lemon

#BundtBakers: Christmas Bundts

~ lk529 ~ 1 Comment

4ae7b-bundtbakerspost#BundtBakers is a group of bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bundt cakes with a common ingredient or theme. This month Sneha of Sneha’s Recipe asked us to bake a Christmas Bundt.

Every year my husband’s office has an all floor potluck the week of Thanksgiving.

This event is massive.

Every conference room gets transformed into a buffet of delicacies.

Employees and their families are all encouraged to attend and participate. Everyone is given a room to start in and after that you’re allowed to checkout the other rooms.

The rooms all have a theme, too. There are two traditional Thanksgiving rooms (last year I brought Papa’s Sweet Potato Casserole ). There’s an American room (thinks barbecue, wings, and chili), and Asian room (which is most popular and I’ve yet to even pop my head into it!), a European room, two dessert tables, a kids room with hotdogs and pizza, and more.

This year I told my husband to sign us up for a dessert so that I could share a bundt cake! He sent me the massive spread sheet and I searched for a dessert that I could fill with this month’s theme. Lemon bundt cake was my answer. I wasn’t originally thinking lemon, but I made it work!

I made a Cranberry Surprise Inside Lemon Bundt.

I unloaded about half a can of Pam into my beautiful bundt pan and it still stuck! I did my best to piece it together, crossed my fingers, and had my husband pick up a store bought lemon bundt cake as back up.

Come the morning, the cake had set together well enough that I figured, why not just bring it anyway. The boys and I, naturally, had to taste it first and it passed all approval ratings.

In my indecisiveness on bringing the cake or not I ran out of time to make a frosting, but, as you know by now, I don’t like frostings anyway.

Lemon Cran Bundt (kids)

Cranberry Surprise Inside Bundt Cake

Ingredients for the cake:

  • 1 bag (12 oz) fresh cranberries
  • 2 1/2 C sugar, divided use
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 6 tbsp milk
  • 2 tbsp lemon zest
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3 C cake flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 1/4 sticks butter, cubed, at room temperature

Ingredients for syrup:

  • 1/4 C sugar
  • 1/2 C lemon juice

Steps:

  1. In a pot, heat cranberries and 3/4 C sugar over medium-high heat until it reduces down to 1 1/4 C, 15-20 minutes. Let cool.
  2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heavily grease a 10 C bundt pan.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs, yolks, milk, lemon zest, and vanilla. Set aside.
  4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, remaining 1 3/4 C sugar, baking powder and salt. Beat in the cubed butter. Add the wet ingredients in 3 batches, mixing until incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl.
  5. Fill bundt pan 2/3 full with batter. Spoon in the cranberry filling, making sure it doesn’t touch any of the edges. Top with remaining batter. Bake 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out cleanly.
  6. In a small saucepan, dissolve 1/4 C sugar in 1/2 C lemon juice over medium-low heat. Set aside.
  7. Poke the cooked cake, still in the pan, with a skewer and pour the syrup over the top. Let cool at least 10 minutes before unmolding onto a cooling rack. Let cool completely, wrap, and set overnight.

*This recipe is adapted from https://www.keyingredient.com/recipes/153248/lemon-cranberry-bundt-cake/*

Lemon Cranberry Inside Bundt Cake for #BundtBakers from Sew You Think You Can Cook

You can see all our of lovely Bundts by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about #BundtBakers, can be found on our home page.

And don’t forget to take a peek at what other talented bakers have created this month:

Almond Nougat Bundt Cake by Nunca es demasiado dulce

Bundt de Noel by All That’s Left Are The Crumbs

Baileys Hot Chocolate Bundt Cake by Making Miracles

Cinnamon Bun Bundt by Living the Gourmet

Chestnut Praline Coffee Bundt Cake by The Queen of Scones

Christkindl Gluhwein Bundt Cake by I Love Bundt Cakes

Eggless Semolina Tutti Fruity Cake by Sneha’s Recipe

Gingerbread Bundt Cake by Faith, Hope, Love, & Luck Survive Despite a Whiskered Accomplice

Italian Cream Bundt Cake by Palatable Pastime

Mini Chocolate Ganache Bundts with Peppermint Crunch by Cookaholic Wife

Maple Walnut Bundt Cake by Bizcocheando

Pineapple Upside Down Bundt by A Day in the Life on the Farm

Polenta Bundt Cake by Katin špajz

Rich Chocolate Bundt Cake with Cake Truffles by Sweet Sensations

Sorrel Mini Bundts by Passion Kneaded

Spicy Gingerbread Bundt by Food Lust People Love

Xmas Bundt Cake by La mejor manera de hacer

#SundaySupper: Easy Spring Recipes

~ lk529 ~ 16 Comments

Can you feel it? Spring is in the air!

