Sorry I haven't been posting I was on vacation but to make up for that I have a super cool recipe for you. Here it is!

Glazed Lemon Ricotta Cake

Lemon Glazed Ricotta Cake
Ricotta Cake:
1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, softened
15 ounces whole milk ricotta
1 ½ cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
Zest and Juice of 1 large lemon
1 ½ cup all purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
Lemon Glaze:
2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a Bundt cake pan and set aside.
In a large mixer bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until well combined. Add the ricotta and blend until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Mix in the eggs one at a time, incorporating well. Add the vanilla, lemon juice/zest and mix until fully combined.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients in 2 increments, mixing just until incorporated. Pour into the prepared pan and smooth our as needed. Bake 35-40 minutes, or until the cake is set and a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Let cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack. Whisk together the powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth. Drizzle the lemon glaze over the top of the cake and serve.

Hi we are back with an awesome recipe that will be sure to light up your party! This time it is not a dessert but it is still very good.

Turkey Cucumber Roll Ups
Peeled Cucumber Slices (using a vegetable peeler, take off cucumber skin, then continue to peel the cucumber around the seeded middle)
3 slices of real, unprocessed deli meat (I used turkey)
Half a tomato, diced
Shredded carrot
Shredded lettuce
Paleo mayo (optional)
Toothpicks



 

Add your vegetables in a thin line. If you want to add paleo mayo, add it now.

Lift up the edge of the cutting board or parchment paper to help you fold the roll onto itself.

Roll tightly.

Insert a toothpick in the center of each cucumber slice.

Using a paring knife or a serrated knife, slice between each cucumber slice. Serve and enjoy!!



Hope you liked. See you tomorrow. Bye!

Hi Hi! Tea week is back with a great recipe to try sunday afternoon. Here is... Lemon pull apart bread. Enjoy!





This bread takes a bit of time to make and seems lengthy in steps but there is nothing difficult about making this bread at all. And your reward will be soft, pillow-y layers of lemon scented, sugar crusted, delicious bread. I followed the recipe as-is and it was perfect. You can make an orange, grapefruit, or even cinnamon-sugar version of it. But no matter which flavor you choose… make it and promise me you’ll try the layer-by-layer method of eating it.

Ingredients:

For the sweet yeast dough:
About 2 3/4 cups (12 1/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (1 3/4 ounces) granulated sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons (1 envelope) instant yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup (2 1/2 fluid ounces) whole milk
2 ounces unsalted butter
1/4 cup (2 fluid ounces) water
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs , at room temperature

For the lemon paste filling:
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
3 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest (3 lemons)
1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
2 ounces unsalted butter , melted

For the tangy cream cheese icing:
3 ounces cream cheese , softened
1/3 cup (1 1/4 ounces) powdered sugar
1 tablespoon whole milk
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon lemon extract

Directions:

Note: for process photos of some of the trickier steps, head on over to myPumpkin Spice Pull-Apart Bread post. Same process, different delicious flavor.

1. Stir together 2 cups (9 ounces) of the flour, the sugar, the yeast, and the salt in the bowl of a stand mixer; set aside. In a small saucepan, heat the milk and butter over low heat just until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat, add the water, and set aside until warm (120 to 130°F [49 to 54°C]), about 1 minute. Add the vanilla extract.

2. Pour the milk mixture over the flour-yeast mixture and, using a rubber spatula, mix until the dry ingredients are evenly moistened. Attach the bowl to the mixer, and fit the mixer with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition just until incorporated. Stop the mixer, add 1/2 cup (2 1/4 ounces) of the remaining flour, and resume mixing on low speed until the dough is smooth, 30 to 45 seconds. Add 2 more tablespoons flour and mix on medium speed until the dough is smooth, soft, and slightly sticky, about 45 seconds.

3. Sprinkle a work surface with 1 tablespoon flour and center the dough on the flour. Knead gently until smooth and no longer sticky, about 1 minute, adding an additional 1 to 2 tablespoons flour only if necessary to lessen the stickiness. Place the dough in a large bowl, cover the bowl securely with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise in a warm place (about 70°F [21°C]) until doubled in size, 45 to 60 minutes. Press the dough gently with a fingertip. If the indentation remains, the dough is ready for the next step. While the dough is rising, make the filling.
Make the lemon paste filling

4. In a small bowl, mix together the sugar and the lemon and orange zests. Set the sandy-wet mixture nearby (the sugar draws out moisture from the zests to create the consistency).
Make the coffee cake

5. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Lightly butter a 9-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pan. Or, lightly coat the pan with nonstick spray.

