RECIPE: LEMON RICOTTA POUND CAKE

Always being on the road or in someone else's kitchen, you would think I'd make sure I had everything I needed BEFORE I started cooking. I planned to make my Mom's pound cake recipe and was already in the middle of creaming the butter when I discovered the cream cheese was waaay past the expiration date. I did however, have some perfectly good ricotta cheese in the fridge so I ended up with this Lemon Ricotta Pound Cake. So moist yet a bit fluffy and very, very good. This will never replace my Mom's pound cake but I gotta tell you, it is the perfect shower, party, or afternoon tea cake. It is a lot better than that Lemon Pound Cake you get at Starbucks! Put it on your list to try.

A baking mistake sometimes results in something really good. Try this Lemon Ricotta Pound Cake recipe. Moist yet fluffy. Really easy. Really good.

LEMON RICOTTA POUND CAKE

Cook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes or until a wooden skewer comes out clean

INGREDIENTS

3 sticks butter, room temperature

1 1/2 cups whole milk ricotta cheese, room temperature

3 cups granulated sugar

2 teaspoons lemon zest

juice of one lemon (about 1/4 cup)

4 whole eggs, room temperature

2 egg whites, room temperature

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 tsp lemon extract

1/8 tsp salt

LEMON GLAZE

Juice of 1 lemon

1 1/2 cups Confectioners' sugar (plus more if desired)

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Prep two 9 x 5 loaf pans; grease and flour or spray all sides with Baker's Joy.

In the bowl of your mixer, beat the butter at medium speed until creamy. Add the ricotta and beat until combined. Then add the sugar, a little at a time. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Next, add the lemon zest and the eggs, one at a time, beating until they are combined. Add the egg whites and beat until they are just incorporated. Turn the speed on the mixer down. Add the lemon juice. Combine the salt and the flour; adding a little at a time to the mixer until it is blended. Add the vanilla and lemon extracts.

Pour into the prepared pans. Place on a baking sheet and place on center rack of your oven. Bake for 1 hour 20 to 1 hour 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan and then turn out onto a wire cooling rack to allow it to cool until just slightly warm before icing.

For the glaze, combine the lemon juice and Confectioners' sugar and whisk; the glaze should be thick and creamy and not too stiff. You should be able to pour it. Add more lemon juice or sugar as necessary to achieve the pourable consistency.

Using a toothpick, poke a few holes into the top of the cake. Pour onto the top of the cake and spread. Allow to cool. Add a second layer if you want a thick glaze.

Serve with berries, whipped cream or any of your favorites.

WARM AND WONDERFUL: INDIVIDUAL CHOCOLATE SOUFFLÉS ARE EASY TO MASTER

Soufflés always intimidate, but they are not difficult. These individual chocolate soufflés are fluffy, delightful bites of chocolate heaven. And so easy! They will be a favorite... serve them warm out of the oven with just a drizzle of heavy cream... or ice cream, or whiskey sauce, or whatever you have around.

INDIVIDUAL CHOCOLATE SOUFFLÉS

Prep Time: 20 minutes    Cook Time: 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon cocoa

1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus 2 tablespoons for the ramekins

5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped finely

3 large egg yolks, room temperature

6 large egg whites, room temperature

1/16 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Butter four oven-proof ramekins. Combine the cocoa and 2 tablespoons sugar. Dust the ramekins with the cocoa and sugar mixture. Set aside.

Carefully melt the chocolate in a heat-proof glass bowl over simmering water. Chocolate burns quickly so don't leave it unattended. Stir until just melted then remove the chocolate from the heat. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, gently whisking them together with the chocolate. Set aside.  

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites with salt on medium speed until they are shiny and form soft peaks. Then turn the mixer on high and add the sugar, a little at a time until the egg whites will hold stiff shiny peaks.

Next, begin to incorporate the egg whites into the chocolate. This is an important step. You do not want to deflate the egg whites, but you do need to make sure there are no visible whites peeking through. Use a large spoon, spatula, or whisk; work gently. Add about a cup of the egg whites to the chocolate to smooth out the chocolate a bit. Then add the rest, 1/3 at a time, spooning up and over, very gently, to incorporate. It should be very light and fluffy, but make sure you have no threads of white peeking through the chocolate.

Spoon into the prepared ramekins- leaving about 1/2 inch at the top. Bake for 15 minutes or you can bake up to 18 minutes to make them more cake-like.

You can let these sit for up to 30 minutes before baking or you can bake them immediately. Makes 4.

RECIPE: CHEESY BACON, SPINACH AND ARTICHOKE BITES

For some reason, mini quiches are not cool anymore. There was a time when there wasn't a party menu to be found without these little wonders: Crust filled with cheesy goodness... what's not to love? But for some reason, quiche has become un-hip. To paraphrase Will Shakespeare, a quiche by any other name will still taste as good. These cheesy spinach and bacon bites are easy to make and wayyyy to good to be frowned upon because they are quiche.. I like my own crust recipe but you can buy mini tart or Phyllo shells and fill them if you prefer or are short on time.

CHEESY BACON, SPINACH AND ARTICHOKE BITES (AKA MINI QUICHE)

INGREDIENTS

For the crust:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon granulated sugar

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

1 stick unsalted butter, very cold, diced

3-4 tablespoons ice water

For the filling:

6 bacon slices, chopped

1 shallot, minced

5 cups baby spinach

1 cup canned artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

3 eggs

1 1/2 cups milk

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/2 cup shredded Gruyère cheese

1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:

For the pastry shells: In your food processor, add the dry ingredients and pulse to blend. Add the butter, a few pieces at a time and pulse quickly to incorporate. Once all the butter has been added (and looks kind of like uncooked grits) turn the food processor on ‘run”.  

Add the ice water quickly, one tablespoon at a time just until the dough comes together in a ball. Stop immediately. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured piece of plastic wrap. Form into a disc and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.  

Roll the dough about 1/8” thick. Use a mini biscuit cutter (about 2 ¾” size) and cut 24 rounds. Or you can portion into 24 balls. Press them into tiny non-stick muffin tins and chill.  Also, I chill one same size muffin tin and then flour it lightly and press it into the shells to help make them smooth and uniform. Chill the dough in the tins for at least 30 minutes.  

For the filling: Grate the cheese. Set aside.

Cook the bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove to drain on paper towels. Pour all but 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat from the pan. Add the shallots and cook just until softened but not browned, about 1 minute. Add the spinach and the artichokes. Cook until the spinach is wilted; 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat. Allow to cool slightly.

In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, salt, pepper and grate in the nutmeg. Add the cooled spinach mixture to the bowl and stir just to combine.

When you are ready to bake the quiches, preheat your oven to 375°F. Divide the bacon and the Gruyere cheese evenly between the pastry shells. Pour in the spinach mixture, filling each cup ¾ full. Top each with the Parmesan cheese. Bake until the filling is set and the crust is golden, approximately 25-30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and remove immediately from the pan. Serve warm.

You can freeze the crust and use it when you are ready. You can also freeze the cooled quiches and thaw on a cookie sheet, then bake when you need them. A perfectly easy make-ahead party bite!

Yield: 24 mini quiche bites