Zucchini Fries

Oh what a world. These fries are absolutely delicious and yet they are potato free and baked?? How is this possible? I was really skeptical about the idea of a veggie fry since I love potatoes but since I have had a plethora of summer squash around thanks to my CSA I thought they would be worth a try. I paired these beauties with my super delicious Greek chicken burger recipe that I posted last week and they were a huge hit!

The panko breading adds just the perfect amount of crunch and my dill dip was the perfect condiment to serve along with them. These fries are my adaptation from an Oprah recipe I found. They were a bit more labor intensive than I thought they would be since you had to batter each piece separately but they were so delicious that I will definitely be making them again with some of my extra squash from my CSA crate. For my zucchini fries I used a traditional green and one yellow zucchini.

1 ½ lbs of zucchini, cut into fry sized pieces

1 C all-purpose flour

2 tsp of salt

¾ tsp of pepper

Cayenne pepper, a dash (for extra heat)

½ tsp cumin

3 large eggs, scrambled

2 C panko bread crumbs ( or more if needed)

¾ C parmesan, grated

1 Tbs of fresh dill, chopped

Preheat the oven to 425. Arrange three bowls, one with flour and the next four items (seasoning), one with eggs and the final one with panko, parmesan and dill. Working in small batches, dip zucchini in flour, then egg then panko. Shake the access flour off and then allow the extra egg to drip off before putting the vegetables in the next bowl. Arrange zucchini on a tray being sure that they are not too close together. Bake for 15 minutes, rotate pan and then bake for another 10 minutes or until golden brown. The dipping sauce I used was a mix of Greek yogurt, lemon juice, garlic salt, pepper and dill mixed to taste.

The Chick fil-Gay my Homestyle Way

There has been much talk about a certain chicken franchise as of late. I will say that while I love their chicken, their fries, their lemonade and of course their family friendly dining atmosphere I have to say that I personally don’t enjoy their politics much. I am all for rights and that is all I am going to say about that.

Now that I am off my soap box I have to say that I have been reading about the homemade version of these sandwiches for months now. Since our family is no longer dining at the establishment mentioned above I decided I really needed to try these recipes out. My dear friend Amber, who writes the awesome blog Mom Machine swore up and down in her recent post that these recipes were no joke and she was right. After attempting her version, and one found on the Washington Green Grocer blog I have decided while they are not exactly up to par they definitely do the trick. I found that the extra time really helps to add flavor to the chicken so it is definitely worth throwing the breasts in there the night before. I also found that pounding out the breasts helped to uniformly (and quickly) cook the chicken and finally, that I LOVE coconut oil which I had never used before and always wanted to try.

No matter what your politics are, this homemade version of “the” chicken sandwich is absolutely delicious and totally worth the at home preparation time.

Chick Fil-Gay My Homestyle Way (adapted from Mom-Machine and Washington Green Grocer blog)

2 Boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin and cut in half (total of 4 sandwiches)

1 Jar of pickle brine

1 C flour

1 tbs powder sugar

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp paprika

½ tsp ground mustard

¼ tsp pepper

¼ tsp celery salt

¼ tsp dried basil

Spicy Chicken Option: ½ tsp Cayenne pepper

5 tbs Coconut oil which is a healthy oil that cooks well at high temps so is perfect for frying.

2 eggs

¼ C milk

Dinner rolls, buttered

Optional toppings: pickles, lettuce, tomato

Pound out each breast until they are uniformly thick. Cut in half and then place in pickle brine for anywhere from an hour to overnight (my suggestion is overnight because the brine totally adds a ton of flavor). When you are ready to cook, combine dry ingredients in a flat bowl. Whisk eggs and milk together in another bowl. Carefully dredge the chicken in the flour mixture, the egg mixture and then the flour mixture again. Melt coconut oil in a skillet and sauté chicken pieces over medium until both sides of the chicken is golden brown and the inside loses all hints of pink. Butter your dinner rolls and serve chicken with your choice of toppings.

Greek Chicken Burgers

A couple of months ago I went over to a family bbq and had the most delicious turkey burger that was filled with feta and sun dried tomatoes. This new chicken burger is my version of Uncle Richards original (which I am told comes from a Giada Turkey Meat Loaf recipe.) It is flavorful and moist and totally made me feel fulfilled even though I am usually a beef burger girl. I made them again last week when we had some family in town and since both my guests raved about them I figured they MUST be posted.

