Are you ready for Easter?

Easter weekend has arrived! In celebration, I'm rounding up some of my favorite springtime recipes, perfect for your Easter gathering.

Let's get cooking!
Erin

Rhubarb Muffins: Rhubarb is the ruby announcement that Spring has arrived, and it absolutely shines in these lightened-up muffins.

Stuffed French Toast: Tangy cream cheese, sweet jam, and warm cinnamon make this an immediate brunch classic.

Apricot Mustard Glazed Ham: For me, Easter dinner isn't complete without ham. The apricot mustard glaze on this beauty is unbelievably simple and delicious. I made it just last week, and it's one of my all-time favorite meals.

Lamb Kabobs: If you live in a climate where it's warm enough to grill, these Mediterranean kabobs are for you.

Mom's Cheesy Potatoes: These potatoes are an essential accompaniment to ham. Salty, creamy, and crunchy, they will steal the show.

Crispy Parmesan Asparagus "Fries": Asparagus is the quintessential spring vegetable, and it's perfect for your Easter dinner table. Since these are "fries," you might even be able to convince your pickiest eater to try them.

Lemon Buttermilk Cake

When Amy invited me for dinner and shared her plan to make Spring on Toast, I knew I needed to come up with a dessert that was equally seasonal. Well this Lemon Buttermilk Cake is a little ray of springtime sunshine.

Rich, dense, and moist, this not-too-sweet cake shines with the perfect amount of tang and zip from buttermilk and lemon. While the cake is lovely on its own, it begs to be smothered in berries and freshly whipped cream.

The husband and I have whipped cream in a can in our fridge at all times, but this cake calls for something special. Grab a carton of whipping cream at the grocery store and do it up right. If you haven't made your own whipped cream yet, don't be afraid! It's not difficult; you just need to keep an eye on it to make sure it doesn't turn into butter. (So don't turn on your mixer and go start a load of laundry.) And the ridiculously delicious flavor is absolutely worth the five minutes of effort.

When you're getting ready for your next Spring gathering (Easter, perhaps?), let this Lemon Buttermilk Cake be the star of your menu.

Let's get cooking!
Erin

Lemon Buttermilk Cake
Adapted from Real Simple and this Lemon Pound Cake

2 cups flour, plus extra for the pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice (from about 1 large lemon)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Lightly sweetened berries, for serving
Whipped Cream, for serving (recipe below)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9" x 5" loaf pan and dust with flour, tapping out excess. Set pan aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together melted butter, sugar, buttermilk, eggs, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla. Add wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk everything together.

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool in the pan for ten minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.

Serve with lightly sweetened berries and whipped cream.

Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Put the bowl of your electric mixer and the whisk attachment in the freezer for about 10 minutes. (This will help your cream whip up more easily.) Add whipping cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla to the cold bowl. Turn the mixer to medium speed until the cream starts to get a bit bubbly, about 1 minute. Crank up the speed to high and whip until soft peaks form, about 1-3 minutes longer.

Heads-up: Be careful not to whip the cream too much or it will actually turn into butter. And, yes, I did learn this the hard way.

Chicken Stock & Chicken Tortellini Soup

I'm all for the convenience of packaged chicken broth, but I do enjoy the sense of accomplishment that comes with cooking from scratch – especially when the process naturally follows a meal I'm already making.

The next time you roast a chicken leave a little meat on the frame and make yourself some chicken stock. It's almost as easy as boiling water – seriously!

You can flavor the broth with whatever herbs and vegetables you have on hand. Experiment until you find a combination you like best. When you're done, you'll have enough chicken stock to make a fragrant Chicken & Tortellini soup (recipe below), plus more to pop into the freezer for later – about 10 cups in all.

P.S. What's the difference between broth and stock, you ask? Traditionally, stock is made from bones. The collagen in the bones breaks down into a gelatin that adds body and a thicker texture to the liquid. Broth is made from meat and seasonings. Since I use both meat and bones to make this soup base, I'm using the terms broth and stock interchangeably.

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Chicken Stock

1 frame from a 4 to 5 pound chicken
1 large white onion, peeled and cut in quarters
1 shallots, peeled and cut in half
3 peeled carrots
3 celery stalks
2 o 3 crushed or minced garlic cloves
1 lemon, halved
Fresh herbs sprigs, tied into a bouquet with kitchen twine: thyme, rosemary, oregano, parsley or whatever you have on hand
Salt and pepper to taste

Place chicken frame in a 6-quart pot. Add vegetables, herbs and salt and pepper. Fill pot with water to cover chicken frame. Cover pot with lid. Bring to a boil and maintain a rolling boil for about 30 minutes. Lower heat to simmer and cook for 4 hours or longer, keeping pot partially covered.

