lemon zest – finding time for cooking

May 14, 2017

A Healthier Take on Strawberry Shortcake for a Big Group

I want to eat this all day, every day.

It’s no secret that there are a few select foods that I could literally could eat every single day and not get tired of them. Nachos (and I do), a good burger, and my homemade strawberry shortcake. My homemade strawberry shortcake is sublime.

I stumbled upon this recipe years ago when I needed to come up with a dessert for like 15 people. Individual shortcakes would have been way too time-consuming (and quite frankly they’re kind of dry), but I had it stuck in my head that I wanted to use the pounds of strawberries that my mom had. And then I found the original recipe I’ve adapted here…as my original post mentioned, I’m obsessed. It’s literally the best.

healthier-strawberry-shortcake-for-a-big-group-nessa

But, as with many recipes, I wanted to see if there was a way to make it just a tad more healthy—cut down on the calories just a bit, but also bringing in some healthier elements. And the fact is, I might like this version even just a bit more.

I cut the sugar a bit, and it definitely doesn’t lose anything. And then I’ve substituted half of the flour for whole wheat (or white whole wheat, which is a bit softer), which gives it a great heartiness and also a slightly nutty, warm flavor that I really love. You can make this ahead of time when feeding a big group and it’s the most moist, fragrant, yummy summer dessert I can think of. Pair it with fresh strawberries and a bit of homemade cinnamon whipped cream, and you’ve got yourself a winner! [Read more…]

Apricot Linzer Torte

By starshy926 · Leave a Comment

I don’t mind admitting when I’m wrong. And BOY, was I wrong about this.

Apricot Linzer Torte

See, for the past two or three years, basically every time I’ve gotten with my friend Shalya for dinner, the conversation has eventually turned to food (okay, fine, it’s on food 92.5% of the time), and every single time she’s begged me to make a linzer torte.

Apricot Linzer Torte slice

Every single time. And I always told her she was a weirdo, because who is obsessed with linzer torte, but fine, yes, I’ll make a linzer torte if she comes to my house. But that day finally came. And it was glorious.

Apricot Linzer Torte closeup

See, in my (limited) experience, linzer torte is basically just a simple buttery pastry crust with some jam in it, and a lattice topping. Something that’s fine adorning a bakery case somewhere, but not something that anyone ever really chooses. Fine, and sturdy, but not setting the world on fire. Which just goes to show, I have been eating the WRONG LINZER TORTE all my life.

Apricot Linzer Torte slice closeup

This linzer torte recipe is anything but “fine”. The dough basically punches you in the face with a combination of spices so aromatic my house smelled like heaven. Pair that moist, tender spiced crust up with slightly chunky apricot jam, and you have a simple and perfect match made in heaven. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Foods I'm Obsessed With, Recipe Experimentation · Tagged: apricot jam, apricot linzer torte, apricot marmalade, austrian desserts, butter, cinnamon, egg yolks, flour, ground almonds, ground cloves, ground hazelnuts, lemon zest, linzer torte, nutmeg, recipe experimentation, salt, sugar

Jun 29, 2016

Lemon Cupcakes with Raspberry Frosting

By starshy926 · Leave a Comment

I think I’ve found my new favorite cupcake recipe. These are as close to a perfect texture and taste as any cake or cupcake I’ve ever made.

Lemon Cupcakes with Raspberry Frosting done

Someone described them as “bomb-ass”, and I’m not going to argue with them. I mean, it would be rude.

Lemon Cupcakes with Raspberry Frosting

We wanted to do a special girls’ night for Casey’s birthday a few weeks ago, and I heard through the grapevine that she was obsessed with some Publix lemon raspberry cake, so the flavor palette for her cake was easy enough. I was super excited, because usually people want chocolate or something super sweet, so the chance to make a fruity dessert was one I wouldn’t pass up.

lemon cupcakes with raspberry frosting lemons

And it’s a good thing these were basically perfect, because they were pretty much the only thing that went right that evening. The restaurant ended up being a nightmare (45 minutes to order, hour and a half for food to come, took two hours to get a second drink order in), so by the time we left our numbers had dwindled by half and it was already quite late. Thankfully, three of us persevered and went to our friend’s Midtown high rise for wine and cupcakes and a great rooftop view.

