We are headed up to the family cabin with my parents and my brother’s fam, so there won’t be much action on the blog until next week sometime. I’m going on my usual holiday hiatus. You know how I roll.

I’m not sure how much cooking I’ll be doing this weekend.. a break sounds mighty nice. I may just sit back and wait for someone else to take over. But.. if I was cooking… I’d be making some of this goodness to stuff in my face.

I’m thinking Patriotic Pancake Stacks for sure, because you gotta give it up to America at your first meal. (See also: whipped cream for breakfast). The fat almond pancake (above) is a crowd pleaser, too.

Some kind of popsicle.. I loved these mango swirl pops and I want more.

One of these 16 summer chicken recipes. Because, GAHH they all look so good.

For drinks, it’s a toss up between Sweet Sunset Cooler (above) and Quick Blackberry Thyme Lemonade. Both, you say? Okay. Let’s do that.

Of course, if you want to talk main dishes, we can’t forget the Crockpot BBQ Ribs. With a side of Grilled Corn with Garlic Herb Butter. And then an End of Summer Chopped Salad (above) with the leftover corn the next day.

We might also need some mint cookies and cream ice cream.. or chocolate covered cheesecake bites? Or a giant skillet cookie. Your choice.

Have a restful weekend and enjoy some time with the ones you love!

A few weeks ago, I pinned this Fat Almond Pancake from Green Kitchen Stories and I knew I had to make one. (Definitely check out their blog, it’s gorgeous!) The original recipe wasn’t exactly grain-free, but I knew I could do some tweaking and make easily make it GAPS-friendly. I just loved the look and ease of it. And mainly, I just loved that it was called a fat pancake.

And so I hit the kitchen and came up with this beautiful thing. I mean, don’t you just want dig your spoon in there? You do. Trust me. We ate it hot and fresh from the oven for breakfast.. and then we ate it cold in the back of the car as we watched a freak rain storm.. then the kids finished it off during their bath time. So, yeah. We liked it.

Surprisingly, we all preferred to eat this cold. You can taste more of the almond flavor and the sweetness. I couldn’t tell you if it keeps well.. I imagine you’d want to eat it all in a day or two- let me know if it lasts that long in your house, I’d love to know how it keeps.

If you’re wondering, the fruit on top is a mix of strawberries, white peaches, blueberries and cherries. Any fresh summer fruit will do, but I love the look of the red, white and blue. Especially with the 4th coming up! This would be a perfect dish to whip up if you’re having company for the holiday.

Fat pancakes! It’s a thing.

3.5 from 2 reviews

Fat Almond Pancake (Grain-Free, GAPS, Paleo)

 

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Author: Oven Love

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• 5 eggs
• 2 cups milk (cow’s, coconut, almond.. etc)
• ½ cup pureed squash, apple or pear (or more milk, if you like)
• 2 tbsp honey or maple syrup
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons almond flour
• 2 tbsp organic butter or coconut oil
• chopped fresh fruit, mint, yogurt, honey and coconut chips for serving

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Place a 8×11 casserole dish in the oven to warm up.
2. While your dish is warming, whisk eggs, milk, squash and honey in a large bowl. (To make sure your honey is well incorporated, keep your ingredients at room temperature or whisk vigorously as you add the honey.) Make sure you have no lumps in your almond flour and add it to the liquid ingredients along with the salt.
3. Take the pan out of the oven and add the butter or coconut oil and swirl it around as it melts. Add the batter to the pan.
4. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the pancake is set and golden brown. Top with chopped fruit, honey, mint and coconut chips; then serve in bowls with yogurt.

#version#

The drinks pictured above are Quick Blackberry Thyme Lemonade, Sweet Summer Cooler, Pineapple Grapefruit Spritzer and Cherry Cucumber Melon Cocktail. Get the last two recipes here and get sipping!

So, I’m planning to bombard you with a whole bunch of drink recipes this week. Is that cool? I had some time without the kids and I got carried away with my experimentation (it looked like the produce section of the grocery store blew up in my kitchen). All of the drinks turned out to be pretty tasty, so I’ve got to share. I hope you’re thirsty.

I call this “quick” lemonade because you don’t have to worry with making simple syrup on the stove and waiting for it to cool before you can take a drink. I just juiced some lemons, whisked some honey in with the juice and then added that to a glass of crushed blackberries and thyme. Cover that with cold water (and/or some vodka) and you’ve got a quick, refreshing something-to-sip.

These are really low maintenance- I would put a few caps on those Mason jars and take them out on a picnic.. probably with this salad. Summer heat, I am ready for you!

PS- Try a raspberry or strawberry version to mix it up.

Quick Blackberry Thyme Lemonade

 

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Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Drinks

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• ½ cup blackberries, divided
• fresh juice of two lemons
• 1 tablespoon honey
• a few sprigs of fresh thyme, removed from the stem
• 2 shots vodka (optional)
• water

Instructions

1. Split ¼ cup of between two glasses. Muddle (smash) them up in the bottom of the glasses.
2. In a small glass or bowl, whisk lemon juice and honey. Split the juice between the two glasses and add the thyme leaves.
3. If you’re adding the vodka, add one shot to each glass. Add ice and then top with water and stir. Top the glasses with the rest of the blackberries.

#version#

I’d like to introduce you to your new favorite drink of Summer 2013: the Sweet Sunset Cooler.

I am all about this drink! It really surprised me. I typically don’t buy apricots or nectarines (I have a love/forget-to-love relationship with stone fruit), but I picked some up on a whim and I am glad I did. I don’t know what my deal is with stone fruit.. I always forget how good it is.

Here’s what’s inside the glass: oranges, pineapple, apricots and nectarine. If you want to keep it simple, just add a little ice and water. If you want to step it up a bit, add some ginger ale or seltzer. If you’ve had a long day or you want a fun party drink, add some rum or vodka.

I used my juicer for this, but you can still make it if you don’t have a juicer. You can run the fruit through a blender and then press it through a strainer to remove all of the juices. You could also buy pre-packaged juices, though I’m not sure you can readily find apricot and nectarine juice at your local grocery store. (If you can, lucky you!)

Take advantage of the fresh summer produce and make these coolers for yourself and someone you love this season. Right now, I’m imagining packing them up in Mason jars for a sunset picnic, or just escaping to the backyard for a few sips with my mister. Whenever or wherever, this is going to be my summer go-to drink. Cheers!

Sweet Sunset Cooler

 

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Prep time

5 mins

Cook time

5 mins

Total time

10 mins

 

Author: Oven Love

Recipe type: Drink

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 2 oranges, peeled
• ¼ pineapple, tough skin removed
• 1 nectarine or peach, pitted
• 2 apricots, pitted
• 1 shot vodka or rum (optional)
• ginger ale, club soda, seltzer water or water

Instructions

1. Run oranges, pineapple, nectarine and apricots through a juicer. (If you don’t have a juicer, you can blend the fruit and then strain it to get the juice). Pour the juice into two tall glasses with ice.
2. For an alcoholic drink, add a shot of vodka or rum. Then top the juice (and alcohol, if using) with ginger ale, club soda, seltzer water or water to fill the glass. Give it a quick stir and enjoy.

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