Vegetable Snacking Board with Basil Dressing

For about the past year my mom has been totally vegan. It has been kinda crazy and definitely changed up our dinner plans. We've started eating a lot more vegetables and the whole family's eating habits have totally changed. This is what a lot of our dinners look like now, lots of fresh simply cooked veggies and a little meat thrown in for those that want it. It's actually a really delicious and fun way to eat. This is a great meal or even just a snack or appetizer. This is so simple it's barely a recipe, but I added some great green goddess basil dressing from the Tartine All Day cookbook, and it really makes it special and extra delicious! I am craving spring and I thought this was a fun way to get in the mood for fresh vegetables and warmer temperatures!

Vegetable Board

(For all the veggies you can do as many or as few as you want, this can make enough for a crowd or just for family dinner.)

• carrots 
• asparagus 
• green beans 
• fingerling potatoes 
• greek olives 
• grilled chicken or rotisserie chicken
• salt

Tartine Green Goddess Dressing

• 3/4 cup mayonnaise 
• 3/4 cup sour cream or greek yogurt
• 3 Tbsp chopped tarragon
• 1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
• 2 Tbsp finely chopped chives or scallions 
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 olive oil or salt packed anchovies, rinsed, finely chopped
• 1 ripe avocado, halved peeled and cut into quarters 
• 3 Tbsp chopped carrot tops 
• 1/4 tsp salt
• black pepper 

There really isn't much to this "recipe" at all. Start with preparing your veggies. I started with the potatoes because I knew they would cook the longest. Start a big pot of water boiling on high heat and add a good handful of salt. Once its boiling, add your fingering potatoes whole, no need to cut them or anything. Let them boil for about 15 minutes until a fork pokes smoothly through their skin. It's during this time I usually quickly whip up the dressing. Just add all the dressing ingredients into a food processor or blender, and blend until smooth. Taste for seasoning and add a little more salt if needed.

Ok! Next, scoop your potatoes out of the water and set aside while you cook the other veggies. I threw in my asparagus and green beans next, and just let them cook till barely tender and bright green, about 3 minutes. To get them out easily I just used tongs and set them aside to cool. You can run them under some cold water if your worried they'll continue cooking.

Lastly, the carrots - I threw them in for about 5 minutes and then removed with the tongs. They should be just right and still have a little bit of a bite to them. While the veggies cool, you can get out your rotisserie chicken, and cut it into pieces. Then arrange it all on a big platter. I cut my fingerling potatoes straight down the middle for easier snacking and then sprinkled the whole platter with sea salt. Lastly, add a few big handfuls of greek olives. Set a big bowl of the dressing/dip (...I could probably eat this plain!) to the side, and dinner / appetizer / picnic lunch, whatever you want it to be... is served! 

Spring Celebration

There is no better time in the year than spring. The earth comes alive after a long winter and the beauty of everything just seems amplified. I spent another lovely day with Ella Newman and her wonderful photography skills and once agin it was so much fun. I made some delicious new recipes and as usual she took some amazing pictures. I always am excited for any change of season because it means new produce, and different vegetables and fruits to work with. Spring has some of the best: asparagus, strawberries, rhubarb the list goes on and on. It gets me excited just thinking about it. So to celebrate the coming of spring I made roasted chicken thighs with a fresh basil and scallion sauce, the bright green color alone is enough to get excited about! I also made some orange rolls because whats better than a springy orange roll for Sunday dinner in the backyard. Ella brought some beautiful lilacs and they just made the whole table, nothing makes me think of spring like those wonderful smelling blossoms!! 

Roasted Chicken Thighs with Basil Scallion Sauce 

6 chicken thighs (with the bone in and skin on)

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper 

Sauce

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil 

4 scallions sliced thinly

1 clove garlic minced 

1 teaspoon sea salt 

1/3 cup olive oil 

To start preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Place your chicken thighs on a sheet tray and drizzle each with just a bit of olive oil (about 2 tablespoons). Sprinkle with salt and pepper and a bit of chopped basil and put in the oven to bake for 20-30 minutes depending on how big the thighs are. You'll know they're done when the juices run clear and the skin starts to get a bit of color on it. Meanwhile while they cook prepare the sauce. Chop up your basil and scallions and throw them in a bowl with the minced clove of garlic and a good amount of salt. Add the olive oil and stir, let it sit while the chicken is baking so the flavors had time to combine and marinate.

