Whole-Wheat Spaghetti with Leeks

These days I find myself primarily cooking vegetarian meals. I just find them easier to cook than meat. I actually don't really like cooking meat, I always over cook it in fear of serving it undercooked. This vegetarian dish and has become quite a staple in my house. It comes together pretty quick and it's easy to make. For D and I it lasts for two nights and tastes just as good the second night as it did the first.

Whole-Wheat Spaghetti with Leeks

12 ounces Whole-Wheat Spaghetti 

4 tablespoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil 

3 Large Leeks, White and Light Green Parts, Sliced Thin

2 teaspoons Granulated Sugar

2 teaspoons Balsamic Vinegar

1 Head Radicchio, Cored and Sliced Thin

6 ounces Fontina Cheese cut into Cubes 

Cook spaghetti according to directions and reserve 1 cup of pasta water for later use. Add 2 tablespoons of olive-oil to a large skillet and heat over medium-low. Add the leeks plus 1 teaspoon sugar and 1 teaspoon salt, cook for 10 minutes stirring occasionally until leeks are tender. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the cooked pasta, the reserved pasta water, the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1 teaspoon of sugar and the balsamic vinegar. Cook for a minute or two then add the radicchio and cheese, stirring to combine all ingredients. Cook until cheese is melted then serve. 

Makes 4 Servings

Recipe from Food Network

Shortbread and Jam: A Springtime Daisy Cookie

These cookies are the perfect springtime treat, especially when made with strawberry jam. You can cut these cookies into any shape you like, or if you don't want a lot scrapes left over after cutting, just cut them into squares. Although the scrapes are quite tasty too. I ate them this morning with coffee after D and I got back from any earlier morning dental appointment (7 a.m. yikes).

Shortbread and Jam Cookies
7 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, Softened
1/2 cup Superfine Sugar*
1 2/3 cups All-Purpose Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/8 teaspoon Salt
1 Egg
1/4 teaspoon Vanilla
2/3 cup Strawberry Jam (or whichever kind of jam you fancy)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a standard sized baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl stir together the soft butter and sugar until combined. In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir flour mixture into butter mixture, then use your hands to mix together until crumbly. Whisk together the egg and vanilla then add it to the dough mixture. Knead mixture until the dough comes together and form it into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Once dough it chilled cut the dough in half and place one half on a floured work surface (put the other half back in the fridge until you are ready for it). Roll the dough out thin, about 1/4 inch. Place rolled dough on prepared baking sheet and spread jam evenly over the top. Roll out the  other half of the dough and place it on top of the jam. If pieces don't quite line up just patch the dough together until they do and the jam is covered. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the edges and parts of the surface start to brown. Once baked, remove from the oven and let the shortbread cool in the pan for a few minutes, then using the parchment paper to lift, transfer the shortbread to a wire rack and allow it to cool for a few more minutes. Then place the shortbread with the parchment on the counter and cut as desired, while the cookies are still slightly warm.

Makes about 9 cookies, depending on the size of the cutter

* To make superfine sugar, pulse sugar in a food processor for a few seconds until fine.

Recipe slightly adapted from Apples for Jam

Easter Cupcakes

Easter morning in our house usually goes something like this... sleep in, make coffee, eat candy and other various forms of sugar for breakfast. I guess once D and I have little ones running around we may have to set a better example but until then we are going to live it up.

Chocolate Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour

3/4 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder 

1 1/2 cups Sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Soda

3/4 teaspoons Baking Powder

3/4 teaspoons Salt 

2 Eggs

3/4 cup Buttermilk

3 tablespoons Canola Oil

1 teaspoon Vanilla

3/4 cup Warm Water 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a standard muffin tin with baking cups. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk together all of the dry ingredients. Beat in the eggs, buttermilk, canola oil, vanilla, and water. Divide batter among the prepared cups, filling 1/2 to 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 20 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. 

Recipe from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes

Toasted Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting 

16 Large Marshmallows

1 cup Powdered Sugar

1/2 pound Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature

1/2 teaspoon Vanilla Extract 

8 ounces Marshmallow Cream

Line baking sheet with parchment paper and set oven to broil. Broil marshmallow for about two minutes or until toasted. Keep a close eye on them so they don't burn. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat together the butter and powdered sugar until combined. Add the vanilla and beat for a few minutes until fluffy. Beat in the toasted marshmallows and marshmallow cream until incorporated, about a minute.

Recipe from Sweetapolita

Toasted Coconut
5 ounces Sweetened Coconut

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Spread coconut out on a baking sheet. Bake for about 7-8 minutes, tuning coconut half way through. Keep an eye on the coconut as it bakes, it can burn pretty quickly.

