Lemon Budino

Budino means pudding in Italian.

This dessert is part creamy custard and part tender, moist cake. Most importantly, it adds up to all delicious.

Lemon Budino (serves 6)

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
3 large eggs, separated
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice
2 tablespoons fresh regular lemon juice
2 tablespoons finely grated Meyer lemon peel
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons whole milk 
1/4 teaspoon salt
Whipped cream (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter six 3/4-cup custard cups or ramekins. Combine 1/2 cup sugar, egg yolks, flour, lemon juice, and lemon peel in large bowl; whisk until well blended. Whisk in milk.

Using electric mixer, beat egg whites and salt in medium bowl until frothy. Gradually add remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and beat until soft peaks form. Fold beaten egg whites into lemon mixture in 2 additions. Divide mixture among prepared custard cups. Place custard cups in roasting pan. Pour enough hot water into roasting pan to come halfway up sides of custard cups. Bake puddings until tops are golden and spring back when lightly touched, about 30 minutes. Remove cups from water. Serve warm or cold with whipped cream, if desired.

My Sister's Buns and Chicken Piccata

My sister M is a wonderful baker.

This fact alone is enough to make me [slightly] jealous but add the fact that she weighs about 17 pounds, is tall and willowy and beyond beautiful and well, I may as well keep loving her because that is just too much jealousy for one person to carry around.

Plus she's really nice. And she shares all her recipes complete with her personal notes so that all the testing and tweaking is out of the way and you just end up with a pan full of goodness.

Um, just asking, what kind of buns did you think I was referring to?

M's Cinnamon Buns: (makes 12 really big buns)

All of the comments in ( ) are M's.


Cinnamon Rolls
2 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 c vegetable oil
1 package active dry yeast
3 1/2 cups + 1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt

Cinnamon Filling
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
Cinnamon

Glaze
4 tablespoon butter, melted
2 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoon milk  (I used a little more)
1 teaspoon vanilla

Combine the milk, sugar, and oil in a large bowl.  Microwave for 2 minutes
and then stir well.  Sugar should be dissolved.  If not, microwave for
another minute.  Use a candy thermometer to determine the temperature of the
milk mixture.  Wait until it cools down to about 90 - 110 degrees.  This is
the best temp for yeast to thrive.

Add the yeast and stir.  Then add the 3 1/2 c flour a little at a time until
it is all combined.  Cover with plastic wrap and a dish towel and let rise
until double in size - about 1 hour.  (Mine took about 2 hours to double)

Take the towel and plastic wrap off.  Add the last cup of flour, baking
powder, baking soda, and salt.  Stir to combine, you do not need to knead
the dough.

At this point you may cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in the
refrigerator for up to 3 days.  When you plan to prepare the rolls, take the
dough out and let sit on the counter for an hour.  You can skip the
refrigerator altogether if you want to just proceed into making the rolls.

Roll the dough into a large rectangle.  Melt the butter for the filling and
pour on the dough.  Use a  pastry brush to spread the butter.  Sprinkle on
the sugar and then enough cinnamon to cover the dough.

Now roll it up.  You should end up with a log of dough.  Use a sharp knife to cut the rolls and place cut side down in either 2 buttered 8x8 [six rolls each) or a buttered 9x13 pan [12 rolls].  Let rise in dishes for
another 20 minutes.  (mine didn't really rise much at this point - they rose
up in the oven during baking)

Bake at 375 for 15 - 20 minutes (mine took about 24 minutes) or until light
golden brown.

Combine the ingredients for the glaze and pour over the warm cinnamon rolls

For my mother's day dinner, TBHITW decided he would be the cook. I took on the role of prep chef and and assistant - handing him ingredients (and a glass of wine) when ordered asked to do so.

This recipe is as easy as it is delicious and the best part? You probably have every ingredient you need already in your pantry or refrigerator. We served the chicken with wild rice and steamed asparagus on the side and Sauvignon Blanc in our glasses.

