Happy Easter to You and Yours

 

My wish for all of you this Easter

 is a heart filled with

happiness and joy.

And that you’re blessed with a lifetime of

Good Health

Good Fortune

&

Peace

 

Spread the Love

&

Share a hug!

HAPPY EASTER

Merry Christmas to You!

         

Wishing all my foodie friends and readers 

Peace, Joy, and Love
this Christmas Season…

Good health, lots of laughter

good food too!

Have a blessed safe

Merry Christmas!

    

Happy Easter to you!

Celebrate this Easter with a heart filled with

 peace, joy and cheer!

Wishing you a blessed day!!!

Asparagus with Pine Nuts and Cranberries

Usually, I like asparagus steamed and served with just a touch of butter and salt and pepper.  For guests, especially at Easter, I like it gussied up a little.

Some folks claim that pine nuts have a mild pine taste; to me they are sort of sweet and nutty.  Whatever the flavor is to you, it pleasingly complements other flavors, particularly after toasting.  If you prefer, substitute slivered almonds for the pine nuts.

Slightly tart and tangy cranberries round out the dish, making it a delicious side dish which goes along nicely with ham, turkey, and salmon, just to name a few.

This asparagus is simple and quite elegant.  I hope you like it too…

Asparagus with Pine Nuts and Cranberries

Ingredients:

1 pound asparagus stalks, trimmed

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/3 cup pine nuts

1/3 cup dried cranberries

Salt and seasoned pepper, to taste

Method:

Steam asparagus in a steamer, covered, for 4-5 minutes, to your desired degree of doneness.

Remove to serving dish, and keep warm.

Meanwhile, in a small skillet, heat oil and sauté remaining ingredients until pine nuts are toasted.

Arrange over asparagus.

Serves 4

ENJOY!!!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

Red Velvet Cake Roll with Buttercream Filling for Your Valentine

Red Velvet Cake Roll 

is one dessert that 

screams

 “Happy Valentine’s Day!”

Although red velvet may be associated with the South ~ remember the red velvet groom’s cake, shaped like an armadillo, in the 1989 film, Steel Magnolias ~ the origin of the cake and recipe is well-known from New York City’s famed Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. 

Red velvet is everywhere and in everything from whoopie pies, to ice cream, to coffee, cupcakes and this red velvet cake roll.  The Republic of Tea makes a Red Velvet Chocolate Tea that tastes like devil’s food cake and gets its red tint from beets, instead of food coloring, and Rooibos, a South African tea known as red bush. 

Whether red velvet obtains its coloring from beets, or red food coloring, it’s a cake with a distinct red tint.  This moist cake roll, with just a hint of chocolate, is rolled around a luscious buttercream filling that will make your taste buds happy. 

Do not hesitate in making this; it is not difficult.  Just be sure to place it on the towel immediately after removing from the oven, and wrap it tightly to avoid cracking.  This recipe is adapted from a Domino Sugar cake roll recipe.

Seeing “red” is a good thing sometimes!

Red Velvet Cake Roll with Buttercream Filling

Cake roll ingredients:

4 eggs
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon oil
2 tablespoons buttermilk
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ounce red food coloring

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ cup cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s Special Dark Cocoa)
¾ cup cake flour, sifted
Confectioner’s sugar for dusting

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Coat a jelly roll pan with cooking spray.

Line with waxed paper and coat with cooking spray.

Beat eggs for 5 minutes.

Slowly add sugar and oil, beating well.

Add buttermilk, vinegar, vanilla and food coloring.

Sift together dry ingredients.

Add to liquid ingredients slowly.

Beat 2 minutes, until well combined.

Pour batter into pan and bake for 12-15 minutes, until cake springs back when touched in center.

Sprinkle a cloth towel with confectioner’s sugar. 

Immediately, place cake on towel; peel off waxed paper.

Starting at narrow end, roll up cake and towel tightly.

Place seam side down on rack to cool for 30 minutes.

Unroll cake gently.

Spread buttercream filling over cake, leaving a ½” border on the long side.

Trim any rough edges, and re-roll cake without the towel.

Place seam side down on cookie sheet.

Dust with confectioner’s sugar.

Cut into slices with a serrated knife.

Serve

Buttercream filling:

¼ cup sugar

1 large egg white

12 tablespoons butter, softened at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

Whisk egg white and sugar in a large bowl over simmering water.

