Easy Easter

There has been a bit of cake obsession going on around here. Meg saw a rerun on the Food Network of Ina Garten making this Lemon Yogurt cake and decided we had to have one. Luckily, Easter provided the perfect opportunity to indulge, even though Ina didn’t use any butter, making this a small indulgence.  Readers of our previous posting will remember the salted caramel gelato and know why we are toning it down a bit. Knowing that we couldn’t eat just cake, we quickly decided, since it was Easter, a quiche and salad would nicely pave the way for the cake.

Sue saw some golden beets in the store and our salad grew around them as the featured ingredient. We decided to roast the beets to retain their full flavor.

Golden Jewels 

Roasted Beet and Greens Salad
Recipe developed by Sue & Meg For Saturday Night Specials  04/19/2014

1 bunch of golden or other beets
Salad greens of your choice
3 Tbsp. good olive oil
1 Tbsp. whole grain mustard
2 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
1 clove grated garlic
¼ tsp. agave nectar
2 Tbsp. chopped roasted, salted pistachios for garnish
Coarsely ground black pepper to taste
Salt to taste

Scrub the beets and cut off the greens leaving about one inch of stem and the roots on the beets. Save the greens for a later use.

Line a large piece of foil with parchment paper, place beets on parchment and seal the package by rolling the foil and parchment together. Place on a cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour.
Remove from oven and carefully open package to allow beets to cool. When beets have cooled enough to handle, cut off stem and root ends and slip or peel skins off.

At this point they can be put in a sealed container and kept refrigerated for several days.
Combine dressing ingredients and allow  the flavors to blend for at least an hour. This will mellow the raw garlic.

To prepare the salad, slice the beets in about ¼ inch slices and dress with some of the vinaigrette. Toss the greens with the remaining dressing, arrange beets on top of greens and sprinkle with nuts.

Roasted Beet and Greens Salad

Asparagus is in all of the markets here and was a natural for the quiche.  And because it was Easter, Sue said, “How about some ham?” One of the great things about a quiche is that you can put anything in it.

Asparagus and Ham Quiche
Recipe developed by Sue & Meg For Saturday Night Specials  04/19/2014
Serves: 4 – 6

1/3 lb. Emmentaler cheese, finely shredded
1 9” unbaked pie crust
12  large spears asparagus
¾ lb. diced ham
3 eggs
1 ½ cup heavy whipping cream
3 tsp. flour
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
½ tsp. red pepper flakes (optional)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Trim ends of asparagus and steam lightly to partially cook. Reserve 5 spears to decorate the top of the quiche. Cut remaining spears into about ½ inch pieces. .  Combine with diced ham and sprinkle with 3 teaspoons of flour.  Set aside.

In a small bowl, beat eggs, cream and black pepper until blended.

Scatter half of the cheese evenly in pie crust.  Layer the ham and then the asparagus evenly over the cheese. Add remaining cheese and then pour cream mixture over everything. Decorate with reserved asparagus tips, pressing lightly into the mixture. Sprinkle top with red pepper flakes.

Bake for 15 minutes at 450 degrees.

Turn oven down to 350 and bake for 15 minutes.

Turn oven down to 300 and bake for 15 minutes.

Cover crust during baking if browning to quickly. Cool to room temperature before serving.

Ham and Asparagus Quiche

Sue lobbied to have Cava again, but Meg said we couldn’t have it with every meal. So the second choice was a nice bottle of barrel aged Chateau Ste. Michelle 2011 chardonnay from the Columbia valley in Washington.  It actually went very well with the meal.

 

And finally we arrive at the reason for this meal, the lemon pound cake.   It is dense, moist, lemony and absolutely delicious. If you are going to be obsessive about a cake this is a good place to start.

Lemon Yogurt Cake

Recipe courtesy of Ina Garten , 2006, Barefoot Contessa at Home, All Rights Reserved
Total Time:1 hr 20 minutes
Yield:1 loaf

Ingredients

1 ½ c all-purpose flour
2 t baking powder
½ t kosher salt
1 c plain whole-milk yogurt
1 1/3 c sugar, divided
3 extra-large eggs
2 t grated lemon zest (2 lemons)
½ t pure vanilla extract
½ c vegetable oil
1/3 c freshly squeezed lemon juice
For the glaze:
1 c confectioners' sugar
2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8 ½  by 4 ¼  by 2 ½ -inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, and vanilla. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. With a rubber spatula, fold the vegetable oil into the batter, making sure it's all incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1/3 cup sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in. Cool.

For the glaze, combine the confectioners' sugar and lemon juice and pour over the cake.

Our unsolicited and biased opinions:

We used a homemade crust for our quiche. Meg’s secret is to replace the cold water with whipping cream and use butter as the shortening. (I guess it’s not a secret any longer.) If you are not into making crusts, then buy one.

We selected the Emmentaler specifically to go with the ham and asparagus. If you choose other ingredients, suitable cheeses could be Fontina, Gruyere, Jarlsberg, Muenster or Port Salut.

We did not use any salt in the quiche preparation, because ham is inherently salty.

If you are not a fan of the traditional red beets, this golden variety is worth a try, as they are milder flavored.  The whole grain mustard and letting the vinaigrette rest at room temperature mellowed the garlic and rounded out the flavors in this dressing.  We also marinated the sliced beets for about an hour before assembling  the salad. We intended to use only arugula for the greens, but instead used a mix of “Super Greens” containing red and green chard, tat soi, arugula and mild spinach. The pistachios added a nice crunch.

We did not make the glaze for the cake and served it with sliced, sweetened strawberries. Meg says she feels less guilt eating cake with fruit. Sue says who cares.


