I know I have expressed in the past that I am not a baker, BUT I came across this recipe from www.garlicandzest.com and thought it would make a great addition to my Easter table. Not only were these good for Easter dinner they made an amazing left over breakfast sandwich the next day with ham and egg! My biscuits were not as pretty as the ones I found on Pinterest but the flavor was definitely there. Just like yesterday’s post, this would be great for Mother’s Day or any luncheon!
Makes 8 biscuits
INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons black pepper, freshly grated and divided
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 cup Parmesan, grated
1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, very cold. Cut into small pieces
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup cream
2 Tablespoons Demerara sugar
DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. In a large bowl combine flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, 3/4 teaspoon black pepper and grated cheese. Whisk to combine and add butter. Using a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles a course meal, some larger pieces are ok. Add the buttermilk and stir until just combined. Lightly flour a work surface and turn the dough out on to it. Knead the dough just 2-3 times, just until it holds together in a solid shape, trying not to overwork. Pat out the dough until it’s about 1 1/2 inches tall. Using a 2 inch biscuit cutter cut into the biscuits but do not twist the cutter into the dough, press straight down. Assemble the scraps and pat down forming a 1 1/2 inch tall dough and continue making biscuits. Transfer biscuits to prepared baking sheet. In a small bowl combine the Demerara sugar and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, stir to combine. Brush the biscuit tops with the cream and sprinkle with the sugar pepper mixture. Bake for 15-18 minutes serve hot from the oven or at room temperature.
Enjoy!
I don’t know about you, but I feel like this year is already flying by! It’s almost May! I don’t know where the time goes. Easter was just a short time ago and Mother’s Day is just around the corner. I made this sheet cake for Easter and shared it with a couple of my neighbors as it definitely made more than we could eat. I also made another dessert for my Easter table. But, if you are hosting Mother’s Day this cake would certainly make a nice addition to your menu. It’s easy to make, large enough for a crowd, and sweet, but not over the top sweet.
INGREDIENTS
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 can (20 ounces) crushed pineapple, not drained
CREAM CHEESE ICING
1 (8 ounce) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
3 3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped nuts
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl combine cake ingredients, beat until smooth. Pour into a 9 x 13 greased baking dish. Bake for 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely.
FOR THE ICING
Combine the cream cheese, butter, confectioners sugar and vanilla until smooth. Spread over cooled cake and sprinkle with nuts.
Enjoy!
5 Thai Bistro in Portsmouth N.H. (40 Pleasant Street) became an instant favorite after one bite of one of our appetizers! Don’t get me wrong we really enjoyed our entire lunch but there is something special about their chicken dumplings ($7.95) these dumplings are filled with steamed ground chicken and covered in a creamy coconut milk. I don’t typically like dumplings but I could have eaten that entire plate. Hands down the best dumpling I have ever had! Jim loved them as much as I did and I think if we were not in public we would have been fighting over who was going to lick that plate clean! I kid you not! Funny thing is, we also ordered their fried chicken wings as I knew I would not be eating the dumplings, little did we know! We did enjoy the chicken wings ($6.95)…in fact they were the crispest wings I have ever had. I also liked that they served the sauce on the side, so the chicken does not get soggy as it sits in the sauce. I would order these wings again any day.
In my rush to tell you about those amazing chicken dumplings, I almost forgot to tell you we went for Jim’s birthday and before we were served our appetizers we were given a complimentary salad that was light, fresh and came with a crispy won ton. That was a great start and because we had never been there, we did not expect the salad.
For our main course (we went for a late lunch, both the lunch and dinner items are the same just bigger portion sizes). Jim had the Pad Thai Deluxe ($ 9.95 lunch portion). This Pad Thai has so much going on, it smelled amazing and was filled with rice noodles, stir fry chicken, shrimp, tofu, egg, bean sprouts, ground peanuts, scallions in a Pad Thai sauce and a sprinkle of chili flakes for a little heat. I had a taste and really liked it, but Jim cleaned his plate and absolutely loved it. I had one of the specials they had that day. It was the mango chicken and shrimp curry. ($19.95). This had snap peas, onion, carrots, mango, chicken and shrimp. Of course in a yellow curry sauce served with white rice.
I loved my dish but as you can see it’s a big portion especially after eating everything we had already had, but no worries they have take out boxes, so I was able to enjoy this dish a little later in the day.
