Garlicky Zucchini Noodles

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March is the month that I am always obsessed with the color green...it's only natural after all these months of hibernating. Winter is dragging on and things are gray and muddy and I am craving spring and all the color that will soon bloom. It can't come fast enough. But at the same time that I want spring to hurry up and get here, I stop for a moment and think holy crap, the month of March is halfway through already, where is this year going? Why can't time slow down?!...I swear this happens every year in March, right about now. You'd think at this point in life I'd be accustomed to it, but no.

In order to deal with this 'seasonal, time is moving too fast, but not fast enough' distress I start cooking with lots of green foods, which isn't the worst thing in the world being that most green foods are healthy for you. I love the hue, it's so bright, airy and calming. My aunt gifted me a spiralizer for Christmas and a couple weeks ago she sent me a clipping of this recipe in the mail. I've never put these ingredients together before so reading the recipe I was really interested to see how they would all taste together. Well let me tell you, they're marvelous. So marvelous that we're taking this to dish to Pennsylvania to share with our family at Easter. It's perfect for this gap between winter and spring that they so call March. It's light but filling, easy to whip up and a beautiful shade of green to get you in the mood for the nice weather that's to come.

 

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Garlicky Zucchini Noodles

2 medium zucchini, trimmed

3 Tablespoons walnut or olive oil

6 cloves garlic, smashed, peeled and halved lengthwise

1/2 cup walnut pieces

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

4 thin slices prosciutto, torn

1 medium tart green apple, cored and thinly sliced

4 oz. soft goat cheese

 

Using a spiral vegetable slicer, cut zucchini into long thin noodles. Cut noodles into smaller strands, if desired. In a very large skillet heat 2 Tablespoons of the oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic. Cook, stirring constantly, 2 minutes or until just starting to brown. Add zucchini; cook and toss with tongs for 1 minute. Transfer to a serving bowl. Add walnuts to skillet; cook and stir 1 to 2 minutes or until toasted. Add to bowl with zucchini. Add 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and crushed red pepper; toss to coat. Add remaining oil to skillet. Add prosciutto. Cook 1 minute or until browned and crsip, turning once. Add to zucchini mixture along with apple; toss to combine. Top with goat cheese.

Recipe from Better Homes & Gardens

 

 

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Red Raspberry Pie

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Would you believe it if I told you that this is the first lattice pie I've ever made? That's a little embarrassing for me to admit, especially as a food stylist. But seriously, I've never had a job that called for this. I've done just about evey other kind of pie I can think of, but never the lattice.

So, pie day was my excuse to challenge myself and try something new. And the verdict: I loved it! It was so much easier than I thought it might be, working with dough isn't my favorite thing in the world so I was pleasantly surprised. Lattice may just be my new way to top pies.

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But enough about the lattice and more about these big, juicy raspberries. I love raspberries, they are my favorite berry and quite possibly my favorite fruit. They can be tart or sweet or both! And that's the best part about this pie, it starts out a little tart, then finishes nice and sweet...all balanced out by the buttery crust. Everybody has their favorite pie crust so use the one you like, fill it up with the raspberry and Creme de Cassis mixture, then get artsy and seal it with some lattice.

 

Happy (almost) pi(e) day!

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Red Raspberry Pie

4 cups raspberries, picked over

1 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup Creme de Cassis

4 Tablespoons cornstarch

1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

pinch of salt

1 recipe of your favorite pie crust

2 Tablespoons butter

3 paper thin slices of lemon

 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Toss raspberries and sugar together in a mixing bowl. Whisk Cassis and cornstarch together in a small bowl until smooth. Stir Cassis mixture, lemon juice and salt gently into berries. Roll out two thirds of the pie dough and line the pie pan; leave edges untrimmed. Spoon in berries, dot with butter and arrange lemon slices overlapping slightly in the center of the berries. Roll out remaining pie dough into a 10-inch round and cut into 1/2-inch strips. Arrange over berries in a lattice pattern and crimp edges decoratively. Set on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Lower heat to 350 degrees F and bake for another 30-40 minutes, or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling.