6. Gently deflate the dough. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough into a 20-by-12-inch rectangle. Using a pastry brush spread the melted butter generously over the dough. Cut the dough crosswise into 5 strips, each about 12 by 4 inches. (A pizza cutter is helpful here.) Sprinkle 1 1/2 tablespoons of the zest-sugar mixture over one of the buttered rectangles. Top with a second rectangle and sprinkle it with 1 1/2 tablespoons of the zest-sugar mixture. Repeat with the remaining dough rectangles and zest-sugar mixture, ending with a stack of 5 rectangles. Work carefully when adding the crumbly zest filling, or it will fall off when you have to lift the stacked pastry later.

7. Slice the stack crosswise through the 5 layers to create 6 equal strips, each about 4 by 2 inches. Fit these layered strips into the prepared loaf pan, cut edges up and side by side. (While there is plenty of space on either side of the 6 strips widthwise in the pan, fitting the strips lengthwise is tight. But that’s fine because the spaces between the dough and the sides of the pan fill in during baking.) Loosely cover the pan with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place (70 °F [21°C]) until puffy and almost doubled in size, 30 to 50 minutes. Press the dough gently with a fingertip. If the indentation remains, the dough is ready for baking.

8. Bake the coffee cake until the top is golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool in the pan for 10 to 15 minutes.
Make the tangy cream cheese icing

9. In a medium bowl, using a rubber spatula, vigorously mix the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in the milk and lemon juice until the mixture is creamy and smooth.

10. To remove the coffee cake from the pan, tilt and rotate the pan while gently tapping it on a counter to release the cake sides. Invert a wire rack on top of the coffee cake, invert the cake onto the rack, and carefully lift off the pan. Invert another rack on top, invert the cake so it is right side up, and remove the original rack.

11. Slip a sheet of waxed paper under the rack to catch any drips from the icing. Using a pastry brush, coat the top of the warm cake with the icing to glaze it.

12. Serve the coffee cake warm or at room temperature. To serve, you can pull apart the layers, or you can cut the cake into 1-inch-thick slices on a slight diagonal with a long, serrated knife. If you decide to cut the cake, don’t attempt to cut it until it is almost completely cool.

Hi welcome back to tea week. Today we will be making Mini Cheesecakes!

Ingredients: 2 (8oz) cream cheese, softened

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tbsp. lemon juice

Nilla wafer crackers

Pie filling (I like blueberry, strawberry, & raspberry, but you can use whatever you like best!)

cupcake liners

 

Directions: Mix cream cheese, sugar, one egg, lemon juice and vanilla extract, until smooth. Then, add second egg.

Place one Nilla cracker in each cupcake liner. Pour 1-2 tablespoons batter into each liner.
Bake for 20 minutes at 300°F. Refrigerate for 2 hours or over night then add pie filling on top. Makes 18-20 cupcakes.

You can tweak it anyway you like.

Hope you enjoy this recipe! Bye!

Today we are making Lemon Tea Cookies. I made these and they turned out really good. Enjoy!

Lemon Tea Cookies

for the cookies

¾ cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 ¼ cup flour
½ cup cornstarch
1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar

for the frosting
¾ cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
¼ cup unsalted cold butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon lemon juice

for the cookies
Cream butter, lemon zest and juice until fluffy. In separate bowl, sift dry ingredients and mix into butter on low speed.

Divide in half. Shape each half into an 8×1 inch log and roll in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

Cut into ¼ inch rounds. Bake at 350 F for 12 minutes. Cool and frost.

for the frosting
On low speed, mix the cold butter with electric mixer (use paddle attachment for a stand mixer) until smooth. Slowly add confectioners’ sugar until blended. Beat in the lemon zest and juice.

Tomorrow we will look at one of my favorite recipes... Mini Cheesecake.

Welcome to tea week. Every day until next Thursday I will post a new recipe for your afternoon tea. Lovely yes? Here is our first recipe. 

Blueberry-Yogurt Cookies
Makes about 40

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup superfine sugar (granulated works fine)
1 1/4 cups Greek yogurt
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 lemon, zested
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup Swedish pearl sugar

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. In a large mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
3. In another mixing bowl whisk together sugar, yogurt, egg, lemon zest and juice, and vanilla until fully combined. Add the flour mixture to the yogurt mixture and stir until little to no lumps remain. Gently fold in the blueberries.
4. Grease two baking sheets with cooking spray and drop 2 tablespoon sized dollops of batter about 1 inch apart. Sprinkle the tops of each cookie with a
small amount of pearl sugar.
5. Bake for about 12 minutes or until the edges barely begin to brown. Carefully transfer cookies onto a cooling rack and allow to slightly cool before serving.
6. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container for 2-3 days and are best if refreshed in a warmed oven for about 7 minutes before serving.

