Peach & Blueberry Tart

Where has summer gone? It seems like just yesterday that I was counting down the days until I was finished with RT school, and now I look up and it's September. This has honestly been one of the greatest summers of my life - for many obvious reasons - so why does it have to be over? *whine*

Well I intend to hold onto it for as long as I can... with sweet summer peaches and juicy blueberries, baked into this simple yet amazing tart.

Seriously, this tart could not be more simple. The filling is nothing but fresh fruit, fruit preserves, and a little cornstarch. Definitely a case where simple is better. The crust - little more than ground pecans and whole whet pastry flour - is a stark complement to the sweet fruit filling. Nutty and crumbly... the perfect bite to offset the silky smooth peaches. It's a substantial dessert, which will leave you feeling happily sated without any discomfort and very little guilt. But hurry friends... these summer fruits won't be around much longer! Better make it while you can!

Crepes with Berries and Ricotta

Happy 4th of July friends! Ok, well almost 4th of July... we do still have one more day after all.

But it's Sunday! And you all know how special Sundays are in our house. You totally understand why I couldn't wait until tomorrow to share this with you.

I made these crepes for Dane and I last weekend, on the first Sunday morning we'd had together in over a month. After such a long hiatus from our Sunday morning tradition, I was looking to break from the usual pancakes and bacon. Oh, don't worry, I still cooked bacon. Like seriously. I think Dane might leave me if I ever fixed Sunday morning breakfast that didn't include bacon. ...just one of the many reasons I love the guy.

But back to the crepes.

Beautiful, beautiful crepes.

Reason number one why these crepes are awesome: they're red, white, and blue. Make these for the 4th of July and double your bad-ass American score.

Reason number two: they're super easy.

And reason number three? This one's going to come as shocker... they're delicious. They're light and airy just like any other crepe you've probably had, but with a little kick of lemon. Not a ton... just enough to let you know it's there. Just enough to say, "Hi! Good morning!" And the ricotta filling is a surprising complement. Sweet, but not too sweet and fantastically fluffy. Top it off with the season's freshest, juiciest berries and a light dusting of powder sugar, and you've got yourself one great summer breakfast.

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Next on the menu for my Thank-You muffin marathon were these amazing blueberry streusel muffins. I felt like I needed a good tried-and-true flavor to go with some of the more adventurous flavors I had going with the other muffins, and these guys totally fit the bill. Even though they weren't the overall favorite everyone said they enjoyed them, and one of my professors (who claims to be a blueberry muffin connoisseur) apparently spent the day trying to talk everyone else into giving him theirs.

But even if you're not a blueberry muffin expert, everyone loves a good blueberry muffin. Soft and subtly sweet with a few sour pops of juicy blueberries... no one can resist a good one. But this is no ordinary blueberry muffin recipe, friends. This is quite possibly the blueberry muffin recipe. This muffin is moist and crumbly and chock full of blueberries, with just a light hint of lemon. I won't lie... it's less like a muffin and more like an individual lemon-blueberry pound cake. And oh boy is it comforting. Enjoy with a cold glass of milk, and you just might forget about that 3 o'clock deadline.