Finally, remove your chicken from the oven, let it rest for about 10 minutes so the juices can redistribute. Place it on a serving platter with extra basil and serve with the sauce spooned over top.

Spring Orange Rolls

dough recipe adapted slightly from http://www.epicurious.com

1 envelop active dry yeast 

2 tablespoons sugar 

1 egg yolk slightly beaten 

1/3 cup fresh orange juice 

2 tablespoons melted butter 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1 1/3 cup flour 

non-stick spray 

Filling

1 stick butter 

zest of 2 oranges 

1/2 cup sugar

Glaze

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1-2 tablespoons fresh squeezed orange juice 

To start place the yeast and 3 tablespoons warm water in a bowl with 1 tablespoon sugar. Stir to combine and let sit for 10 minutes or until foamy. In an electric mixer beat the egg yolk, orange juice, melted butter, salt and remaining tablespoon of sugar. Add your 1 3/4 cup flour and yeast and mix until dough just comes together. Turn your dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth (about 5 minutes). Dough will be fairly sticky. spray a bowl with non-stick spray and place your dough in the bowl, cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes or until doubled in size.  While waiting mix your filling together cream the softened butter with the sugar and orange zest and set aside.

Once the dough is doubled in size spray a 9x13 pan or a muffin tin with non-stick spray. Turn your dough out onto a floured surface and shape into a 12x14" rectangle. Spread the filling across the dough leaving a small boarder around the edge. Roll the dough over itself starting with the edge of one of the 14" sides, until you have a long rolled log. Slice the roll into 12 pieces, the dough will be very soft so if you have trouble you can place it in the fridge for 20 minutes to make it easier to cut. place the rolls in their pan or muffin tin and let rise for another 30 minutes.

Lastly, preheat your oven to 350 degrees and bake for about 18 minutes or until lightly browned. Let them cool for about 10 minutes and make your glaze. Combine your powdered sugar and orange juice until smooth and creamy, then drizzle over the top of the rolls. Serve warm. 

There you have it, a delicious spring meal you can whip up any time. Just add a green salad and dinner's ready! Happy spring!

Almond Raspberry Baby Cake

Well it is finally March, which calls for a celebration! Spring is on it's way! I have been super behind putting this cake recipe up with more of Ella Newman's darling photo's, but i'm finally getting around to it! This cake is so delicious there is nothing better than the combination of raspberries and almond, it's a match made in heaven. For the base of this cake I used a great recipe from livforcake.com and it is oh so good, she knew what she was doing with this one. I just added some almond flavor and more raspberry and put my own little spin on it. It's hard to find a good white cake recipe and I think this is just that! 

White Cake from livforcake

1 1/2 cups cake flour sifted

2 teaspoons baking powder 

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 oz. room temperature butter 

3/4 cups granulated sugar 

1 large egg 

1/2 cup milk 

1 teaspoon vanilla (I add a tsp of almond extract as well)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk all dry ingredients together in a small bowl and set aside. Cream butter, and sugar on medium high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg and vanilla, and almond if using, and mix until combined. Alternate adding flour mixture and milk to butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour. Divide batter evenly amongst your pans and bake for 25-30 minutes. You don't want to overcook because the cake dries out quickly so watch them closely. She baked them in three 4"x3" cake pans, I baked it in two pans one slightly bigger than 4"x3" and one slightly smaller, so it evened out. Just remember when you're thinking what pans you want to use this recipe doesn't make enough for 2 standard round pans.

Raspberry Buttercream

1 stick softened butter

2 cups powdered sugar (may need a little more or less)

2-4 tablespoons milk 

3 tablespoons raspberry jam 

1 teaspoon almond flavoring 

red food coloring (optional)

To make your butter cream whip the softened butter in a stand mixer at medium speed. Slowly begin to add 1 cup of the powdered sugar until it is well combined, it will seem really thick. Add a couple tablespoons of milk and mix again, then add the last cup of powdered sugar. After mixing the sugar in you may need another tablespoon of milk. You want it to be thick but spreadable. Lastly, stir in the almond extract and raspberry jam. You can leave it as is, it will be a muted purple color, or you can add a drop of red food coloring to give it a more pink hue, which is what I did.

