Today I had a Breakfast Party at my house, with all of my immediate family as guests. I've been preparing for it for several weeks, so it really was not a ton of work, although my husband did the heavy work with setting up a large canopy, tables, and chairs next to the front flowerbed. Mother Nature helped out by delivering perfect weather for us! I made lemon blueberry cornmeal cakes (KAF corn cakes recipe), tropical fruit muffins, maple nut scones, maple walnut fig bread, and cinnabons; plus egg cups (really just scrambled eggs with sauteed onions, peppers, cheddar cheese and baked in muffin tins); fresh cherries, grapes, melon; assorted juices and mimosas.Some of the guests also brought food. We had 2 grandchildren, new college grads about to start their first career (both teachers) jobs, 1 grand-daughter starting sophomore year in college, 1 grand-daughter starting freshman year in college, and 1 grand-daughter a rising senior in high school but about to start her freshman year in the Early College program. What a blast! Love those teens!

Skeptic, I'm so sorry that attic project is still ongoing; I know you wanted it finished by summer! Are you able to keep your living area relatively cool now? I've never tried baking in a slow cooker, but reading about your successes has me thinking about trying it.

We took advantage of cloud cover and went blueberry picking on Tuesday, coming home with 20 pounds of blueberries. After dinner, I made blueberry cobbler, using my mother-in-law’s recipe as the base recipe. I am trying to make a healthier version, so I substituted in 25% barley flour, added 1 Tbs. powdered milk, used buttermilk rather than regular milk and adjusted baking powder and added baking soda. I reduced the salt. I reduced the sugar in the topping from ½ to 1/3 cup and the sugar in the cake part from 1/3 to ¼ cup. I reduced the butter from 4 Tbs. to 3 Tbs. I expect it will be sampled at breakfast tomorrow.

I suspect that you are correct: the top would be soggy. What you need is one of those small ovens that does not heat up the entire place--or else the ability to cook the apple crisp in the slow cooker, then crisp the top in the toaster oven.

I did blueberry gingerbread in my slow cooker yesterday. It turns out moister than baked in an oven but still good. There is a carmel overture to the bread as if the long cooking made the taste deeper. The blueberries have a more cooked and liquid texture than occurs when baked in an oven.

Friday morning I baked my standard "knead in the bread machine" bread. For the grains this time, I used 3/4 cup rolled 5-grain cereal and 1/4 cup malted wheat flakes and 2 Tbs. wheat bran--all of which I soaked in 1 cup buttermilk. I further reduced the salt to 3/4 tsp. and the honey to 1 Tbs. I used 2 Tbs. olive oil. I've had hydration issues with this recipe, so I used just 1/2 cup water, but I needed to add 2 Tbs. more. I've realized that this bread bakes better at 375F for 40-45 minutes. We will use it for sandwiches for supper tonight.

Chocomouse--We were able to move back into the house a week ago yesterday. I'm moving items from the apt., but I'm also unpacking items that I haven' seen for two years. It's rather like Christmas!