2 green onions, chopped

1 clove of garlic, diced

5-8 sun dried tomatoes (stored in oil) chopped up

4 artichoke hearts, chopped

¾ C feta cheese, crumbled

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp, spice hunter Greek seasoning

1 lb ground chicken

Mix all ingredients in a bowl and form burger patties. Grill over medium heat for 3-5 minutes on each side, or until cooked through.

Ramen Salad: Asian Cole Slaw

I swear I have recipe amnesia. I totally forgot how much I love ramen salad until I had it again a couple of weeks and of course now I can’t get it out of my head. 703 Daddy has an aversion to salad dressing so I usually steer clear of dressed salads. I decided to give this one a try since the only dressing he has a fondness for is the Asian ginger dressing. Im so glad I gave it a try because he said he really enjoyed it which makes me a super happy camper since I love cabbage slaws and he usually hates them.

This simple salad paired perfectly with our sandwiches tonight but it is also a delicious entree with cold teriyaki chicken mixed in.

1 Bunch scallions, chopped

1 Napa cabbage, thinly sliced

1 Carrot, shred

1 package of Ramen noodles, crushed (seasoning packet in dressing)

1/3 C Mayonnaise

¼ C rice wine vinegar

2 tbs agave

2 tbs sesame oil

Mix mayo, vinegar, agave, sesame oil and ramen seasoning packet together in a large bowl and set aside. Add vegetables and noodles to the bowl and toss until it is evenly coated with the dressing. Serve immediately.

Blackberry Balsamic Chicken

Last weekend we headed out to Great Country Farms to do a little U-Pick of blackberries and peaches. Little B had the best time on the tractor ride, playing with the animals and hamming it up in the fields. Since we came back home with both our bellies and our buckets full I knew I needed to come up with a couple of fun recipes to use up our goods before they spoil. This blackberry balsamic chicken was a fun, simple and delicious way to highlight the berries. The sauce was so good that I was glad to have a loaf of good crusty bread to sop up the extras with. Little B loved it so much that he screamed hooray for blackberry jam! If you don’t have fresh berries on hand a similar sauce could always be made from frozen berries.  

4 Chicken breasts

1 lemon, juiced and zested

3 tbs of brown sugar

2 shallots, minced

¼ C Balsamic vinegar

1 pint of fresh blackberries (or frozen ones that have been thawed)

EVOO

½ C chicken broth

S&P

Fresh basil, finely chopped

Make a marinade for the chicken out of the lemon, brown sugar and shallots. Marinate chicken for a minimum of an hour in the refrigerator.

Heat EVOO in a pan and saute chicken (marinade set aside) until golden brown (about 5 minutes.) Remove chicken from the pan and set aside on a covered dish. Add vinegar to the pan to help deglaze the pan. Scrape the bits off the bottom of the pan while cooking down the liquid for a minute or two. Add reserved marinade, blackberries and stock. Allow the liquid to cook down until it has reduced and the berries have cooked through (about 4 minutes) crush berries that have not broken up with a fork and continue to cook the sauce for 4-5 more minutes or until the sauce begins to resemble syrup. Pour the sauce over the chicken, garnish with fresh basil and serve.

Grilled Tuscan Bread Salad

Have I mentioned that carbs and I are good friends before? To me, they are totally a part of a well-balanced meal and since everything should be in moderation I find this spectacular salad, that can also be made into a one dish wonder, to be a great way to use up extra veggies from your garden, farmers market or CSA basket. The first time I had this salad was in Tuscany after a morning of biking through the hills with the Mr. We stopped at a vineyard for lunch and had one of the most simple but delicious meals of my life. I probably felt this way because I was so exhausted from the ride but since then I have always had this salad close to my heart.

