Monthly Archives: May 2020

Lemonpalooza Part Deux and Lemon Almond Pudding Cake

Well hello spring! It finally warmed up enough to unclench the earth, and to make the outside inviting. On cue, enter the black flies. Thank you, New England! Back in the kitchen, the work of feeding the tribe something more than frozen pizza continues. As I was about to embark on finding something to make with the glorious box of lemons from last week, I got a King Arthur email full of pictures and recipes featuring their five favorite citrus recipes. We’re on the same page!

Here’s where we’ve been with my lemons. They’ve gone in tea, of course, and they’ve been thinly sliced to go atop slow baked salmon. They’ve gone in to this spring vegetable Israeli couscous  (hello asparagus and peas!), preserved lemons and for no reason other than flaunting my bounty, I made these candied lemon slices. (I have no idea what to do with them, but they’re hanging in my fridge, looking pretty and ready to roll.)

Come here, my pretty

Rocky Mountain correspondent Tania sent me this recipe for Lemon Tiramisu which looks amazing, but also has too many steps for this particular phase of quarantine. How has going nowhere become so time consuming?

For today’s recipe, I looked for something even easier than Lemon Beach Pie (don’t get me started on this beauty!), something easy and delish. This came from the quarantine recipe club—not the recipe chain letter you may fear, but a weekly newsletter with all kinds of recipes contributed from all kinds of people like us, who are wrassling up vittles for a houseful, with an ever changing list of available ingredients.

Enjoy your Sunday!

Now, THAT’S dessert, or maybe dinner.

Lemon Almond Pudding Cake

Ever so slightly adapted from How Sweet Eats

Ingredients

  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 large eggs separated
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter  melted and slightly cooled
  • 1 cup milk the original recipe calls for skim, I used whole with good results
  • 5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
  • powdered sugar and sliced almonds for topping. Fresh berries wouldn’t hurt either!

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch pie plate with nonstick spray liberally. Or brush it with melted butter!
  2. In a bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour and salt.
  3. In another bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and melted butter. Whisk in the milk, lemon juice, almond extract and lemon zest until combined. Stir in the dry ingredients.
  4. Beat the egg whites in the bowl of your electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Slowly fold the egg whites into the lemon mixture, gently, until combined. Pour the batter into the pie plate.
  5. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until set. Top with a dusting of powdered sugar and a handful of sliced almonds and serve.

Get more lemon inspiration at Lemonpalooza Part 1

 

A Box Full of Sunshine for Mother’s Day

Happy Mother’s Day! My gift came a day early, from California. My amazing Auntie Tina, who knows how much I covet her Meyer Lemon tree, sent a surprise care package straight from her tree and her kitchen.  It was the very best thing in the world to open on a snowy, windy May morning in New Hampshire. Money may not buy you happiness, but fresh lemon marmalade on toast sure will.

Tina makes me think of great moms and of the way they make you feel special on every day. My Nina was all that, and I’m really happy and excited that she’s getting some airtime in today’s New York Times. I hope you get a chance to read this, and that it brings a little peace to people who need it on Mother’s Day, or any day.

For kids out there, of any age, wondering if you can pull off making breakfast for your Mom, you CAN! And you can probably do it with what you have on hand. Might I suggest Dutch Bunny, Blueberry Dutch Bunny, Popovers or 3-3/2-2 crepes, all of which benefit from a squeeze of fresh lemon. Whatever you come up with, you know she’ll appreciate the effort, so here’s the only part of the recipe you truly need to follow: Serve it up with a whole lotta love!

Whether or not cooking is happening, let’s give it up for our mom’s today. And when life gives you lemons, say “Thank you!” 

 Thank you for the sunshine Tina!

It’s the weekend— Have a ball!

Props to the McNultys of Hanover, for coming up with the idea of theme dinners to turn these Saturday nights in quarantine into something a little less, uh, quarantiny (as in, the state of restriction vs the popular cocktail). Last weekend they kicked it off with an après ski theme featuring Bring It’s own Guinness Fondue.

Their outdoor firepit version was not only inspiring, but also an excellent choice considering our fine spring weather. With the polar air expected this weekend, fondue is a solid option.  

Or….might I suggest, balls! Meatballs and “meat” balls are very versatile, can be made ahead and can accommodate many dietary needs. We’ve got Buffalo Chicken Meatballs, these quite excellent gingery sheet pan meatballs that I have made many times and never managed to capture on camera, the vaunted Ikea meatballs (secret recipe just revealed) and, featured here today, the shockingly tasty and “meaty” meatless meatballs.

This is a great recipe to have in your arsenal especially now that the shortage du jour is meat of all kinds. Whether you are trying to eat less or no meat, or you just can’t get your hands on the stuff, you need a good vegetarian meatball recipe, and here it is friends.

They take a bit of elapsed time, because you have to cook the water out of the mushrooms and let the whole shebang sit in the fridge for a spell, but they’re totally easy. And hey…we’ve got time! You can even show off  your domestic skills, make a double batch and stock your freezer.

As a bonus this recipe comes with a soundtrack suggestion suitable for any stage of creating or eating your Saturday night special. Crank yourself up some Queen because, well, we’re having such a good time, we’re having a ball.

Where’s the picture? Have you ever tried to get an appetizing picture of meatballs? Enough said…but how about another pic of fondue night? Happy weekend all!

 Ooh la la! Just another typical night around the fire pit.

Chef John’s Meatless Meatballs                                                                      

Barely adapted from AllRecipes

Ingredients
Makes 20 meatballs

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 lb / 453 gr white mushrooms, finely chopped (use the food processor to save time)
1 tablespoon butter*
½ cup finely chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ cup quick cooking oats
4 to 5 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese*
½ cup breadcrumbs
4 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
2 eggs, divided*
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
Pinch cayenne pepper

3 cups of your favorite tomato sauce
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese (or any other cheese you prefer, or no cheese at all).*

*Vegans and Vegan dabblers you’ve totally got this. I’ve made these with Vegan butter, your favorite cashew parm, aquafaba and no cheese on top and they were delicioso.

Directions

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, sprinkle with one pinch of salt and cook, stirring every so often until the liquid from the mushrooms has evaporated, about 10 minutes.

Stir in the butter, and cook on medium for about 5 minutes, or until golden brown.
Add onions and sauté for 5 further minutes, until translucent. Add garlic and sauté for 1 further minute, until fragrant.

Transfer mushroom mixture to a large mixing bowl.

Stir in oats and mix until thoroughly combined. Add Parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs, parsley, 1 egg, salt, pepper, oregano, and cayenne pepper (if using).

Mix together with a fork until crumbly. Stir in remaining egg and mix to combine.
The mixture should hold together when pressed.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours (overnight best).

When ready to cook, preheat oven to 450°F (230°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Scoop 1 heaping tablespoon of mixture, and with dampened hands roll into meatballs.

Arrange on the lined baking sheet.

Bake until golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.

At this point you can refrigerate or freeze the meatballs until ready to use, or use immediately.
Bring tomato sauce to a boil in a large skillet (or saucepan), lower to a simmer, and gently stir meatballs into the sauce until coated.

Simmer meatballs in sauce for about 30 to 45 minutes. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, cover with a lid and let the cheese melt (about 4 to 5 minutes).

Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley and serve over spaghetti, zoodles, spaghetti squash, in a meatball sub or just plain nekkid.

PS. Can’t get enough Vegan balls? Got more cans of black beans than you know what to do with? Try these from Minimalist Baker, who never steers you wrong.

           Eat UP people!