IMG_6287Well, you’re probably feeling it more if you didn’t just have to survive a surprise late winter storm.

Here in SoCal the benefits of a wet winter have flowers in bloom and bright green grass at the park.

One weather feature I wasn’t prepared for was this concept called a “marine layer.” The marine layer is like a fog that won’t quit. It completely blocks the sun and makes everything “cold” and grey.

With the start of spring technically starting tomorrow, the #SundaySupper tastemakers have over 40 ways to make the most of your spring bounty. Be sure to scroll past my recipe to see them all! Thank you to Anne of Simple and Savory for hosting today’s event.

When thinking spring, I often think of bright green dishes, fresh veggies from the farmer’s market, and lots of salad. But I also think of the Easter season. With Lent in full swing, there’s often a lot more fish being prepared in my kitchen.

I’m not a fan of ham and growing up my family had a Polish cold meat salad called Swienconka (pronounced shven-shun-ka). Swienconka is Polish and translates to “blessed food.” My mom’s grandfather was a butcher and he would bring home the leftover meats for this dish – veal, smoked butt, two kinds of Polish sausage, and ham. These meats would be cooked and mixed with hard boiled eggs. The mixture would then marinate in vinegar and fresh and jarred horseradish.

Instead, for Easter, I’ve always  made a pork tenderloin as the star of the dinner table. So, yes, for me, pork tenderloin qualifies as an “Easy Spring Recipe.”

The Parmesan Crusted Pork Tenderloin I’m sharing today is perfect for pairing with those fresh spring veggies and some mashed potatoes!

And it’s easy. Case in point: it’s the first pork dish I ever made. In high school, with my best friend. The recipe card comes from Publix (a grocery store I’m seriously missing out here in Cali).

Parmesan Crusted Pork Tenderloin

Ingredients:

  • 1 C panko
  • 1/2 C shredded Parmesan cheese
  • 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh Italian flat leaf parsley
  • zest 1 lemon
  • 1 tsp Kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp dried sage
  • 1/4 tsp ground pepper
  • 2 egg whites
  • juice 1 lemon
  • 2 tsp cornstarch
  • 1 1 lb pork tenderloin

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly grease a shallow baking dish.
  2. In a wide bowl, whisk together the panko, Parmesan, parsley, lemon zest, salt, sage, and pepper.
  3. In another wide bowl, whisk together the egg whites, lemon juice, and cornstarch.
  4. Coat pork in the egg white mixture and then coat in the breadcrumbs.
  5. Place pork in prepared baking dish. Bake 20-25 minutes, until an internal temperature of 155 degrees F is reached. Allow pork to rest 5-10 minutes before slicing.

Parmesan Crusted Pork Tenderloin for #SundaySupper from Sew You Think You Can Cook

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Cakes, Pies, and Sweets

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Sunday Supper MovementJoin the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement

#MuffinMonday: Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

~ lk529 ~ 6 Comments

fb5cd-muffin2bmonday2bcropThere is a coffee shop near our home that we walk by quite often on our walk to and from Whole Foods. When we first moved here we discovered how incredible their muffins are, and Firecracker particularly fancies them. If he’s hungry or tired, he’ll declare that he wants a muffin as we walk by. And now that he’s in a forward facing car seat, he asks when we’re driving, too!

Normally we order a blueberry, cinnamon, or chocoalte muffin, but last time he went to the coffee shop with my husband, they got a lemon poppy seed muffin. I’m going to assume they were running low on the day’s muffin stock. Turns out he liked it so much we had to make some at home! Brining us to the first #MuffinMonday (and muffin) of the year.

wesley

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins to brighten their Mondays. There isn’t a theme to #MuffinMonday posts so anything goes, as long as it’s a muffin!

You can see all our of lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page.

These muffins are best served with a bit of butter.

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

Ingredients:

  • 2 C flour
  • 1 C sugar
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 1/2 tbsp lemon zest
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 stick butter, melted
  • 3/4 C sour cream
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp poppy seeds

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with paper liners.
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, lemon zest, and salt.
  3. In another bowl, whisk together the melted butter, sour cream, eggs, and lemon juice. Combine wet ingredients into dry. Fold in the poppy seeds.
  4. Divide batter among 12 muffins. Bake 18 minutes.