Chicken Piccata (serves 4)

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in half and pounded into cutlets
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Flour (about 1/4 cup)
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup white wine
1 heaping teaspoon garlic, minced
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon capers, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter
4 fresh lemon slices
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

Season the chicken cutlets with salt and pepper, then dredge in flour. Add oil to large saute pan and heat on medium high. Add chicken and and saute until golden brown on each side, about 3 minutes per side.

Transfer chicken to a platter and tent.

Deglaze the pan with wine, then add garlic. Cook until garlic is golden and fragrant and wine is nearly evaporated. Add chicken broth, lemon juice and capers to the pan. Return the chicken cutlets to the pan and simmer for about 2-3 minutes until warm and cooked through. Add any juices from the platter to the pan also.

When chicken is hot and cooked through, remove to warm, clean platter. Add lemon slices and parsley to pan and cook for about 1 minute. Remove from heat and swirl butter into sauce, 1 tablespoon at a time until sauce is slightly thickened. Poor over chicken cutlets, garnish with additional parsley sprigs and serve immediately.

I say Tomato, You Say Toe-ma-toe

I went to the grocery store this morning after Emma, Holly Bear's trainer left. We just love Emma, she is the female equivalent to Caesar, the dog whisperer. Holly Bear needed a nap after her training session, so it was the perfect time for me to see what was new in the produce aisle.

Now, I try not to go to the grocery store with a menu in mind, rather, I try to let the grocery store plan my menu. Today's good find were fine, fresh, English peas. English peas reminded me of a Tyler Florence recipe for Potato Gnocchi with Peas and Prosciutto and Ricotta.

TBHITW and I originally hail from different parts of the country. He comes from Michigan with a stop in New Orleans for a few years before settling in the Northeast. Me, I come from Pennsylvania with a stop in Orlando, Florida before arriving here in New Jersey.

This difference in our origins leads to different pronunciations of certain words. For instance, he says crik when referring to a small stream (creek), I say creak. He says ruff for roof, I pronounce it, well, roof. You get the idea. We usually agree to disagree, except in the case of Gnocchi. I say, Knee-owe-kee, he says No-key. Sometimes, just to really get my goat, he says Knock-key, insisting that both are correct. He is an annoying man sometimes.

If anyone out there has the absolute correct pronunciation of these little pillows, keep it to yourself. Unless of course it is Knee-owe-kee.

Potato Gnocchi with Peas, Prosciutto and Ricotta - serves 4

2 pounds (about 4) russet potatoes

1 teaspoon salt

a few fresh gratings nutmeg (about 1/8 teaspoon)

1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 egg white

1 to 1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 cups fresh (or frozen and thawed) peas

1/4 pound prosciutto

1 large shallot, finely diced

extra-virgin olive oil

salt and pepper

1 Tablespoon butter

grated parmesan

2 cups Lemon Ricotta (recipe follows)

bunch watercress

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Scrub, dry, pierce, oil and salt potatoes. Bake to 45 to 60 minutes until knife easily pierces. Cool slightly. Scoop potatoes out of skins, mash with hand masher or put through ricer. Add salt, nutmeg, baking powder, grated cheese and egg white. Add flour a little at a time, starting with one cup. Mix with your hands until a rough dough forms. Transfer to lightly floured surface. Gently knead until smooth, adding a little more dough to keep from sticking.

Break off a piece of dough, roll back an forth into a rope about the thickness of your index finger. Cut the rope into 1 inch pieces. Gently roll each piece down the prongs of a fork while pressing a dimple into the back side of gnocchi. This will form ridges that will hold the sauce. Place on a floured cookie sheet. Continue rolling and cutting until done. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to cook. You can also buy store bought Gnocchi.

Meanwhile, make the lemon ricotta:

2 cups whole milk ricotta

zest of one lemon

salt

Mix it all up and set aside until ready to cook gnocchi. This should be close to room temperature for plating. If you make it in advance, remove from refrigerator 30 minutes prior to cooking gnocchi.

