Shrimp, berries, mango slivers—a few of my favorite things

An afternoon with breezes straight off the water, a campfire in our pit for the first time this summer, dinner on our deck at our lake place—these were some happenings that made my Mother’s Day special.

Content to hatch up my own Mother’s Day meal (we had been out to dinner the Friday night before), I chose a menu that included blackened shrimp on skewers alongside mango slices and our own fresh blackberries. A mint-lime drizzle that used mint from our herb garden was the crowning touch.

How happy I was to be able to use our abundant blackberry crop for this unique purpose. The berries and mango formed a wonderful go-together with the shrimp. This recipe couldn’t have been easier, so toil over food preparation didn’t mar the holiday.

Love those blackberries with shrimp.

Grilled Blackened Shrimp Skewers

36 unpeeled, large raw Gulf shrimp (about 1 pound, 26/30 count)

1 teaspoon olive oil

2 teaspoon Cajun blackened seasoning 18 (6-inch) wooden skewers

36 fresh blackberries

18 fresh mango slices

Mint-Lime Drizzle:

1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon sugar (or sugar substitute)

1/8 teaspoon salt (or salt substitute)

Preheat grill to 350 to 400 degrees (medium-high) heat. Peel shrimp; leave tails on; devein, if desired. Place shrimp in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with seasoning; toss to coat. Grill shrimp, covered with grill lid, 2 to 3 minutes on each side or just until shrimp turn pink. Thread each skewer with 2 grilled shrimp, 2 blackberries, and 1 mango slice. Brush with Mint-Lime Drizzle, if desired. Makes 4 to 6 servings. (Source: Southern Living, May 2012)

Mixed berries make a wonderful showing in this unusual crustless "pie" recipe

When is a pie crust not a pie crust?

When it's the shell of an apple that cleverly acts as a holder for pie ingredients.

Just days ago I discovered a fun new recipe, the outcome of which was brimming with health and goodness but amazed me at its ability to taste like a pie without the usual flour/water/oil crust.

The secret was finding baking apples such as Granny Smith that are tart and are designed to be baked in the oven rather than merely eaten as snacks.

Our grocery happened to be running a special on its fresh shipment of blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries--the first three ingredients in the Baked Apples with Berries recipe I'd just discovered. (Thanks again to my "Celebrating a Healthy Harvest" booklet, which has recipes categorized by fresh fruits and vegetables. Each fruit or vegetable features two recipes that can be prepared with that particular produce item.)

Besides being sure to use baking rather than snacking apples, another key to this recipe is to core the apple only three-quarters of the way down rather than hollowing out the full depth of the apple. Leaving some uncored portion at the bottom retains the fruit mixture during the baking process and helps the skin serve as the "pie shell" I mentioned. The rest of the instructions appear below.

After baking this concoction for 45 minutes, the apple skin made a wonderful holder for the baked berries and then the yummy fruit and yogurt mixture that's added after baking.

We dined on our Baked Apples with Berries at dinner while they were warm from the oven and saved the remaining two stuffed apples for the next day's lunch. For lunch I ate mine cold, straight from the refrigerator--equally delicious!

Baked Apples with Berries

1 cup fresh blackberries

1 cup fresh raspberries

1 cup blueberries

4 large baking apples (I used Granny Smith), washed

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt

2 teaspoons honey

slivered almonds (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Core apples about three-quarters o the way through the apple. Start at the stem. Make the hole more than 1 inch wide. Place apples in baking dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Rinse and drain berries. Combine berries and then pack berries firmly into the opening in each apple. Set extra berries aside. Bake apples until they are soft, about 45 minutes. Divide remaining berries in half. Crush half the berries and then mix with yogurt, cinnamon, and honey. Serve apples with yogurt topping and extra berries sprinkled on top. Sprinkle slivered almonds on top if desired.