Lemon Bundt Cake

Just in time for spring- a delicious bundt cake ! the secret ingredient is of course, the lemons !

I like to serve this with cut up strawberries and whipped cream.

Make sure you only use large eggs ( no bigger) or your cake may get dry. And if you use salted butter, then i would omit the salt in the recipe.

Ingredients

Cake

1 Cup of unsalted butter, at room temperature , plus extra to grease pan

2 Cups granulated sugar

4 large eggs, at room temperature

3 Cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon of baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 Cup of buttermilk

Grated zest of 2 large lemons

Juice of one large lemon ( 2 1/2 tablespoons)

Glaze ( the best part!)

1/2 Cup of unsalted butter softened

1 1/2 to 2 Cups of confectioners sugar, sifted

Grated zest of one large lemon

Juice of one large lemon ( 2 1/2 tablespoons)

preheat oven to 325 .

Grease and flour a 10 inch non- stick bundt pan.

1- Using electric stand mixer, cream butter and sugar together for 2 minutes until fluffy and pale. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition, and scraping down sides of bowl.

2- In a medium bowl, with an electric hand mixer, mix flour, baking soda, and salt for 30 seconds. Sift into a second bowl. Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture in 3 additions, alternating with buttermilk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. DON"T OVER MIX. Just fold gently until batter looks well blended. Fold in lemon zest and juice.

3- Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing top with rubber spatula. Bake the cake for one hour to one hour 15 minutes, or until tester inserted in center comes out clean, and cake has begun to pull away from sides of pan. ( do not UNDER BAKE, or you wont get the bad boy out of the pan). Transfer pan to wire rack and cool for 10 minutes.

4- While cake is cooling slightly, prepare the glaze. In a medium sized bowl, cream the butter with hand electric mixer until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in sifted sugar, zest, and juice, until a creamy, pourable consistency is achieved. If too stiff, add more lemon juice or a little water. If too runny, add more sugar.

5- Say a prayer, and then invert the cake onto a wire rack and hope the pan comes off. Spoon glaze over hot cake. If your cake has broken a bit, use the glaze to glue it together.

Let cake cool completely before cutting. Like most baked treats- this cake is best served same day made, but keeps for a a day or two in airtight container at room temperature.

Bourbon Brownies

I was in search of a moist fudge-like brownie recipe and found this last week from Cooking Light. Jim loves Bourbon ( we always have the big boy bottle of Maker's Mark Bourbon around) so I knew I wouldn't have to go out and buy some expensive liquor to make these.

These brownies are GREAT ! You really don't taste (although you smell) the bourbon as much as it brings out the flavor of the chocolate. They are very fudgy and rich, so much so that I did cut them into bite sizes ( 1 inch squares) vs traditional bigger brownies.

Make sure you use Large, not extra large eggs so the brownies don't get too dry. And DON'T over bake !

1/4 cup of Bourbon

1/4 cup of Ghiradelli semisweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup baking cocoa

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/3 cups sugar

6 Tablespoons butter, softened

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 large eggs

Pam baking spray

Preheat oven to 350

1-Bring Bourbon to boil in small saucepan. Remove from heat. Add chocolate chips and stir until melted and smooth.

2-Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Mix well ( I used an electric mixer, which I always use vs sifting, but I did make a mess with the cocoa. I would recommend using a whisk. )

3- In mixer, blend sugar and butter for about two minutes until well combined and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, beat well. Add flour mixture and Bourbon mixture. Mix on low speed until combined. DO NOT OVER BEAT or brownies will get tough.

4- spray 9 inch square baking pan with Pam, and spread batter and smooth with spatula.

5- bake in middle of oven for 25 minutes, checking early to make sure they don't over bake. Wooden toothpick should come out clean.

6-Cool on wire rack, cut into 1 inch squares.

7- store in airtight tin for up to 3 days. The best part by the way is opening the tin- it smells great !

Chicken, Rice and Vegetables A la Morroco

I had some vegetables to use up so I put together this dish last night. The secret ingredient of Carmadon really brings out a bright flavor in the apricots and tomatoes. Once again, a one pot meal that makes for easy clean up. I used my trusty Caphalon 8.5 qt dutch oven-braising the concoction so all of the flavors really come out. I love the Caphalon dutch oven because it is big enough to hold a good size meal for four, it goes from stove top to oven easily, and it cleans up very easily. It's also wide enough that you don't layer your food as much so everything cooks more evenly. Definitely a pot worth investing in ( or ask for on your gift list).

