Lemon Bundt Cake

One of my good friends had a birthday coming up, and being the amazing friend I am, I asked him what kind of birthday cake he wanted. He said he always liked lemon cake so I turned to my trusty cookbook to get a recipe. I was shocked to discover that I did not have a go to recipe for lemon cake! I cook with lemon all the time but it's always in lemon bars or cookies. I had to remedy the situation immediately.

I couldn't find a recipe for a lemon sheet cake so I settled for a Bundt cake. I figured it would be festive enough with candles on it. This recipe is undoubtedly a winner! It's lemony, moist, and perfect! The recipe called for a lemon buttercream as frosting but I thought that might be too much so I just did a simple glaze.

Unfortunately the cake got eaten so quickly I didn't get any pictures of a sliced piece. You can use your imagination. It was yellow inside. This is an awesome go to lemon cake that should definitely be part of your repertoire.

Lemon Bundt Cake
 adapted from Kitchen Magpie

•  ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1½ cups of white granulated sugar
• 1 package of instant lemon pudding mix
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon zest 
• 4 eggs
• 1¼ cup whole milk
• ⅓ cup canola oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tbsp cornstarch
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 Tblsp lemon juice
• zest from half a lemon

 Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour a standard Bundt pan.(the 12 cup capacity). In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt then set aside. Cream together the butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.Add in the lemon pie filling mix and combine thoroughly. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, making sure each is thoroughly incorporated. Mix in the lemon zest. Combine the milk, oil and vanilla extract in a large measuring cup or bowl. Starting with the dry ingredients, alternate pouring a third of the wet and dry ingredients into the bowl, incorporating thoroughly after each addition. You will end on the wet ingredients. Mix on medium speed for 2 minutes after the last addition. Pour the cake batter into the prepared Bundt pan and bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a tester
inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Invert the cake onto a baking rack to cool.

Mix the icing ingredients together to the desired consistency. I wanted it thicker so it didn't run down the sides as much so I added more sugar. Drizzle the icing on cake as desired.

Key Lime Pie Ice Cream

I have a passion for ice cream. A passion that I believe started with my grandma. She always had some delicious ice cream in the freezer and we would talk over a mugful. She also taught me how to make key lime pie so I like to think she would have liked this particular combination.

Everyone who did try this ice cream loved it! And I was amazed at how much this tastes like key lime pie! It's uncanny! This creamy and tart combination is perfectly refreshing on a summer day and visions of the beach will dance in your head. Plus, it was stupid easy to make. Enjoy!

Key Lime Pie Ice CreamAdapted from Cooking Light

• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/2 cup + 2 Tblsp key lime juice (I used Nellie and Joe's brand)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• dash of salt
• 1 14-oz sweetened condensed milk
• 2 Tblsp butter
• 1 cup graham cracker crumbs

Melt the butter and mix with the graham cracker crumbs. Mix together and press firmly onto a pan. It doesn't have to be perfect, you're going to be breaking it into pieces anyway. Bake at 350 until the edges are golden, about 10 minutes. Let cool completely. Break into small pieces.

Mix the rest of the ingredients together and mix well. Pour into ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions.Scoop half into container and sprinkle half the graham cracker pieces over the ice cream. Scoop the rest of the ice cream on top and sprinkle the rest of the graham cracker pieces on top. Freeze several hours until firm.

Funfetti Cheesecake

For some reason I have a recent obsession with Funfetti. I was never really a fan until just a few months ago. It's really pretty to see little specks of colors in desserts and for some reason the taste is appealing to me even though cake batter flavor has never been my thing. Tastes change I guess, although tastes are supposed to get more sophisticated with age. I seem to be regressing.

Cheesecake is another one of those things. I do love cheesecake but only like twice a year. It never really crosses my mind when I think about dessert but every time I do have it I remember how good it is. I've only made cheesecake once before a couple years ago so this was a bit of an experiment. It turned out pretty well! The Funfetti flavor definitely didn't come through as much as I was hoping so I would change how much I add next time.