½ loaf of good crusty bread (day old is best)

½ pint of grape tomatoes

1 cucumber, chunked into bite size pieces

1 zucchini, chunked

1 yellow squash, chunked

½ onion, chunked for kabobs

1 sweet pepper, chunked

EVOO

S&P

1 lemon, zested and juiced

¼ C parsley, chopped

¼ C basil, chopped

1 Garlic Clove, cut in half

Fresh Parmesan cheese

*You will need skewers for this recipe

Cut bread loaf in half lengthwise. Brush with EVOO and sprinkle with S&P. Chop zucchini, squash, onion and pepper into large bite size pieces to be skewered and place in a large mixing bowl. Toss in EVOO and salt and pepper until evenly coated. Skewer the veggies and grill both veggies and bread until the edges become crispy and blackened. Rub fresh garlic on the grilled bread to flavor it and then discard the clove. Chop the bread into bite sized pieces and place in the mixing bowl. Add tomatoes, cucumber, grilled vegetables and fresh herbs. Pour lemon juice and zest over the mixture and toss until evenly coated. Before serving sprinkle fresh cheese over the entire bowl.

Greek Chicken Meatballs

This recipe is another adaptation of a Giada recipe. Her Sweet and Spicy Greek Meatballs are super delish but since lamb is pricy and chicken is way healthier I have become a convert to the chicken meatball. Her original recipe also calls for a cup of cooked cous cous but I have made the switch to using quinoa because it is such a healthy, nutrient rich grain. My final recipe adjustment is that I add veggies to my balls. I find that it is an easy way to bump up my family’s vegetable intake without making them feel like I am force feeding piles of rabbit food.

I really enjoy the sweetness of the cinnamon in the tomato sauce which is totally unexpected and brilliant. We eat these as a stand-alone main, over pasta or rice, or even as a meatball sandwich!

1 lb ground chicken (or meat of choice)

1 C cooked quinoa

½ red onion

2 Cloves of garlic

1 C chopped leafy green (I used collards but chard or spinach would do well too)

1 C shredded squash or zucchini

1 egg

¼ C Italian parsley, chopped

2 tbs EVOO

3 tbs dried mint

1 ½ tbs dried oregano

2 tsp salt

1 ½ tsp cumin

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp cayenne pepper

Sauce:

3 tbs EVOO

1 jar of marinara sauce

2 Cinnamon sticks

1 tbs ground cinnamon

Cook quinoa. I do this in a rice maker using 1 part quinoa and 2 parts water. It cooks perfectly every time and I don’t have to worry about burning anything.

In a skillet, add EVOO, garlic, onion, greens, squash and spices. Stir until vegetables are completely cooked through. Dump ingredients into a large mixing bowl and set pan aside. Add chicken, quinoa and egg to the vegetables and mix until incorporated. Form the mixture into small palm sized balls about 2 inch diameter. Once the balls are formed, coat the pan with EVOO and bring to a high heat. Place balls on the pan and allow to cook on each side for about 4 minutes. Add the jar of sauce, cinnamon and sticks. Cover and cook for an additional 20 minutes. Serve!

Fresh Tomato Pasta

I have been making this super simple summer pasta dish for years. I love vine ripe tomatoes and this dish highlights them in all their glory. It also doesn’t hurt that it is so quick and easy to prepare. In the time it takes to boil a pot of noodles you can have a delicious summer inspired meal for the entire family. Being the carb-o-holic that I am, I usually serve this with fresh bread and dipping oil and a fresh green salad but since I didn’t have a lot of time on my hands I decided to forgo the salad and just add some summer squash to the pan to make sure we all got our veggies. 

This dish is also a great one for feeding toddlers because you get the idea of red sauce with a ton less mess! It can also be made dairy free by substituting the butter with a non-dairy spread like Earth Balance and omitting the cheese at the end.

1 pint grape tomatoes or 1-2 large slicing tomatoes, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 shallot, finely chopped

Fresh parsley, chopped (about 1/4 cup)

Fresh basil, chopped (about 1/4 cup)

EVOO

1 tbs butter

1 lemon, zested and juiced

S&P

Fresh grated Parmesan

Boil pasta, I use whole wheat extra fine spaghetti. While the pasta is cooking, saute garlic and shallot and a couple of tbs of EVOO in a pan over medium heat until they begin to brown (about 2 minutes). Add the remainder of the ingredients (except butter and cheese) and cook for 2 minutes. Add butter to the sauce just as you strain the pasta. Toss mixture in the sauce  and toss in the mixture and finish with a sprinkle of cheese.

