Heavenly Mini Blueberry Splenda Pies ~ in Muffin Tins!

Blueberries

“You ought to have seen what I saw on my way
To the village, through Mortenson’s pasture to-day:
Blueberries as big as the end of your thumb,
Real sky-blue, and heavy, and ready to drum
In the cavernous pail of the first one to come!
And all ripe together, not some of them green
And some of them ripe! You ought to have seen!” 

Robert Frost 

When summertime rolls around, I’m thrilled ~ warm weather, sunshine and Blueberries!

The aroma of these little pies baking was mouthwatering!

I’m always on the lookout for blueberry recipes, and now can't remember where this one came from.

I mixed Splenda with the fruit instead of sugar, it measures the same as sugar.  I didn’t tell Bill it was made with Splenda until later; he didn’t notice a difference with Splenda, and neither did I.  

For the filling, I added a splash of lemon juice, and a couple of pinches of cinnamon.  

The pies are easy peasy to pull together, but to make them even easier, use Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crust.  You’ll be eating dessert in a flash!

Baked in a muffin tin, the pies are a perfect-size yummy dessert or snack!  

These blueberry pies a great dessert for anyone who needs/likes a dessert with low sugar.  

It’s hard to eat just one!

Yield: 6 servingsAuthor: Pam

Mini Blueberry Splenda Pies

These blueberry pies are a great dessert with less sugar!

prep time: 20 MINScook time: 25 MINStotal time: 45 mins

INGREDIENTS

• 1 recipe for double-crust pie or Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crust (2 crusts), at room temperature
• 1½ cups fresh blueberries
• ¼ cup Splenda Sugar Blend
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon water

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
   Grease 6 cups of muffin tin.
2. Dust counter top with flour, roll pie crust out.
   Cut six 3” circles of crust, press into the bottom and sides of muffin tin.
3. Combine blueberries with Splenda, cinnamon and juice.
   Fill the cups with the pie filling.
4. Cut another 6 circles of dough and press them on top of each pie, sealing the bottom and top layers of dough tightly with your fingers.
5. In a small bowl, whisk egg and water to make an egg wash; brush over the top of each pie.
6. Bake for about 25 minutes until crust is golden brown.
7. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before carefully removing each pie from tin and onto a cooling rack to cool.
   
   Serve warm or cool.

Enjoy!

Red White and Blue Salad for the 4th!

I am proud to be an American!  

This is a great country, providing us with freedom and rights ~ the founders of America realized our God given rights when they wrote the Constitution.

The 4th of July is the perfect day to show your patriotism from fireworks, to your outfit, to good food for the day; which, segues to this delicious patriotic looking salad…

This tasty little salad is similar to Caprese Salad, substituting blueberries for basil.  This would be an excellent use for any fresh tomatoes from your garden, I use grape tomatoes because of their sweetness and small size.  

The light,  lemony vinaigrette brings the tomatoes, mozzarella and berries all together.  I go heavy on the ground pepper, and like more garlic, so make it with 3 cloves, minced.  If it’s too lemony tasting for you, whisk in more oil. You can prep the ingredients ahead of time, but do not add the vinaigrette until just before serving.

It’s a colorful salad full of good flavor to accompany your grilled ribs, burgers, or chicken!

Red White and Blue Salad

Ingredients:

1 quart grape tomatoes, halved, or your favorite tomato

1 cup blueberries 

10 ounces mozzarella, cut into bite-size pieces

For the vinaigrette:

Juice of 1 lemon (about 2-3 tablespoons)

½ teaspoon lemon zest

1-3 cloves garlic, minced

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Combine tomatoes, mozzarella and blueberries in a bowl.

Whisk together vinaigrette ingredients in another bowl.

Add to tomato mixture and toss to coat all.

Season with salt and pepper. 

Serve

ENJOY!   

HERE’S WISHING YOU ALL A

SAFE, FUN 4TH OF JULY HOLIDAY!

~ Pam

Mini Pies ~ Blueberry & Apple Too

I confess, I really like kitchen gadgets and have my share of them.  Then, I read an article about the Breville Personal Pie Maker…

I eyed the Pie Maker for a long time on line, and studied the plethora of reviews, before inquiring about it at Williams Sonoma.  They were a hot little item at the time, and there was even a waiting list for them ~ kind of like years ago, when I was waiting to read a library book that was on the reserve list.  I passed on the pie maker list.

