so amazing that I made it again for a ladies shopping party. There were no leftovers, so I figured it was a hit!

Ingredients:

2 navel oranges, cubed
2 small baskets strawberries (20-24 berries), tops removed and halved
2 bunches red grapes
2 apples, cored and chopped
2 tablespoons blackberry honey
2 teaspoons white sugar or SPLENDA
1 lemon
1 teaspoon lime juice
8 fresh mint leaves, sliced

Directions:

1. Rinse all your fruit. In a large bowl, add the fresh squeezed juice of 1 lemon.

2. Chop your apples first, tossing them in the bowl with the lemon juice so they do not brown. Add the rest of your fruit: peeled and cubed oranges, sliced strawberries, and whole grapes.

3. Add the lime juice. Toss all fruit with the lemon and lime juice to mix and coat.

3. Warm your honey in the microwave for 10-15 seconds, until thinned. Drizzle over fruit and toss to coat. Sprinkle white sugar or SPLENDA over fruit and toss to coat until desired sweetness–just a couple of teaspoons is enough. You do not want to overpower the other flavors.

My favorite honey from the Mountain View Farmer’s Market.

4. Finally, add sliced mint leaves and mix well. Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve 🙂

                                        

Summer Plums

Bread, Desserts, , , ,

The family I work for gave me a huge bag of red plums from their backyard tree last week, so over the weekend I found some delicious plum recipes on the internet.

I discovered plum bread. I never knew there was such a thing as this and I was skeptical about how it would turn out, but I’m glad I tried it. Forget pumpkin and zucchini bread, this sweet bread is my new favorite.

It’s easy to make it dairy free by using Smart Balance Light and soy yogurt. You can also substitute applesauce for the yogurt. If you use greek yogurt (I did), there is much less lactose in it so it shouldn’t be bothersome unless you are highly sensitive. I’m sensitive to lactose but I can eat about a cup of greek yogurt with a lactaid pill and be okay.

You can also cut the sugar by using half sugar and half SPLENDA, or use all SPLENDA. I recommend using a sweetener even if your plums are very sweet, but this would still be a good bread with less sugar.

I also made a balsamic plum reduction sauce to go with a pork tenderloin. Since my husband hates anything with vinegar, I reduced the two tablespoons of vinegar the recipe called for with a teaspoon of vinegar. It smelled just right and tasted amazing to me, so I didn’t want to add any more than that.

Eric and I took some pictures of our dinner with our new camera. I’ll get better and more creative with it as I keep practicing!

Plum Bread

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups pitted, chopped plums–keep the skins on!
1 tablespoon all purpose flour
1/2 cup Smart Balance Buttery Spread Light, softened
1 cup sugar–I used 1/2 SPLENDA, 1/2 white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs–you can use 4 eggs whites, or a combination, for less fat
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup of plain or vanilla soy yogurt–actually, any fruity flavor will do!
Sprinkle of brown sugar (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a loaf pan with olive oil spray or Smart Balance.

2. After chopping your plums, sprinkle them with 1 tablespoon of flour and toss to coat then set aside.

3. In a large bowl, beat the sugar, butter, vanilla, and eggs with a wire whisk until smooth. Add the yogurt and mix until well combined.

4. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, salt, and baking soda. Slowly stir the dry mixture into the egg and sugar mixture.

5. Once smooth, fold in the chopped plums and pour batter into the loaf pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar.

6. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing. Let cool for another 30 minutes before slicing, but enjoy that first warm slice before it cools completely. Bet the taste will surprise you!

What it looks like right before the oven.

Pork Tenderloin with a Balsamic Plum Reduction

Ingredients:

1 pork tenderloin
sea salt and black peper
1 tablespoon olive oil
2-3 small plums, pitted and chopped
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons blueberry juice–I think a berry jam would work here. I used the blueberry fruit and syrup from the fruit on the bottom yogurt.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil.

2. Rinse the pork tenderloin then pat dry and season each side with sea salt and black pepper. Heat olive oil in a non-stick skillet until hot, then sear the tenderloin for three minutes on each side before transferring the pork to the lined baking sheet. 

3. Roast the tenderloin for 15-20 minutes depending on the size. Once cooked, let stand for five minutes before slicing.

4. While the pork is cooking, begin the reduction sauce. Add the plums, vinegar, brown sugar, honey, and juice or syrup into a small saucepan and cook over medium low heat, until ingredients are well blended and plums are soft, about 5-10 minutes.

5. Transfer the sauce to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Return the sauce to the saucepan and simmer until reduced and thickened, another 5-10 minutes depending on how much liquid you have added. Spoon the plum sauce over the sliced pork medallions and enjoy with Herby Quinoa. Share with your hungry Chihuahua!

Mia’s favorite spot–right by the stove.

Balsamic Plum Reduction