Italian Easter Bread

Italian Easter Bread

I've wanted to make this for years because it just looks so fun and this year I finally did. It's a slightly sweet bread and really adds to the color of the Easter table. In my opinion you *must* use colored sprinkles and I had some pastel ones that fit perfectly for the season. Lots of fun!

You don't want to refrigerate this bread since refrigeration dries bread out so if you bake these just in time to serve them you can eat the eggs, otherwise just throw the eggs away once you start eating the bread.  If you don't have a silpat, parchment paper is your best friend (as usual!). Here's my bread:

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Italian Easter Bread

Ingredients

• 1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) instant yeast
• 1 1/4 cups warm milk
• Pinch of salt
• 1/3 cup butter , at room temperature
• 2 eggs , lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 cups flour
• egg wash (1 egg, beaten with 1 teaspoon of water)
• 6 dyed , uncooked, Easter eggs (will cook in the oven)
• Sprinkles

Instructions

1. Mix together the yeast, milk, salt, butter, eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add 2 cups of flour and beat until smooth, with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low speed, continue to slowly add the rest of the flour just until a dough forms. Switch to the dough hook attachment and knead on low speed until the dough is smooth and elastic. Add more flour as needed so that it is tacky, not sticky. Alternatively, the dough can be kneaded on a floured work surface, by hand. Transfer to an oiled bowl, turning once to coat both sides. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled, about 1 hour.
2. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone liner. Punch down the dough and divide into 12 equal pieces (about 3.5 oz each). Roll each piece into a 14-inch rope.
   
3. Twist two ropes to form a "braid", then join the ends to loop into a circle while pinching the tips together. Place on the prepared baking sheet.
   
4. Repeat with remaining dough ropes. Cover with a clean towel and let rise again until nearly doubled, about 1 more hour.
5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Brush the tops of the dough "nests" with the egg wash. Decorate with the sprinkles.
   
6. Place one egg in the center of each nest, pressing down lightly to secure. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.
7. Recipe Note: The eggs can be eaten by cracking and dipping the bread in them, however, I would recommend discarding them if not consumed within a few hours.
8. Source: Adapted from The Italian Dish

Images and recipe from: Seededatthetable.com

Raspberry Sweet Rolls

Jeremy made these for me for Mother's Day and we all agreed that they were so yummy.  The dough is very light and fluffy and the flavor is fabulous.

RASPBERRY SWEET ROLLS

These raspberry sweet rolls with cream cheese frosting are the perfect treat for breakfast or brunch!

yield: MAKES 24-30 ROLLS

 

cook time: 17 MINUTES

INGREDIENTS:

FOR THE DOUGH:

• 2 packages yeast (4 1/2 teaspoons), dissolved in 1 cup lukewarm water
• 6 tablespoons shortening (Crisco)
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 9 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 cups hot water
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 tablespoon salt

FOR THE FILLING:

• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 3 1/2 cups frozen raspberries
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• Zest of 1 large lemon
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch

For the frosting:

• 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 teaspoon lemon zest

DIRECTIONS:

1. Add yeast to 1 cup of lukewarm water. Stir with a spoon and set aside for about five minutes.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, add shortening, sugar, and salt to hot water and beat for 30 seconds. Let cool to lukewarm temperature. Stir in 2 cups of flour and mix until smooth. Add yeast mixture and mix until well combined. Mix in the beaten eggs.
3. Gradually stir in the remaining flour and mix with the dough hook for about 2 minutes. Remove dough from the bowl and place on a lightly floured counter. Knead by hand, add a little flour if the dough is still sticky. Knead until dough feels satiny and smooth.
4. Put the dough in a greased bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise for 30 minutes or until dough doubles in size.
5. Remove dough from bowl and place on a lightly floured counter. Divide dough in half. With a rolling pin, roll one half of the dough into a rectangular shape. Spread dough evenly with 4 tablespoons of softened butter. Sprinkle dough with 1/4 cup brown sugar. In a medium bowl, carefully stir together the frozen raspberries, granulated sugar, lemon zest, and cornstarch. Sprinkle half of the raspberry mixture over the dough.
6. Gently roll up dough into one long roll. Cut rolls, using a piece of dental floss or thread, about two inches thick. Place rolls into a greased 9X13 baking pan.
7. Now follow the exact same steps with the other half of the dough, using the remaining ingredients.
8. Place rolls in a warm spot and cover with a towel. Let rolls rise until double in bulk, about an hour. Bake rolls at 350 degrees F for 25-32 minutes or until golden brown on top. The insides should be soft, but not doughy. Remove pans from oven and let cool on a wire rack.
9. While the rolls are cooling, make the frosting. In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, butter, powdered sugar, and lemon zest. Using electric mixer, beat until smooth. Spread frosting on rolls and serve.