*This recipe is adapted from Jess at http://jessfuel.com/2015/07/08/lemon-poppy-seed-mini-muffins/*

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins for #MuffinMonday from Sew You Think You Can Cook

And don’t forget to check out these other muffin recipes:

Baba Ganoush Muffins from Food Lust People Love

Basic Banana Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm

Gruyère, Roasted Pepper, and Thyme Muffins from Karen’s
Kitchen Stories

Lemon Poppyseed Muffins from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Healthy Tiramisu Muffins from Farm Fresh Feasts

Maple Bacon Muffins from Palatable Pastime

Orange Oat Muffins from Passion Kneaded

Food Bloggers Recipe Swap: Shredded Beets with Citrus Vinaigrette

~ lk529 ~ 3 Comments

It’s my first time posting in the Food Bloggers Recipe Swap and I’m pretty excited.

I probably should have just waited until the new year to begin participating, but I was just too excited!

There’s been a lot going on here, as I’m sure in most people’s homes, the past two months. I’m now feeling the crunch to Christmas (and that is in no way a bad thing) and have been neglecting a lot of my blogging responsibilities, frantically scrambling to pull together a post the night before it’s due to go live.

I’ve been enjoying the bit of a break though, and have revived my cross stitch hobby. Christmas time always does that to me. I’ve also just begun a new friendship and have enjoyed getting out of the house and killing time at the mall talking to another adult human being during the day.

Somehow this week though, I’ve got to find time to pack for our holiday vacation, wrap the kid’s presents, send those Christmas cards, and order a few final gifts. My mother-in-law is coming into town tonight so I’m hoping I’ll be able to sneak in some of that holiday cheer while the kids are otherwise preoccupied. (hint hint, Tilly!)

What does any of that have to do with Food Bloggers Recipe Swap?

Well, nothing really. Except that by opting in for December, I committed myself to being assigned a blog, finding and recreating a recipe from that blog, and then sharing it with all of you, my dear readers. Much like the Secret Recipe Club which has sadly come to an end.

The main difference between this group and that is the posting leniency. As long as I get my post completed by the end of the month, life is peachy! I don’t think the assignments are a secret either, and should I choose, I could search through the assignment list and figure out who is digging through my recipe index, but I won’t spoil the surprise. 🙂

For my first month, I was assigned Love and Cilantro written by Danya. Danya grew up in Jamaica and now lives in Canada where she attends culinary school. I envy her bravery to switch up her life and live out her dreams. I often think about going to culinary school, maybe after the kids are in elementary school?

Danya’s blog is relatively new, just over a year old if my calculations are correct! With a shorter recipe selection than some blogs I’ve scoured you’d think my decision would be fairly simple. Think again! I’d narrowed it down to Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breast (which will still probably happen), Asian Salad, and the Raw Beet Salad I ultimately picked. Oh wait! There’s this beautiful Greek Chicken she shared on Sunday, too, dang – too late!

I’m really happy with the Beet Salad, though. I mean, I love beets, so why wouldn’t I like this salad!? I don’t often work with beets raw and it was fun to do so. The vinaigrette the shredded beets are tossed in is perfectly balanced – the lemon mellows out the orange and the white balsamic is a fun new ingredient to my pantry. I didn’t have chives so very thinly sliced a scallion.

I think this salad would make a beautiful addition to your holiday table this month – the bright color and flavor would brighten your plate wonderfully!

Shredded Beets with Citrus Vinaigrette

Ingredients:

  • 1 bunch beets, peeled and shredded
  • 1 orange, zested and juiced
  • 1 lemon, zested and juiced
  • 1/4 C white balsamic vinegar
  • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tbsp agave (or honey)
  • 1 tsp Dijon mustard
  • 1-2 scallions, thinly sliced (or 4 chives)

Steps:

  1. Place shredded beets in a bowl.
  2. In a small bowl, whisk together the citrus, vinegar, oil, mustard, and agave. Season to taste with S+P. Toss beets with as much dressing as desired. Garnish with scallion/chives.

*This recipe is adapted from Danya at http://loveandcilantro.com/orange-beet-salad/*

Shredded Beets with Citrus Vinaigrette for Food Bloggers Recipe Swap from Sew You Think You Can Cook

 

Felix Felices

~ lk529 ~ 1 Comment

Harry Potter Halloween week continues with something for the adult witch and wizard!