Whisk constantly until the sugar melts into the egg white.

Keep whisking until there are no sugar granules remaining, when rubbed between your finger and thumb.

When well-blended, transfer to a stand mixer and whip until it doubles in volume.

Add vanilla.

Add butter, a little at a time, until the mixture has thickened to a buttercream icing consistency.

It’s irresistibly delicious!

HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY TO YOU ALL!!!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

Maple Syrup-Roasted Tomatoes for NYE

Appetizers ~ Canapes ~ Tapas ~ Dim sum ~ Hors d'oeuvres…

"...many of the great cuisines of the world -- Chinese, Japanese, Middle Eastern, Spanish, French and Italian, just for starters -- have long recognized that dawdling over small servings of many different dishes, sharing tidbits and discoveries, not only stretches out a pleasant social evening but bonds friends together in a very emotional way. In fact, the very word "companion" comes from the Latin com panis, or "with bread," meaning the person you share meals with -- friendship defined by dining...The most familiar versions are Middle Eastern mezze and their Spanish derivatives tapas; Chinese dim sum (meaning, sweetly, "touch the heart"); French canapes and hors d'oeuvres (themselves derived from the Russian zakuski); and Italian antipasti. In Vietnam, such drinking dishes are called "do nhau" -- literally, "little bites," and sounding not unlike "doughnut." The Thai, who might be the world's masters of outdoor gourmet dining, call them "kanto." Indians refer to samosas and other such little fried finger foods, cheerfully enough, as "chat."
---"Bite-Size Cusine," Eve Zibart, Washington Post, Sept. 4, 1998

These tiny tomatoes are marvelous straight out of the oven.  Roasting enhances their natural sugar and juices; adding the maple syrup intensifies their sweetness.  This recipe is adapted from Saveur.  

With a supply of toothpicks, this will be a tasty appetizer for you to serve on New Year’s Eve just as they are; or, topping baguette slices slathered with a little garlic butter and freshly grated Parmesan cheese, or simply spread with goat cheese.

Other than an appetizer, they are perfect on salads, pastas, pizza, or even on your scrambled eggs for breakfast.  This could be your go-to appetizer that takes little time, and ingredients.  A hit for your crowd!

Maple Syrup-Roasted Tomatoes

Adapted

Ingredients:

16 cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

2 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons olive oil

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

2 cloves garlic, minced

Salt and seasoned pepper, to taste

Method:

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Arrange tomato halves cut side up on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet.

Whisk together remaining ingredients and drizzle over tomatoes.

Bake for 20 minutes, then stir and add a couple of tablespoons of water if they appear too dry.

Return to oven and bake for another 20-30 minutes until tomatoes are browned on bottom and begin to collapse.

They're tasty little bites!

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes! 

Merry Christmas to you...

May the lovely spirit of Christmas bring you lots of 

peace, joy and happiness.

May it bless you all through the year.

Here's wishing you all a Wonderful Christmas!

“Christmasizing” with Cranberry-Grape Compote

The turkey is over and done with ~ the fall décor stashed away ~ readying me for “Christmasizing” the house the last few days.  The short tree in the living room was trimmed with lights and ornaments, only to be dismantled the next morning, and replaced with a 7.5-foot slim tree, and even more trimming.  

What I really wanted to do was get in the kitchen and do a little cooking. There was a bag of cranberries waiting in the refrigerator for a makeover, and I was happy to oblige.  I like the canned variety, but always like to try something new.  

The credit for this recipe goes to Martha Stewart.  Plump, juicy red grapes complement tart cranberries perfectly.  Fresh or frozen cranberries can be used, with there being no need to thaw frozen ones. 

This is a great sweet/tart accompaniment for savory meats such as steak, turkey, pork chops, and probably even wild game.  If you like cranberries and grapes, it’s worth a try!

Cranberry-Grape Compote

Adapted

Ingredients:

1 package (12-ounces) cranberries

3 cups seedless red grapes

1 cup sugar or Splenda

1/8 teaspoon salt

½ cup water

Method:

In a large saucepan over medium-high, bring cranberries and

Place all ingredients in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat, and simmer until most of the cranberries have popped and grapes are falling apart, 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

Compote will thicken as it cools.

Serve at room temperature.

Enjoy!

 

Be sure to visit my friend, Linda’s blog, @My Kind of Cooking for great tips and delicious easy recipes!