 

Pan Patty Squash Tacos

After the last few posts you are probably beginning to wonder if I have made a serious lifestyle switch. Has mommy gone green?? If you follow us along on Facebook then you already know the answer is no, or I guess only partially. While we do try to eat one vegetarian dinner a week on a regular basis I thought it might be fun to challenge ourselves and stretch things a bit further with a week straight of vegetarian dinners. It has been something we have been talking about for a while now and since our CSA is in full swing I figured what better time to give it a shot. Please remember that while I love vegetables, the Mr. only tolerates most of them so this is really a true test of his love for me.

 Since Mr. loves all Mexican food and we have a boat load of squash on our hands I decided to give a veggie taco recipe a try. I chopped up a ton of fresh vegetables and added black beans to increase the protein. This quick prep dish was ready in less than 30 minutes from start to finish and made a delicious and nutritious vegetarian meal for the family that everyone enjoyed. The best things about this recipe is that it is super quick and easy. Yes, chopping takes some time but I did some of the prep the night before so that we would have a quick and dirty meal on the table minutes after we returned home tonight. After all, the cooking time is 10 minutes which is perfect for a week night wonder meal.

Pan Patty Squash Tacos
2 -3 Pan patty squash, chopped (depending upon size)

½ medium onion, thinly sliced

1 sweet pepper, thinly sliced

1 garlic clove, chopped

1 large mild chili, chopped (not sure what I used, it was long and light green and came in my CSA crate)

1 tsp of ground cumin

½ tsp of oregano

1 tbs taco seasoning

1 C tomatoes, chopped

¼ C cilantro, chopped

1 can black beans

EVOO

Toppings include

Shredded cabbage

Salsa

Shredded jack cheese

Avocado cream (1/2 an avocado and 2 tbs Greek Yogurt, lime juice, cumin, S&P)

Rinse black beans and set aside. Heat EVOO in a skillet, add all the ingredients together in a skillet and sauté on medium heat for 10 minutes or until all the vegies are cooked to your liking. Serve in tortillas with choice of toppings.

Chocolate, Almond, Zucchini Muffins with Greek Yogurt Frosting

My typical summer baking project has always been chocolate zucchini bread. It’s the kind of treat that tastes delicious while allowing you to believe you are eating a bit healthier since there is a vegetable in there. Truth be told, there is still a full cup of sugar and ½ a cup of chocolate chips in these puppies but who’s counting anyway. Since the Mr. always requests frosting but hates cream cheese (my go to for frosting fruit and veggie based cakes) I decided to give a Greek yogurt frosting a go. I will say the frosting came with mixed results (quite runny) but the taste of the entire endeavor was spectacular so here you have it… Chocolate, Almond, Zucchini muffins with Greek Yogurt Frosting.

Muffins

2 C grated zucchini

1 C all purpose flour

½ C Almond flour

1/3 C unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp baking soda

¼ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp salt

½ tsp cinnamon

½ C safflower oil (or your light oil of choice)

1/3 C white sugar

1/3 C light brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

¾ C chocolate chips

Beat oil, sugars, eggs and vanilla until blended. Fold in grated zucchini and then slowly incorporate dry ingredients until everything is well mixed. Pour 1/3 C of mixture into each cupcake tin and bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until you can insert a toothpick into the center of the muffins and it comes out clean.

Greek Yogurt Frosting

This frosting creates a tangy, sweet topping for your muffins but does not harden well so while it was tasty I would love some ideas on how to stiffen it up a bit. Anyone got ideas for me??

½ C Greek Yogurt

½ C powdered sugar

½ tsp pure vanilla extract

Blend together and then refrigerate until you are ready to frost and serve the muffins.

Grilled Zucchini Pizza

We have a ton of beautiful summer squash that just arrived in our CSA box and since the weather has cooled off a bit I thought it would be the perfect time to fire up the grill. For tonight’s dinner I decided to pull a new trick out of the book, not only grilling the veggies for the pizza but actually assembling the entire meal over the grill. Big thanks to Sarah for pushing me to try this out.

The result was a delicious brick oven fired pizza with crispy burnt edges and just the right amount of bubbly crust. I topped my pie with a fresh tomato sauce, two types of cheese, summer squash and fresh basil. At the end of the cooking time I added a quick drizzle of EVOO over the entire pie.