Lemon Cupcakes with Raspberry Frosting finished

Right call. The cupcakes are the most insanely moist, dense crumb you can imagine, packed with super tart lemony flavor that never tips over the line into that weird cloying fake lemon flavor that I hate. Even without the icing they’re perfection. But the icing is a work of art itself. Fluffy buttercream taken to the next level with raspberry jam adding some fruity goodness and tanginess to the frosting’s sugar overload.

In other words, you should make these TODAY. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Foods I'm Obsessed With, Recipe Experimentation · Tagged: baking powder, best cupcake recipe, birthday cupcakes, cupcake recipes, eggs, flour, heavy cream, lemon cupcakes, lemon cupcakes with raspberry frosting, lemon juice, lemon zest, milk, powdered sugar, raspberry buttercream, raspberry frosting, raspberry preserves, recipe experimentation, salt, sugar, unsalted butter, vanilla

Aug 26, 2015

Healthy Lemon Almond Chicken Salad

By starshy926 · 1 Comment

So, I had this post all written and ready to publish, then it mysteriously disappeared. Like, hit save and *poof*—everything was gone. So you’ll have to take my word that it was probably the most interesting, witty piece of food writing known to man.

Or probably not. Guys, my brain is totally fried. Looooong hours, too much on my plate, getting ready for travel, not sleeping well. I know from experience that the way I’m living right now is a no-fail recipe for gaining weight (I have last fall to prove it). I’ve had absolutely no time or energy to cook, but I knew that if I didn’t make something I’d end up having a Farm Burger #4 chicken burger every day for lunch. Which…hello, 15 pounds.

So this caught my eye a few weeks ago. I’m a sucker for chicken salad. All of it. All the kinds. But I tend to be lazy about making it, because it takes a number of ingredients and then I eat it so fast. Plus, it’s not always the healthiest.

The ingredients for this chicken salad were super simple. And more importantly, healthy. I didn’t even cook my own chicken breasts. Just saute up cooked chicken with some spices, zest the lemon, slice the scallions, and you’re rockin’ and rollin’. It’s light and fresh and perfect for August in Georgia (and a healthy work lunch). [Read more…]

Filed Under: Cooking for One, Recipe Experimentation, Super Healthy · Tagged: almonds, chicken salad, cooked chicken, easy lunch recipes, easy work lunch recipes, green onions, healthy chicken salad, healthy dinner recipes, healthy lunch, lemon almond chicken salad, lemon juice, lemon zest, no mayo chicken salad, olive oil, pepper, plain greek yogurt, pre-cooked chicken, recipe experimentation, rotisserie chicken, salt, scallions, sliced almonds, tarragon

Nov 28, 2014

Persimmon Muffins with Lemon & Cardamom

By starshy926 · Leave a Comment

I went on a roll this fall of trying new fruits and veggies that I’d never had before. I tried acorn squash for the first time (definitely delish!), and then that same week saw these weird little orange tomato-like things in my grocery store and just had to grab one. Turns out it was a persimmon, specifically of the fuyu variety.

So the next logical question was what to make. I browsed a ton of recipes, but most were salads, and I definitely didn’t want to go that route (boring). Then I found this somewhat odd-sounding muffin recipe and had to give it a try.

I “healthied it up” by using half whole wheat flour and cutting down on the sugar just a little. The persimmons gave it a lovely sweetness, with the lemon giving it a tart complement. The overall texture of the muffins was pretty light but still hearty, due to the whole wheat flour. And, like most muffin recipes, they came together in a flash.