All images and text ©Two Peas & Their Pod.

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This delicious recipe brought to you by Two Peas & Their Pod
https://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/raspberry-sweet-rolls/

CHEESY FLORENTINE PASTA

Another yummy pasta recipe.  I didn't used to love pasta with spinach in it, but I realized that's because everyone leaves the spinach in huge leaves and then you get a huge bite of soggy spinach.  I started using my kitchen shears to sliced it, a handful at a time, into really thin pieces and that has made all the difference.

CHEESY FLORENTINE PASTA

PREP:15 MINUTES

COOK:15 MINUTES

TOTAL TIME:30 MINUTES

INGREDIENTS:

·         1 pound penne pasta

·         3 tablespoons unsalted butter

·         3 tablespoons flour

·         2 cups whole milk

·         1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

·         1/4 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

·         1 cup mozzarella cheese

·         1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

·         4 cups fresh baby spinach, thinly sliced

·         1/4 cup roasted peppers, diced

DIRECTIONS:

1.    Cook the pasta one minute shy of the directions listed on the box and drain (do not rinse).

2.    Add the butter to the pot you just used for the pasta (make sure to have at least rinsed it out well).

3.    Once melted add in the flour and whisk well, cooking for about a minute.

4.    Add in the milk slowly while whisking until smooth.

5.    Add in the salt, pepper, mozzarella and Parmesan cheese and whisk well.

6.    Add the pasta back in and toss well.

7.    Add in the spinach and bell peppers and toss a bit more before serving.

All images and text © for Dinner, then Dessert, Inc.

Recipe Permalink: https://dinnerthendessert.com/cheesy-florentine-pasta/

Caramelized Frozen Green Beans with Mushrooms

I am trying to clean out our freezer before the move and I realized that I have a whole lot of frozen green beans that I never use.  I always defer to broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts and asparagus.  I'm glad I tried this recipe for green beans because Jeremy and I both loved it.  None of my kids would eat them, but you can't win 'em all.

Caramelized Frozen Green Beans with Mushrooms

This recipe is originally from cookbook author Anne Willan who calls them "burnt beans." It deals with the problem of mushy green beans, which is what happens when you cook any frozen green bean--even those you've picked, blanched and frozen straight from your garden. But in this recipe, the beans slow cook until crispy. Don't fret the butter.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Ingredients

·         6 tablespoons unsalted butter

·         1 pound frozen green beans

·         1/2 teaspoon salt

·         1/8 teaspoon black pepper

·         1 medium shallot, diced

·         1 package mushrooms, sliced

Instructions

1.      Heat a large cast-iron pan or skillet over medium-high heat and add the butter. 

2.      When the butter foams, add the green beans, stir to coat them in the butter and leave them to heat until they're no longer frost coated, about 5 minutes. 

3.      Add the salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to medium-low so that you can still hear them sizzling and stir the beans intermittently until they shrink, wrinkle and about half of them are darkly colored, about 30 minutes more. 

4.      Add the shallots and mushrooms for the last 10 to 15 minutes of cooking until the mushrooms brown and the shallots soften (you may need to turn up the heat for this in order to keep caramelizing, as the mushrooms will introduce more liquid, but watch it an turn it back down if it gets too hot).

5.      Taste for seasoning before serving. 

https://lynnecurry.com/2012/02/best-frozen-green-beans/

Creamy Tortellini Vegetable Bake

This is super yummy and also full of veggies!

Creamy Tortellini Vegetable Bake

Ingredients

·         1 package (19 ounces) package frozen cheese-filled tortellini

·         2 tablespoons olive oil

Veggies:

·         1 cup sugar snap peas

·         1 cup carrot (~1 large sized)

·         3/4 cup sweet bell peppers (2 small sized)

·         1 cup summer squash

·         1 cup cherry tomatoes

·         1 can (15 ounces) corn

Creamy base:

·         1 and 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter

·         1 and 1/2 tablespoons white flour

·         1/3 cup vegetable stock or broth

·         1 cup milk (I used 1%)

·         1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

·         1/2 teaspoon pepper

·         1 teaspoon dried basil

·         1 package (8 ounces) full fat cream cheese

Top it off:

·         1/4 cup freshly-grated mozzarella or Monterey Jack cheese

·         3-4 tablespoons freshly-grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

1.       Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously grease a 9 x 13 casserole dish and set aside.