To our surprise the wait staff all brought over a dessert for us to celebrate Jim’s birthday and sang Happy Birthday to him. What a fantastic way to end our lunch. I have to tell you this dessert was not anything like I have had before. It was a banana wrapped in an Asian wrapper and deep fried then topped with strawberries, chocolate and cream ($7.95). This was a special they had that day. I don’t know how we could have possibly eaten it all…but we did! It was light, crispy, creamy and delicious. It’s also something I would order again!
As you can see our lunch was spectacular. I can’t begin to tell you how hard it is to finish this post and not get in the car to go there! We had a nice variety from the menu but they still have so much more. They also have a number of vegetarian and gluten free choices as well as a full bar. Jim had a beer and I had a Mai Thai. Lots of great appetizer choices. I know the next time we go we will of course have those chicken dumplings. I really like fried calamari, so I will be trying their version that is served with a spicy mayo as well as a sweet and sour sauce. They have lots of soup and salad options too.
I’m going to jump to the main course as they have such a great variety. Both of the curry dishes as well as the noodle and fried rice dishes come with several of the same options that you can add to your dish. You can add any of the following to your main course, tofu or vegetables, chicken or pork, chicken and shrimp, beef, shrimp, squid, or scallop. Crispy duck, seafood combination with shrimp, squid and scallops. So as you can see the curry dishes and the noodle or fried rice dishes have lots of delicious options. I can honestly say the chicken and shrimp in my dish were cooked beautifully and that’s not always easy as we know how easy it is for shrimp to be overcooked. With all of that being said they also have a number of chef’s special dishes; things like spicy crispy duck, BBQ pork and drunken chicken to just name a few.
And let’s not forget dessert. If you see the dessert we had it was really tasty but they have rice pudding, mango sticky rice and Thai tea Creme Brûlée to name a few. Check out their website for hours, location information and of course the full menu.
Enjoy!
This blueberry lemon cake is perfect for a Mother’s Day brunch or just because! Filled with juicy blueberries with the hint of lemon. One of my favorite combinations especially with summer just around the corner. This is perfect with a cup of coffee or for a little dessert after dinner. No matter what time of day you have it, I know you will enjoy it!
INGREDIENTS
2 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 medium lemon, zest and juice divided
1/2 Tablespoon cornstarch
2 cups fresh blueberries
Powdered sugar to dust the top if desired
DIRECTIONS
Lightly butter a 9 inch spring form pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Beat two eggs and the granulated sugar in a stand mixer with a whisk attachment on high speed until light in color and thick. Add one cup of sour cream , 1/2 cup oil, vanilla and salt. Whisk on low until well combined.
In a separate bowl whisk flour, baking powder, add to the batter a little at a time blend until combined. Add one Tablespoon lemon juice and 1/2 Tablespoon zest. Rinse the blueberries and drain well. In a medium bowl, toss the berries with the cornstarch and 1 teaspoon lemon juice stirring until well combined and no dry white cornstarch remains. Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Top with half of the blueberries. Top the blueberries with the remaining batter spreading to cover the blueberries. Top with the remaining blueberries and push them slightly into the batter.
Bake for 45-50 minutes, mine took 45. A toothpick inserted in should come out clean when the cake is done. Let cake rest in pan for 15 minutes, then remove the ring and cool until it’s at room temperature. Dust with powdered sugar.
Enjoy!
This recipe comes from www.natashaskitchen.com
These pickles became a family favorite from the very first taste! They are so easy, but they do need to sit in the fridge for one week before the flavor is where it is supposed to be. I tasted them each day and the flavor really changes as it sits. The first day the heat was right there in your face. Day two it was the sweetness that came through and by day three and four the flavors mellow and you get just the right amount of sweetness to the little bit of spice. I will be making these all summer! I made them last week and we have already gone through 3/4 of the jar! If you like sweet/heat you will love these!
INGREDIENTS
2 jars (32 ounces each) dill pickle slices or spears
4 cups sugar
1 Tablespoon hot pepper sauce
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 garlic cloves, peeled
DIRECTIONS
Drain and discard the juice from the pickle jars. In a large bowl combine pickles, sugar, hot pepper sauce, and red pepper flakes. Mix well and cover. Let stand for 2 hours stirring occasionally. Spoon pickle mixture into 3 pint size jars and add one garlic clove to each jar. Cover and refrigerate for 1 week before serving. Store in the fridge for up to 1 month.
Enjoy!
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