Spicy Peach Salad

Here's a good one. A bit different than your run-of-the-mill gelatin salad.

2 (3 oz) pkgs orange gelatin
1 1/4 cups cold water
1 large can sliced peaches
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1 large stick whole cinnamon
12 whole cloves

Drain peaches, reserving juice. Measure juice and water to make 1 1/2 cups liquid. Combine with the sugar, vinegar, and spices. Bring to a boil and simmer 5 minutes. Add sliced peaches; simmer 5 minutes longer. Remove peaches and spices from syrup; set aside peaches and discard the spices. Measure syrup and add boiling water to make 2 1/2 cups. Dissolve the gelatin in the hot syrup by stirring for 3 minutes, then add the cold water. Chill until mixture reaches the consistency of heavy syrup. Add the peach slices; pour into a serving dish. Chill until firm.

Blackberry Wine Cake

Everyone comes back for more of this moist, delicious cake.

1 (18.25 oz.) white cake mix
1 (3 oz.) package blackberry gelatin mix
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup blackberry wine

Glaze:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup blackberry wine


Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt cake pan. In a large mixing bowl, stir together cake ingredients, then mix at medium speed for 4 minutes. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake in 325 degree oven for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Spoon half of the glaze over the warm cake. After 10 minutes, remove from pan. Cool cake and spoon remaining glaze over the top. To make the glaze, simply whisk together the wine and the powdered sugar.

Galettes Bretonnes

Okay ladies and gentlemen, in honor of my upcoming séjour in France, here is the recipe for true Brittany crêpes, personally translated (and units converted) from the best and most authentic recipe on the French internets.

Ingredients:

2 eggs
1 1/4 cups buckwheat flour
1 1/4 cups whole milk, cold
2 tbps sunflower oil (it doesn't exist, really. Just use olive oil or whatever.)
1/2 sachet of baking powder. No, I don't know what a sachet is. Just add what seems right.
Salt
Pepper

Add the flour, milk, salt and pepper in a medium or large bowl. Dig a little hole in the middle and break your eggs into it. Carefully mix together with a whisk and add the oil a little at a time, then the cold milk.

Let it sit for at least 30 minutes, unrefrigerated. Or you can leave it your fridge for several hours, whatever works best.

Then, the fun part. Heat up a 12-inch nonstick pan and add some butter or additional oil. Then scoop up a ladle-full of batter and play French chef by gracefully pouring it into the pan with one hand while using the other hand to briskly swirl the pan and distribute the batter. It should coat the entire pan with a very thin layer, and if you do it like I do then it will get splotchy and gunky and you'll freak out and think it's all ruined. It isn't. Just wait and pretty soon you'll start to get really excited when you realize it actually resembles a true Bretagne crêpe. That is, if you've ever seen one.

Lay them out on plates or cooling racks until the last of the batter is used up. Then (the other fun part), add whatever ingredients you want to the middle, fold them over or roll them up, reheat them briefly in the skillet, and serve. This recipe works for both sweet and savory, so feel free to get creative. But don't use American cheese, because that's just sacrilege.