summer indulgences

There are two summer treats that we like to indulge ourselves with around here. Now you're going to look at these and say, "those aren't indulgences. they're no where near sinful enough." And you'd be right, unless I told you that we have them for breakfast. There's something about having dessert for breakfast that makes it seem more like off limits calorie filled goodness.

Summer Fruit Pizza:

the "crust":
1 refrigerated pie crust
1 Tbsp cinnamon/sugar

the "sauce":
1 1/4 cups half and half
1pkg. vanilla instant pudding
1 cup whipped cream (homemade always best)

the "toppings":
any seasonal fresh fruit you have sitting around

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Unroll pie crust onto a baking sheet. (you can leave it whole, making it look more like pizza; we like to use cookie cutters to make mini shaped pizzas.) Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. cool completely. Meanwhile, pour half and half into a medium bowl. Add dry pudding mix. Beat with a wire whisk until well blended. Gently fold in whipped cream. Refrigerate until ready to use. Spread "sauce" over crust and top with fruit. Enjoy!

Watermelon Ice:

1/4 cup sugar
2 cups water
4 cups of cubed seedless watermelon
juice of one lime

Combine the sugar and water in a saucepan set over medium heat. Stir until the sugar has completely dissolved. Remove from the heat and allow the syrup to cool.
Puree the watermelon chunks (it is fine if small seeds are still attached) in a blender until smooth. Pour the simple syrup, lime juice, and watermelon puree in a 9 by 11-inch nonreactive baking pan and stir well. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and place in the freezer. After 1 hour, stir the mixture well, using a fork. Return to the freezer for another hour, then stir again. This time allow the mixture to freeze for at least 6 hours or overnight (it is not necessary to continue stirring after you have done it twice).
Remove the pan from the freezer and allow it to sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes. Using a fork, scrape the fruit ice and serve it in a small bowl.

my pajama/play dress clad kitchen helpers in too big aprons and with sticky cherry stained fingers