Happy Easter to all!

Buona Pasqua!
Feliz Pascua!
Frohe Ostern!
Joyeuses Pâques!

Needlepointed eggs by Meg

Dinner At The End Of The Road

This make-ahead meal is prompted by a fantastic 50% off glass sale in Santa Rosa, California. We hit the road at “zero-dark-thirty” (03:30am) to make the 8:00 am opening time. This was a one day, 4 hour sale, and when you are fused glass fanatics, being there when the doors open is important.

We made the mushroom burger mix, vinaigrette, and walnuts the day before; so all we had to do was sauté the burgers and assemble the salad. Good thing, because we are tired but happy shoppers.

Portabella and button mushrooms

Cooked Bhutan Rice

Red bell pepper, green onions, shallot, minced garlic and sautéed, pancetta

Sue and Meg’s Mushroom Burgers
Recipe developed by Sue & Meg For Saturday Night Specials  04/05/2014
Serves: 4
 
¼ lb. pancetta, ¼ inch dice
3 Tbsp. olive oil, divided
1 medium shallot, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely minced or grated
½ red bell pepper, ¼ inch dice
6 oz. Portabella mushrooms, chopped into ¼ - ½ inch pieces
8 oz. button mushrooms, chopped into ¼ - ½ inch pieces
2 cups cooked Bhutan rice, cooked in chicken broth (see note)
3 scallions, sliced (green and white)
2/3 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. red pepper flakes (or to taste)
1 tsp. dried thyme

Add 1 teaspoon olive oil to a non-stick skillet and brown the pancetta.  When done, remove and reserve (resist eating). In the same skillet, add 2 teaspoons olive oil and lightly sauté the garlic and shallots until soft. Add the red bell pepper and sauté for about 2 minutes until crisp-tender. Remove from skillet and add to reserved pancetta.

Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and mushrooms to pan. Cook over low heat, until mushrooms have released most of their moisture and have reduced in volume by about two-thirds.

In a large bowl, combine sautéed and remaining  ingredients and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour or up to overnight.

In a large nonstick skillet heat remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil to medium-low heat. Use a half cup to measure each patty. Place 4 burgers in the skillet and lightly flatten with spatula or fingers. Cook for about 3 minutes per side until lightly browned. Keep warm in oven while cooking the remaining 4 burgers.

Note: Bhutan rice is a “red” rice with a distinctive flavor and texture. We think brown rice could be substituted in this recipe. We substituted chicken broth for the water to cook the rice.

Red Cabbage Salad with Blue Cheese & Maple-Glazed Walnuts
Source: Eating Well magazine March/April 2014
Serves 8: About 1 cup each

Vinaigrette
1 Tbsp. crumbled blue cheese
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 Tbsp. red-wine vinegar
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
¼ tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Salad
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp. butter
1 cup walnuts
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground pepper
3 Tbsp. pure maple syrup
8 cups very thinly sliced red cabbage
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese

To prepare vinaigrette: Combine 1 tablespoon blue cheese, ¼ cup oil, vinegar, mustard, salt, and pepper in a mini food processor or blender; process until creamy.

To prepare salad: Place a piece of parchment or wax paper near your stove. Heat 1 tablespoon oil and butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add walnuts and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add salt and pepper and drizzle in maple syrup. Cook, stirring until the nuts are well coated and have begun to caramelize, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to the paper, spooning any remaining syrup over them. Separate the nuts while they are still warm. Let stand until cool, about 5 minutes.

Place cabbage and scallions in a large bowl. Toss with the vinaigrette. Serve topped with blue cheese and the walnuts.

To make ahead: Store glazed walnuts (Step 2) airtight for up to 1 day

 

 We found this wine on a “girls’ weekend” in February when we took a road trip to Minden, Nevada. The Tahoe Ridge Winery has a good selection of flavored vinegars and olive oils and a small wine tasting bar. The menu for their restaurant was very tempting, but we had other plans. After tasting several vinegars, olive oils and wines, Sue signed up for their wine club.  She also selected the bottles for her first case, which we brought home. This “Rat A Tat” was one of our favorites and Sue bought every last remaining bottle in their store room.    It is a California red blend that is heavy on the cherry and tobacco flavors.

 

Tahoe Ridge Rat A Tat, 2008

Our biased and unsolicited opinions:

According to Sue, Meg is a rice connoisseur. Any rice that you see in our blog is because Meg bought it and said, “Let’s try this sometime”.  So here we are trying Bhutan rice. The flavor is nutty and mild and it is slightly mahogany colored.  Meg made the rice the night before and cooked it in chicken stock.

The mushroom burgers had a creamy texture but some crunch from the red pepper and green onions. They would not hold up to cooking on a grill and are a bit delicate; so some care is needed when turning them. They are very rich and satisfying. You certainly don’t need a bun. Save the carbs for dessert.

The red cabbage was really sweet and was nicely complemented by the blue cheese vinaigrette. We may have put in more blue cheese than called for in the recipe, but we happily admit to being cheese heads. This slaw can go with everything we can think of. We loved it and had second helpings. 

We didn’t plan a dessert, but raided Sue’s freezer after dinner, and lo and behold, what did we find but some Haagen Dazs Sea Salt Caramel Gelato. Oh, poor us. No bowls necessary.

This gelato is worth scouring to the ends of the earth to find. It is unbelievably rich and silky smooth and, oh yes, there is a ribbon of salted caramel running through it. Sue first noticed it in the sample sizes . . . thank God she bought a pint! We only ate half though, and are saying, “You take it home. “ “No, you keep it.”  Pure, unadulterated pleasure.

Proof we didn't eat it all.  OMG!!