I found a Buzzfeed article on cocktails inspired by my favorite books and excitedly found one that looked like something I’d enjoy. A champagne based beverage!

For those of you unfamiliar with Harry Potter, Felix Felices is a potion mentioned in The Half Blood Prince. It is commonly referred to as “liquid luck.” The drinker can be expected to have a day in which all his endeavors come easily and successfully. (How was that for zero spoiler alerts!)

Felix Felices | Sew You Think You Can Cook | http://sewyouthinkyoucancook.comAfter making the cocktail, I ran into a problem. Felix Felices is supposed to be the color of molten gold. Mine was essentially clear. I thought about simply naming it as a different potion, but then my mom had the idea to add a splash of orange juice. The OJ gave it a nice golden hue and didn’t much alter the taste of the drink.

No joke – I think I’ve discovered my new favorite cocktail! My husband has been on a Moscow Mule kick so we always have ginger beer in the house, and with affordable mini bottles of champagne available in the grocery store, I know I’ll be making this time and time again!

Felix Felices

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 oz simple syrup (1/4 C sugar disovled in 1/4 C water over low heat)
  • 1/4 oz lemon juice
  • 1 1/2 oz ginger beer
  • champagne
  • orange juice

Steps:

  1. Pour simple syrup, lemon juice, and ginger beer in a champagne flute. Top with champagne. Add just a splash of orange juice to create a light golden color.

Felix Felices | Sew You Think You Can Cook | http://sewyouthinkyoucancook.com

Treacle Tart

~ lk529 ~ 2 Comments

Happy Halloween week everyone!

If you’ve followed along with Sew You Think You Can Cook over the past three years (Thank you) you’ll know that I love having a theme for the week leading up to Halloween. If you’re new here, I hope you’ll be excited about this year’s theme and stick with me all week!

We’ve celebrated candy corn, ghosts, and homemade candy. This year, we’re exploring the wizarding world of Harry Potter!

halloween-themes-on-sew-you-think-you-can-cook

To some (okay, most) of my friends I’m the biggest Harry Potter fan they know. But in this worldwide web I’ve quickly discovered that I have menial fan status compared to many!

Growing up my closet doors were plastered with Harry Potter pictures. Photos from those page-a-day calendars, movie posters, newspaper articles, soundtrack CD jackets, birthday cards, movie tickets, etc. I went to every midnight movie release (dressed up as Hermione) beginning with Prisoner of Azkaban and never settled for only seeing it once. It became the norm for me to leave the movie theater at 2 in the morning feeling let down by the screen play’s adaptation to the books I’d so adored that I came to expect and accept it. Knowing that I’d simply have to “adjust” to the movie version and simply see it again!

I own two copies of each book (hardcover and soft) as well as the new illustrated version of The Sorcerer’s Stone. I have read each book more times than I can count and have the audio books on CD in my car on constant repeat. (I’m currently near the end of book 6 if anyone wants to listen along.) I’m also already looking forward to delving into The Cursed Child again, too.

hp-book-collection

For our 1 year anniversary 5 years ago (wow that makes me feel a little old) we went to Orlando to experience Harry’s world first hand. We returned the following year for my birthday, too. hp-collectiblesDuring that birthday trip I was chosen by Ollivander to get my own personal wand. (Minute 1:20 of this vacation video.) Unfortunately, I never got the chance to experience the Diagon Alley expansion having delivered Firecracker opening week and moving to Ohio less than two months later. We do have plans to explore California’s Hogsmede and Hogwarts soon, though!

My Ollivander’s wand joined my collection of Harry Potter collectibles including a replica of Hermione’s wand and Time Turner.

As you can see… I’m easily distracted when it comes to Harry Potter…

To kick off the week I’m starting with Harry’s favorite dessert: Treacle Tart.

Esther of Why’d You Eat That? has a beautiful post describing the history of treacle – I highly recommend you read it!

This dessert is sticky, sweet, and tart. I found myself doing a lot of recipe searching and found large discrepancies for the amount of bread crumbs used in the filling but always the one cup of golden syrup. Some recipes included ginger while some stuck with just lemon. The tart crust was also a recipe that varied, as was what to do with the topping. The only consistencies were the use of golden syrup and fresh (not packaged) breadcrumbs.