The original recipe made a 9x13 pan of these, which is way too much for me to have around. So I halved the recipe to put in an 8x8 pan, but halving it still overfilled the pan a little and it got overcooked on the edges before the middle was set. The recipe also called for the crust to be made of golden Oreos, but I thought that might be way too sweet so I subbed a traditional graham cracker crust and I liked it. This certainly wasn't a perfect pan of cheesecake but everyone who tried it liked it. Plus it is pretty cute.

Funfetti Cheesecake 

• 1 sleeve graham crackers, crushed to crumbs
• 3 Tblsp butter, melted
• 2 tsp sugar

Mix together and press into bottom of 9x9 pan or 9 inch cake pan. Bake at 350 for 7 minutes.

• 2 8-oz squares cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup dry Funfetti cake mix
•  2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 Tblsp colored sprinkles

Cream the cream cheese, sour cream, and sugar together until smooth. Mix the eggs in one at a time. Add the rest of the ingredients and pour into the graham cracker crust. Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes or until the middle is set. Cool completely and refrigerate.  

Orecchiette with Pesto and Sausage

Do you like pesto? I never really liked it or at least I thought I didn't like it. I'm not sure where the turning point was, but now I am ALL ABOUT the pesto. Let's look at the ingredients- basil? Hell yea, delicious leaves. Parmesan? Delicious cheese, get in my belly. Olive oil? It's good for you! Garlic? Also good for you AND will keep the vampires away! Pine nuts? Hold up. I am really not a fan of pine nuts but they serve some purpose in pesto and I can't pick the flavor out really so they're ok in this situation.

I've made this with store-bought and home-made pesto and it's good both ways! I was just excited to use my mini food processor to make pesto. It's a super easy meal that comes together in less than 30 minutes. Just pasta, some chopped onions, sausage, peas and pesto! Orecchiette is good in this dish but you could make it with whatever you have on hand. Farfalle and rotini would be perfect too.

Orecchiette with Pesto and Sausage

• 1/2 lb small pasta (orecchiette, rotini, farfalle, penne)
• 1/3 cup pesto (store bought or home made)
• 1/2 lb sausage of choice (I use sweet Italian)
• 1 1/2 cups frozen peas
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• Parmesan and pine nuts for garnish if desired

Start water boiling for pasta. Cook according to directions. Add the frozen peas into the boiling pasta when the pasta is 3 minutes away from being done. Drain.

Meanwhile, saute the onions in a Tblsp of olive oil. When they are translucent add the sausage to the pan. Cook until no longer pink, drain the fat off.Add the pasta and peas into the pan and toss with the pesto to combine. Serve!

Home made Pesto

• 3 large handfuls basil leaves
• 1/2 clove garlic (you can add more I just really don't like the taste of raw garlic)
• 3 Tblsp grated parmesan 
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/3 cup toasted pine nuts
• Enough olive oil to bind it all together 
• Spinach leaves (optional)

Put all ingredients in a food processor or blender and drizzle olive oil in until it is the consistency you want. Don't let it get too runny.  I add some spinach leaves for extra nutrition, it doesn't really add any taste.

Chicken Picatta Pasta

It doesn't look like much but this is one of my favorite dishes. Chicken picatta is usually a breaded chicken breast, pan fried in a lovely lemon-wine sauce with capers. I changed it to bite sized pieces of chicken in the sauce mixed with pasta. Capers can be a bit divisive. I can't get enough of them but others pick them out of the dish. A very important step is to drain and rinse the capers before adding them to the sauce. Not rinsing them makes a surprisingly big difference.

This is a good weeknight meal and it makes good leftovers! I usually make extra. Or I accidentally make leftovers because I am still incapable of cooking for just 2 people. It makes it a lot easier if you do all your chopping before you get started. I chop a clove of garlic, a shallot, some parsley, and halve a couple of lemons. Then the chicken gets chopped. Usually I will chop it into bite-sized pieces but I was feeling especially lazy that day and I just butterflied the breasts so they were thin and flat.

If you leave the chicken out this pasta dish could stand alone as a vegetarian meal or a nice side-dish. 