Blanch peas in boiling, salted water. Set aside. Reserve salted water for cooking gnocchi

Bake 4 pieces of prosciutto in 350 oven for 5-8 minutes until crisp. Watch carefully. Set aside.

Dice shallot and saute in olive oil in large saute pan until soft and translucent. Add drained peas and toss to coat.

Cook gnocchi in boiling, salted water for 2 minutes after they begin to float. Transfer by slotted spoon into pan with peas. Add a ladle of cooking water. Add 1 Tablespoon butter. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Salt and pepper to taste.

Plating:

Spoon a dollop of lemon ricotta in center of plate. Top with peas and gnocchi. Top with small handful of fresh watercress. Top with 1 piece crumbled prosciutto. Optional: drizzle with a scant half of thimble full of white truffle oil.

Now put down the Websters Dictionary and enjoy your meal.

Thanksgiving Side Dishes

Okay.

You have the turkey.

You have the stuffing recipe.

Corn - check.

Dinner Rolls - check.

Sweet Potatoes - check.

Mashed Potatoes - check.

Seems there is more starch on a Thanksgiving table than at a Chinese Laundry. But we still need more don't we?

Herewith my family favorites as contributions to the already groaning table:

Peas with Bacon, Turnips and Dill (serves 6 - 8)

1 package frozen peas (16 ounces) cooked to package directions

6 strips bacon - fried crisp and drained on a paper towel. Reserve bacon grease.

1 small turnip, peeled and diced into 1/2 inch pieces

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 1/2 teaspoons dill

Fry bacon, drain on paper towel and set aside.

In bacon fat, brown and saute the turnips until soft and golden - about 5 to 7 minutes.

Mix dill with softened butter in a small dish.

Cook peas according to package directions. Drain.

Toss the turnips into the peas, add dilled butter and stir to coat peas and turnips. Season with pepper. Crumble bacon over top and serve immediately.

Roasted Butternut Squash with Cranberries, Walnuts and Wilted Spinach (serves 6 to 8)

One butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and cut into 1 inch cubes

1/4 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup walnuts

2 cups fresh spinach

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

Kosher Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Place the butternut squash cubes in a heavy, oven proof casserole (with a lid if you have one, if not, you will use aluminum foil).

Drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat. Add the butter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Put a lid on the casserole and place in the center of the oven. Roast for 30 minutes. Uncover and stir. Toss the walnuts and cranberries in with the squash and stir to mix around. Put back in oven and roast for another 20-30 minutes until nicely browned and soft. Stir once or twice while checking for doneness.

Remove from oven and toss in spinach leaves. Cover for 5 minutes to wilt the spinach.

Serve.

Cranberry Relish with Oranges and Walnuts:

1 package (16 ounces) fresh cranberries

1 cup water

2 small naval oranges, cut into eighths

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup (optional) Grand Marnier or other orange flavored liquor

2 tablespoons chopped walnuts, toasted

In a heavy saucepan combine cranberries, water, oranges, sugar and liquor. Cook over high heat until mixture reaches a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until cranberries begin to burst and liquid is slightly thickened. Remove from heat, transfer to bowl with lid and chill thoroughly. Top with chopped walnuts just before serving.

Pomegranate Spiced Apples: serves 6 to 8

4 Large Granny Smith Apples

1/3 cup Pomegranate Molasses

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

rind of 1 small orange (or clementine)

juice of 1 small orange (or clementine)

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Peel and core apples, then cut into wedges about 3/4 inch thick.

Melt butter in heavy saute pan. Add pomegranate molasses, then apples, toss to coat. Sprinkle orange rind and juice over apples. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon and toss again to coat. Saute over medium heat until apples are semi soft and liquid is syrupy. Serve warm.

I chop the leftover apple mixture and add them to wild rice the next day and warm... ummm.. a yummy, sweet, nutty, side dish with leftover turkey or chicken.

