August is National Blueberry Month. The harvest is full, the prices are at the year’s low, and any food lover should relish the opportunity to eat lots of them. And cook with them. Beyond the all-American blueberry pie, you can make:

 
We’ll focus on some of those tomorrow. Today, we’re starting with dessert: blueberry ice cream and blueberry pound cake. Both are easy to make and won’t keep you in the kitchen for too long.

We have two recipes for you today: Blueberry Ice Cream and Blueberry Pound Cake. Can you make both and serve the pound cake à la mode with the ice cream?

Abso-blueberry-lutely!

> The history of blueberries.

Fresh blueberries should be firm and dry (no leakage or juice stains on the bottom of the container), with smooth skin covered with a silvery white bloom. The color should be deep purple-blue to blue-black. Reddish blueberries aren’t ripe and won’t ripen once they are picked, but you can use them when cooking with added sugar.

Refrigerate fresh blueberries, either in their original plastic pack or in a covered bowl or container. Before using, wash the berries, removing any stems, leaves, and smashed fruit, plus berries that look soft, shriveled, or dots of white mold.
 
 
RECIPE #1: BLUEBERRY ICE CREAM

Ingredients For 1 Quart

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE the blueberries, sugar, and salt in a saucepan and bring to a boil over moderate heat. Mash the softened blueberries and stir with a fork. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.

2. PURÉE the berry mixture and milk in a blender or food processor. When smooth, stir in the cream. Press the purée through a sieve into a bowl. Press on the solids with the back of a spoon to extract the remaining juices.

3. COVER and chill the mixture for at least 2 hours, or until cold. You can make the recipe up to this step, up to 1 day in advance.

4. PROCESS the cold mixture in an ice cream maker, according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer it to an airtight container and place in the freezer to harden.
 

[3] Enjoy the summer’s fresh blueberries (photo © Good Eggs).

This easy recipe is from QVC’s chef David Venable. David’s tip: “Be sure that all of your ingredients are at room temperature before beginning. And, only use fresh blueberries in the sauce; it will have a better consistency.”

The recipe is easy because David uses a pound cake mix. We made our own pound cake recipe from scratch, adding just the cup of blueberries and the sour cream from the cake ingredients below.

Ingredients For 6-8 Servings

Ingredients For The Cake

 
Ingredients For The Blueberry Sauce

 
Garnish

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a loaf pan. Set aside.

2. PREPARE the cake: Toss the blueberries with flour in a bowl. Set aside.

3. PLACE the remaining ingredients in a food processor and process for 3 minutes. Scrape the sides and process for 3 more minutes. Stir in the flour-coated blueberries with a spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45–55 minutes.

4. MAKE the sauce: Place all the ingredients into a food processor and process for 4–6 minutes. Drizzle the sauce on top of the sliced pound cake. Top with whipped cream and serve; or make it a la mode with a scoop of ice cream.
 
 

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We just finished National Watermelon Month (July), but National Watermelon Day is coming up on August 3rd. Here are two ways to enjoy it that may not yet be in your repertoire.
 
WATERMELON SUSHI ROLL

Mango has been a familiar ingredient in sushi rolls for years. But it’s summertime, the season for for watermelon.

In the spirit of eating seasonally, Haru Sushi substitutes fresh watermelon for the mango in a roll made with snow crab, green onion and mint. It’s topped with shrimp and served with a lemon dressing in addition to (or instead of) soy sauce.

If you want to make something similar at home, cantaloupe and honeydew work equally well.

Haru pairs the Watermelon Roll with Watermelon Lemonade, a sweet-tart blend of lemon-infused vodka, saké, St. Germain Elderflower liqueur (a NIBBLE favorite), fresh watermelon, lemon juice and thyme-infused simple syrup. The recipe is below.

Watermelon combines with conventional ingredients in this sushi roll. Photo courtesy Haru.

And if you’d like to know the different types of sushi better, check out our Sushi Glossary.

