Deep Dish Pizza

I always make pizza at home these days, but do not normally go for a deep dish pizza.  I find deep dish pizza to be a bit more "work" than just making my normal pizza dough.

Here's what I used to bake my deep dish pizza. 

Deep Dish Pizza Kit (find at online retailers)

For the pizza dough you can find recipes for specific deep dish pizza, but I just use my normal pizza dough and add a little medium or course grind cornmeal.  The cornmeal gives the dough a little more of a bite or crunch and that's what I like about a deep dish pizza.

Add toppings, sauce and cheese (not in that order) - and the pizza is ready for the oven.

Deep Dish Pizza dough

Time to eat!

Baked Banana-Kahlua French Toast - 2 Recipes

This recipe came about because I had some leftover loaves of Banana-Kahlua bread in my freezer.  Freshly baked this version of traditional banana bread is delicious, but I wanted something different.  I've tried stuffing the bread slices and making french toast that way, but without marscarpone or cream cheese this wasn't an option.  My next idea was baked french toast and viola - a yummy dessert recipe and no food wasted.  So there are two recipes, one for the banana bread (which is great on it's own) and the baked french toast.

Banana-Kahlua Bread:

Ingredients -
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 stick of butter at room temperature or 1/2 cup of applesauce
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-2 ripe bananas
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup kahula
1/2 cup chocolate chips (semi-sweet or dark)
1/2 cups nuts (walnuts work best), optional

Instructions:
1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2.  Mash ripe bananas in a bowl and add buttermilk, kahula, and vanilla.  Mix until combined
3.  In a separate bowl add flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Whisk to combine.
4.  In another bowl, whisk sugar, eggs and butter together.
5.  Combine flour mixture and banana mixture slowly to the sugar mixture.  Mix until combined.
6.  Add chocolate chips and nuts (if desired). Stir until combined, do not over stir.
7.  In a greased loaf pan, add half of the batter.  Makes two loaves of bread.
8.  Bake loaves for about 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean.
9.  Remove from oven and cool.  Then remove from pan.
10.  Serve warm or at room temperature.  To freeze a loaf, allow to cool then wrap in foil and place in a ziplock bag.  Keeps in the freezer for 2-3 months.  Defrost completely before serving.

Baked French Toast:

Ingredients -
1 loaf of Banana-Kahula Bread, sliced
6 eggs
3 cups whole milk
2-3 teaspoons ground cinnamon (to taste)
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

Instructions -
1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2.  Grease a large baking dish and place sliced bread in the dish.  Layer the slices.
3.  Mix the other ingredients together.  Pour over the slices.
4.  Bake in the oven for about 40-45 minutes.

Tip of the Month: Substituting Ingredients when cooking

I am finally able to sit down and post my November tip, though it's a bit late when I usually post at the beginning of the month.  Since Thanksgiving is just days away, I thought it would be appropriate to talk about cooking and substituting ingredients.  The Fall and Winter are always times of year that I bake more, partly because I don't like to have the oven on when it's hot outside.  On cooler days, the oven can warm the house and I don't mind that.

There are many reasons why you might want to substitute ingredients in a recipe, here are the one's I find to be more common, but by-no-means all of them:
       1.  Cannot find the specific ingredient
       2.  Do not have the ingredient in your pantry (and do not want to go to the store)
       3.  Want to include a healthier ingredient
       4.  Do not like a specific ingredient
       5.  Allergic or food-sensitive to a specific ingredient


No matter what your reasoning is, let's figure out how to substitute and not drastically alter a recipe or the flavor.  For baking you can easily substitute ingredients like butter and oil and you do not need to change measurements.  If you have a cup of butter or oil, substitute 1 cup of unsweetened applesauce or cooked pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix).  I've used applesauce in place of butter and oil in many baking recipes, and just recently tried substituting pumpkin for butter in a whoopee pie recipe.  The pumpkin was a great substitute, especially since I was making the whoopee pie's for Halloween.   Applesauce and pumpkin make cookies, muffins, breads and the like moist and are great choices for vegans.  I haven't come up with a great alternative to eggs, if you are looking for a truly  vegan substitution.

Creamed Pumpkin and sugar

Whoopee pie with pumpkin substituted for butter

Now I wouldn't recommend substituting applesauce or pumpkin if you are making any pie crusts or pastry dough.  For those I still use butter and I might try coconut oil, but that will be for another day.