Let broth cool. Skim any fat from top. Remove chicken frame, vegetables and herbs from pot and discard. Place a colander on top of a large pot or bowl and pour stock through strainer. (You could also use cheesecloth in this step.)

You can use your broth right away or place broth into a covered pot or container and refrigerate overnight. The next day, skim off any fat on the surface. Now you have a delicious base for soup.

Chicken & Tortellini Soup

9 ounces cheese tortellini
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups cooked chicken, shredded or cubed
Salt and pepper to taste
Optional: 4 ounces spinach, Swiss chard or baby kale
Grated or shaved parmesan cheese for garnish

Cook tortellini according to package directions. While tortellini cooks, heat broth on stove top in medium to large pot. Add tortellini and chicken to hot stock and heat through. If using greens, stir them into soup just until wilted.

Ladle servings into bowls and top with parmesan.

Amy's Roasted Chicken

About seven years ago, I taught myself to roast a chicken. I've been roasting birds ever since. I consider it my signature dish. It's one way I know my French heritage is legit.

If someone asked me my favorite meal, it would be this: roasted chicken, green salad, roasted or scalloped potatoes, baguette, red wine.

The roasted chicken is super yummy and super easy. And sometimes I make it for Easter dinner.

XOXO,
Amy

Amy's Roasted Chicken

Whole chicken
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon garlic powder

Preheat oven to 425. Remove bird from refrigerator and let sit for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, melt the butter in the microwave and mix together the dry ingredients. Brush the melted butter all over the bird. Press the salt and herb mixture into the bird, covering the entire bird. Place in a roasting pan breast side up. Cook for 15 minutes at 425. Reduce temp to 375 and cook for 50-60 minutes.

Carve. Or, in my case, have hubby carve. (He does a much better job.) Enjoy. Save carcass to make chicken stock and chicken soup.

Spring on Toast (featuring eggs and asparagus)

Last Friday, on the first day of Spring, Erin dropped by Chez George for a little culinary date. Erin brought her son Danny (he's adorbs!) and my daughters Lucy and Penny enjoyed their first "babysitting" stint. She also brought a yummy lemon buttermilk cake.

Erin and I decided to team up today to tell you about our main course, which we shall call Spring on Toast. I'd seen a friend's yummy-looking Facebook photo of toast topped with asparagus, sunnyside up eggs and goat cheese--all finished off under the broiler. (Shout out to you, Kate Y.!)

This dish was the perfect choice for the first day of Spring, a meatless Friday before Lent and for a dinner without the husbands, who are both opposed to "breakfast" for dinner. The hubbies are wrong, just wrong, btw.

Here was our conversation while eating.

Erin (while shoveling yolk-y bites of asparagus into her mouth at warp speed): OMG. Amy. This is the most delicious thing I've ever tasted. It's, like, for realz Spring on Toast.

Amy (admiring the crisp-tender spears of asparagus blanketing the toast): It does taste like Spring. This asparagus is absolutely perfect. Seasonal vegetables rock my world.

Erin (now attempting to lick up the puddles of yolk pooling on her plate): I think I'm going to make this for lunch every day now.

Amy (moving her foot just in time to avoid Danny driving over it with a Barbie jeep): So good. So, so good. SO GOOD.

XOXO and let's get cooking!
Amy & Erin

Spring on Toast (featuring eggs and asparagus)
Asparagus
Olive oil
Salt
Cracked pepper
Multigrain bread, sliced
Butter
Eggs
Goat cheese

Trim asparagus and place on cookie sheet. Drizzle with a little olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 425 for 5 minutes or until slightly tender, but not overdone.

Butter each side of bread and "toast" each side in a skillet. Place toasted bread on a cookie sheet. Top with asparagus.

Cook eggs sunnyside up until the whites are set, just a couple minutes on medium or medium high. Slide eggs on top of the asparagus. Two per piece of toast. Note: This is a two person job and it helps if you and your culinary partner utter things like "careful, careful, careful" and "eek, eek, eek," as you try to coax the eggs on top of the toast, keeping them intact. Top eggs with goat cheese.

Broil on high until the goat cheese is softened and warmed through, about 5 minutes. (Watch carefully when you are broiling! Some broilers are hotter than the surface of the sun and will set your toast on fire in less than a minute. Erin may or may not know this from experience.) Remove and top with cracked pepper. Eat immediately.

P.S. Amy was kind enough to send the leftover Spring on Toast home with Erin, and it reheated beautifully. 425 degrees for 10 minutes and the egg was still runny and perfect.

Shrimp Curry Under Pressure

I don't love grocery shopping. But there are two things that make this chore a little easier for me to swallow.

First, a sale.

Second, and more important, is the ability to shop online, 24/7, and have someone else round up the goods and place them in my car when I wheel up at the curb after a long day at the office.