 

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Pie's Cousin

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I'm getting super psyched for pi(e) day! I'm not a fan of math, at all, but I am a huge fan of the other type of pie and I'm getting ready for 3.14.15 with pie's cousin, a tart. I was thumbing through my Martha Stewart's Pies & Tarts book and stopped on this recipe. Chocolate, almonds, honey and fleur de sel. Such a perfect set of ingredients, especially when melted, toasted and topped on a flaky, crusty, gold puff pastry. I think the best part about this tart is that unlike a lot of pies, it takes a matter of minutes to prep and make, it's so easy and unfussy. Two qualities I look for in my desserts.

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I love how this tart looks so rustic and has such a great variety of textures. Smooth, melted chocolate, toasty and crunchy almonds, sticky honey and lightly crisped flakes of puff pastry. I thought I'd prefer to eat this warm right out of the oven, but I was pleasantly surprised the next morning when I ate a piece. With the cooled, jelled chocolate it was just as good. But my very favorite method of eating this dessert is aside a nice scoop of chocolate ice cream.

 

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Chocolate-Almond Tart with Fleur de Sel

1 box store-bought puff pastry, thawed

1 egg, lightly beaten

Sanding sugar

2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

Honey, for drizzling

Fleur de sel, for sprinkling

2 Tablespoons toasted almonds, coarsely  chopped

Unfold dough on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. Trim the edges, if needed, to form a 10-inch square and fold in each edge to form a 1-inch border. Pierce center of the shell all over with a fork. Brush edges with beaten egg and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Refrigerate until firm, about 30 mins.

Prehet oven to 450 degrees F. Bake until pastry is puffed and golden brown, 15-20 minutes. Using an offset spatula, press down on middle of shell (leave border puffy). Cover center evenly with chocolate. Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with salt. Return to oven and bake just until chocolate is melted, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle with almonds and cut into 4 squares. Serve with ice cream, if desired, and drizzle with more honey.

 

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Chocolate Chip Red Velvet Muffins

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Chocolate and red velvet...two of my favorite things. Because of this, it's safe to say Valentine's day is my kind of holiday. An excuse to eat these sweets for a solid week? Yes please! Sweets aside though, I must admit I do love all the red and pink hearts, roses and fun little Valentine crafts that come along with this holiday. A day set aside to show all your loved ones how much you care about them is always welcome here, whether it's with roses, chocolates, words or a homemade treat like these muffins.

 

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Chocolate Chip Red Velvet Muffins

3 Tablespoons unsalted butter

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/3 cup cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

2/3 cup sugar

3/4 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 ounce red food coloring

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

 

 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In a double boiler melt butter and chocolate until smooth. Let cool to room temperature. In a large bowl, combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and baking soda; whisk. In a separate bowl, stir together sugar, milk, eggs, vanilla and food coloring until combined. Pour chocolate mixture and milk mixture into flour mixture and stir until just combined. Gently fold in chocolate chips; batter will be sticky. Fill 12 muffin cups with batter. Bake for 5 minutes, reduce oven to 375 degrees F and bake for 10 minutes or until tested with a toothpick. Let muffins cool in pan 5 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

 

A Taste of Winter

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One thing I truly enjoy about winter are the beautiful snowy scapes it brings along with it. We haven't seen too much snow  so far but the storm that happened over Thanksgiving was so stunning that I have to share these photos with you. This is one of my favorite spots, Sprout Creek Farm, looking like a snowglobe.

 

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Sweet Potato Soup

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I have to share this sweet potato soup with you because it was absolutely exquisite. I'm picky about how I like my sweet potatoes cooked and am officially convinced they are perfect in soup form. I made this dish for the NY Times a couple weeks ago and ate it twice a day for five days. The Belgian-style beer makes this dish, giving it that subtle hint of yeast. Florence Fabricant tops the soup with toasted mini marshmallows, giving a fun little nod to the classic sweet potato casserole topped with marshmallows.

Get the recipe here

An Oh My Veggies, Meatless Thanksgiving!

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I photographed this delicious, vegetarian, Thanksgiving menu that the wonderful ladies at Oh My Veggies are sharing. The spread includes traditional sides with a twist, gravy and a main dish!

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Click on the dish titles to get the full recipes and even more photos. We hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Lentil and Roasted Root Vegetable Strudel

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