Chicken Picatta Pasta

• 2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, chopped into bite-sized pieces or butterflied
• salt and pepper
• flour
• 1/2 lb pasta (tube shaped is best)
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 jar capers, drained and rinsed
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 Tblsp chopped fresh parsley 

Salt and pepper the chicken, then coat lightly with flour. Cook in olive oil until golden brown and cooked through. Chop into pieces and set aside. Then in the same pan put a little more oil, the garlic and shallots and saute for a few minutes. Once they are softened, add a couple tablespoons of flour and let it cook for a few minutes. Deglaze the pan with some white wine. Let it reduce and add some chicken stock. Let it come to a boil and add the chicken pieces back in to heat through. Add in about 1/3 cup of lemon juice and the rinsed capers. I let it meld together for another couple of minutes and add in the cooked pasta. If it's too dry you can add more chicken stock or some of the pasta water. Finish the dish with some chopped fresh parsley. Bon appetit!

Strawberry Lemonade Sorbet

It's summertime!!!!! I can't even tell you how much I love summer. The afternoon thunder storms, how it stays light so late, going to the beach and pool, and even the heat and humidity. I love it all. That being said, it does get awfully hot sometimes. This sorbet is the perfect solution!

I make sorbet fairly often in my ice cream maker but if you don't have an ice cream maker you can still enjoy home made sorbet; it's just a little more labor intensive.

This sorbet is amazing. Fresh strawberries mixed with just the right amount of lemon juice creates an icy, fruity delicious concoction to cool you down. I plan to blend some of this sorbet with some rum or vodka because it will be DELICIOUS, I just know it. I can't wait.

Strawberry Lemonade Sorbet

• about 12 strawberries, hulled and halved
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 1 cup lemon juice
• 5 basil or mint leaves (optional)
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 Tblsp vodka (optional) 

Pour the water and sugar into a saucepan and heat up just until the sugar dissolves. Let cool completely. When cool pour the sugar water into a blender and add the rest of the ingredients  and blend until smooth. (The vodka helps with texture, it keeps it from freezing hard as a rock. If you don't use just let it sit on the counter for a minute before scooping). Pour into an ice cream maker and let freeze. Spoon into a container and place in the freezer for a few more hours before serving.

If you don't have an ice cream machine you can pour the mixture into a glass dish and place in the freezer. Every hour scrape the ice crystals off the top and mix. Soon you will have a slushy consistency that you can transfer into a container and freeze until solid.

Easy Chicken Enchiladas

Sorry for being MIA lately. I've been making new recipes but everything has been just mediocre and didn't deserve to be put up on the blog.

But these enchiladas, my friends, are blog material. They're easy, especially if you make them with leftover chicken like I did. This is the second time I made them, and Tyler wanted me to be very clear about how good these are. And they're fairly healthy to boot, except for the ridiculous amounts of cheese. I usually count cheese as its own food group so this was nothing abnormal for me.

The enchiladas start with some chopped onion, sauteed until translucent, then tomato sauce, spices, and chicken broth, cooked until it thickened. Then I put a few handfuls of spinach into the mixture to wilt down. Chopped rotisserie chicken and a can of black beans were also added and warmed in the sauce. I spooned a little bit of the chicken mixture into the tortillas with a little sprinkle of cheese. They went into a pan, then covered with reserved sauce and more cheese!

It went into the oven for about 15 minutes to warm through. You can serve it with whatever toppings you like, such as guacamole, sour cream, salsa, etc. I love it with guacamole but I forgot to buy some. Try to do better than me.

Easy Chicken Enchiladas

• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1 cup chicken stock
• 1 Tblsp flour
• 1 1/2 Tblsp chili powder
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 3/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
• Several handfulls spinach leaves
• 3 cups chopped cooked chicken
• 1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• flour tortillas (I used fajita sized)
• 1 pkg Mexican cheese blend

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Saute the onion in a little olive oil until translucent. Add the flour and let it cook for a minute. Add the chicken broth, tomato sauce, chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, and salt and let it come to a boil. Take 1 1/2 cups out of the pan and set aside. Add the spinach to the pan and let it wilt. Add the chicken and beans and let it warm through. Spoon into tortillas, sprinkle some cheese in each one and place seam-side down in a greased pan. Pour the reserved sauce over the top and sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top. Place in the oven for about 15 minutes, until the cheese is bubbling. Serve with toppings of your choice.