2.       Prep the veggies: trim the snap peas and cut in half, peel and slice the carrot, dice the peppers, chop the summer squash, quarter the cherry tomatoes, and drain the corn.

3.       Bring large water to a boil and add carrots, sugar snap peas and tortellini.

4.       Meanwhile, add 2 tablespoons olive oil to a skillet. Over medium heat sauté the peppers and summer squash until tender.

5.       Drain the tortellini, snap peas, and carrots and return to pot. Add in the peppers, summer squash, cherry tomatoes and can of corn.

6.       In same skillet you used to sauté the veggies melt the butter over medium-heat. Whisk in the flour. Slowly whisk in the broth and stir until completely smooth. Then gradually, whisk in the milk and stir until smooth. Add the garlic salt, pepper, and dried basil. Cook and stir until the mixture is thick and bubbly.

7.       Add in the cream cheese (cut into small pieces) and stir until smooth and the sauce is thickened.

8.       Pour the sauce over the veggies and tortellini. Transfer the mixture to the prepared 9 x 13 casserole dish.

9.       Cover the dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil, add the mozzarella and parmesan cheese and broil for 2-3 minutes watching carefully until the cheese is melted on top.

chelseasmessyapron.com/creamy-tortellini-vegetable-bake/

Orange Chicken (Panda Express)

I made this recipe because my planned recipe was not to be (apparently I'm out of Mayo).  I had a lot of rice made and chicken thawed, so I tried to a recipe that would cater to that.  It turned out to be a happy misfortune that our Bang Bang Chicken didn't work out tonight because we all really liked this Orange Chicken.  It does taste a lot like the Orange Chicken at Panda Express.  The fact that it doesn't list mystery meat as an ingredient makes it just a bit different than Panda's recipe. ;)

This calls for orange zest, of which I had none, so I subbed 8-14 drops Wild Orange essential oil.  Since essential oils require one to take out a second mortgage to purchase them, I'm planning on trying the orange zest next time.

Orange Chicken (Panda Express)

Ingredients

FOR THE CHICKEN:

·         2 lb boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1" pieces

·         1 eggs

·         1 1/2 tsp salt

·         1 pinch black pepper

·         2 tbsp oil divided, plus more for frying

·         1/2 cup cornstarch

·         1/4 cup flour

FOR THE SAUCE:

·         1 tablespoon cornstarch

·         2 tablespoons orange juice

·         1/4 cup water

·         1 teaspoon sesame oil

·         3 tablespoons soy sauce

·         10 tablespoons sugar

·         10 tablespoons white vinegar

·         zest of 1 orange (or 8-14 drops DoTerra Wild Orange Essential Oil)

TO FINISH:

·         1 1/2 tablespoons ginger root minced

·         2 teaspoons garlic minced

·         1/2 tsp hot red chili pepper crushed

Instructions

1.      To make the sauce combine the 1 tablespoon cornstarch, rice wine, water, sesame oil, soy sauce, sugar, white vinegar and orange zest.

2.      To coat the chicken add the egg, salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon oil into a bowl and whisk together in a large bowl.

3.      In a separate bowl, add 1/2 cup corn starch and flour and mix well.

4.      In a large frying pan or a wok, heat oil in a wok 375 degrees.

5.      Dip chicken pieces in the egg mixture, then dredge in the flour mixture.

6.      Fry the chicken for 3 to 4 minutes or until golden and crisp.

7.      Transfer to a cooling rack and repeat with remaining chicken.

8.      When you are done with the chicken, drain most of the oil from the pan (leave about a tablespoon).

9.      Add the ginger, garlic and crushed red peppers, cooking for about 10 seconds.

10.  Add the orange sauce and bring to boil.

11.  Turn off the heat, and add cooked chicken and stir until well mixed.  Serve over brown rice.

Slightly altered from: https://dinnerthendessert.com/panda-express-orange-chicken-copycat/