Doesn’t this gorgeous lemon colour just say Spring?! It’s like the sunshine! With Easter coming up this weekend, make ahead dessert is a great way to prep. Lemon curd is super easy and keeps in the fridge for several days. Spoon it onto anything like mixed fruit, plain yogurt, or a slice of sponge cake. It makes an every day thing just a little more special.
what you need:
2 or 3 large lemons
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tbsp lemon zest
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
what to do:
Thoroughly wash lemons.
Using a microplane, zest the lemon (avoid white pith) until you have about 1 1/2 tbsp zest. Set aside.
Cut lemon in half and juice until you get 3/4 cup.
In a heavy saucepan, whisk sugar, lemon juice and eggs over medium heat. Whisk until thickened (when it coats the whisk) – about 8-10 minutes.
Remove from heat and add zest and butter and salt. Whisk until butter is melted.
Pour through a fine strainer to remove random egg bits and zest.
Store in airtight container in refrigerator.
Serve cold with fruit, cake, yogurt, or even dip cookies in it…ENJOY!
I love a good tangy caesar salad dressing – and yesterday I discovered so does my 6-year old! Piepie even took some leftovers in her school lunch today, and we threw in some chickpeas and cucumbers to make it a little heartier. Definitely a win!
Kale is a great substitute to romaine lettuce because it holds up to the dressing, you can enjoy it a few hours later or even the next day. It also has a lot more nutrients, such as Vitamin K (in general, the darker green the leaf, the better).
caesar kale:
tangy caesar dressing
juice of 2 lemons, zest of 1 lemon
equal amount of light tasting oil (e.g. grape seed oil) to your lemon juice
you can always add more oil if you feel it’s too tangy / sour
1 small clove of garlic, grated
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup finely grated fresh parmesan
1 tbsp dijon mustard
a pinch of salt and pepper
shaved parmesan for garnish
Combine dressing ingredients in a mason jar and shake vigourously. Taste and adjust if needed! I recommend taking a kale leaf to dip and taste – sometimes the dressing on the spoon on it’s own is intense but it’s different with the vegetables.
Remove kale leaves from stem and wash thoroughly. Tear into small bite size pieces.
Toss in a large bowl with dressing, allow to sit for at least 10 minutes before serving. Overnight works too!
When you are ready to serve, top with crusty croutons and shaved parmesan. ENJOY!
You know how the ends of bread loaves and crusts get the shaft? Don’t throw them out, they can be repurposed into a tasty after school snack or croutons for your next salad! Or blend them up and use them as breadcrumbs. They keep really well in a zip locked bag in your freezer, so don’t be afraid to stock up.
On the weekend my husband made these incredible homemade burgers (filled with oozing sharp cheddar…yum!) and instead of breadcrumbs he used a couple of slices of our breakfast grain bread. To my dismay, he cut the crusts off and put them in our compost! It truly hurt my heart that I couldn’t save them. In his defence, we were running a bit late that day and hangry kids were making him hurry.
I am totally that mom who forces her kids to eat their crusts. Piepie and Boss have always known they can’t get away with leaving their crusts, so one of their favourite things to do is ask us to cut the crust off their toast so that they can dip it in their milk. However, sometimes Piepie will still ask “do I have to eat the crusts?” and my answer is always yes. But now I may cut it off for her on occasion and save them for this special treat.
So here’s what you do:
Beavertail Crunch Sticks
if you’re a fan of Beavertails, you’ll love these! hello, killaloe sunrise!
Melt unsalted butter and brush generously over your crusts.
Mix 2 parts sugar to 1 part cinnamon (I would use 1 tsp cinnamon to start, it really depends on how many sticks you’re making).
Toss buttered crusts with cinnamon mixture.
Place crusts in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake at 375 F for 8 min or until golden brown, flipping crusts once.
Sprinkle a little more cinnamon mixture over top when they are hot out of the oven. A little squeeze of lemon on top optional.
Plate and ENJOY!
*even if you make these ahead, they are great at room temperature and super crunchy.
Garlic Cheese Sticks
savoury goodness
Melt unsalted butter with 1 clove finely chopped garlic.
Grate some cheese (sharp cheddar or Parmesan).
Brush garlic butter generously over crusts.
Lay crusts in a single layer on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Lay grated cheese on top (push gently to make sure it sticks to the buttered crust).
Bake at 375 F for 5 min then switch to broil on high for another 2 min (bubbly golden cheese on top).
Plate and ENJOY!
*These are great as croutons for salad and soups. You can make these ahead of time and store in an airtight container for later use.
I pretty much bake up a banana bread biweekly but this week I thought I’d try something new. Also I had a huge bag of carrots from Costco to use up (however … these carrots were enormous so I only needed one large carrot to get 2 cups grated!). It’s a little healthier than the classic carrot cake but let’s be honest, the cream cheese frosting on carrot cake is the best part so I went traditional there with full fat cream cheese and butter. Everything in moderation, right?
reminiscent of carrot cake, but simpler for a week day treat
what to do:
Preheat oven to 350 F (my oven is convection – if you have a traditional oven your baking time will need to increase).
In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or use a handheld beater), beat eggs, oil and sugar together.
In a separate bowl, combine flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger and nutmeg.
Add carrots to wet mixture, mixing well.
Add dry ingredients and do not over mix.
Fold in greek yogurt.
Pour batter into a buttered loaf pan, bake in the centre rack for about 25 minutes. (Or until top is golden brown and not jiggly anymore).
Leave for at least 20 minutes to cool in the pan before trying to remove your loaf – otherwise it may break on transfer!
Transfer loaf to cooling rack and allow it to fully cool to room temperature before frosting. Plenty of time to make the frosting now:)!
this little guy was a bit scared of the mixer!
Frosting:
With whisk attachment (or again, using hand held beaters) – cream together butter and cream cheese, until very smooth.
Add vanilla and milk, beat until smooth again.
Add icing sugar, one cup at a time, and beat until smooth.
Spread on carrot loaf once the loaf is fully cooled to room temperature. This is important because if the loaf is warm at all it will just melt your frosting right off and you’ll end up with a sloppy mess!
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