RECIPE: WATERMELON LEMONADE

Ingredients Per Drink

 
For The Simple Syrup

It’s not so innocent: This watermelon lemonade has watermelon and lemonade, but also citron vodka and elderflower liqueur. Photo courtesy Haru.

Preparation

1. MAKE the simple syrup: Combine the thyme, sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside to cool. Strain the thyme from the syrup and refrigerate in an airtight container.

2. MUDDLE the watermelon cubes in a mixing glass. Add the remaining ingredients (except garnish) and ice, and shake vigorously for 8-10 seconds

3. POUR into a tall, ice-filled glass. Garnish with thyme and lemon peel.
 
THE HISTORY OF WATERMELON

Watermelon, Citrullus lanatus, is believed to have originated in the Kalahari Desert of southern Africa (it covers much of Botswana and parts of Namibia and South Africa). An ancestor of the modern watermelon still grows wild there.

Watermelon is a member of the botanical family Curcurbitaceae. Its cousins include cucumbers, gourds, pumpkins and squash.

Watermelon was cultivated as early as 2000 B.C.E. The first recorded watermelon harvest occurred nearly 5,000 years ago in Egypt. You can tell how much the Egyptians enjoyed watermelon: Seeds were found in the tomb of Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamen, so his farmers could grow it in the afterlife.

Thirsty traders passing through the Kalahari, refreshed by the fruit, began to sell the seeds along the trade routes. The cultivation of watermelon spread throughout Africa.

Most culinary historians believe that watermelon spread from Egypt to other Mediterranean basin countries on merchant trading ships. According to John Mariani’s The Dictionary of American Food and Drink, the word first appeared in English dictionaries in 1615. Watermelon seeds came to the U.S. with African slaves as well as with British colonists.

Watermelon was cultivated in China and other parts of Asia by the end of the 9th century C.E. or the early 10th century. Today China is the world’s number one producer of watermelon, Turkey is the second-largest producer and Iran is third. The U.S. is the world’s fourth-largest producer of watermelon, tied with Brazil.

Watermelons come in a variety of shapes and sizes: Oval, round, even square, developed in Japan for smaller refrigerators. The flesh can be red or yellow; botanists have also developed varieties with orange and white flesh and even this multicolored blue-green watermelon.
 
Here’s more about watermelon history, nutrition and tips.

Mustard has been cultivated for more than 5,000 years, beginning in India in 3000 B.C.E. It grew wild in the foothills of the Himalayas.

The ancient Greeks and Romans used mustard as a condiment; some actually chewed the mustard seeds with their meat. Egyptian pharoahs were buried with seeds to use in the afterlife.

Fast forward: By the 1400s, mustard had spread through Europe, with each region making its own style.

Mustard came to the U.S. in the 1700s, with European immigrants who established mustard businesses.

The style of the day was strong, spicy and brown, but later, the yellow “ballpark” mustard style was born in the U.S.A. Here’s more history of mustard.

Five of the 20+ types of mustard made
by Maille Mustard.

For National Mustard Day, commit to trying any of these you aren’t familiar with, plus a flavored mustard. Beyond honey mustard, look for Roquefort mustard, tarragon mustard and walnut mustard—three of our favorites.
 
 
20+ WAYS TO USE MUSTARD

Beyond hot dogs, burgers and sandwiches, mustard is a natural complement to many foods. Before we start the conventional list, take a look at this first course: gravlax with mustard ice cream. There’s no sugar in the ice cream, just novelty. Think of it as a cold mustard cream sauce!

 
Thanks to Colman’s Mustard for some of these yummy ideas. Click the link for recipes.
 
 
> MUSTARD HISTORY
 
 
> THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF MUSTARD
  

July 31st is National Raspberry Cake Day. You can make one easily, by using raspberry jam as a filling between two layers, using whipped cream to frost the cake, and decorating the top with fresh raspberries.