I used chicken thighs, but if you are white meat person you could definitely replace- just watch the chicken that it doesn't over cook and get too dry. Also, when I made this, I put all the vegetables in at once- however, my butternut squash and broccoli was a little mushy, so I would suggest putting them in a little later in the cooking process.

Ingredients

-6-8 chicken thighs, bones in, skin removed

-1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

-1 small onion chopped

-1/2 of a butternut squash, cubed to about 3/4 inch pieces ( not too small)

-1 red pepper, sliced

-1 package of pre-cut mushrooms

-1/2 bag of baby carrots

-1/2 head of broccoli florets, most of stem removed.

( you can add any vegetables you want to use up )

-1 28 can of plum tomatoes, cut up, or diced tomatoes, no salt added, with juice

-1 1/2 teaspoons of Cumin

-1 heaping teaspoon of chopped bottle garlic

-4 whole cloves

-heaping 1/2 teaspoon of Carmadon

-I Can of low sodium chicken broth

-1 Cup of uncooked rice

-1 Cup of cut up apricots

Pre heat oven to 350

1- on stove top, fry chicken in olive oil for a minute or so on each side to sear in juices.

2- turn off heat. Pour uncooked rice into bottom of pan.

3- add carrots, onions, mushrooms, red pepper and apricots

4- in a bowl, mix tomatoes with juice, garlic, Cumin, Carmadon, Cloves, chicken broth. Pour over chicken and hard vegetables.

5- Cover and place in oven. Cook for about 20 minutes. Remove, add remaining softer vegetables ( broccoli, squash, pea pods, etc) . Stir and recover-

6- cook for about 40 -50 more minutes, until chicken is done, vegetables are soft, and rice is cooked. You might need a little water the last few minutes if the rice has absorbed too much liquid.

Greek Potatoes

Even though I'm Italian, I do love the Greek influence of flavor of garlic, oregano and lemon combined in dishes, which are the secret ingredients to this dish. This is one of my favorite ways to prepare potatoes - they are excellent side to any grilled meat meal. I use baby red or golden potatoes so I don't have to peel them because the skin is thin. and I get to use my one of my favorite kitchen gadget, my old fashioned lemon squeezer. I used to buy the bottled lemon juice, but it had a funny aftertaste. I got my citrus squeezer from the Pampered Chef, and I love it because it's one unit (squeezer, bowl, and strainer) all in one. Makes juicing a breeze.

Ingredients

-6-8 medium sized thin skin potatoes, washed, and cut into pieces ( depending upon the size of the potato, you would cut them into 4 or 6 pieces)

-fresh juice of two large lemons ( about 1/2 cup)

-1 heaping Tablespoon of chopped fresh oregano

-salt and pepper to taste

-1/3 C of olive oil

-1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder

-1 1/2 cups of water, divided

-1 can of low sodium chicken broth

pre-heat oven to 475

1-Toss together first five ingredients ( through garlic powder) in a flat 9x12 metal baking pan.

2- Add the chicken broth and half of the water .

3-Bake uncovered for about 45-60 minutes. check every fifteen- twenty minutes and stir. Add more water for first half hour if pan gets dry. For last 15-20 minutes, let broth/water dry out so potatoes get a little crispier. You may need to cook them a little longer than 60 minutes to get the liquid to dry out- just don't let the potatoes burn !

Mediterranean Flank Steak

I make this for Jim when we want beef but can't really cook out on the grill. This is a manly meal because Jim gets to pound the beef with his rubber mallet (one of the many construction tools we consider handy in the kitchen....) Jim's secret is that he uses a LARGE Ziploc bag instead of waxed paper. The plastic bag holds up much better than the wax paper, and the meat or chicken juices don't fly around and make a mess.

1 Flank Steak
1/4 cup Feta cheese crumbled
2 Tbsp of roasted red peppers
1/4 of medium size sweet onion
1/4 C Tbsp of Kalamata olives
1- 1/2 Cups of Fresh Spinach
1/2 Teaspoon Cumin
1/4 Teaspoon garlic powder
1 Tbsp of grated lemon rind
salt and pepper
pre-heat oven to 350
1-Place flank steak in large Ziploc bag and pound to 1/4 inch thickness.
2- In mini chop food processor ( or by hand) lightly PULSE chop onion, olives, spinach, and red peppers. DO NOT OVER CHOP to pesto,or else the filling will be runny. Mix in Feta cheese, Cumin, garlic powder, and lemon rind.
3- generously season flank steak with salt and pepper. Lay flat on cutting board.
4- Spread filling on steak, leaving about a 1 inch border on the sides. Pat down. Roll up like a jelly roll, and tie with kitchen string. (we also use toothpicks to help keep it tight).
5-Set on rack in broiler pan, lined with tin foil.
6- Bake in oven for about an hour- meat will looked cooked on outside, but still medium rare on inside.
7- let sit about 10 minutes before slicing.