Crust

1 ball of pizza dough

Cornmeal

EVOO

S&P

Toppings

1 zucchini

1 yellow squash

S&P

EVOO

Fresh mozzarella

Goat cheese crumbles

1 can diced tomatoes with roasted garlic (I pureed them into sauce)

Basil

Roll out the dough on to a pan. Use the cornmeal to help keep it from sticking to the pan. Sprinkle the top side of the dough with more cornmeal, drizzle with EVOO and sprinkle with S&P to season. If you are wondering why I use cornmeal instead of flour it is just personal taste. I like the crunchy bits it leaves on the crust, but you can feel free to use flour if you don’t have cornmeal on hand. Poke holes around the crust with a fork to help keep it from bubbling up and then slowly slide the crust onto the hot grill. Grill for 1-2 minutes on medium heat until the bottom is crispy. Flip the crust over to cook the opposite side and oil the top of the crust. Cover with the tomato sauce and then all the other toppings and cook for 3 to 5 more minutes (or until the cheese has melted.) The two other tips I have for cooking this type of pizza were given to me by sweet Sarah, thinly slice the mozzarella ahead of time and place the slices between sheets of paper towels with a plate over them so that the access juices can run out of them keeping them from creating a soppy pie. Add the basil at the very end of the cooking time so it just barely wilts under the heat.

I grilled up a bunch of extra squash while I had the grill on tonight so that I could use the extras for meals later in the week. I store them in a glass bowl in the fridge arranging them in criss cross layers so they are easy to get out when you need them.

Chickpea Salad Roll

We have about two dozen hot dog rolls left from our 4^th of July party so I am working on figuring out ways to use them up. My first inclination was lobster rolls! I mean who doesn’t want a delicious treat like that. Unfortunately, lobster is a bit pricy for this family so I started looking for other more cost effective options. I came across a Vegan “Lobster” Roll recipe on the the runningwithtongs blog and thought … she might be on to something here. Obviously they would be nothing like the original but the recipe was really intriguing as an alternative to  mayo based seafood and meat salads which the Mr. hates. I made a couple adaptations to her original recipe including adding old bay seasoning for flavor, and using a mixture of mayo and Greek yogurt as a creamy base. I must admit that the result was quite tasty. While I would never claim it was anywhere near as tasty as a lobster roll I will say that it is a great budget friendly, healthy and vegetarian option that totally made my whole family smile.

1 can of chick peas

¼ C corn

1 stalk of celery, minced

½ a small zucchini, minced

1 green onion, minced

5 sun dried tomatoes in EVOO, minced

3 tbs Greek Yogurt

3 tbs Mayo (the original recipe called for ¼ C vegan mayo but I subbed for mayo and Greek yogurt)

½ lemon juiced

½ tsp old bay seasoning (for a bit of sea flavor)

1 tbs fresh parsley, minced

Pepper to taste

Rinse the chickpeas and smash them with a fork in a large bowl until most of them are broken into pieces. Mix all other ingredients with the chickpeas and taste. Season more if needed and then refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

Barbecue Apricot Chicken

Katie here!  To hot to grill but still have a craving for barbecue chicken? Then this dish is for you! I'm excited to share this oldie but goody of a Real Simple Magazine.  It literally takes 10 minutes of prep and then throw it in the oven and you are done.  I also like the fact that the barbecue sauce was prepared by me. I served it with corn on the cob and some fresh steamed broccoli.

1 tbs olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes, drained (I used the no salt kind)
1/3 cup apricot jam or preserves
1 tbs balsamic vinegar
2 1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp pepper
1 4 lb chicken in parts

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Heat the oil in a medium sauce pan over medium-high heat.  Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.  Stir in the tomatoes, jam, vinegar, 1 1/2 tsp of salt, and 1/2 tsp of pepper.  Simmer until the sauce has thickened slightly, approx 15 minutes.  Arrange chicken in 9-by-13 inch baking dish and season with salt and pepper.  Pour the sauce over the chicken .  Roast, spooning the sauce over the chicken once.  Cook for approx 1 hour.

Summer Spaghetti with Scape Pesto

Fruits, veggies and herbs are all plentiful this time of year and I always try to take advantage by making as many fresh meals as possible. This also marks the time of year when I begin to make sauces to store for the winter months when fresh food gets a bit pricier and further from our reach. This summer spaghetti recipe is light and refreshing and the scape pesto is the perfect no fuss, big batch sauce that defrosts well even months later. I like to freeze mine in ice cube trays so that I can pop out perfectly portioned cubes when I am ready to defrost.