Come Back tomorrow for Lemon tea cookies.

I'm back with another post. Today we are going to be looking at a project you can do for fun. Enjoy!

Not only are these jars functional, they are totally gorgeous and that means a lot to me. Whether yours are for storage or for decoration purposes, you just have to rinse out that spaghetti sauce and get after it. Please note, however, these are NOT safe for drinking or as vases with water inside – plastic stems ONLY.

For this project you will need:

• Gloss Mod Podge
• Liquid food coloring (I used neon colors)
• Water
• Mixing bowl(s)
• Spoon(s)
• Oven
• Cookie sheet lined with wax paper
• Paper towels

Take a dollop of gloss Mod Podge and place into your bowl. Add about 10 drops of food coloring and mix well.  Add a few spoonfuls of water and mix until the mixture is still thick but considerably runnier – like a melty milkshake.

Just so that you know at this point in the game, you’re adding white that is going to turn clear to the mix. If you want to gauge the color, look more closely at the color of the food coloring. Granted the darker the mixture the darker it will inevitably come out, but take that into consideration. If color is imperative, I’d highly recommend doing a single tester and modifying your mixture for the real deal.

Pour your mixture right into the bottom of your jar. Twist, turn and roll the jar around until the entire inside is well coated with your Mod Podge mixture.

Allow the excess to run off back into your bowl. Wipe any large globs off of the rim and turn upside down onto some paper towels so it will finish coating (with extra pooling on your paper towels). After 5 minutes, pick up and move to a clean spot on the towel. After another five minutes, turn upright and place on your wax paper covered cookie sheet.

Here are my jars filled with the wet Mod Podge mixture. If you like this look, you can achieve a finished product like above using acrylic craft paint instead!

Set your cookie sheet onto the oven rack and turn the oven onto 200 degrees.  Leave in until all of the Mod Podge inside turns transparent. These have been in the oven for about 45 minutes. You can see that the green ones on the left are practically done but some of the others have a long way to go. Check on the jars every 15 minutes and remove as soon as there is no more opaque liquid in the bottom.

Allow to fully cool and then you can start using them for storage or decoration!

Just remember, if you want nice, dark colors go kind of heavy on the food coloring! Have fun!!!

Thanks for reading see you next time.

Ok so as you can see I changed the name of my blog. Mostly because I wanted to change it but also because I am going to post alot of recipes and crafts that have to do with jars!Or cups or anything. Including this one. enjoy!

Key Lime pie is one of those desserts that screams SUMMER, but it is so refreshing and delicious, it would be a shame to only indulge in this for one season.  These parfaits have the scrumptious taste of Key Lime Pie, but have the beautiful presentation of a parfait.  

And the dessert is so simple, you will have a great dessert with very little fuss.  I love to eat this in my backyard with my feet up while I relax and watch butterflies having fun:-)  In the winter, enjoy this and smile when you think of what a great summer you had. For a great touch for entertaining, try serving these in shot glasses with mini spoons.

A gratuitous whipped cream shot. There is nothing quite like homemade whipped cream.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon grated lime peel
• 1-2 cups chilled whipping cream 
• Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions

Melt butter in heavy small skillet over medium heat. Mix in brown sugar and stir until bubbling, about 1 minute or less. Mix in crumbs; stir until color deepens, about 3 minutes. Turn out onto plate and cool. 

Stir condensed milk, lime juice and lime peel in large bowl to blend (mixture will thicken). Set aside while you make whipped topping.

For whipped cream topping, beat 1 cup whipping cream in bowl until stiff peaks start to form. Add 1/4 cup powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Make sure the bowl and the beaters are cold. It helps if you put the bowl in the freezer and the beaters 10 minutes before you make the whipped cream.

Using electric mixer, beat cream in medium bowl until firm peaks form; fold 1 cup of whipped cream into lime mixture.  Save the remaining whipped cream for topping the parfaits.

Place 1/4 cup lime mousse in each of six 8- to 10-ounce wine goblets. Top each with 1 tablespoon crumb mixture, then 1/4 cup mousse. Top parfaits with remaining crumb mixture. Refrigerate at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours. Just before serving, add a generous dollop of whipped cream.

Bon Appetit!