For cooking, I substitute or exclude ingredients depending on the what the recipe is.  For instance, I recently tried Giada's Orecchiette with Roasted Fennel recipe, but did not have any sun-dried tomatoes.  I could have substituted purely sun-dried tomatoes that were not in oil, however I did not have those either.  So to make sure I still had a tomato flavor in the dish, I simply added about a cup or so (to taste) of marinara sauce.  The result was fantastic and I think I might always make this recipe with the substitution.   In other cases you can substitute different cuts of meats or even types of meat.  I often substitute chicken breast for recipes that call for chicken thighs or drumsticks.  Other times, when I cannot find an ingredient, for instance harissa paste, I found a recipe to make my own and used that as a substitute.  Sometimes if can be a simple substitution baby bella mushrooms for button mushrooms or vegetable stock for chicken stock.

Substituting ingredients should not be difficult and remember it is possible to substitute, just make sure you like what you are replacing.  You can find some of my "experiments" with substituting Hemp Seed Here and Here.

Pumpkin-Spice Latte at Home

Fall is probably my favorite time of year.  I love the colors of the leaves changing, the pumpkins in the fields and the chill in the air.  It's also the time of year that I indulge in a Pumpkin-Spice Latte at Starbucks, however this year Starbucks ran out of their "syrup" for this seasonal Latte.  So I was on a quest to recreate my own at home as my past attempts failed.  You can find and use Pumpkin-Spice syrups that are available during the holidays at stores such as BevMo.  I tried a couple brands, but found that I did not get the pumpkin or spice flavor that I love in a Pumpkin-Spice Latte, plus the ingredients are for the most part, artificial anyways.  I have also looked at many different recipes for coffee, lattes and the like.  Finally, I think I have come-up with a good alternative for creating my own Pumpkin-Spice Latte.

Ingredients:

(for 2 cups of coffee/latte)
1/3 cup of purred pumpkin
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg (freshly grated works best)
1/2 tsp pumpkin-spice (if desired)
1 cup of milk
Brown sugar to taste (I used about 1-2 tablespoon)
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
About 2 cups of brewed coffee or espresso

Instructions:
1. Mix pumpkin and spices together.
2. Froth milk with a milk-frother, such as Bodum.
3. Combine coffee and pumpkin mixture, whisk.  If you do not want any "bits" from the pumpkin you may want to strain it.
4. In a coffee mug pour in the coffee-pumpkin mixture and add sugar to taste.  Then add in frothed milk.
Serve and enjoy!

The ingredients & tools

Pumpkin-Spice mixture

Frothed Milk

Time to Enjoy

Quick & Easy Mulled Apple Cider

I love the smell of Apple Cider and the spices that are used to make mulled apple cider.  Most that I have tasted are too sweet for me, so I decided to try making my own and make my house smell like Autumn in the process.  Almost anyone that purchases the necessary ingredients and follows a recipe can make their own mulled apple cider.  Let's start cooking!

Ingredients:
1 gallon of good quality Apple Cider (unsweetened)
8 packets of Mulling Spices

Instructions:
1.  Bring Apple Cider and spices to a boil in a pot.  Steep for about 5 minutes.  Remove spice packets and serve.

You may use the individual spice packets to make smaller quantities if desired.

Enjoy!

Brunch at my House

Brunch is not a norm around my house, but some weekends and holidays it's just worth the extra work.  I'm not a sweet person when it comes to breakfast items or brunch, so pancakes, waffles and french toast are not brunch items for me.  There's nothing wrong with them, I just find them to be great dessert snacks.  Brunch entails choices such as frittata's, quiches, omelets, potato hash or similar dishes and oatmeal.

Some of my favorite frittata's I have previously blogged about.  I even tried making poached eggs.  And for omelets I love Spinach & Cheddar or a great Huevos Rancheros.  Lately I have been enjoying the last of my bell pepper crop and have made a potato hash, sometimes called "country potatoes" at restaurants   I love to kick mine up a notch.  Here's an idea of my recipe, which constantly changes.