Months later, while at Williams Sonoma, I inquired about the Breville Pie Maker again, and the saleslady told me she had a stack of them in the back.  She said they wouldn’t even be displaying them as people always ask for them and they sell swiftly.  Wow!

Breville Personal Pie Maker

She brought one from the back for me, and explained how it worked, and how great it is for a variety of pies, even savory ones. She needn’t have bothered, as I was sold on it before I saw it!

The other day, I made 4 blueberry and 4 apple pies.  First of all, I heated the pie maker, and cooked the 2 fillings.  The instruction book says to fill the pies with about 1/3 cup filling each.  I think they needed more.  Too full tough, the filling spills out, and then you have a mess.

Next, I followed the advice in the booklet, and used rolled pie crust from the dairy case for the pastry base and puff pastry for the pastry top.  I simply unrolled the bottom crust on the flour-dusted countertop; rolled it out slightly, with a rolling pin, so the included pastry cutter would fit perfectly for 4 pie crusts. 

Each one was inserted into a pie mold and tamped down with the accompanying pastry press.  Scoop the filling into each one, top them with 4 cutouts of puff pastry tops, close the lid and let it do it’s thing for about 12-14 minutes, and ~ VOILA! ~ you have 4 yummy mini pies.

I experimented the first couple of times with how much filling and how long to bake.  I used almost ½ cup filling per pie, instead of the 1/3 cup suggested in the book.  The filling may be heavy enough to push the bottom crust into the maker, without using the pastry press.  Canned filling may be used also.  The pie maker crimped the edges of the dough well when baking.   

The pies start baking the second the bottom crust is inserted, so it requires quick work.  The top crust seemed to bake/brown faster than the bottom so I left the lid open the last minute before removing them.  The longer the pie maker heated, the better it was, by the second set of pies.

Bakes 4 mini pies

Cut-outs for pastry bottom

Dough ready for filling

Apple filling

Ready to bake

Voila!  Second batch baked longer

I think it’s a great gadget. At holiday time, I will be baking many in a wider variety, since we all have our personal favorite ~ pumpkin, pecan, apple, mince and cherry.  But first, I want to bake chicken/veggie pies or quiche from a recipe in the instruction book!

Mom was the “pie queen” and wouldn’t have dreamed of using a store bought crust.  Unfortunately, I have never mastered the art of pie making, like my mom, even after standing by her side, following step by step.  This is the #1 reason why this is a great gadget for me!

Blueberry Filling

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed and dried

¼ cup sugar

¼ cup water

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1½ tablespoons corn starch

1 tablespoon butter

1 teaspoon vanilla

Method:

In a medium saucepan, combine blueberries, sugar, water and lemon zest and corn starch.

Stir to combine and cook until thickened, without crushing berries.

Remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla.

Allow to cool before assembling pies.

Filling for 4 mini pies

Apple Filling

Ingredients:

4 large apples, peeled, cored and sliced

4 tablespoons butter

¼ cup light brown sugar, packed

2 teaspoons corn starch

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

Method:

In a saucepan over low heat, melt the butter.

Add apples and cook until almost tender, about 10 minutes.

Add remaining ingredients, except vanilla.

Reduce heat to low.

Stir frequently until sugar is dissolved and apples are well glazed.

Remove from heat.

Stir in vanilla.

Allow to cool before assembling pies.

Filling for 4 mini pies

The Breville pie maker is a wonderful thing and if you like gadgets too and mini pies, you will love this!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind Of Cooking.  She has unique tips on Tuesdays and yummy recipes every Friday!

Disclaimer:  I have no affiliation with the maker of the product.  This post is just my personal opinion.

Easy Easy Berry Cobbler

Berry Cobbler does not get much easier than this…

This recipe is incredibly easy and seemed unreal, when I saw it on Pinterest and was led here.  It uses just 3 ingredients:  frozen fruit, cake mix and Sprite Zero soda.  Plus, it is not so high in calories as is the usual cobbler! 