*** Here are my tips to go about frosting the cake, these steps will insure your cake looks flawless!

1. I put the cake in the freezer wrapped in plastic wrap for about an hour so it was nice and cold and didn't crumble when I cut or frost it.

2. I then sliced the 2 layers in half so I had a total of 4 layers. Slather raspberry jam in-between the layers before you stack the cake and frost it.

3. I started with a crumb coat, or in other words just a thin layer of frosting that holds all the crumbs in. After you apply this thin layer pop it in the fridge for 30 minutes to an hour so it can harden up.

4. Pull it out of the fridge and top with your final frosting layer, it can be a little on the thicker side so you don't scrape into the crumb coating. Finally top with raspberries and you're ready to celebrate!

Easter Lemon Bunt Cakes

Easter is just around the corner and what better way to celebrate than mini lemon bunt cakes that double as a little bird nest? I don't think there's anything more festive. These cakes are so simple I just used Ina Garten's recipe for lemon loaf cake and added on a few extras. The cakes are moist and delicious because they are soaked with lemon syrup right when they come out of the oven and then covered in a sugar glaze...my mouth is watering just thinking about it! These light happy little cakes are the perfect way to celebrate the coming of spring and a glorious Easter holiday. You can whip these up in about an hour and be ready to entertain family and friends anytime!

Ina Garten's Lemon Yogurt Cake

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup plain yogurt
• 1 1/3 cup sugar divided
• 3 eggs
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• /2 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice 

Glaze

• 1 cup powdered sugar 
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice 

To start, set your oven to 350 degrees and grease your mini bunt pans or muffin tins. Sift the dry ingredients into a small bowl and then in a separate bowl mix the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Once those are all mixed, slowly add the flour mixture to the wet and mix till just combined.  Lastly, stir in the 1/2 cup of vegetable oil and you're ready to bake! Pour each cup 2/3 of the way full and bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. While the cakes are baking take your reserved 1/3 cup sugar and 1/3 cup of lemon juice and heat them in a saucepan on the stove over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved, then set it aside to cool. 

Once the cakes are out, poke them with toothpicks and pour a spoonful of cooled syrup over each of them. While the syrup soaks in make your glaze, simply combine the powdered sugar and lemon juice to create. Let the cakes cool before drizzling the glaze over each one.

The last step is to add the nests. put about 1/2 a cup of shredded coconut in a dry pan and toast over medium heat until it's got some color on it. Watch it carefully because it can burn, take it off the heat when it's just starting to turn brown and let it cool until it's easy to handle. 

To top the cakes, just place a little handful of coconut right in the center of the bunt, it should stick to the slightly wet glaze. Then add whatever candy egg you like, I used a chocolate covered almond, but you could use cadbury eggs, or jellybeans...anything would work! Then all you have to do is enjoy your little lemon nests, and have a happy Easter!

Springtime Salad

Spring is in the air! There is nothing better than the feeling of warming up after a long winter, which is why spring is my favorite season...although I kinda say that when every season comes along so don't hold me to that! Spring really is particularly exciting though because the garden comes back to life!!! All of the sudden you have so many fresh ingredients to work with, this salad is a celebration of everything fresh and spring. This is a variation on a salad I make all the time as it warms up. My favorite part is the micro greens they are so yummy and different than your everyday lettuce. This is the perfect salad to serve with your Easter dinner or anytime at all!

You can whip this salad up in no time it just takes a few ingredients and you're good to go!

Springtime Salad

• 1 box mixed micro greens (I've found these at Harmons)
• A few handfuls of mixed greens 
• 1/2 cup thawed frozen peas or fresh 
• 3 sliced radishes
• 1/3-1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese 

First, throw your greens in a bowl and then I like to start to layer it with all the pretty stuff. Start with thinly sliced radishes, then sprinkle your peas over the top and lastly the feta cheese. Sometimes I'll add scallions or slivered almond to finish for extra flavor but it's perfect just the way it is. For dressing you can either do a squeeze of lemon with olive oil, or any of your favorite bottled vinaigrettes, but my favorite thing to do is just a drizzle of balsamic vinegar and olive oil! Toss your salad gently and enjoy immediately!