Treacle Tart | Sew You Think You Can Cook | http://sewyouthinkyoucancook.com (2)

Treacle Tart

Ingredients for crust:

  • 2 C flour
  • 1/4 C sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 sticks cold butter, cubed
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1/4 – 1/2 C heavy cream
  • 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 whole egg, divided

Ingredients for filling:

  • 6 slices white bread
  • 1 C golden syrup
  • zest 1 lemon
  • juice 1/2 lemon
  • pinch ground ginger

Steps:

  1. Make the crust: Put flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor fitted with the dough blade and pulse to mix. Add in the cold cubed butter a little at a time pulsing to create crumbs.
  2. In a small bowl whisk together the egg yolks, 1/4 C heavy cream, vanilla, and lemon juice. Pour into the food processor and blend until the dough comes together. Add up to another 1/4 C heavy cream one tablespoon at a time if needed.
  3. Divide dough into two disks, wrap, and refrigerate 2 hours.
  4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place bread on a baking sheet. Toast 10-15 minutes. Remove crusts and pulse, in batches if needed, in a food process until small crumbs. (Do not fill processor bowl more than half way.)
  5. Roll out one disk of dough on a heavily floured surface. Brush off excess flour before transferring to a tart or pie pan. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes.
  6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
  7. Place golden syrup in a glass bowl over a double boiler. Heat until easily stirrable then add the bread crumbs, lemon zest, lemon juice, and ginger.
  8. Brush the tart crust with egg white before pouring in the filling.
  9. If using a top crust, roll out the second disk of dough and cut strips. Brush with an egg wash mixture of egg yolk and 1 tbsp heavy cream and create a lattice top to the tart.
  10. Bake 20-25 minutes until set. Allow tart to cool before serving with whipped cream or ice cream.

*This recipe is modified from Kathryn at http://www.instructables.com/id/Harry-Potters-Favorite-Treacle-Tart/?ALLSTEPS*

Treacle Tart | Sew You Think You Can Cook | http://sewyouthinkyoucancook.com

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

 

SRC: Honeyed Lemon Fruit Salad

~ lk529 ~ 24 Comments

newsrcbanner

Good morning and welcome to another edition of The Secret Recipe Club. For a little “behind the scenes” information, The Secret Recipe Club (SRC) is divided into three groups. Each group posts on a different Monday of the month. I am in Group C and always post on the 3rd Monday of the month. Which meant that during those special months with five Mondays there’d be two weeks without any fun reveal day! So now, on the 5th Monday of the month there is a themed reveal and it’s a “free for all,” which means that there aren’t any group restrictions. I’m looking forward to getting to know some of the other bloggers in the club.

The end of May unofficially marks the beginning of barbecue season and so today, the Secret Recipe Club is sharing recipes that would be perfect for your upcoming summer picnics and barbecues.

I was assigned the blog An Affair from the Heart written by Michaela. Michaela and I sound like we could be great friends! She describes herself as a “party thrower, gift giver, wish I were craftier, liver & lover of life” kind of gal. It’s that “wish I were craftier” bit that made me smile as I can relate completely. She is a stay-at-home mom to four children and has been married for 25 years this year!

I searched for great side dishes to accompany any summer picnic barbecue or family reunion. I always love a good pasta salad to eat alongside my grilled burger or dog and her Creamy Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad is definitely on my radar. Any family reunion isn’t complete without my Aunt’s 7 Layer Dip and Michaela’s Not Your Average Mexican Layered Bean Dip looks like it could compete (because it’s avocado free, an allergy I developed while pregnant with Firecracker that I won’t try again until I’m done breastfeeding Treat). Ultimately I went with a fruit salad, after being distracted by a Shirley Temple Float, because how could I not be?!

I altered her recipe to use fruits that were available to me and that met my family’s taste preferences. That’s the beauty of fruit salad – make it however you want! Because of my overall volume of fruit, I only ended up using one carton of yogurt instead of two. I didn’t adjust the honey accordingly and my local variety of Eucalyptus honey was quite over powering. I would of course make this fruit salad again (and use a sweeter honey). My husband loved having it as his mid morning snack in his lunches all week. Truth be told, this fruit salad was part of the very first meal we cooked in our new home!

P.S. I know I said in my SRC Reveal Post two weeks ago that I was supposed to get internet that day, well, it didn’t happen and now today’s the day! Theoretically. I’m not holding my breath on it though, that’s for sure. So, once again, I’m sorry to my fellow club members, but I promise I’ll be stopping by all your picnic worthy posts soon!

