Sweet Ricotta Pie

March 31, 2010 by 59 Comments

It isn’t Easter time without a ricotta pie! I know there are hundreds of different ways to make ricotta pie, but if you like the flavor of cannoli then you’re going to love this. A blend of ricotta, orange zest, candied orange peel, mini chocolate chips and a hint of cinnamon flavors this pie.

You still have plenty of time to make this, you can use your own favorite pie dough recipe for the crust, but if you feel rushed and don’t have time or you’re not a fan of making your own, go ahead and use a good quality store bought crust that’s refrigerated or even frozen, I’ve done it many times myself!

Now for an important note: Make sure you drain your ricotta good! You don’t want it to be wet, make sure you get all the excess moisture out or else it will affect the cooking time and texture. You could drain it overnight in the fridge or a couple of hours before you put it together or just look for a drier ricotta, not one that is soaking in water.

Here’s the filling: 1 1/2 lbs of ricotta, 3/4 cup sugar, 5 large eggs, 1 tablespoon vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, zest of one orange, 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips, semi sweet, and 1/2 cup of diced candied orange peel.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the ricotta with the sugar until very smooth. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and cinnamon. Stir in the candied fruit, zest of one orange and chocolate chips. Pour the filling into the pie shell. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon and swirl it with the tip of a knife.
Bake the pie for 45 minutes, or until ricotta is set and toothpick comes out clean. Let cool and chill.
Make sure you chill it down in the refrigerator before you slice into it to receive the optimum full flavor.

Happy Easter!
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59 Comments Filed Under: Desserts, Pies Tagged: ,

Stuffed French Toast with Fig and Cream Cheese

March 28, 2010 by 22 Comments

Stuffed french toast, what can I say, if you haven’t had it your missing out, so simple to make at home, it takes common french toast and elevates it to a much higher level, worthy of being the star on your brunch or breakfast table, it could feed a crowd, be made ahead of time and kept warm in your oven.

Think of your favorite jam’s or marmalade’s, apricot, orange, peach, raspberry, strawberry, blueberry or plum, or if you prefer any fresh berries will do.

I recently purchased a huge jar of fig paste that was out of this world from a middle eastern store in the city, I couldn’t believe it was only $5.00! Loaded with figs and much thicker than a jam, it worked perfectly, I’m going back for more.

I like to use a good hearty Italian bread or a country loaf, artisan style that you can cut yourself.
Make 1 1/2 inch slices and then with your paring knife make a slit to form a pocket, be careful not to cut all the way through.

For each individual serving I used a mixture of 2 tablespoons of fig paste along with 2 tablespoons of reduced fat cream cheese, so just figure out how many servings you’re going to make and you’ll be able to figure out the amounts. If you’re using fresh berries you might want to add a little powdered sugar in the cream cheese for added sweetness.

Your egg mixture for dipping your french toast will consist of eggs, milk, cinnamon and vanilla. I always sprinkle more cinnamon on top while it’s cooking, the more the better!
Recipe adapted from Everyday Food

Buon Appetito

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What to do with an Over Abundance of Asparagus

March 25, 2010 by 24 Comments
Lately I’ve been buying a ton of asparagus, they’re popping up all over in grocery stores, markets and menus, a sure sign of spring, and over the last couple of weeks I’ve been making them all different ways. Here’s just a few ideas to serve them either as a side or a starter.

Asparagus with Gorgonzola and Hazelnuts

Make a vinaigrette with 3/4 cup of olive oil to 1/4 cup red wine vinegar, 1 shallot minced, 1 teaspoon Dijon, a squeeze of 1/2 lemon, salt and pepper. Whisk until blended. Pour some of it over your roasted asparagus, crumble up some Gorgonzola and sprinkle on top, garnish with toasted chopped hazelnuts.

Note: You’ll likely have extra vinaigrette unless you make a huge amount of asparagus, so bottle it up and save it for salads of all kinds.

Phyllo Wrapped Asparagus

Mix lemon zest and parmesan cheese together with salt and cracked pepper, use this mixture to sprinkle over your raw asparagus.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Snap off the tough ends of the asparagus. Unwrap the phyllo and cut the stack in half lengthwise. Reserve 1 stack for later use. Cover the phyllo with a damp towel to keep it from drying out. Take 1 or 2 sheets of phyllo and brush lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle with the parmesan mixture. Place 2 to 3 asparagus spears on the short end of the sheet. Roll up, jelly-roll style. Place each piece, seam side down, on a baking sheet. Brush with more melted butter and sprinkle with more Parmesan. Repeat until all the asparagus spears are used up. Place baking sheet in oven and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy.
Serve with an aioli, or in this case I used Stacey’s wonderful romesco sauce for dipping.

Roasted Asparagus with Sun-Dried Tomato Gremolata

In a food processor add 6 sun-dried tomatoes marinated in oil, 2 cups of parsley, 1 cup of basil, 1 clove of garlic.

Pulse til desired chunkiness. Sprinkle over your roasted asparagus. Great with cauliflower too!

Creamy Asparagus Soup

This is the perfect soup for springtime , I found this recipe while visiting Deb’s blog last Sunday, she just raved about how good it was and said it was a winner three times over. Fortunately I had everything I needed to make this and whipped it up in no time, it took less than 30 minutes. We loved it, very healthy and low fat, I just used a dash of milk at the end to “cream it up” a bit. Oh, and it has secret ingredients that make it extra special. Go check out the recipe here.
Buon Appetito!
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24 Comments Filed Under: Appetizers, Side Dishes, Soups and Stews Tagged: , ,