But for calorie counters, substitute the cake for a pie, and make this reduced calorie raspberry pie from Driscoll’s. It replaces some of the sugar with a noncaloric sugar substitute. And August 1st is National Raspberry Cream Pie Day.

You can add a garnish of whipped cream from an aerosol can. With all the air whipped into the sweetened cream, it has just eight calories per tablespoon.

For this recipe, prep time is 25 minutes; cook time is 1 hour 5 minutes.

If you don’t want a reduced-sugar pie, try this raspberry cream pie recipe.

RECIPE: REDUCED-CALORIE RASPBERRY PIE

Ingredients For 8 Servings
 
For The Crust

 
Optional Garnish

Just-picked raspberries. Photo by J. Eltovski | Morguefile.

1. MAKE the crust: Place the flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until combined. Add the butter and shortening and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the ater, one tablespoon at a time, and pulse just until the dough comes together (be careful not to over-mix). Pat the dough into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill at least 1 hour.

2. MAKE the filling: Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface into a large circle about 1/4-inch thick. Cut out a 13-inch circle and gently transfer the dough to a 9-1/2-inch pie plate. Fold the edge of dough under the rim of the plate and crimp to make a decorative crust. Place in the freezer for 15 minutes. Cut the remaining dough into various small cutouts, using cookie cutters. (Here’s a set of mini leaf cutters. We use this linzer cookie cutter set with a heart, moon, sun and star.)

3. PREHEAT the oven to 400°F. Top the pie dough shell with aluminum foil or parchment paper and fill it with pie weights or dried beans. (This large pie weight from Chicago Metallic avoids having to pick up the individual weights or beans.)

5. REDUCE the oven temperature to 350°F. Place the raspberries, Splenda, brown sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt in a medium bowl and stir until evenly combined. Spoon into prebaked crust. Brush crust with beaten egg and top with small cutouts. Brush cutouts with beaten egg.

6. BAKE for 40 to 45 minutes or until the juices are bubbling and the crust is golden brown. Let cool slightly before serving, or chill completely.
 
Find more delicious berry recipes at Driscolls.com.
  

At its simplest, the tip is: Serve fish fillets—baked, grilled, pan-fried, roasted or sautéed—topped with a salad of baby greens, very lightly dressed in vinaigrette or olive oil and lime juice.
 
ADD COLOR TO EVERY PLATE OF FOOD

The salad adds vibrant color to a plate of beige, brown and/or white foods, a longstanding practice of chefs (even if times past, the color was a sprig of parsley). You can add even more color a side of yellow squash, carrots, sautéed heirloom cherry tomatoes or any of these “Rainbow Vegetables.”

The Sea Grill adds fun and flavor by layering the dish with a south-of-the-border spin:

Salad-topped grilled black sea bass in a corn salad-filled tortilla bowl. Photo courtesy The Sea Grill | NYC.

Sautéed cherry tomatoes are another
easy way to add color and flavor to a fish
fillet dish. Here’s a sautéed cherry tomato
recipe from Leite’s Culinaria.

You don’t need to make tortilla bowls: You can place the fish on top of the corn salad, or substitute cucumber salad, beans/legumes/bean purée, guacamole, rice or other starch, or vegetables/vegetable purée. But if you want to make the bowls, here’s how:

RECIPE: TORTILLA BOWLS

1. PREHEAT the oven to 425°F. Lightly spray both sides of 8-inch corn tortillas with nonstick cooking spray.

2. PRESS each tortilla over a custard cup, ramekin or other oven-safe bowl; crimp to form the fluted bowl shape. Place on a baking sheet.

3. BAKE for 10 minutes or until the edges are browned. Remove from the oven and cool for 3 minutes. Remove the tortillas from the bowls and cool completely.
 
For larger tortilla bowls that you can use for entrée salads, purchase burrito-size wraps and drape them over a 1-quart ovenproof bowl (we use Pyrex).