Honeyed Lemon Fruit Salad

Ingredients:

  • 2 C grapes, halved (I used red)
  • 2 C cubed fresh pineapple
  • 1 ½ C chopped strawberries
  • 2 tangerines, segmented
  • 1 Granny Smith apple, cubed
  • 1 container (6 oz) lemon yogurt
  • ¼ C honey
  • Juice ½ large lemon

Steps:

*This recipe is adapted from Michaela at http://www.anaffairfromtheheart.com/2015/08/honey-lemon-fruit-salad/*

Honeyed Lemon Fruit Salad for Secret Recipe Club from Sew You Think You Can Cook

To see the other bloggers who participated in the themed Secret Recipe Club this month click here:

Blogger CLUE: Lemon Loaf

~ lk529 ~ 22 Comments

blogger CLUE

Easter is coming early this year (March 27th) and the Blogger Clue crew and I have been on the hunt to provide you with some wonderful Springtime dishes.

This month I was assigned the blog Confessions of a Culinary Diva. Christy describes herself as a “food enthusiast, wine aficionado, Food & Cooking Channel fanatic, and cookbook bibliomaniac, who suffers from an incurable case of wanderlust.” On quick look at her blog and you just know her mini-bio is true – there’s wine everywhere! And countless recipes that take you to another place (France mostly).

While on the hunt for Easter foods I was immediately drawn to her Easter Pie and next year I’ll be sure to try it! The only reason I didn’t stop, drop, and cook it was because I didn’t have Arborio rice and I wasn’t about to buy some while I’m trying to rid my pantry (via cooking) of my current stock before the big move.

I thought about what foods I think remind me of Easter. I don’t serve a ham and my family has always done our own thing. Growing up we would always have a dish traditional to my mom’s family. We would have a dish called Swienconka (pronounced shven-shun-ka). Swienconka is Polish and translates to “blessed food.” My mom’s grandfather was a butcher and he would bring home the leftover meats for this dish – veal, smoked butt, two kinds of Polish sausage, and ham. These meats would be cooked and mixed with hard boiled eggs. The mixture would then marinate in vinegar and fresh and jarred horseradish.

I decided to look for brunch ideas! I almost made Onion Biscuits. And I took a peek at what cocktails could fit an Easter morning: Earl Grey Mimosa and this beautiful Sangria would definitely fit the bill.

And then somehow I stumbled upon a Lemon Loaf (which she presented most beautifully) and I was sold! Lemon always reminds me of spring time and Easter. Probably because my grandmother’s annual pound cake has lemon extract in it. This loaf cake reminded me very much of her recipe, and I almost made a cream cheese frosting to pair with it but instead decided tolemon loaf 4 Sew You Think You Can Cook create a simple glaze of powdered sugar, lemon juice, vanilla extract, and a little milk to pour over the top of the loaf. It definitely amped up the lemon flavor!

This cake was a hit. Firecracker saw it on the counter and had to have some. He earned his half a slice, too, by helping clear off space for me to photograph it!

 

Lemon Loaf

Ingredients:

  • 1 3/4 C cake flour, sifted
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 1/3 C sugar
  • zest of 2 extra large lemons
  • 1/2 C heavy cream
  • 5 1/2 tbsp melted butter

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Heavily grease a 9×5″ loaf pan.
  2. In a bowl, whisk the sifted flour, baking powder, and a pinch of salt.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until smooth. Stir in the lemon zest. Add the dry ingredients in three batches, mixing until combined after each addition.
  4. Whisk the heavy cream into the cake batter. Add the melted butter and stir until combined.
  5. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Bake 50-60 minutes, or until a knife inserted comes out cleanly. Allow cake to cool 10 minutes in the pan before removing to a cooling rack to cool completely.
  6. Option to top with a simple lemon glaze or a cream cheese frosting.

*This recipe is adapted from http://www.treats-sf.com/2012/04/twd-lemon-loaf-cake.html*

Lemon Loaf for #BloggerCLUE from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Here’s a list of the other players of Blogger CLUE this month:

#MuffinMonday: Lemon Ricotta Muffins

~ lk529 ~ 15 Comments

Muffin Monday

#MuffinMonday is a group of muffin loving bakers who get together once a month to bake muffins to brighten their Mondays. And I’ve decided to join in the fun! I’ve been a part of this group for a couple of months now but today is the first day I am able to post with the gang. There isn’t a theme to #MuffinMonday posts so anything goes, as long as it’s a muffin!

