Fruit...In A Different Sort of Way...

My family eats fruit everyday, I am hoping yours does too.  It's light, nourishing, and GOOD for you!
We shop at the local farmers markets, which living in South Florida are open year round.  Some days we are able to freshly pick fruit and vegetables at one of our favorites U-Picks....here.  We also snack on dried fruits and grains (don't kid yourself we are also snacking on those "Dirty Potato Chips" too), but over all we love fruit and seem to grab that first above anything.  Here are some of the ways we use fresh fruit:

• Homemade Fruit Salsas (with chips or over chicken/seafood)
• in desserts like the easiest one of all - Jiffy Cobbler (recipe to follow)
• Smoothies - my bullet blender works two to three times a day
• just cut up plain!

Another easy way to consume fruit is freeze dried.  My kids go crazy for this...unfortunately buying in small packs at the grocery markets or specialty stores is quite costly, even at the wholesale stores-and you tend to be limited on what you get, often times getting stuck if your kid doesn't like the variety (this hasn't happened for us though-thank goodness).  But to make this email shorter, the punchline is there are some GREAT companies that cater to bulk freeze dried foods and FRUITS.  Some of our favorites are HONEYVILLE and SHELF RELIANCE.  Some of my girlfriends get together, make a LARGE order.  Mix and Match, and we put into canning jars to keep the freshness for later use.  We use a FOOD SAVER machine that has a canning attachment to take the air out.  VERY COOL!  However, you can purchase and use as needed.  The fruit and veggies I order are great snacks for on the run, are always available and delicious.  Kids love them, and you can use them in recipes dried or by plumping them back up with water.

We are set with snacks for a few months here.  Notice that we have dried peas and corn too, they are DELICIOUS to snack on and you don't even notice your eating vegetables- a great alternative to croutons in a salad and still get the crunch.  Sometimes we add seasoning to them too.  Anyhow, I wanted to share something that works for our family, something that is cost effective for snacking, and HEALTHY!  If you've ever enjoyed those crisp apples chips or dried strawberries and bananas in salads at places like Panara freeze dried is what they are using. Crisp and delicious. 

How does your family eat fruit?

Jiffy Cobbler (SOOOO Delicious-SOOOO Easy)

1 -9 oz. box of yellow/white cake mix (or 1/2 of a large one)
1/2 to 1 stick of butter, melted
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1 can of fruit pie filling or what I do... (4 cups of cut fruit simmered down with a little sweetener of your choice)

In a pie plate or baking dish add your fruit.  In a separate bowl mix your melted butter, pecans, and cake mix until crumbly.  Top the fruit and bake @ 350 for 45-55 minutes.