Fresh Blueberry Napoleons

If you need a yummy dessert to take to your 4th of July festivities you won't want to miss this recipe for Fresh Blueberry Napoleons. Imagine something fruity, sweet and rich that will leave your loved ones talking about your amazing baking skills... 

Ingredients

• 6 slices firm white sandwich bread, crusts removed
• 1 teaspoon butter, softened
• ¼ teaspoon sugar
• 1 cup ricotta cheese (whole or part-skim milk or cottage cheese)
• ¼ cup mascarpone or cream cheese
• ¼ cup confectioners’ sugar
• 2 tablespoons apricot preserves
• 1 cup blueberries

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F
2. With a rolling pin, roll bread slices very thin
3. Cut each slice in half lengthwise
4. Lightly butter bread on one side
5. Arrange on baking sheet
6. Sprinkle wtih sugar
7. Bake until crisp and beginning to brown, about 10 minutes
8. Cool to room temperature (If making ahead, wrap tightly store at room temperature)
9. In medium bowl, with electric mixer, beat ricotta, mascarpone, confectioners’ sugar, and preserves until smooth
10. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use
11. Just before serving, place 8 toasts on work surface
12. Spread cheese filling on toasts, dividing evenly
13. Dot with berries
14. Stack 4 of the prepared toasts on remaining prepared toasts
15. Top each with a plain toast
16. Press gently to secure
17. Place each on a serving plate
18. If desired, sift confectioners’ sugar over Napoleons
19. Serve immediately

Thanks to my friends at the Blueberry Council for sharing this recipe.

Fruttata Banana Pancakes

My son Roo is on a kick where he will eat nothing but pancakes. Seriously. Nothing but pancakes! So when my pals at Fruttata sent me this recipe I knew we had to try it to bring a little something to the daily pancakes that my son insists on eating.

I loved that I could add something nutritious to his favorite food and jazz them up a little. He was not thrilled with the idea of bananas being added in, but when he realized I wasn't making a second batch of plain ones he ate them. 

Fruttata Banana Pancakes

Ingredients

• 1.5 cups flour
• 3.5 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 egg
• 1.25 cups milk
• cooking spray
• .36 oz bag of Fruttata Banana crisps freeze dried fruit

Directions

• Sift together flour, baking powder and sugar in a large bowl.
• Whisk in melted butter, egg, and milk until combined. Let batter rest 5 minutes.
• Preheat large skillet over medium heat. Spray with cooking spray.
• Pour batter into skillet, 1/4 cup of batter each pancake.
• Cook 2-3 minutes.
•  Flip and add contents of dried fruit bag chopped into smaller desired pieces.
• Cook until golden, about 1-2 minutes

Do you have a favorite fruit pancake recipe? I would love to hear about it.

Savory Blueberry Pizza

I love pizza... but pizza with blueberries? Hey, why not!? My friends at the Blueberry Council sent this recipe and I was thrilled to have the chance to share it with you.

Savory Blueberry Pizza

Ingredients:

• 1 pound pizza dough
• 1-1/2 cups grated mozzarella cheese, divided
• 1/2 cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese
• 4 ounces diced pancetta (can also use bacon or ham if pancetta is not available), cooked and drained
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
• 1 cup fresh blueberries
• 1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
2. Lightly flour a work surface.
3. Pat and stretch dough into a 10 x 14-inch oval; place on a large baking sheet.
4. With a fork, pierce dough in several places.
5. Leaving a 1-inch border, sprinkle dough with half the mozzarella, the gorgonzola, pancetta and red onion.
6. Bake until crust is golden brown, 12 to 14 minutes.
7. Sprinkle blueberries and remaining mozzarella over pizza; bake until cheese is melted and crust is golden brown, about 2 minutes longer.
8. Remove from oven; top with basil and pepper.

How do you like your pizza? Have you ever had it with blueberries as a topping? I can't wait to talk pizza with you- leave me a comment ;)

Dirty Little Secrets

Today I want to talk about dirty little secrets. We all have them, but we don't share them. In this age of social media it is so important to keep our lives polished and presentable for the masses. But, I am not polished or pristine. I may not even be presentable sometimes if we are being honest.

Thanks to BIZ for sponsoring this post. The thoughts and opinions are my own.

I am a hot mess mom. If you stop by unannounced I am going to look like a wreck. I am guaranteed to have flour, paint or cement on my person. I am also an unprepared hot mess most of the time. I get an idea and I run with it. So my favorite shorts, my most flattering skirts and all of my tops pay the price for this by the seat of my pants lifestyle.

I used to replace favorite outfits seasonally. Ruin a pair of shorts then go buy them again. Toss a top in the trash and get a similar one. It is expensive to have a fashion sense such as mine.

Then I got this laundry changing opportunity to be a BIZ ambassador. I have tried laundry boosters and stain removers before, but I am a mess; my kids are a mess. My favorite quilt was covered in black marker from this creative vibe we have and the lack of planning I am cursed or blessed with.

But, BIZ is ideal for cleaning up this messy life. Without taking away from our fun! I can let everyone get messy, save money and keep my peace with a $3 addition to my shopping list. BIZ stain fighter does just what it says it will, and makes it easy for me to keep everyone looking great in their favorite clothes. It is as easy to use as adding it to your favorite detergent and letting the washing machine and the stain fighter do the work! I love that it is available in both liquid and powder and it is so affordable. And yes, the marker came out with no trace!

Laundry is the least of my worries these days now that BIZ is a trusted part of our family. But, stains happen! If you have a great stain removal tip, be sure to share it in a comment!

ABC Pancakes with Krusteaz

Thanks to Krusteaz for hooking us up with yummy mixes!

My 4 year old is going through a phase... the phase of "I don't like it..." He refuses to eat everything from yogurt to chicken, to crackers and fruits, he doesn't like anything except pancakes. So I make a ton of pancakes these days.

I have been making my sons food of choice into a fun learning experience, because face it, food should be fun to prepare and eat.

Krusteaz was kind enough to send us Honey Wheat Pancake Mix. {This stuff is so good! No wonder the kid wants to only eat pancakes!} and I got busy in the kitchen making pancakes for Roo that offered him a yummy breakfast and a chance to practice his ABC's.

I followed the directions on the package and created a batter.

Using a squeeze bottle I wrote letters on the hot griddle.

 After about 30 seconds I added a scoop of batter to the top of each letter and allowed them to cook as normal.

This created letter pancakes for the kids.

My son really liked telling us about the letter he was eating, this included letter sounds, who has a name that starts with a letter and son on.

Breakfast, lunch and sometimes dinner too, Krusteaz pancake mixes make a delicious option for my family. My son is a huge fan! I am too because I can make a huge batch and freeze them for a quick breakfast during the week to the delight of my family.