So when jumbo shrimp recently went on sale for $7 a pound, they went into my virtual grocery cart in a snap. Then I had to decide what to do with them. I had the loose idea of making a shrimp curry.

As I set out to prepare dinner, I realized one snag in my plan: I wasn't going to have time to prep the veggies, devein the shrimp and wait for the curry goodness to simmer away on the stovetop. Not unless I was down with eating after 8 p.m. and getting the kids to bed after 9 p.m. Sigh. This happens a lot as a working mom who is as ambitious putting dinner on the table as she is at the office. Sometimes I bite off more than I can chew. The pressure!

Enter the pressure cooker. So aptly named. Where has that thing been all my life? I now believe every working mother needs a pressure cooker AND a slow cooker if she wants to put dinner on the table. The slow cooker is great for when you are thinking and planning ahead. The pressure cooker is great for when you forgot to plan and need dinner to be ready NOW! Both are life savers. Along with the personal shoppers at my local grocery store.

XOXO,
Amy

Shrimp Curry Under Pressure

Note that while the recipe below calls for a pressure cooker, you could make everything stovetop or use the slow cooker to cook everything but the shrimp.

3 carrots, peeled and diced
Green beans, trimmed (a handful or two will do)
15 oz. coconut milk (I use light)
Fresh basil
1 heaping teaspoon curry
1 1/2 tablespoon butter
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
Salt
Pepper
Sriracha
Honey
1/2 lime (or more if you want to garnish with lime)
Rice (I use jasmine)

Add carrots, green beans, coconut milk, a few basil leaves, and curry to the pressure cooker. Add salt and pepper to taste. Seal and set for six minutes on high.

While the veggies and coconut milk are cooking away in the pressure cooker, make the shrimp.

Melt butter in a skillet over medium to medium high heat. Add shrimp and season with salt and pepper. After about a minute or so add a squirt of sriracha and another of honey. How much is up to you and your taste buds.  Cook until shrimp are pink and opaque, about three minutes total. Transfer shrimp to a plate.

When time is up on the pressure cooker, do a quick release. Add in juice of 1/2 lime to the coconut milk and veggies. Stir in shrimp and heat through. Serve over rice. Garnish with lime wedges and basil leaves. Enjoy!

Traditional Italian Meatballs

Meatballs – easy to make and easy to use. And oh so easy to eat. Pop a few on top of spaghetti or pizza, bake some into a lasagna or cover them in cheese inside a warm submarine roll.

Meatball subs are exactly what my family eats on frenetic nights when we are rushing from after school meetings, to sports practices to church activities and somehow need to sandwich (pun intended) in a quick and tasty meal.

One thing I love about making meatballs is that my boys can help. They get a kick out of rolling the meat mixture into golf ball-sized yumminess. My youngest, Sam, helped me with our latest batch. Meatballs freeze well, too. After one recent Christmas, my freezer was stocked-full for months with the dozens of meatballs left from the 90(!!) prepared by my Mom and Grampy.

So make a double batch and store some for later. When you need a fast meal, warm in the microwave, in the oven or in a pot of your favorite tomato sauce.

This is my family's traditional Italian meatball recipe, with one slight change. My Mom uses 1 cup of breadcrumbs for every 1 pound of meat. Too bready for me, so I use fewer breadcrumbs. Feel free to add your own touches here by using ground turkey or chicken, adding chopped onion, experimenting with different seasonings or swapping out some of the dry herbs for fresh herbs you have on hand.

Meatballs are very forgiving and fun – and that's the point!

Mangia! Mangia!
Andrea

Traditional Italian Meatballs & Meatball Subs

1 pound ground beef
1 pound ground pork
1 pound ground veal (you can replace with beef or pork)
4 eggs
1 1/2 to 3 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil
2 tablespoons garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Place meat in large bowl and make a well in the center. Add all other ingredients into the well and mix thoroughly. I recommend using your hands. The consistency should not be too wet or too dry.

Form large or small meatballs and place in foil pans or pans lined with aluminum foil. This is where the kids can help. If you make the meatballs the size of a golf ball you should get about 36.

Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or longer if your meatballs are larger.

If you plan to serve these meatballs with tomato sauce, let them simmer in the sauce for a bit before eating. This nicely flavors both the sauce and the meatballs.

Meatball Subs

4 submarine or hoagie buns or a large baguette (a softer bread works a little better here)
3 to 4 golf ball-sized meatballs per sandwich
Tomato sauce
Sliced or shredded provolone and/or mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Slice buns lengthwise. Scoop out some of the inner breading to make a pocket for the meatballs.

Place buns on cookie sheet. Put 3 to 4 meatballs and some sauce inside each bun. Top with cheese.

Toast sandwiches in oven until cheese melts. Enjoy with a green salad.