Double Berry Pie and Gelato

Last week, we made Lemon Gelato. It was so yummy and totally worth the effort it took to cook, then the time to freeze in the ice cream freezer and more time freezing in the freezer. Then last night Tim came home with black raspberries and red raspberries from the Farmer's Market. He asked me to make "something" with them, so I made pie! I found a recipe that didn't call for jello or gelatin....really, why hide the flavor of the fresh berries behind artificial flavorings? So, here's the recipes, they were BOTH SO GOOD!

Double Berry Pie

4-6 cups fresh berries (I used 1/2 red and 1/2 black raspberries)
1/3 cup water
3/4 cup sugar (I used 1/2 white and 1/2 turbinado)
7 1/2 tsp cornstarch
dash of salt
1-9" pastry shell, baked (To bake, put your crust in the pie plate, flute the edges pretty, then line the bottom with a double thickness of tin foil and bake at 450 for 10-15 minutes until edges are light brown and pretty)

In a saucepan, crush 1 cup of the berries. Add the water and simmer for 3 minutes. Strain, reserving the juice; discard pulp and seeds. Add enough water to the reserved juice to make 1 cup of liquid. Return to saucepan. In a seperate bowl, mix the sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Slowly stir into raspberry juice and bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

Place remaining berries in cooled pie shell; pour glaze over top and spread lightly to coat the top of the berries. Refrigerate for 2-3 hours or until set.


Lemon Gelato

1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
5 egg yolks, beaten
3 tbsp grated lemon peel
3/4 cup lemon juice (fresh if you can)
2 cups heavy cream

In a small, heavy saucepan, heat milk to175*, stir in sugar until dissolved. Whisk a small amount of the hot milk/sugar mixture into the eggs. Slowly whisk egg into hot milk/sugar mixture. Whisk in lemon peel. Cook and stir constantly over low heat until mixture reaches at least 160* and coats the back of a metal spoon.

Remove from heat; strain. Stir in lemon juice. Cool quickly by placing pan in a bowl f ice water; stir for 2 minutes. Stir in cream. Cover and refrigerate several hours or overnight.

Fill cylinder of ice cream freezer 2/3's full; freeze according to manufacturer's directions. Transfer to a freezer container (we use our old ice cream pails); freeze 2-4 hours before serving.

Spicy Grilled Beef Tenderloin

Yes, Ladies and Gents, that was the main item on our New Years' menu. I started with some Crab Rangoon, then dinner was the grilled tenderloin, mashed potatoes, green beans, and cottage cheese. Dessert was mint chip ice cream cake.

The crab rangoon (sorry no picture) turned out fabulous again. We used our new deep fryer and it was MUCH MUCH easier than last time I made them.

Crab Rangoon

3 oz cream cheese
2 green onion, finely chopped
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 cup minced imitation crab meat
approx 16 wonton wrappers

Mix first 4 ingredients. Spoon 1 1/2 tsp of this mixture into the center of the wonton wrapper and fold to form a triangle. Seal the seam with a bit of water on your finger. Fry at 375. You'll need to flip them, so keep a close eye on them.

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The Spicy Grilled Beef Tenderloin recipe comes courtesy of the Food Network. I was searching a cookbook at Walmart while I was shopping since I couldn't find the cut of meat I wanted and I found this one. I wrote the recipe in shorthand on my list and off I went. Of course, I promptly lost the list upon checking out. I am SO glad that the Food Network posts their recipes online!! We had Adam and Kelly here for dinner tonight and this was a hit with all of us (even me!!). Tim was leary about it when he saw me preparing the tomatoes, but quickly came around when it was plated to serve. He said it reminded him of the Greek diners on Long Island. Adam said something about a "taste sensation" or something. Yea, he liked it too. Next time, I think I'll make half the amount of cheesy tomato sauce for the same size chunk of meat, but it was really good!

Spicy Grilled Beef Tenderloin Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence Show: Food 911 Episode: Mexican Fiesta

4 pints cherry tomatoes (I couldn't find, so I used some that were a tiny bit smaller than a golf ball and cut them in half after they were cooked and they were too big. Really do need a small tomato here) Extra-virgin olive oil Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 2 limes, juiced 1/2 red onion, sliced thin 1 serrano chili, sliced thin 1/2 bunch freshly chopped cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish 1/2 pound queso fresco or feta cheese, crumbled 1 (4-pound) beef tenderloinHeat the broiler. Put the cherry tomatoes onto baking sheets, drizzle over some olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Broil until the tomatoes burst, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from oven and allow them to cool a bit. In a large bowl add about 1/4 cup olive oil, juice of 2 limes, onion, chili, chopped cilantro, cheese, and the tomatoes. Mix carefully to avoid breaking up the tomatoes too much. Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper; set aside. Heat the grill or a grill pan to medium. Rub the meat with some olive oil and season it generously with salt and pepper. Grill the tenderloin, browning it on all sides, until it is medium rare, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the meat to a cutting board, cover it with aluminum foil, and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before slicing. Slice the meat thin, place it on a platter, and spoon on the cheesy tomato dressing. Garnish with a drizzle of olive oil and cilantro leaves.

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For dessert, we had a simple ice cream cake. I used a whole package of regular Oreo cookies, crushed them and added some melted butter. About a stick and a half is good. Press into the bottom of a 9x13 pan. Top with a quart of softened mint chocolate chip ice cream and a small tub of cool whip. Drizzle chocolate syrup over or do like we did and grate some Andes mints over it. Freeze until ready to serve. VOILA!

Alrighty, there you have our New Years Dinner. Try it out and let me know what you think!