Zest |

Lemon Tart with Raspberry Shortbread Crust

Posted on May 10, 2013 by Kaitlin

Almost every citrusy post I have on my blog is dedicated to my mom. She is obsessed with orange, lemon, bergamot, etc. So in honor of Mother’s Day, here’s another one! As a Walkers Official Blogger Ambassador, Walkers Shortbread sent me an awesome assortment of treats my way to make a spring/Mother’s Day themed post. Walkers Rapsberry Thins was in the mix, my mom also loves raspberries, so I decided to use the rapsberry thins to make a shortbread crust for a lemon tart. To make it even more citrusy, I topped the tart with candied orange peel. I also have a 20% off coupon code for all readers! When ordering from www.walkersus.com, enter #ICCTSPRING and you will receive 20% off full priced items. The code is active until May 27th so be sure to use it before then! Ingredients: Candied Orange Peel: 2 oranges Water 1/2 cup sugar Crust: 1/2 cup finely ground Walkers raspberry shortbread thins cookies (about 6 cookies) 1/4 cup granulated sugar 1/2 cup flour 1/2 cup salted butter (cold cut into small chunks) Lemon filling: 3 meyer lemons 1 1/2 cups sugar 1/4 pound unsalted butter, room temperature 4 egg yolks 1/2 cup meyer lemon juice … Continue reading →

Mediterranean Stuffed Mini Peppers

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Kaitlin

I am less than one month away from attending Eat Write Retreat in Philadelphia and am getting so excited for it! Not only is the lineup awesome, but I get to meet a ton of other bloggers, what could be better? As we get closer to the big weekend, the attendees were sent a secret ingredient and were asked to try to incorporate into an appetizer recipe. I received California raisins, which people tend to think of more for sweet foods, but play off savory dishes oh so well. It goes without saying that I haven’t been able to get California Raisins’ classic commercial out of my head since I received them! OXO generously also sent us a few spiffy tools to help create our recipe; I can never have enough of their products! Raisins are a great addition to a meal to add some sweetness without any added sugar. The dried fruit is loaded with antioxidants and fiber while being fat free and cholesterol free. Did you know that one serving of raisins (just 1/4 cup) has more potassium than a banana? I have a friend that absolutely raves about Mediterranean Stuffed Peppers that her grandmother used to make for her, with rice, … Continue reading →

Steak Tacos with Lime Mayo

Posted on April 27, 2013 by Kaitlin

I had corn tortillas left over from making the Fish Tacos with Tomatillo Sauce. I needed another taco recipe that was completely different flavor-wise than the fish tacos, so I went for Cooking Light’s Steak Tacos with Lime Mayo in the May issue. (Note: the May issue has a ton of taco recipes, even a dessert one!) Ingredients: 20 baby sweet peppers Cooking spray 1 teaspoon ground chipotle chile pepper 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1 (1-pound) flank steak, trimmed 3 tablespoons canola mayonnaise the zest and juice of 1 lime 2 garlic cloves, mined 8 (6-inch) corn tortillas 1/2 cup refrigerated fresh salsa 2 ounces queso fresco, crumbled (about 1/2 cup)

Radish and Arugula Crostini with Brie

Posted on March 23, 2013 by Kaitlin

Supposedly Spring started this past Wednesday. And yet, meteorologists in the Philadelphia area do not expect the temperature to go above 50 degrees for the foreseeable future. AND it’s supposed to snow on Sunday/Monday. What the heck?! Well, I’m sick of waiting for spring to arrive so I’ve decided to make it spring in my kitchen. Cooking Light seems to agree with me, and the April issue has a ton of recipes using the best of spring’s produce. This Radish and Arugula Crostini recipe immediately caught my eye; not only is it beautiful, but the ingredients give me hope that warmer weather is on it’s way. This recipe is also really simple. I made this as a quick appetizer to bring to a friends house and was able to make the entire recipe in 20 minutes! Ingredients: 16 (1/2-inch-thick) slices diagonally cut French bread baguette (6 ounces) Cooking spray 1 1/2 cups sliced radishes 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, plus the zest of 1 lemon 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/8 teaspoon salt 4 ounces Brie cheese (about 1/2 cup) 1 cup baby arugula leaves

Strawberry Shortcake Cupcakes

Posted on February 27, 2013 by Kaitlin

I’m so ready for spring. I’m sick of the cold and wind, although we didn’t have any snow this year. So I am going to force spring upon you in the hope of it pushing the warmer months up a little bit. When I think of spring, I always think of Strawberries. And what better way to show off strawberries than in Strawberry Shortcake? I decided to make them in cupcake form because, well, I like cupcakes. I used a Martha Stewart recipe for angel food cake to make the cupcake, filled the inside of the cupcake with a strawberry-sugar mixture, and topped it off with a strawberry whipped cream icing. These are pretty delicious if I do say so myself! Ingredients: Angel Food Cake Cupcakes: 1 cup cake flour (spooned and leveled) 1/4 teaspoon salt 12 large egg whites, room temperature 4 teaspoons lemon juice and zest from 1 lemon, divided 1 1/4 cups sugar 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract Strawberry filling: 3/4 container of strawberries, hulled and chopped 2 tablespoons sugar Strawberry whipped cream: 1 8-oz container cream cheese 3/4 cup white sugar 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract lemon zest from lemon used in angel food cake 2 … Continue reading →

Linguine with Spinach-Herb Pesto

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Kaitlin

I love a fresh pesto, it brightens up any dish and just screams spring. I made Fettuccine with Seared Tomatoes, Spinach, and Burrata earlier this week and had some spinach left over. Cooking Light’s latest issue had a recipe for Linguine with Spinach-Herb Pesto which uses spinach, basil, oregano, and time to make a creamy pesto sauce. How great does that sound?? Ingredients: 4 ounces fresh baby spinach 1/4 cup slivered blanched almonds 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves 2 teaspoons chopped fresh oregano 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme 1/4 teaspoon black pepper 1 large garlic clove, chopped 2 tablespoons organic vegetable broth 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (~1/2 a lemon), plus zest from 1/2 a lemon 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 ounce Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated and divided (about 1/4 cup) 8 ounces uncooked linguine

Fish Tacos with Lime-Cilantro Crema

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Kaitlin

It’s funny how you can go years, even decades, thinking that you don’t like a certain food only to find you can’t get enough of it when you’re older. Fish tacos is one of those foods for me. They pack a ton of flavor but are a healthier option than other proteins (as long as the fish isn’t fried, that is). I also love how quickly you can cook them up, perfect for a weeknight dinner! Cooking Light always has the best taco recipes so I naturally went in search of a fish taco recipe there. I found this recipe in the myrecipes.com new cookbook: Myrecipes’ America’s Favorite Food Cookbook, which you can win by entering below! Ingredients Crema: 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro 3 tablespoons fat-free mayonnaise 3 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream 1 teaspoon grated lime rind (I just used the zest of one lime) 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lime juice (I used the juice of one lime) 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 garlic clove, minced Tacos: 1 teaspoon ground cumin 1 teaspoon ground coriander 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika 1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper 1/8 teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder 1 1/2 … Continue reading →

Duck Breasts with Cider-Farro Risotto

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Kaitlin

So, I found myself in the odd position of craving farro. Yes, farro. So after some searching, I came across a Cooking Light recipe that sounded fantastic. The recipe not only has farro, but it also uses apple cider (how autumnal!) AND it’s a risotto! I’ve never thought of using farro in a risotto but, better late than never. Ingredients: Risotto: 1 cup farro 1.5 cups fat free, less sodium chicken broth 1.5 cups apple cider 1 tablespoon butter 1 cup chopped fennel bulb (1 small fennel bulb should cover you) 3/4 cup dry white wine 1/2 cup water (if needed) grated lemon rind from one lemon 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon Duck: 4 6-ounce boneless duck breast halves, skinned 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 2 garlic cloves, minced 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

Slow Cooker Cranberry Sauce

Posted on November 18, 2012 by Kaitlin

It isn’t Thanksgiving without cranberry sauce. We’ve always had the canned cranberry sauce at my Thankgivings growing up; I honestly believed the ridges from the can were there so I knew where to cut. I am all for the canned version, but I thought I’d attempt to make a homemade version in my slow cooker. I based it slightly off of Cooking Light’s Classic Cranberry Sauce but changed up a few ingredients and the method of cooking. Ingredients: 1 12 ounce package of cranberries 1 cup brown sugar 1/4 cup port wine 1/2 cup orange juice (or 3 oranges, squeezed) 1 tablespoon zest (also about 3 oranges) 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger a dash (1/8 tsp or smaller) allspice

Scarborough Fair Cornish Game Hens with Risotto

Posted on September 27, 2012 by Kaitlin

Do you remember the first recipe you learned how to make? One that was probably so simple, but made you so proud when you had completed the dish? Mine (besides grilled cheese) was a chicken recipe my mom referred to as “Chicken a la Simon and Garfunkel” based on the lyrics in their song Scarborough Fair: Are you goin’ to Scarborough Fair? Parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme. Remember me to one who lives there, she once was a true love of mine. I knew the song so I was able to help make dinner by seasoning the chicken and keeping my mom company while humming the tune to the song (which I have to assume was more of a distraction than a help.. I’m a truly awful singer and I’m sure that translates into a truly awful hummer as well). College Inn recently contacted me about a contest they are having and asked if I’d like to try my hand at reinventing a family recipe. The contest, run through Facebook, simply asks you to submit a family favorite that uses College Inn Broth. The Facebook contest runs until October 28th with a grand prize of… wait for it… $5,000 and … Continue reading →