Assembly 
Frost cupcakes and pour toasted coconut into a bowl. Swirl frosted cupcake around in the coconut until all the frosting is covered. Top each cupcake with a mini Cadbury Creme Egg.

Vanilla Frosted Honey Cake

This recipe comes from the cookbook Apples for Jam by Tessa Kiros. This cookbook is one of my absolute favorites because I never tire of looking through the pages. The pictures gorgeous and her recipes are exactly what I picture when I think of homemade. Every recipe in this book has a story or a memory attached to it. The other day when I was looking through the cookbook I came across this recipe for honey cake. I have made this dessert before but it's been while. This cake reminds me of spring.  From the dense moist cake made with honey and rosemary to the delicate vanilla frosting it is the perfect springtime dessert. The original recipe calls for lemon frosting, but I made this cake with vanilla instead. The frosting for this cake is delicious, it is lighter and a bit more runny than your typical buttercream but it compliments the heartiness of the cake perfectly.

Honey Cake 
11 tablespoons Unsalted Butter
1/2 cup Dark Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Honey
1 1/2 tablespoons Water
1 2/3 cup All-Purpose Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
pinch of Salt
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh Rosemary Leaves
2 Eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour an 8 inch round cake pan and set aside. In a medium sized sauce pan set over medium heat melt the butter. Stir in the brown sugar, honey and water and cook until the sugar completely dissolves, then set aside to cool. In the bowl of an electric mixer whisk together all of the dry ingredients. Attach the paddle attachment to the mixer then add the cooled butter mixture to the flour mixture and beat to combined. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides as necessary. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 25-35 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Cool cake in pan for 20 minutes then using a butter knife, or plastic if your pan is non-stick, go around the edge of the cake loosening it from the sides then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Vanilla Frosting
7 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, Softened
1 2/3 cups Powdered Sugar
1 teaspoon Vanilla
3-4 tablespoons Milk

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat the butter until smooth. Beat in the powdered sugar until incorporated then add the milk and vanilla. Beat for 2 minutes until frosting is light and airy.

Carrot Sugar Cookies

These sugar cookies are fun and pretty simple to make. The dough comes together quickly so you can easily make it the night before then stick it in the refrigerator and make your cookies in the morning. When rolling out the dough be sure to use enough flour so the dough does not stick to the rolling pin. If you find the dough is getting too soft to work with, stick it back in the refrigerator for a few minutes until it firms up a bit. I find it helpful to use a metal spatula to transfer the unbaked cookies from the work surface to the baking sheet.

Sugar Cookies 

1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, Softened
3/4 cup Powdered Sugar
1 Egg, Room Temperature*
3/4 teaspoon Vanilla
1 1/4 cup All-Purpose Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt

Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt, set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat together the butter and the powdered sugar till fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla until well combined. Add the flour mixture and beat to incorporate. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and line baking sheet with parchment paper. Working with half of the dough at a time (leaving the other half in the refrigerator), on a floured work surface roll out dough then cut into shapes. Bake for 7-10 minutes. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for a few minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 12-15 cookies

* To bring the egg to room temperature place the egg in a bowl and fill the bowl with hot tap water. Allow egg to sit in water for 10 minutes.

Adapted from Taste of Home

Frosting 
8 tablespoons Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
1 tablespoon Meringue Powder
1 teaspoon Vanilla
2 1/2 cups Powdered Sugar
3 tablespoons Milk 

In the bowl of an electric mixer beat together the butter, meringue powder and vanilla until fluffy. Add the powdered sugar and beat to combined. Pour in the milk and beat for a few minutes, until frosting is nice and fluffy. 

Recipe from King Arthur Flour

Assembly
Place 1/3 cup frosting in a separate bowl and stir in two drops of green food coloring until all frosting has been colored. To the remaining frosting add 4 drops of orange food coloring and beat until all the frosting has been colored, add more food coloring if desired. For the coconut, place 2 drops green food coloring in a container fitted with a lid. Add 1/4 cup shredded coconut, cover and shake until all coconut has been dyed. 
Frost the carrot leaves first then sprinkle with coconut. To frost the carrot, fill a pastry bag fitted with the star attachment half way full with the orange frosting. Line the border of the carrot with stars, then fill in the middle.

Springtime Wreath

I saw this great "how to" for a spring wreath on The Lettered Cottage. I thought it looked easy enough so I gave it try. I had so much fun making it, I thought I'd share. If you'd like to make your own springtime wreath check out The Lettered Cottage for a great tutorial.