Ingredients:

5-8 Red or Yukon potatoes (If using Fingerling use more)
1-2 Green bell peppers
1-2 Red bell peppers
1-2 Small Serrano, Fresno and/or jalapeno pepper (seeded and veined if you do not want it hot-spicy)
1 large or 2 small red onions (yellow onions also work)
3-4 cloves of garlic (more or less depending on how much garlic you like)
A dash of chili powder, cayenne, cumin and/or paprika to taste
Salt and Pepper

Instructions:

1. Wash and dice potatoes to the size you prefer.
2.  Add potatoes to a pot of water, add salt and bring to boil.  Cook until potatoes are tender or you can easily pierce with a fork.
3.  Wash and dice all the peppers and onions, while potatoes are cooking.
4.  Saute onions and peppers in another pan with a little olive oil.  When onions start to become translucent add garlic and saute for another 1 or 2 minutes.
5.  Drain potatoes when they are finished.  Now you can cook the potatoes with the pepper mixture in the oven or you can cook the potatoes in an iron skillet.
6.  If using an iron skillet, add a little olive oil and potatoes.  Allow potatoes to get crispy, stirring occasionally   Add spices to taste, salt and pepper.  Then add the pepper mixture.

Serve with scrambled eggs or a fried egg.  I love adding a bit of cayenne to my fried egg - thus the added color you see and more spice to my liking.

An alternative to potato hash would be a sweet potato hash, which I find very appealing in the winter with the added fried sage!

Deconstructed Sweet Potato Hash and Sausage

Or you could try Rachel Allen's Baked Kale Egg dish.  Simply saute some kale, add cream and bake in the oven.

Double-Chocolate Hemp Cookies

One of my favorite recipes for Double Chocolate Chip Cookies is by Kathleen King of Tate's Bake Shop.  Originally I found the recipe by watching an episode of Barefoot Contessa with Ina Garten several years ago.  This has been my go-to cookie recipe ever since, I even purchased the Tate's Bake Shop cookbook and I love baking different recipes from the book.

Here is the LINK for the recipe.  Usually I follow it word-for-word and having a stand-mixer makes it so easy to mix.  The other day I decided to modify the recipe to include some healthier ingredients and see if I could incorporate hemp seed.  Substituting the butter for unsweetened applesauce reduces the richness of the butter and keeps the cookies moist.  The hemp seed gave the cookies a chewy texture, but I did not add very much the first time I tried this substitution.

On the left are the ingredients from the original recipe and on the right are my substitutions - I suggest printing  the recipe and writing in the substitutions or making a notation on the side.

Substitutions:
1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) salted butter  - -  1 1/4 cups unsweetened applesauce (I used homemade)
2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour - -  2 cups all purpose flour AND 1/3 cup hulled hemp seed

Extra cookies being wrapped before freezing

I also baked hemp brownies if you missed my previous blog recipe. Plus if you are unfamiliar with hemp seed there are plenty of great resources.  Here's a great article with other links on the health benefits of hemp seed.

Things I look forward to in the Fall

It's the first day of Autumn for us in the Northern Hemisphere, those in the Southern Hemisphere it's Spring.  The leaves on trees will start changing colors - brilliant oranges, dark reds and yellows.  Apples will be ripening and ready for picking.  Which means an Autumn splurge to enjoy some freshly baked Apple Hill fritters.  It's also time for decorating for the many fall holidays.

Seasonal fall teas, such as Republic of Tea Hot Apple Cider Tea

Republic of Tea

Apple Trees and apples

Pumpkins and pumpkin pie

Pumpkin Pie

Chocolate & Hemp Seed Healthy Brownies Recipe

We have finally experienced a break in the 100 plus degree heat wave, so it was time that I bake a few things in the oven while I can.  Besides a frittata, I made a version of brownies for the weekend.  I really wanted to include hulled hemp seed in a baked treat and decided that I might as well try it in brownies.  For me, I didn't even taste the hemp seed in the brownies and if you didn't know it was added you may not even know either.  The applesauce is a great substitute for butter or oil and can make your cookies or muffins lighter and fluffier.  These brownies turn out a little dense compared to cake-like brownies, almost but not quite fudge-y.  It is a larger batch, so you may have to cut ingredients in half if you prefer to try a smaller batch of these brownies

Recipe:

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons
3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup hulled hemp seed
1 1/2 cups cocoa powder
3 cups light or dark brown sugar
4 tsp vanilla extract
6 eggs
1 1/4 cup no-sugar added applesauce or homemade applesauce
1 or 2 cups of chopped walnuts (or other nuts of your choice)
1 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips (less if you prefer)

Instructions:
1.  In a bowl measure and add first 5 ingredients together.  Mix with a whisk.

2.  In a separate bowl add sugar, eggs, applesauce and vanilla.  Mix together.

3.  Add wet ingreidents to dry ingredients and stir together.

4.  Add nuts and chocolate chips if desired.  You may use any type of nuts or chocolate chips.  Or even add more nuts if you like nutty brownies add more nuts.