I used a combo of raspberries, blackberries and blueberries because that is what we like ~ you can use strawberries, peaches, cherries, or any combo you favor.  There has been a box of lemon cake mix in my kitchen cabinet for ages, so I used it.  The recipe calls for a white cake mix and next time, I will try that.  

Layer of frozen berries

Here’s what I learned:

The recipe calls for not stirring the cake mix and soda together.  I followed that and baked it for 45 minutes.  When pulled out of the oven, I saw some of the cake mix laying on top; very dry.  I poured about ¼ cup more soda over it in the dry spots, and stirred the surface around a little with a fork, then baked it for another 10 minutes ~ 55 minutes, total baking time.  

After pouring soda over the top of the cake mix

Some of the reviewers stated that they stirred the cake mix and soda together before baking.  The recipe says that stirring it makes a smooth cake-like topping, instead of a crust like cobbler. 

The way I made it, turned out crumbly and delicious.  It was not runny, like cobblers many times are ~ the consistency was perfect; juicy fruit with a great crust and not too sweet.  It has a sweet/tart thing going on, different and delicious!

We really liked this!  So easy, peasy and good!  I had cool whip on hand, but it would be great with a scoop of ice cream!  If you like cobblers, you have to try this!

Berry Cobbler

Ingredients:

2 (12 ounce) bags frozen mixed berries

1 box white cake mix (NO PUDDING)----I used lemon

1 can diet 7-up or sierra mist (clear soda)---I used Sprite Zero

Method:

Preheat oven 350 degrees.

Coat a 9” x 13” baking dish with cooking spray.

Place frozen fruit in baking dish.

Add dry cake mix over the top.

Pour soda SLOWLY over cake mix.

DO NOT stir the cake mix and the pop---this will give you a ‘crust.’  If you stir the two you will have a cake-like topping.

Bake 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes.

Serve with ice cream, or not.

I will be making this again very soon and will use a white cake mix and frozen cherries, if I’m lucky enough to find them!!!

Pam's note:  Update June 23rd:  I made it using the white cake mix---it's even better!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

Blueberry Martini and Cheese Pie

Hallelujah!  Memorial Day weekend is close and what better way to jump start summer than with a refreshing cocktail and some cheese pie!

I’ve done the blueberry pancake thing and the blueberry muffins ~ now it’s time for a mighty blueberry cocktail.  If you favor a fancy martini, here it is; filled with vodka, lemon juice and blue curaçao garnished with a skewer of fresh blueberries. 

Curaçao, say “cure-ah-so” is named for the Caribbean Dutch West Indian Island.  It’s a liqueur made with dried sour orange peel, a method popularized on that little island.  The blue coloring is for added flair.  Berry drinks bring out the kid in us all ~ you just might like this so much that you’ll end up making it by the pitcher!

Blueberry Martini

Ingredients:

About 30-40 small blueberries

3 ounces vodka

1 ounce Blue Curaçao Liqueur

2/3 ounce lemon juice, or more to taste

Several blueberries on a cocktail pick for garnish

Method:

Muddle the blueberries in a cocktail shaker.

Add the vodka, curaçao and lemon juice.

Fill shaker with ice.

Shake vigorously to help the blueberries release more color and flavor.

Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a chilled martini glass.

Add blueberry garnish.

2 servings

Cheese Pie

Ingredients:

½ pound sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded

½ pound white Cheddar cheese, shredded

1 cup mayonnaise

1 small onion, minced

1 teaspoon dry mustard

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Several drops Tabasco sauce

Method:

Spread cheese in a glass pie plate.

Mix the remaining ingredients and place on top of the cheese.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Serve with crackers.

Cheers!!!

Blueberry Corn Muffins

I have baked a plethora of blueberry muffins and am thrilled when I see a new recipe for them.  This recipe definitely got my attention when I read it and tore it out of some magazine; now I don’t have a clue what magazine it was.  Anyway, blueberry muffins ~ corn muffins; they’re both great.  But combine the two, who would’ve thought?

These are so very delicious, I couldn’t believe it!  The blueberries and cornmeal with a little sugar and a touch of cinnamon is a wonderful thing.  I much prefer a muffin that is not terribly sweet and these have just the right amount of sweetness.  I used fresh blueberries; however, frozen can be used also but, do not thaw them before adding them to the batter.