Since I received some delicious garlic scapes in my CSA box last week and we were leaving town for a few days I thought I would use them up with some herbs from my garden to make a delicious fresh pesto.

½ box of thin whole wheat spaghetti noodles

1 Cup scape pesto

1 Quart grape tomatoes, quartered

1 thinly sliced zucchini

Scape Pesto

1 bunch of garlic scapes

1 clove of garlic

1 C assorted green herbs of choice (I used some basil, parsley and chives I had in the garden)

1/2 C Parmesan cheese 

1/2 C shelled walnuts

1/2 C EVOO

1 lemon, juiced and zested

* While the pasta was delicious I am super bummed to announce that the pesto did not survive our 4 day power outage. I am going to have to scavenge some more scapes before the season is over

Orange-Scented Almond and Squash Muffins

I love Giada De Laurentis recipes. Her food is always so much fun to make. Her Orange-Scented Almond and Olive Oil muffins have been on my love affair list for years now. I made a ton of them when I was breast feeding since they are super healthy and are made with almond flour which is good for your supply. Since I was dairy free at the time, I substituted the Greek yogurt with So Delicious Coconut Yogurt and they were still super delicious.

I love the original recipe but of course have adapted it over time to make them a little healthier and a bit more me. My most recent addition is shredded summer squash since I have a boat load of squash from our CSA that I am still using up. My other major tweak is that I use less sugar making them perfect summer breakfast or healthy snack for the entire family.

¾ C Sugar

4 Eggs

½ C fresh squeezed OJ (I just use the juice from one large navel orange)

¼ C EVOO

¼ C Greek Yogurt

1 C Summer squash, grated

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 large orange, zested

1 C Almond flour

1 ¼ C All purpose baking flour

2 tsp Baking powder

½ tsp salt

½ C sliced almonds, toasted

Powder sugar for dusting (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325 and line the muffin tins. Mix sugar and eggs together until the sugar is totally incorporated. Beat in oil, OJ, yogurt, extract and zest.  In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients together. Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet until they are completely blended. (I did this entire process in my stand mixer by slowly pouring the dry ingredients into the wet that were already in the mixer bowl.) Fill the muffin tins with 1/3 C of batter and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown on top. Dust with powder sugar and serve.

Zucchini Burger

We got more zucchini in our CSA box this week so I decided to try to make a zucchini burger out of squash and beans for veggie night. I based the recipe off of my usual falafel recipe and incorporated shredded zucchini into the bean mixture. While I thought the result was quite tasty little B did not want to touch them. He ate a full patty if I put the chunks into his mouth but he was not a fan of the squishy texture in his hand. I guess you win some and you lose some. 

 

1 Can Chick Peas

1 C whole wheat bread crumbs

1 zucchini grated

1 small red onion, grated

1 clove of garlic

1 egg, lightly whisks

1 tsp salt

¼ c EVOO plus extra for pan

Place the chick peas and garlic in a food processor and blend until slightly smoother than chunky. Switch the attachment to the grater and grate zucchini and onion into the same bowl. Pour mixture into a large bowl and incorporate other ingredients. Make small slider sized patties and set aside. Oil a frying pan and pan fry each of the patties until crispy.

Not So Homemade Cherry Berry Cobbler

We got a couple of boxes of sour cherries in our CSA Box last week and while I love a tart and tangy treat I didn’t think I would be able to make it through these bad boys without some extra sugar involved. I had my heart set on making some sort of baked good so I went trolling on pinterest again to see what goodies I could find and ended up going for the recipe that looked like it required the least amount of work… after all, pitting cherries is a lot of work. 

The recipe I found was for a three step berry cobbler made with a box of yellow cake mix, a can of sprite and a bag of frozen mixed berries. Since I had all the ingredients in the house I decided to give it a try substituting half a bag of frozen berries for my fresh tart cherries. The pinner said to bake at 350 for 30 minutes but I actually had to bake mine at 350 for closer to 45 since the center was still super loose. I remained a skeptic through the first bite but I will say it presents well, is quite tasty and is so easy that I might even let little B help next time I make it. 

 My only caveat is that the cake mix and Sprite are super sweet so it might have been too sweet for me if I had not added the tart cherries. I definitely liked how easy the recipe was so I am going to have to think about ways to recreate this, maybe using pancake or cornbread mix to cut down on the sugar. Stay tuned for the results.