Cheever Sauce

It was dark by 5:30 last night and according to the new notification screen on my iPhone, (time to upgrade to iOS5 people) it’s going to snow tomorrow. Since it looks like we are getting dangerously close to winter, what better way to hold onto these fleeting fall days than to bake a light, delicious, and a little summery? cake. 

Apparently yogurt cakes are a French thing. And we allllll know the only other acceptable alternative to a girl from Connecticut pretending to be a New Yorker, is a CT girl pretending to be a New Yorker pretending to be a Parisian ;) . Yogurt cakes are my kind of thing because they’re one of those rare baking gems that don’t require complicated measuring. The math is based on the volume of your yogurt cups, to which you add an equal amount of sugar, a double amount of flour, a little less than one of oil, two eggs, and some leavener and flavors like a little vanilla, citrus zest, or rum (Thanks Smitten Kitchen for the fun fact). I decided to go the lemon route and top it off with the blueberries and raspberries I had in the fridge. 

The best thing about this cake is it’s flavorful and fluffy yet not too sweet. I also found that the more days that went by, the better it tasted. However it was gone sooner than I hoped since I gave half a way to a friend and the leftovers regrettably served as my breakfast for the next couple days. 

Onward for the recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen’s Lime Yogurt Cake with Blackberry Sauce

Welcome to part 2 of the dinner party I had 3 weeks ago (I’ve got to get better about posting quicker). CheeverSauce Dessert! This dish couldn’t be a more perfect official first dessert post. It’s so easy to make with relatively healthy (for a dessert) ingredients. Crumble/Crisp = oats = no buttery crusts. It’s a great healthy alternative to a mixed fruit pie and packs a nutrition punch with its high levels of antioxidants, vitamin E and C. Another plus? When served in a small mason jar - your proportions are kept in check. 

Nectarine’s will only be available for another two weeks but this recipe would work with any fruit. Will I be apple picking in the fall and doing another variation on the original of all crisps? Yes. But in the meantime enjoy your end of summer/early fall fruits with this delicious sweet ending to any meal. 

Onto the super easy cooking directions. 

Rise and grind! It’s morning in the Big Apple and many of you after hitting the snooze button 15 minutes past your wakeup call, have sleep walked your way to the shower, brushed your teeth, combed your hair (blow dried it if you’ve got meetings, or a cute co-worker) and quickly thrown together an outfit (which probably includes at least one particle of clothing you wore out the night before), and ran out the door just in time to catch the subway. This is was I like to call the New Yorker Scramble…minus the eggs. 

Most people don’t have time for breakfast - I get it, mornings are hard. But Mom wasn’t kidding when she said it is the most important meal of the day. If you skip breakfast you’ll probably end up bingeing on office cake or chinese for lunch. Breakfast = good for your metabolism = good for your waistline. 

Although I’ve tried to up the standards of what meals I decide to blog about, I figured why not indulge you in another one of my breakfast staples - even if everyone already knows how to make oatmeal. 

Yes, I know steal cut oatmeal is best for you (higher protein, fiber, etc, etc.) but I don’t have the patience for it - I don’t even have the patience to cook quick oats in a pan. I recommend using McCain’s Instant Irish Oatmeal. I prepare it with a 1/2 cup of skim milk (water in oatmeal is gross) and microwave it for 1 minutes 30 seconds. I then add chopped walnuts (adds protein), a handful of fresh mixed berries, tiiiiiny bit of real maple syrup, and some cinammon. It’s delicious, takes less then 5 min to make, and even less time to eat. 

So tomorrow morning, hit the snooze button only once and whip together some Morning Oatmeal for yourself. Your body will thank you. 

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The best thing about having a food blog is that you’re always getting great tips from your family and friends. And seeing that I am not a professional chef, I could use all the help I can get.

Most mornings when I am looking for a quick easy breakfast, I stick a whole wheat frozen waffle in the toaster, top it with almond butter and honey, and I am good to go. My friend Annabelle offered me a new twist to my breakfast staple that her mom Liz has been cooking her since she was little. I was so taken with her mom’s version, I knew I immediately needed to eat that for my next breakfast. 

1. Toast a whole wheat frozen waffle (your favorite brand)
2. Top with 1 Tbs. of almond butter
3. Microwave a small handful of fresh or frozen berries (doesn’t really matter what kind, blueberries, strawberries, mixed berries etc.) for 2 minutes.
4. Top your melted/warm berries over your waffle
5. CheeverSauce tip: I added a tiny bit of honey to the warm berries and then topped the waffle - although I love new additions, I couldn’t let go of my morning honey :) 

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I eat yogurt and berries a lot. It’s a great, healthy breakfast but I am sure, we can all admit it gets a little boring. So I decided to jazz up this morning staple - parfait style.

In a mug or glass layer Fage 0% yogurt, granola, berries, drizzle layer with honey. Repeat. 

The best part about a layered dish like this is, is when you scoop down there are more goodies at the bottom. This keeps all the flavoring consistent which makes for a more satisfying yogurt/berries/granola mashup experience. Another plus you ask? It’s pretty and makes you feel all fancy and refined, like you should be eating it, wrapped in a plush white bathrobe on your hotel balcony in St. Tropez…rather than on your NYC fire escape right above the garbage men picking up last nights trash… (sigh). 

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