Lemon Brussel Spouts with Pistachios:

One basket of brussel sprouts (about 10)

1/2 lemon, juiced and zest removed

1/4 cup shelled pistachios (unsalted if you can get them)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

Cut the bottoms off the brussel sprouts and separate all the leaves. This takes a little time but you want brussel sprout leaves, not bundles.

Heat the oil and butter in a medium saute pan. Add the brussel sprouts and saute over medium high heat. Add the lemon juice and continue to saute until sprouts are beginning to wilt. Add the lemon zest and pistachios and toss around to heat the nuts.

Season with salt and a few good grinds of pepper. (if you are using salted pistachios, omit salting or taste to test.

Serve piping hot and don't tell me you don't like brussel sprouts again.

What are you favorite side dishes?

My Garden Shed & Simple Greens with Lemon Vinaigrette

If I had to pick a favorite room (besides my kitchen) it would have to be my garden shed. It's not really a room at all, it's a, well, it's a shed. In my back yard and I love it. 

The best husband in the world built it for me. That's reason enough to love it. He built it for me. With his own hands. I painted it so it would bloom year round.  He spotted the pot hangers on a old barn he was driving past and stopped and bought some for me because he knew I'd like them. Hence the pots on the front.  House wrens make their home in the bird houses. I can see the shed from my kitchen window so I am always reminded of the flowers, vegetables and other plants that this shed helps bring forth every spring. 

From these double doors with a leaf shaped handle spring forth the hope and promise of red ripe tomatoes, purple sun warmed eggplants, crazy, boat sized zucchinis, crooked necked yellow squashes, cool green cucumbers, zesty mint, red, yellow, green and hot, hot, hot peppers, a menagerie of herbs, big outrageous orange pumpkins, ornamental gourds that will one day become bird houses, and anything else that the seed catalogs enticed me into spending hard cash on in late January. 

The shed houses all my garden stuff. Rakes and shovels, extra soaker hoses, a pitch fork that's about a 100 years old that TBHITW brought home one day. A small rototiller that I can handle on my own. Compost starter. Fencing, trellises, tomato cages waiting for their next plants to imprison. There are some empty pots waiting for flowers and seed trays sleeping until next year when I will sow a new crop of summer harvest dreams. There is garden twine and potting soil. But the best thing the shed houses is hope. 

Hope. Inside those double doors is the hope of future plants and the promise of plants now putting down their roots in fertile soil that I tended. Hope for vegetables fresh from the garden to the table. Flowers with blooms the size of dinner plates. Herbs that are so aromatic they make you want to cry for want of them. Life growing in front of my very eyes. 

That's why my garden shed is one of my favorite rooms. It offers me hope that all things can grow and prosper with a little nurturing. A garden, a family, a community, a world. 

Mixed Baby Greens with Lemon Vinaigrette ( the last of them from my spring garden) - serves 4 - this is the stuff of romance. 

6 cups mixed greens, washed and spun dry

Sauce Vinaigrette: 1 1/2 cups

The classic ratio for a basic vinaigrette is 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar. This ratio can vary according to your taste.  Always taste your dressing with a bit of green.  

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup red or white wine vinegar

Juice of one lemon

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

2/3 cup tasteless salad oil (canola, safflower, corn - your preference)

Whisk together the mustard, salt, pepper, lemon juice and vinegar. Beat in the olive oil. Season to taste with more salt and pepper if necessary. Store in the refrigerator like any other "store" bought dressing.

Variations: (store for one week)

Garlic: crush and mix with the slat to make a paste and whisk in

Mustard: for extra zing in the salad blend 1 teaspoon or more to taste 

Fresh Herbs: Tarragon is especially nice. Chop or leave whole and mix with the salad as you toss it. 

Serve with a loaf of crusty bread, some soft, ripe cheese and a cool, crisp wine. Use the wine pairing tool on my blog, then fall in love while you're at it. 

