What’s in a name? Lemon Curd may not sound very delicious, but let me tell you. It is. It is it is it is! I made this curd in preparation for this weekends baking adventure! And It is lick-the-bowl good.

I have put off baking all this week because of my big project tomorrow and Saturday. And also because of my trip to Vegas coming up. One delicious million calorie treat a week will do. And, because it just happens to be my Birthday on Saturday! And of course, like any other baker I will be making my own cake, with the help of a friend. When you’re the one who likes to bake you usually find yourself baking for, well yourself, most of the time. And I think I consider myself a pretty picky baker. I like to do things just so, and my own way. I work tomorrow and half a day Saturday so I had to begin the baking adventure tonight. The cake will be a surprise, but this is just a sneak peek!

Lemon Curd is delicious in a sponge roll cake, angel foodcake or added to a cheesecake.

Lemon Curd

Recipe from Joy Of Cooking 75 Anniversary Edition

Ingredients:

• 3 large eggs
• 1/3 cup sugar
• Grated zest of 1 (one) lemon
• 1/2 cup fresh strained lemon juice
• 6 tablespoons butter cut into small pieces (3/4 stick)
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Directions:

1. Whisk together eggs, sugar and lemon zest in medium saucepan until light in colour.
2. Add lemon juice and butter
3. Cook, whisking over medium heat until the butter is melted. Then whisk constantly until the mixture is thickened and simmers gently for a few seconds.
4. Place a medium mesh-sieve over a bowl and scrape the filling using a spatula into it. Strain the filling into the bowl.
5. Stir in vanilla. Let cool, cover and refrigerate to thicken.

This keeps refrigerated for about 1 week.

I have a confession to make, I’m addicted to Seinfeld. I’m sure I’ve mentioned it before, my dog Lainey is named after Elaine, and I pretty much related anything and everything to the show every day. So when I began making this bundt cake for dinner at my boyfriends house I couldn’t help but remember the episode about serving dessert after dinner.

GEORGE: Thank God that’s over.
ESTELLE: The mother seems to hit the sauce pretty hard. I didn’t like that.
FRANK: And who doesn’t serve cake after a meal? What kind of people? Would it kill them to put out a pound cake? Something!
GEORGE: So, they didn’t give you a piece of cake? Big deal.
ESTELLE: It is a big deal. You’re supposed to serve cake after a meal. I’m sorry. It’s impolite.
FRANK: Not impolite…it’s stupid, that’s what it is. You gotta be stupid to do something like that!
ESTELLE: Your father’s absolutely right. We’re sitting there like idiots drinking coffee without a piece of cake!

I’m going to have to side with Frank and Estelle, especially when I’m a guest at someone’s house. I always love to bring something sweet for after dinner. So today I was thinking of making another strawberry buttermilk cake but I had seen rhubarb at the store last week and had really wanted to use it. I don’t think I’ve ever used it in baking before – I think I found it tricky or hard to use it. So I had stayed away. Not that I didn’t like it, I definitely love strawberry rhubarb pie. So When I saw it I knew I wanted to bake something with it soon. And today when I decided I wanted to bake something I knew it was going to involve rhubarb.

*Also! I just recieved an e-mail from POM Wonderful asking if I would like to try their products! I’m super excited to recieve a case of their juice and create a recipe with it! Keep following to see what happens =)

I found this recipe from Good Things Created.

(more…)

I had this craving for poppy seeds. Can you even really have a craving for poppy seeds?? I don’t think it’s something someone usually craves, seeing as how it doesn’t really have a taste to it unless it’s a part of something else of course. At first I had thought about making a lemon poppy seed bundt cake, but seeing as how I’ve started working at the restaurant this week I now know that working in a restaurant = no breaks. Literally. I worked for 7 hours on my feet, in high heels, and a skirt for 7 hours straight without sitting, eating or checking my cell phone. It was hard. Very hard. Considering I’m used to working in an office from 9-5 with a nice cushy hour long lunch break, for which I usually would have gone home to eat and let the dog out. But, this job is in a couple towns over and through a tunnel so I can’t exactly come home for a bite to eat, and I couldn’t even if I wanted to.

I had never really thought about it before but of course waitresses and servers don’t have a scheduled lunch break because you constantly have tables to wait on, and no one can cover your section because they have their own section to work. Most of the girls show up to work early to order something to eat, or stick around after their shift to chow down. I actually feel bad because I haven’t actually eaten anything from the restaurant before, except a few cocktails. But that being said, I realized that I needed to sneak in a snack like a granola bar that I could take a 5 minute break to quickly eat it. Of course, I wouldn’t think of going out to buy a snack, I would make one. Also, a certain somebody has just gotten home this morning from a trip to Vegas for his friends stag and is quite tired. I’m sure he could use a little snack later and maybe bring a couple to work tomorrow. Currently, he is sleeping. Maybe the aroma of lemon poppy seed muffins could wake him from his spell. (more…)

This Easter I was lucky enough to go to two easter dinners. And, both were different and unique. On Sunday I feasted on a traditional Italian dinner of Lasagna, Lamb, Smelt, Salad, Fried Artichoke hearts, Shrimp, Fennel etc. and delicious Italian desserts such as Torta Di Riso and Zuppa Inglese. On Saturday, I went to my boyfriends parents house for a turkey dinner! I love love love turkey dinners. It felt like christmas all over again, and the stormy weather made it feel even more like winter than spring! Even so, I felt like I wanted to make a truly spring-like dessert, and I had decided a week or so ago that it would be something with lemons. I think a lemon dessert is the epitome of spring, its tangy and sweet and usually on top of a delicious crust, be it graham or pastry.