I ate one fresh out of the oven with blackberry honey from Croatia, and then took them to work for my breakfast for the next few days (with honey from New Zealand…I definitely have a honey souvenir addiction!). This is such an easy and versatile recipe that you could swap out the persimmons for many other fruits, and even swap in a different citrus zest to mix things up (orange would have been lovely here as well). [Read more…]

Filed Under: Recipe Experimentation · Tagged: baking powder, baking soda, breakfast, easy breakfast recipes, easy muffins, eggs, flour, fuyu persimmons, ground cardamom, healthy muffins, lemon zest, milk, muffin recipes, muffins, oil, persimmon muffins with lemon & cardamom, persimmon recipes, persimmons, plain yogurt, recipe experimentation, salt, sour cream, sugar, vanilla, white whole wheat flour, whole wheat flour

Nov 29, 2013

Lemon Ricotta Pound Cake

By starshy926 · Leave a Comment

I actually made this about a month ago, but haven’t had a chance to bring its greatness to you yet. I love ricotta, and I love lemon, so this is a recipe tailor-made for me. First of all, it’s super easy—just blend everything together, throw it in a pan, and call it a day. But secondly, it can do double duty as both a breakfast and a dessert.

This is the perfect antidote to holiday food excesses. It’s light and sweet and tart, so a great alternative to all of the heavy, rich desserts we’re usually consuming this time of year. It would be great to have on hand for company to just snack on whenever they want.

If I had any complaints about this recipe, they would probably be about the texture, which can be a little dry, but since it’s pound cake that’s really more the nature of the beast. It’s good on its own, but even better with some tea or coffee.

I had some overflow batter, so I greased up a ramekin and baked little individual pound cakes. Next time I think I’d use a few more ramekins and do shallower mini cakes, or else it can get a little bread-y. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Recipe Experimentation · Tagged: baking powder, breakfast, cake flour, dessert, easy breakfast bread, easy dessert recipe, eggs, flour, kosher salt, lemon, lemon juice, lemon ricotta pound cake, lemon zest, loaf pan, mini loaf pans, pound cake, poundcake, recipe experimentation, ricotta cheese, sugar, sweet bread, unsalted butter, vanilla extract, whole milk ricotta

Sep 15, 2013

Grilled Zucchini with Lemon Salt

By starshy926 · Leave a Comment

Last weekend my friend decided to come over for dinner kind of last-minute, to help me put my (so pretty!) new bed together later that night. I typically just order Thai food on Saturday nights, but wanted to cook dinner as a thank you. Sometimes my dinners get a little overambitious and exhausting, so he requested (and I concurred) that we should keep it simple. So I got a few salmon fillets and marinated them, and then decided to stick to a grilled theme with these beauties.

I’ve experimented with a number of grilled veggies, including zucchini a few times. However, this recipe has a unique element—lemon salt.

The bright, salty citrus combined with the smoky char marks on the zucchini really elevated this from average grilled zucchini to something that just felt special, while also being super easy.

Easy + fancy? I’m on board.

Jul 29, 2013

Lemon Zucchini Bread

By starshy926 · Leave a Comment

Yeah, I know, it’s weird.

We have regular zucchini bread. We have chocolate zucchini bread (seriously, it’s awesome!). But lemon? Color me intrigued…

My love affair with lemon is legendary and long-standing. But something about this recipe kind of weirded me out, so I kept passing over it and trying other things. Then I told myself to put my big girl panties on and give it a try.

First, I had to shred zucchini, and anyone who knows me can tell you that I absolutely HATE shredding things—mostly because I usually end up shredding my fingers too. But I survived.

And lemon zest is the best! It’s basically an excuse to make any recipe. I also decided to make this recipe a little healthier so it would be a good breakfast food (vs. a dessert), so I used way less glaze than the recipe called for. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Recipe Experimentation · Tagged: baking powder, beaten eggs, bread recipe, breakfast, breakfast food, buttermilk, chocolate zucchini bread, confectioners sugar, eggs, flour, fresh zucchini, glazed bread, lemon, lemon juice, lemon zest, lemon zucchini bread, loaf pan, oil, powdered sugar, recipe experimentation, salt, shredded zucchini, shredded zucchini bread, sugar, sweet bread, zucchini, zucchini bread, zucchini bread recipe

Jul 4, 2013

Oat Brown Sugar Strawberry Shortcake…and Happy Birthday ‘Merica!

