Fix Me A Snack

Lately my family has become deeply committed to consuming our individual body weights in fresh local berries. This morning, my husband came up with a healthier verison of Raspberry Rockets.

What sort of summer treats are your family snacking on?

A few days ago we went to the orchard and there were still raspberries waiting to be picked in the raspberry patch. They are terribly fragile and have a shelf life of about 10 minutes. But we nonetheless managed to turn them into a quick and delightful little snack.

1 cup plain greek-style yogurt
1/2 teaspoon fresh squeezed lemon juice (to taste)
1 tablespoon sugar
1/3 cup granola (preferably something with almonds)
1 pint raspberries

Gently rinse raspberries and allow them to air dry.

In a small bowl, mix together the yogurt, lemon juice, lemon zest, and sugar. Divide the yogurt between three small bowls (1/3 cup each). Top yogurt with 1 – 2 tablespoons granola and then with a generous handful of raspberries. Serve.

Yield: 3 servings
Prep time: 10 minutes

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These are otherwise known as Pavlovas. But I can barely say ‘pavlova’, much less my kids. Good tongue twister, bad name for a kid snack.  My kids came up with name while stuffing their faces. There were no leftovers.

Crispy Clouds have a delightful mouthfeel. They remind me of eating a roasted marshmallow, but take away the heat and sugar overload.

3 large egg whites
1 tablespoon agave nectar or sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Pinch salt

3/4 cup whipped cream (give or take)
1 cup fresh raspberries (give or take)

Preheat oven to 200 F.

Place the egg whites, agave, vanilla, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer. With the whisk attachment, whip the egg white mixture on medium high speed until peaks form. Turn off mixer and detach bowl. Transfer large spoonfuls onto parchment-lined baking sheet. Place the scoops at least an inch apart. Make a well in the center of each scoop with the back of the spoon. They should be approximately 4-inches wide once the wells are created.

Bake on the center rack of the oven for approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes or until the clouds are stiff and willing to detach from the parchment paper.

Allow the clouds to cool for 1-2 minutes on the baking sheet. Gently remove from parchment paper and transfer to serving plate. Garnish each cloud with approximately 1 tablespoon whipped cream and a heaping tablespoon of berries. Serve.

Makes 12 clouds
Prep time: 10 minutes
Bake time: 1 1/2 hours

Note: Raspberries can be replaced by any soft fresh fruit.

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Surely I’m not the first person to have done this. But if you’ve heard of it before, don’t tell me. I’m busy being overly happy about my discovery. Oh, and the kids looovve these.

 

20 raspberries
20 white chocolate chips

Wash the raspberries by holding them under gently running water or submerging in a bowl of water and agitating gently. Allow the raspberries to air-dry by simply putting them on a towel. Once dry, insert one chip into each berry with flat side of the chip facing you. Serve.

Makes 2 servings.
Prep time: 5 minutes

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