This crust however, is a different story. I had decided on a recipe early on, thinking I would try something new, as I had made the Tarte Au Citron by Dorie before, I thought I would give something else a go. The ‘You Could Be in Paris’ Lemon Tart seemed promising, and looked even better. I was all ready to go, with a little distraction helper in the kitchen, and readied all the ingredients like a pro. I thought “this tart is going to be perfect!” I was right, ish.

You see, I had read all the ingredients and set them out on the counter, I began first with the crust, of course, and continued on my way. As I was making the crust I thought, how simple! I should tell you, I have never been a crust maker, not pies or tarts. For some reason It always turns out hard, even when I try to work it as little as possible. Now, this tart shell was appealing to me because I had never used melted butter, instead of cold butter to make the pastry. This intrigued me because I thought how could you possibly over work it. Well, you see I’m sure you can’t, but, you can however add about a cup too much of sugar, thus leaving you with a hardened tart shell.

Now I’m usually pretty careful when it comes to ingredients, but to no fault but my own, I didn’t realize all the ingredients were lumped into one, no differentiating between crust and filling. So, I measured out all my sugar and plopped it into the crust. When really, there was only supposed to be a 1/4 cup in the crust, and reserved the 1 cup for the filling. I did think to myself as I baked it “my, thats a shiny crust!” Oh well. It was delicious all the same, the filling was just tangy enough and smooth and creamy. I would recommend it if you love lemon, as I do, and you can even pretend you were in Paris.

I also had a smaller tart pan, so I moulded the rest of the dough into my tiny muffin tin and made mini ones. They were an excellent pre-dinner appy.

‘You Could Be In Paris’ Lemon Tart

from Luscious Lemon Desserts via Not so humble pie
serves 10

For The Crust:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 1 tbs. lemon zest

For the Filling:

• 2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
• 1  cup granulated sugar
• 6 large eggs
• 1 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• Confectioners’ sugar for dusting

Preheat your oven to 350°F and position a rack in the lower third of the oven.

Crust:

1. Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over medium low heat. Stir in one tablespoon of the lemon zest and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Combine the flour and sugar in a bowl or your food processor. Pour the butter into the bowl in a fine stream, mixing with a fork until well blended and it holds together when pinched. If using a food processor, blend the ingredients and then pour the butter into the feed tube and blend for roughly a minute.
2. Empty the mixture into an 11″ tart pan with a removable bottom and press it with your fingertips to evenly line the sides and bottom.
3. Bake the crust for 20 minutes, or until it is a light golden brown. Allow the crust to cool on a wire rack while making the filling.

Filling:

1. Process the remaining one cup of sugar with the remaining one tablespoon of lemon zest in your food processor for about 2-3 minutes, until the zest is finely ground.
2. Pour the sugar into a bowl and add the eggs, lemon juice and whisk until smooth.
3. Beat the 1/2 cup of heavy cream to soft peaks and then whisk the cream into the sugar/egg mixture until just blended. Pour this mixture into your still warm crust and bake for 20-30 minutes, until the filling is just set in the center.
4. Allow the tart to cool completely.
5. Just before serving, dust generously with powdered sugar, cut into wedges and enjoy.

Enter distraction.

I dunno about you, but whenever I bake something I have this same order I do things. First, get out all the ingredients. Second, read the directions, and get all the ingredients I forgot in previous step, & prepare the recipe. Then, while the recipe is chilling or baking I always go and write my blog post. I find this is the best time to do it, while you can smell the delicious thing you are baking in the oven! And when they take up to 30 or 40 minutes to bake you have some time on your hands. Today I had a long time between prep and chilling and baking time to write this post.

I had been craving a Lemon tart for some reason, and It’s probably because we’re in the middle of summer and a lemon tart just seems so refreshing and summery to me! I remember when my mom and I would go visit my grandma we would always take her out to lunch, usually chinese food, and afterwards we would get something sweet for dessert. Now my grandma was a diabetic so she really couldn’t, or shouldn’t, have been eating too many sweets. But whenever my mom (her favorite of 6 children as my mom always joked) visited her, she would spoil her and get her a little lemon tart from the IGA (grocery store.) She loved lemon tarts! When she was younger my grandma always made preserves and always canned things. She made the best canned fruits and my mom said she loved her bread pudding (something on my list of To-Do’s!) So in memory of my Grandma today I baked a Lemon tart. I’m sure she would have loved a slice! (more…)

For Easter I wanted a light, lemon-y cake. And i found this recipe at Kraft for Luscious Lemon Poke Cake. Let me tell you, it was delicious! So moist and everyone wanted seconds. I used this Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting instead of the one in the recipe. It turned out great!

Recipe:

Lemon Poke Cake Recipe from Kraft

Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting