Tuesday, July 15, 2014

A is for Apricots

ABC Wednesday
July 16th, 2014

The letter is A  for Apricots



The middle of July brings apricots to the Similkameen - probably my favourite fruit.  Love them with almonds, or ginger - well, just with almost everything.


For breakfast I have toast made from a lovely apricot / pepper bread that Sid and Sharon 
sell at the Farmer's market,
 and any chance I get I make apricot pie from the fruit stored in the freezer when the time is right!!


The hot weather we are currently enjoying/enduring reminds me of the days we picked apricots in the orchard when the weather was invariably over 100 degrees fahrenheit.

Whoever was out first claimed the Dinosaur - a mechanical picking machine with a bucket to stand in and soar through the branches and a large attached bag in which to place the fruit.
  The slow pokes all used ladders!!!


One day, when home alone, I was using this wonderful machine for picking apricots and hit a bump as I was moving it.  We tipped, in slow motion, the Dinosaur and I.  Not hurt, but it certainly put the wind up the first one home to come up the road and see the Dinosaur resting on its side in the orchard!!

Here is a nice recipe for Apricot Clafoti  from Canadian Living
a variation on the old fashioned apricot upside down cake I used to make......



The recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of butter, four eggs, 1/3 cup of lavender honey (but I'm sure any other honey would be just fine) and a vanilla bean split in half 
(if you don't keep vanilla beans in the pantry try a tsp of the liquid kind).

Whisk the eggs and honey, add the vanilla and stir in 1 tablespoon of brandy and 1 cup of flour.  Whisk in the milk to form a smooth batter.

In a mixing bowl toss the apricots (halved and sliced 1/4 inch thick) with one half a cup of sugar.  Place them in an buttered oven-proof 13x9 dish (the recipe says it should be oval, but I am sure a rectangular dish will result in the same delicious results).

Pour the egg mixture over the apricots and place in the oven, baking for 40-45 minutes at 350 degrees.  

Cool for five minutes before serving with a scoop of ice cream 
garnished with almonds and confectioner's sugar.

I have not tried this recipe, but how can you miss with APRICOTS.

For more As click here to visit Denise and Roger at ABC Wednesday
as we start another amazing round through the Alphabet.

13 comments:

Leslie: said...

Oh gosh! Apricots make me think of my aunt & uncle who owned an orchard in Osoyoos...fabulous apricots and peaches!

Leslie
abcw team

Penny said...

My mouth is watering, love apricots.

photowannabe said...

Oh Hildred...one of my very favorite fruits.
When I was small I called them Uppycups...my Mother had a hard time figuring out what I meant by that word.
Jam, pie, kuchen any old way is perfect for me.
I just had to stop by and see what you posted even if I'm not doing ABC Wednesday this time.

Roger Owen Green said...

The pie looks GOOD!
ROG, ABCW

Susan Moore said...

I really enjoy fresh apricots in the summer, although that pie looks awfully tasty too!

Kate said...

I could use a slice of that right now. Looks delicious!

MySpecialist said...

Can I have some? :) Yummo!

mrsnesbitt said...

I eat lots of apricots - they certainly do wonders for the system as I NEVER suffer from constipation lol Infact if I do I reach for a punnet of apricots - soon gets things moving so to speak! lol!

The Weaver of Grass said...

Apricots, peaches and nectarines are all my favourites Hildres, but apricots most of all I think. The trouble is that I buy them on the market, intending to cook something nice when I get home and then I eat them all before they reach the kitchen.

Reader Wil said...

Apricots are my favourite fruit.And a mechanical picking machine with a bucket to stand in would be great for my Australian daughter, who has a high mango tree of which she cannot reach the higher branches.
We hope to see you this next round. A theme is not needed.
Your posts are always entertaining enough! It's the way you write.
Wil, ABCW Team.

Tina Basu said...

okay... i have to try this now

Tina from The Sunny Side of Life

Lmkazmierczak said...

Mmmm...now I'll have to go searching for some apricot or peach cobbler....and ice cream♪ http://lauriekazmierczak.com/abstracts/

Gattina said...

I love apricots too and the cake looks real yummy !