Summer Treats

Only this time of the year can you enjoy these fab combos of fruit - picture a big spoon of Mallard's Ice Cream on top!
Apricot and Cherry Crisp

Topping
1 cup flour
1cup sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ pound cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

Fruit
1 ½ pound apricots, quartered
½ pound Bing cherries, pitted
Zest of 1 lemon
1 generous teaspoon grated ginger
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons flour

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

To make the topping: Mix flour, sugar in a small bowl., quickly mix in butter until it is like coarse cornmeal.
Mix the fruit, zest, ginger, sugar, and flour in a 9 inch baking dish. Spread the fruit level, sprinkle with the topping.
Bake 35-45 minutes until golden and the juices bubble around the edges.

Japanese pickles

I have a book on traditional Japanese pickling. I thought the sweet and sour shallots sounded like something I might do, so reading the directions I found - "Be sure to get unwashed bulbs, prewashed ones tend to have a hard surface. I make it a habit to sit and peel the shallots in front of the TV and mumble that I need a pet monkey to help at this time of the year. "