These blueberry corn muffins are so good and the color is just-right with the corn meal addition.  And to make matters better, they are just as delicious a day or two after baking!

I really hope you give these a try as they are easy and filled with great blueberry corn flavor.  Yummy delicious warm or room temperature!

Blueberry Corn Muffins

Ingredients:

¼ cup butter, softened

¼ cup granulated sugar

¼ cup brown sugar, packed

1 egg

1 cup flour

½ cup stone ground corn meal

2 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ cup milk, whole or 2%

1 cup blueberries

Method:

In mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars.

Add egg, mix well.

Combine flour, corn meal, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

Add to the butter mixture alternately with the mik.

Stir until just combined well, do not over-stir.

Fold in blueberries.

Spray muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray or use paper liners.

Fill each cup two-thirds full.

Bake at 400 degrees 18-20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool for 5 minutes in pan.

Remove to wire rack.

Makes 12

This is now my favorite blueberry muffin and Bill’s too!

ENJOY, ENJOY!!!

Blueberry-Banana Muffins, the Low-Fat, Low-Sugar Way

Ummm, love freshly baked muffins and I am always on the quest for a great low-fat, low-sugar muffin.  These muffins are some of the best I’ve found.  They have less than 1 gram of fat and less than 9 grams of sugar with 20 grams of carbohydrates at 94 calories each.  

The muffins are even better the next day as the addition of the fruit makes them bake up very moist and light.  This is a great way to use up over-ripe bananas.  

Make them with the combination of fruits that you like, chopped strawberries would work well also.  This recipe could be made even healthier by using whole wheat flour and as the fruit makes them quite sweet, you may not want to add as much Splenda.   

Dispensing with the paper liners and spraying with a no-stick cooking spray would make them not quite as moist and add a crispier edging to them, if that is to your liking.  If you want to bake more of these muffins at one time, do not double the recipe; make them in 2 separate batches.   

For low-fat, low-sugar muffins, they pack a lot of flavor! 

 
Blueberry-Banana Muffins, the Low-Fat, Low-Sugar Way

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup fresh blueberries

1 ¼ cups mashed bananas

1/3 cup Splenda

¼ cup fat-free flavored yogurt or non-fat sour cream (I used blueberry yogurt)

1 large egg

2 teaspoons vanilla

Method:

Set oven at 350 degrees.

Spray 12 regular muffin cups with non-stick spray or line with paper liners.

In a large bow, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and blueberries.

In another bowl, beat bananas, Splenda, yogurt, egg and vanilla until just blended.  Stir into the dry blueberry mixture until combined.

Divide the mixture into muffin tins.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

They’re fruity good and easy to whip up!

Best Blueberry Pancakes

Aren’t the flowers absolutely gorgeous?

Kathy, Matt’s girlfriend, made the fantastic arrangement and it includes my favorite colors and flowers:  roses, carnations, mums and the striking winterberry buds in different shades of red and gold, all surrounded at the base by cranberries.  Absolutely beautiful!!!  

Awaiting our family for breakfast, on the morning after Thanksgiving, were the flowers adorning the table spread with fluffy blueberry pancakes and maple syrup, crisp bacon, tasty sausage links and good hot coffee.  

This is a very easy recipe that makes great fluffy and light pancakes.  The addition of healthy blueberries makes them very flavorful and a nice breakfast treat.  They’d even make a fine supper.  Try them! 

Best Blueberry Pancakes

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

¼ c. sugar

½ t. baking soda

2 ¼ t. baking powder

½ t. salt

2 eggs

2 c. buttermilk

¼ c. butter, melted

1 c. blueberries, fresh or frozen

Method:

In a large mixing bowl, sift the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt.   

Whisk eggs, buttermilk and butter. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and blend just until the batter is lumpy, do not over mix.

Add drained blueberries and stir through.

Heat a griddle to medium-high heat.

Pour ¼ cup of batter onto hot griddle.

Flip when many bubbles appear on the surface.

Other side will cook quickly.

Serve immediately with butter and hot maple syrup.

12 servings

Here’s hoping a wonderful Thanksgiving was had by all!