Fun With Food and Chicken Skewers

The best husband in the world gave me a food scale for my birthday. Hoopdeedoo! Well, to be fair, he gave me a food scale AND a juicer. For some of you out there this would mean immediate expulsion from the best husband in the world club. But don't be judging the BHITW, because this is exactly what I wanted. 

It's not just any food scale. It is a new and improved nutritional food scale. 

Commercial quality with 8.8 pound capacity. 

Able to measure food in grams, kilograms and ounces. But wait, there's more. You can get the exact nutritional information of the food you are weighing, unlike my other old food scale that just weighed stuff. 

For instance, I have here an avocado. Just your plain, everyday Haas variety. When I put it on my old food scale I am told it weighs 7.5 ounces. When I put it on my new and improved nutritional food scale I am told:

Weight: 7.5 ounces

Enter the code for avocado: 334 and voila!

Calories: 375

Sodium: 25.73 mg

Fiber: 0

Cholesterol: 0

Protein: 4.89 grams

Carbohydrates: 14.71 grams

Fat: 36.76 grams

Oh Joy! Oh Rapture!  Wait, let's try a lemon.

Weight: 4.2 ounces

Enter the code for lemon: 359

Calories: 36

Sodium: 2.16 mg

Fiber: 2.0 grams

Cholesterol: 0

Protein: 2.16 grams

Carbohydrates: 10.86 grams

Fat: 0 grams

Imagine the possibilities!! No more guessing. No more cumbersome books and indexes. Who knew a food scale could be so much fun! Here's the skinny on tonight's dinner of 

Grilled Lemon Chicken Kabobs with minted sugar snap peas and tri-color couscous (serves 4)

1 Pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 4 half breasts)

3 tablespoons (about) extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1 teaspoon lemon zest

Juice of 1  fresh lemon (remember what I told you about that bottled stuff)

2 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped

Kosher Salt

Freshly ground pepper

2 cups fresh sugar snap peas, washed and ends trimmed

Heat grill to medium-high.

Cut the chicken breasts into 1 inch cubes. Place in a bowl and drizzle about 1 tablespoon olive oil and 1/2 the lemon juice over. Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Let marinate 15 or so minutes. Not too long or the chicken will start to "cook" from the lemon juice. Thread onto skewers.  Grill for about 10 minutes until done. (hint: leave a little space between pieces of chicken for even cooking).

Meanwhile, steam the sugar snap peas. Toss with remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, lemon zest, rest of juice, salt, pepper (to taste) and chopped mint. 

Serve with a side of tri-color couscous made to package directions. 

Okay, here's the fun part:

4 ounces of chicken, 1/2 cup of the peas and 1/2 cup couscous:

547 calories

13.8 grams of fat

48 grams of protein

84 grams of carbohydrates

5.1 grams of fiber

*** I am NOT a registered dietician or a nutritionist - I am a serial dieter. 

At least I think that's what it all adds up to. The new and improved nutritional food scale did not come with a calculator and after 1 1/2 hours of trying to figure this out I'm tempted to just order pizza. 

Oh bother, I really just wanted it to weigh flour which is what my old food scale did. 

Tomorrow: LET THE JUICING BEGIN!! 

Rainy Day Monday Roast Chicken

It's a rainy day here in the Northeast. The kind of day that promises spring is just around the corner. Gentle misty kind of rain, overcast. I've got laundry to fold and other household chores but first I want to begin the first step of making my family's favorite comfort food. Crisp skin and succulent meat - hint of winter and the lemony scent of spring. 

Nothing warms and brightens my kitchen more than the scent and sound of a lemony, herb infused chicken roasting away in my oven. I'm going to start first by taking my thawed 4 pound roaster, drying it thoroughly (very important) and rubbing it inside and out with a combination of:

Kosher Salt

Zest of one Lemon (save the zested lemon, we'll use later)

Fresh Chopped Rosemary

I'm even going to tuck some of this under the skin, between the breast meat and skin.

That's it for now. I place my little bird on a cookie sheet and put it in the downstairs refrigerator UNCOVERED. 

more later...