5.  Heat oven to 350 degrees.

6.  Place batter in a greased baking dish about 9 x 12 or larger.

7.  Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

8.  Cool and serve.  Enjoy!

Summer Melons

This summer I decided to try growing melons, which has so far been an experiment.  Growing melons vertically is a bit challenging when there are more melons ripening on one side of the trellis causing it to tip.  And I found that it was my pumpkin seed that sprouted not my watermelon seeds, so I actually didn't plant any watermelons this year.  Oops!  I definitely need to have plant stakes in my seedling planters to avoid that mistake.  Though I have a pumpkin that's about ready to be plucked from the vine and already one cantaloupe.  In the coming weeks I should have one cantaloupe and one honeydew that will have ripened for picking too.

In the mean time I found some lovely organic melons at my local Whole Foods Market to add to my cantaloupe for a summer melon salad.  And to change it up I tried the orange flesh honey dew and black sugar watermelon.  The heirloom varieties have some very interesting and sometimes, the best flavors.  For example the Gravenstein apple - I recently read that it is considered a heirloom variety and is actually on the verge of being an extinct variety of apple.  So next time look for some local melons at your store or farmer's market and make a summer melon salad.  Jazz it up with some Hawaiian Pineapple and make your picnic lunch delicious.

It's not a cantaloupe it's an orange flesh honeydew

Baking cookies in the summer

I love to bake and cookies were one of the first things I learned to bake.  Cookies are relatively easy to bake as long as you measure and follow directions.  Over the years I have played around with substituting ingredients; like ground oats for some of the flour, dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate, adding nuts, using whole wheat flour, applesauce instead of butter or oil, and honey instead of sugar.  Each time the result is slightly different but the cookies taste as good.  My next substitution will be adding hemp flour to my brownies, but until the heat wave cools I am not turning my oven on!

So when the heat wave hits here I stay away from the oven for any cooking or baking, but that doesn't mean you have to go without home-made goodies.  I try to bake a double patch of cookies and freeze about 70% of the cookies, then a few months later I can pull out a batch and they are ready to go.  Almost any cookie recipe can be stored in the freezer.  Just bake your cookies as usual, then once the cookies have cooler, wrap about 10-12 in aluminum foil, place in a freezer ziplock bag or freezable container, label and freeze.  Next time you want a sweet treat take a batch out and defrost or enjoy cold.  Most cookies if wrapped properly can last several months in the freezer.  Chocolate chip, double-chocolate, lemon wafers, biscotti and oatmeal are a few of the cookies I personally have frozen over the years.  Next time you are in the mood to bake, whip up a larger batch and freeze some for later, you will be delightfully surprised at how easy it is.

From Garden to Table

There is a huge pressure of air over California this week, causing temperatures to rise all over the state.  With  temperatures reaching over 100 degrees this week, my tomatoes and cucumbers are ripening quickly.  I find a baby Armenian cucumber on the vine and a few days late it's huge!  So I have been trying to find recipes that use my garden vegetables and require little cooking.  Heating the house with a oven or stove just results in more electric use.  And a power outage is one thing we do not need in the neighborhood, so I try to do my part.

The recipes I have tried, besides a typical salad are Tabouli (wheat bulgur and vegetables) and a Panzanella Salad.  Both recipes can be modified depending on what vegetables you have on hand, for instance I added red onions to my Tabouli and left out the celery leaves.  For the Panzanella, I didn't want to turn the oven on so I cut the bread into slices and toasted it.  It may not turn out quite as crispy/crunchy as oven-toasted, but it tastes as good.

Oh and I added a sunflower patch to an un-used corner of my garden.  The seeds were a party-favor gift from a recent baby shower.  So far the Sunflowers have been growing rapidly in height and I can't wait for the flowers to develop and bloom.  It was a mix of sunflowers and the colors should be brilliant.

Yellow Straight-neck Summer Squash

Melon Vines

Huge Cucumber

Pickling Cucumber plant

Honeydew melon

Sunflower patch

Wheat Bulgur and Vegetables

Panzanella Salad

Sausage & Peppers and Kebabs

When the temperatures rise in the high 90's and 100's during the summer I pull out recipes to that don't require the oven or long cooking times.  It's just too hot to turn the oven on when you're already trying to keep the house and yourself cool.  Plus you will save on heating/cooling costs if you avoid using the oven in hot spells.