Pork Chops with Feta, Olives, and Peppers Recipe

We love these pork chops because they are SOOOOO moist. The secret ingredient is the old stand by-Shake and Bake. Don't knock it. The stuff really works.

1 package Shake and Bake for pork
3 boneless center cut pork chops

1 Tbsp grated lemon rind
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp fresh parsley or 1 1/2 tsp of dry parsley
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp fresh or 1/2 tsp dry oregano

1/2 cup of feta cheese, broken up
1/2 cup of olives, chopped fine (kalamata,black or your favorite)

Preheat oven to 400.
prepare pork with Shake and Bake, as per directions.
Place in 8x8 pan and bake uncovered for 25 minutes.

In the meantime, mix oil, rind, juice, and spices in a small prep bowl.

Spoon mixture over the pork chops. Back in the oven for 5 minutes

Combine feta cheese and olives. Spoon over pork chops, bake 5 to 10 more minutes (depending upon the thickness of the chops).

I like to serve this with rice pilaf.

Meatballs and Sausages with Peas Recipe

It's Jim's birthday tomorrow and I'm making him his favorite- Meatballs and Sausages. He doesn't really care for the pasta as much as the meat- I make up for it since I'd rather just eat the pasta- that's why we get along so well :).

One secret ingredient is wine- which you sear the sausages in. It makes them very juicy and flavorful. I also use the meatloaf meat mix at Stop & Shop of ground beef, veal, and pork, although you can make it yourself. The mix of meats makes a much tastier meatball then just plain old ground beef. Finally, make sure you add a package of dry beef bouillon to your meatball mix, it makes them taste a bit heartier.

I use my trusty Caphalon 8.5 quart dutch oven to cook this on the stove because it is flat and wide so the sauce and meat cooks more evenly. NOTHING EVER BURNS IN THIS POT. It is the best

The sauce can get a little runny, so don't over do the water you add and best to serve this over rice (vs pasta) so that the rice sops up all the sauce.

This is a big recipe because Jim will eat them all week- feel free to cut in half.
2 packages of Perri Sweet Italian Sausages ( 10 )
Meatballs
3 to 4 slices of white bread, preferably Italian, crust removed
milk
2 lbs of ground beef/pork/veal meatloaf mix -
2 Large eggs
1 package of beef bouillon dry - low sodium
1 TBSP of dried parsley
2 tsp of dried basil
1 tsp of garlic powder.
Soak break in milk until absorb. With hands, break up into small pieces. Combine meat, eggs, and all the spices with the bread and milk. mix with hands until well mixed.
Form into 2 inch meatballs ( about 8 per pound). they may be a bit bigger than you expect, however, some of the meat will fall off in the sauce ( making your sauce meatier and richer).
Put in fridge until needed.

Sauce
2 large cans of Pastene Kitchen Ready ground tomatoes ( no salt added)
1 can of Hunts Tomato Paste ( no salt added)
1 cup of your favorite red wine ( so you can drink the rest of the bottle)
1 medium sweet onion chopped
1 Tablespoon dried parsley
2 tsp dried basil
1 tsp garlic powder
2 small or one large bay leaf
4 whole cloves ( not garlic ! the kind you put on hams at Easter)
salt and pepper to taste

1 Bag of frozen peas, thawed.

To start sauce-
In large pan or dutch oven, place sausages on bottom in single layer. Peirce with fork 3 to 4 times. turn over , Peirce again.
Pour wine on sausages. Turn stove low to medium heat and brown sausages, all sides.
Add onion and cook for 2 minutes.
Add ground tomatoes and paste.
Fill one ground tomatoes can halfway full with water and add to sauce.
Add spices. Stir.
Cover and cook for about 1/2 hour on low heat, so sauce simmers, but does not burn.
After 1/2 hour, carefully add meatballs and push down to make sure they are covered with sauce. Cook for 1/2 hour
Add frozen peas and cook for another 15 to 30 minutes, until sauce is done and meatballs are cooked through.

Serve over rice or pasta