We went through a spell with Firecracker where the only thing he’d eat was a waffle. I became creative in adding some extra nutrition to the breakfast item through apples, sweet potatoes, and Greek yogurt. The waffle obsession has slowed if not died and I’m happy to report the adventurous eater is slowly reemerging. I’m looking forward to continuing to post with this group once a month as it seems muffins offer another food medium to sneak in some good nutrition.

Today’s muffins are filled with ricotta cheese and lemon. The ricotta cheese provides extra protein and calcium and yields perfectly light and fluffy muffins.

I’ve had this recipe on my radar for 11 months and finally had some leftover ricotta (from Thanksgiving) to make it! (I’ve been using my leftover ricotta for pasta instead.) Tara’s muffins are much prettier than mine because she put coarse sugar over the top.

This recipe makes 1 dozen kid-approved muffins.

Lemon Ricotta Muffins

Ingredients:

  • 1 C flour
  • 3/4 C cake flour
  • 3/4 C sugar
  • 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 3/4 C ricotta cheese
  • 1/2 C water
  • 1/4 C canola oil
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp lemon zest
  • 1 tsp vanilla bean paste (I used Nielsen-Massey)

Steps:

  1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with liners.
  2. In a large bowl whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
  3. In an other bowl fold together the egg, ricotta, water, oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla.
  4. Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients. DO NOT OVER MIX.
  5. Divide batter into prepared muffin tin. Bake 16 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out cleanly. Allow muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

*This recipe is adapted from Tara at http://tarasmulticulturaltable.com/lemon-ricotta-muffins/*

lemon ricotta muffins for #MuffinMonday from Sew You Think You Can Cook

And don’t forget to check out these other muffin recipes:

Bacon Cheddar Corn Muffins from Making Miracles

Banana Cranberry Muffins from A Day in the Life on the Farm

Banana Streusel Muffins from All Roads from Lead to the Kitchen

Healthy Morning Glory Muffins from Farm Fresh Feasts

Lemon Ricotta Muffins from Sew You Think You Can Cook

Savory Corn Bread Muffins from Karen’s Kitchen Stories

Sticky Toffee Bran Muffins from Food Lust People Love

You can see all our of lovely muffins by following our Pinterest board. Updated links for all of our past events and more information about Muffin Monday can be found on our home page. 

Lemon Ricotta Pasta with Sausage

~ lk529 ~ 1 Comment

Up until I discovered this pasta recipe, I never knew what to do with leftover ricotta cheese. I actually wasn’t quite sure if I even cared for ricotta outside of ravioli filling and lasagna layers. This quick recipe has changed how I feel about ricotta! I will be more open to other uses of ricotta. I now never worry about if the container I bought is too big because if I can’t find something else to do with it, I can make this pasta. Something I have done four times already (once without the meat, too!)

IMG_2976I chose to use veggie fusilli pasta in an effort to “sneak” veggies into my son’s mouth. (I know it doesn’t yield the best photographs.) He has loved this pasta each and every time. He now doesn’t discriminate against certain colored pasta, but the first time we enjoyed this dish he picked his way around the green spinach noodles. I also added Italian sausage as I knew my husband wouldn’t consider this a real meal. Feel free to omit the sausage (increase the garlic to 1 tbsp and saute very quickly in the oil. Add the entire garlicky oil mix to the ricotta sauce) if you prefer and make this a great side dish.

Lemon Ricotta Pasta with Sausage

Ingredients:

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 links Italian sausage, casings removed
  • 1 tsp minced garlic
  • 1 lb fusilli pasta
  • 1 C ricotta cheese
  • 1 C heavy cream
  • zest of 2 lemons
  • juice of 1 lemon

Steps:

  1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and keep warm.
  2. In a small skillet, brown the sausage over medium-high heat, breaking it up as it cooks. When the sausage is almost cooked through, add the garlic and saute another minute or two. Remove from heat and set aside, draining any extra fat if needed.
  3. In a bowl whisk together ricotta, cream, lemon zest, lemon juice, and season to taste with S+P.
  4. In a large bowl toss together pasta, sausage, and ricotta sauce.

*This recipe is adapted from Cooking from the Farmers’ Market*

Lemon Ricotta Pasta with Sausage | Sew You Think You Can Cook

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