My first recipe was inspired by an episode of Easy Entertaining with Michael Chiarello - Sausage and Peppers.  Click Here for the recipe.  I used organic chicken sausages, so you can follow the recipe with substitutions.  I also halved the amount of onions and peppers since I was not cooking for a large group, as well as leaving out the Serrano pepper and tomatoes (since they weren't in season at the time).  After poaching the peppers (as the recipe states), I cut the sausages in half and grilled them for a little color and extra flavor.

Sausage with peppers, feta cheese and toast.

My second recipe involves the same Italian chicken sausage (it's great to buy the larger package and freeze it in portions).  I used another portion for making kebabs with peppers, onions, eggplant and squash.  I find kebabs are a great way to use several vegetables and leftover sausage on hand, plus it's quick and easy.

Ingredients:
Sausage
Bell peppers (any variety)
Eggplant (preferably Japanese)
Red Onion
Summer squash - Zucchini and/or Straight-neck
Bamboo skewers

1.  Soak the skewers in water for about 30 minutes to 1 hour.  Or use metal skewers, just rub a bit of olive oil on.

2.  Slice sausage; dice in about 2 inch pieces all other ingredients.

3.  In any order place all ingredients, alternating, on the skewers.

4.  On a heated and lightly oiled grill place skewers.  Every few minutes turn the skewers, depending on the heat temperature you will have to watch to avoid burning any side.

5.  Serve with side dishes or your choice.

Tip of the Month: Summer Entertaining Tips and Tricks

It's July and Independence Day celebrations are almost upon us.  That means it's time for July's tip of the month.  Many of us turn to the outdoors to cook and entertain, but don't fret if you don't have an outdoor grill.  You can still make all your favorite grilled foods on an indoor grill.  I love my indoor grill and I avoid the hassle of propane or charcoal as well as the carcinogenics of using lighter fluid.  Yes, cooking with lighter fluid is not healthy and that's why you should use a chimney starter if cooking with charcoal.  Have you read what's in lighter fluid?  Take a look next time, you may be surprised.  Though whatever your grilling preference is, some of my tips will help you create a great meal for your holiday.

Try these tips and tricks, whether you entertain for a crowd or a few people:

1.  Keep it simple - decor and food.  I love solid, checkered or similar red, white and blue tablecloths for the 4th of July.  Check out This table-setting.

2.  Entertaining is not the time to experiment with new recipes.  Test out new recipes before the big event.

3.  Have activities for the kids.  Here's a great one to make - Pinwheels.

4.  Never press down on burgers when grilling.  I've heard this tip a few times on Food Network.  You will lose all the juices from the meat.

5.  Oil the grill and let the fish cook then turn over once, otherwise your fish will stick to the grill.  Same for indoor grill pans.

6.  Try grilling sweet potatoes for a great alternative to fries or baked potatoes.  Just slice, season with salt and pepper (you can use other spices too).  Mist with oil (brushing will work, but you use more oil that way) and grill on both sides.  You can even toss in more spices after grilling before you serve.

7.  Remember that the loud popping sounds of fireworks can scare dogs or even make them upset.  Make sure they have ID tags and consider keeping them inside during the time fireworks are being set off.  If you are away, consider pet-sitters or boarding to make sure your dog is safe while you are away.

8.  Don't leave foods that can spoil or go bad at warm temperatures in the sun or heat.  Potato salad is one example, keep it chilled so you will avoid food poisoning.  I've heard horror stories about accidents like this at people's houses.

9.  Here's a great idea for keeping tablecloths in place and still look decorative.  Table weight from rocks.

10.  Finally have fun and don't stress over every detail.  If you plan your menu ahead of time you will be able to enjoy your day.

Chipotle Sloppy Joes Recipe

I was recently inspired to recreate my own sloppy joes recipe (I haven't eaten sloppy joes since I was a kid) when I was flipping through a magazine the other day.  The recipe I saw was for a barbeque sloppy joes on Texas toast, so I decided chiptole sloppy joes with sourdough bread would be a great revamp.

When I was a kid, my Mom used to make sloppy joes on occasion, which usually consisted of tomato sauce, ground beef and some spices.  So in order to recreate this recipe and also make it healthier I needed to add some diced veggies and I chose to use bison meat which is 90% lean instead of the usual ground beef.

