Berry Ricotta Cakes

This is a really easy recipe, and a great solution to your left over ricotta from Italian pasta dishes. The photos reflect the cakes just out of the oven before any topping has been placed. Notice the caramelized sugar in the cakes! These can be made in individual cups or in one large cake. Top with any sort of fruit and sauce that you desire. I recommend using frozen berries if you want a stronger sauce base, if you want more texture use the fresh and boil them down.I used fresh blackberries and then also pureed about half the berries to thicken the sauce. With fresh berries you will need to boil in water first to start creating a sauce, and then you only need to add sweetener and cornstarch to the fruit once its heated.

Ingredients:
Cake:

• 1 cup ricotta
• 4 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 egg

Sauce:

• 1 cup frozen blackberries (or fresh boiled with some water)
  
• Sugar to sweeten
• Cornstarch to thicken (if necessary)

Directions:

• Whisk together ingredients
• Pour into small baking dishes
• Bake at 375 until mixture rises and solidifies in the center
• Allow to cool in oven
• For sauce, heat berries on stove and add sugar to taste
• If sauce is too watery slowly whisk in small amount of cornstarch to thicken
  
• Serve with a drizzle of warm berry sauce

Enjoy!

Berry Jam--It's even Vegan Friendly!

Sometimes you go overboard and buy too many fresh fruits or veggies at the fresh market. Which is what I did last week and now I had a bunch of berries left over, so besides making desserts or yogurt parfaits I wanted to come up with something delicious. So I did some research on how to make jam without pectin or gelatin. The biggest issue with store bought jams and jellies is the added sugar content. The problem with pectin is that it is not easily found in most stores and it requires a lot of additional sugar added to congeal the jam. Have you ever examined the back of a jelly jar? It's insane! Fruit itself is full of sugar, why add so much more?

This recipe is easy, you can probably make it even easier by adding it to a crock pot and letting it cook on high for a few hours and then sit on low for the rest of the day. I used my stove and didn't have a problem. It just takes more awareness to make sure the berries or tapioca aren't burning or sticking to the bottom of the pot. So here is the secret to healthier and authentic jam!

Ingredients:

• Assorted berries- I used 3 cups total
• 1 cup blueberries
• 1 cup blackberries
• 1 cup bing cherries

Thickener:

4 tablespoons tapioca pearls

1 overripe banana

Agave syrup if necessary (you can use honey, maple syrup or sugar)

• Don't use artificial sweetners because they cut calories. They are so far from natural it's not funny. Enjoy the calories (they are naturally occuring in fruit sugar) and get your nutrients.
  
  Directions:
  
• Keep berries over medium heat and add water as necessary to prevent sticking to the pan
• Whisk constantly until berries are broken down
• Add tapioca and sweetner once berries have started to form a sauce
• Keep stirring to prevent burning while allowing mixture to thicken/boil down
• Poor into airtight jar and let cool
• Store in the fridge for 2 weeks or freezer for 3 months

*Serve with homemade bread and peanut butter

*Use as a glaze for meats or tofu

*Pour onto yogurt or ice cream

*Use as a filling in cookies or pastries

Remember, homemade jams are preservative free so they will not stay good forever! Use within 2 weeks.