By starshy926 · 2 Comments

Happy 4th of July! Here in Atlanta, everyone will be swimming…and by swimming, I mean trying to avoid floating away in a flash flood, not hanging out poolside. I will hopefully be avoiding the worst of the rain down on the Gulf Coast, but we’ll see how that goes.

Oh, yeah, back to ‘Merica. You know, apple pie tends to get all the glory when it comes to “American desserts”. But for my money, nothing is more American than strawberry shortcake.

First of all, it’s got the colors working in its favor. I mean, just look at it. And it’s got the sweet/cold/creamy combination that apple pie just can’t match. There’s no question that my go-to summer dessert is strawberry shortcake. This one’s a little different, though.

And what makes it different is the oat flour. I happened across this recipe on A Cozy Kitchen and was immediately intrigued. The oat and brown sugar combo definitely sounded up my alley. I’d also never used oat flour, so I was curious about how it differed. It was kind of amazing actually, because it added this whole new, cool texture to the shortcakes. They were moist and fluffy when they shouldn’t have been (I mean, look how thin I accidentally cut them). They were moist and fluffy the next day, which everyone knows is death to biscuits. So I totally recommend going the extra mile and making the oat flour. It’s so easy, it’s not even an extra mile, really. Not even an extra kilometer. Extra few feet…?
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Recipe Experimentation · Tagged: 4th of july, baking powder, baking soda, breakfast, brown sugar, butter, buttermilk, cinnamon, cold butter, cookout recipes, dessert, dessert recipe, easy dessert, egg, flour, fruit recipes, hand mixer, homemade oat flour, independence day, lemon zest, oat flour, oat shortcake, oats, old fashioned oats, orange zest, recipe experimentation, sea salt, shortcake, strawberries, strawberry shortcake, sugar, summer desserts, summer recipes, turbinado sugar

Apr 17, 2013

Healthy Lemon Cornstarch Pudding

By starshy926 · 3 Comments

Oh man, guys, it has been one heck of a week! Last Wednesday we closed on my first home, started painting our faces off, moved, and it’s been a whirlwind ever since. I haven’t had much time for cooking, but I am excited to get started again. I just might have to change my blog heading, because “adventures in a tiny kitchen” doesn’t really fit anymore—my kitchen is so much bigger and nicer! Can’t wait to put it through its paces.

I made this a few weeks ago, and absolutely loved it. As I mentioned a long time ago, chocolate cornstarch pudding is one of my family’s secret recipes, a summer go-to for me when I’m craving something cold and a little sweet. I particularly love that recipe because it doesn’t require any kind of gelatin or anything like that, just simple cornstarch. But a while back I got to thinking about it and how, in theory, that recipe could be adapted a million different ways.

I’m sure it’s no surprise that lemon was the first flavor that came to mind. Adapting it was incredibly simple, just leaving out the cocoa powder and adding fresh lemon zest, juice, and a little lemon extract to make it extra…lemon-y.

The resulting flavor was so fresh and sweet and tart, I wanted to make gallons of it. As it was, I devoured it in a few sittings! Now I want to try orange, lime, all the flavors! [Read more…]

Filed Under: Family Secret Recipes, Foods I'm Obsessed With, Go-To Recipes, Recipe Experimentation · Tagged: best pudding recipe, cornstarch, cornstarch pudding, dessert, easy pudding, family secret recipe, food, healthy dessert, healthy pudding, lemon extract, lemon juice, lemon pudding, lemon zest, milk, pudding, pudding without gelatin, skim milk, sugar, vanilla

A Healthier Take on Strawberry Shortcake for a Big Group

Apricot Linzer Torte

Lemon Cupcakes with Raspberry Frosting

Healthy Lemon Almond Chicken Salad

Persimmon Muffins with Lemon & Cardamom

Lemon Ricotta Pound Cake

Grilled Zucchini with Lemon Salt

Lemon Zucchini Bread

Oat Brown Sugar Strawberry Shortcake…and Happy Birthday ‘Merica!

Healthy Lemon Cornstarch Pudding

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