Here's my recipe:

1 lb. ground bison meat
2-3 carrots, diced
1 large or 2 medium white/yellow onions, diced
6-8 baby bella mushrooms, diced
4-6 garlic cloves, chopped
2 chiptole peppers with some of the adobe sauce
1 24oz jar of chunky tomato sauce (more if you desire more tomato taste)
1-3 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp agave nectar or honey, to taste
about 2 tbsp of cumin
1-2 tbsp chili powder
1-2 tsp mexican oregano
1-3 tsp smoked paprika
olive oil
Beer or wine, to deglaze
salt and pepper to taste

1. Heat a pan on medium heat with about a tbsp or so of olive oil, saute onions.  Add carrots after a few minutes of cooking onions and a little salt.  Saute until softened.

2.  Add mushrooms and garlic, cook until all are soft and aromatic, about 5-7 minutes.  Remove from pan and set aside.

3. In the same pan, add a little more olive oil and cook bison meat until there is no pink meat.  Add about 1/4 cup of beer or wine to deglaze pan.

4.  Add cooked veggies from step 2 to the meat, tomato sauce, tomato paste, and chiptole peppers.  Cook for about 2 minutes.

5.  Add the remaining spices and combine.  Reduce heat to low and allow to simmer, stirring occasionally.

6.  After about 15-20 minutes, taste the mixture, if you like the seasoning and taste, serve, or continue to cook a few more minutes.

7.  Serving suggestions, sourdough bread and avocado.  Garnish with parsley, basil or cilantro.

Other variations:  Add swiss chard, kale or collard greens, cauliflower or corn.  Enjoy!

Uses for Coffee Grounds

I always have leftover coffee grounds, but I never throw them out.  Instead I usually add them to the garden dirt since it helps with adding nitrogen to plants and brings earthworms too.  And the coffee grounds always disappear after a few days, so I know the earthworms are doing their job in my garden.  Recently I found a photo on pinterest that had a link to a great article on This Old House.  I love the 10 other uses for coffee grounds, and not all of them are for the garden either.  Definitely have to give the cleaning ideas a try.

Check out the article here

Lemon Ricotta Donuts

Last week I blogged about homemade ricotta cheese, which I then used to make lemon-ricotta pancakes.  I also used some of the ricotta for lasagna, but I still had ricotta leftover.  What to do with about 8-9 oz. of ricotta?  I turned to my new cookbook Doughnuts: Simple and Delicious Recipes to Make at Home by Lara Ferroni.  And I found  the perfect recipe, Lemon Ricotta Doughnuts or Donuts, which called for 8 oz of ricotta cheese.  In making this recipe I was able to use my microplane to zest lemons and my other gift a powdered sugar shaker.  I had so much fun using my new kitchen "toys" and making delicious food at home.    Cooking or baking does not have to be a chore or difficult, we just have to learn to have fun in the kitchen.  On another note, I would recommend the cookbook if you are a doughnut lover, but for me,  I just like to bake and expand my repertoire.

Lemon-Ricotta Pancakes

Whether you love pancakes or don't, this recipe may change your mind.  Personally, I'm not a pancake fan and don't think pancakes make a good breakfast, but these lemon-ricotta pancakes are light and fluffy and make a great dessert or brunch dish.  In fair warning though, they can be addictive once you try them.  Even more so when you use homemade ricotta cheese (click here for my post on making ricotta).

This recipe is from another Williams-Sonoma cookbooks, Essentials of Breakfast & Brunch, click here for a link.  However, you can find the recipe on their website, just click here.  I usually pair these pancakes with blueberries or blackberries.  Strawberries just don't work with this dish, for me.  Though they are great by themselves too.

This recipe does call for buttermilk, but I find it can be hard sometimes to find organic buttermilk.  A great substitution if you can't find buttermilk, or don't have it on hand is to use whole milk or half-and-half.  Buttermilk is a bit sour or tangy compared to milk or half-and-half, so I add a dash of apple cider vinegar.  Depending on how much buttermilk is called for determines how much apple cider vinegar I will add.  Roughly about 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar for 2 cups of milk.  Note: Don't measure the full 2 cups of milk, the apple cider vinegar and milk should still measure 2 cups together, not more.

The other great gadget to use for this recipe and any other time you zest citrus is a Microplane grater.  I was given one for my birthday this year and I LOVE it.  Zesting the lemons were so easy, you barely touch the lemon to the grater and end up with a ton of zest.  If you usually use a normal grater, as I have in the past, this is the gadget for your wish list because you will be able to zest citrus much easier.

Now on to the results of this recipe:

The main ingredients (not all)

Look at that zest!

It will be slightly lumpy because of the ricotta

Egg white soft peaks - adds the light, fluffy texture to the panckaes

I use a ladle to pour the batter on the griddle

Looks like it's time to eat!