Easter Brunch 2011

Last Sunday, we hosted our largest annual Easter Brunch ever!  Unforunately, I was too busy and totally forgot about taking pictures so all of these are post-brunch photos.

Brunch was especially fun this year because three of my old friends from my hometown joined us to celebrate!  There are about a dozen Campolindo High School alumni living in DC from my graduating class and it's so great to have a little taste of home when you're 3,000 miles away.

But I must say that it was a wonderful success and we even got to use the beautiful three-tiered serving dish that Bill and Pat got us for Christmas (but Mom and Dad Merschat brought it up for the weekend and we opened it up on Easter Eve... what perfect timing!)

We stuck with some tried and true recipes for our brunch menu:
Chocolate Cupcakes (featured above with robin eggs on top)
Strawberry and Rosemary Scones (PERFECT for spring brunch)
Red Pepper Hummus (Michael also made an extra batch sans pepper for Mama Merschat)
Chicken Salad Sandwiches (featured on our beautiful new serving platter)
Lox and Bagels
Mini Quiches
Fruit Salad
Mimosas (of course!)

And the highlight of the afternoon was the Merschat family tradition of Easter Egg "dutzing."  I can't find any reference of "dutzing" (or any other variation on its spelling) via google but I did find this link explaining German Easter Egg Battles.

So you take some beautifully decorated Easter eggs that took hours to decorate and dye...

...and then you pick a partner and smack the eggs together!  One egg will crack, the other will not, and the winner "challenges" another opponent with a non-cracked egg until there is only one winner.  The winner gets good luck all year long... and this year Mama Merschat got all the good luck with her winning mushroom egg.

Easy Garlic-Crusted Roast Rack of Lamb

We had a wonderful Easter weekend with Dad and Mom Merschat in DC!  In addition to church at the National Cathedral and Easter brunch, we had dinner at Elizabeth's on Saturday and Michael made the most delicious rack of lamb.  (Forgot my camera so we didn't get any photos but it looked pretty similar to the magazine photo above... without the twigs under the plate!)

Of course it's from the most recent Food & Wine and a relatively simple recipe.  We served it with a salad and the Wild Rice and Brown Rice Salad with Walnuts and Asparagus.  So good.

INGREDIENTS
1 head of garlic, cloves peeled
1/4 cup rosemary leaves
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 racks of lamb, frenched (2 pounds each)
Salt and freshly ground pepper

In a mini food processor, combine the garlic, rosemary and olive oil and process until the garlic is finely chopped. Season the lamb racks with salt and pepper and rub the garlic-rosemary oil all over them. Set the racks fat side up on a large rimmed baking sheet and let stand for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 450°. Roast the lamb in the upper third of the oven for 15 minutes. Turn the racks and roast for 10 minutes longer for medium-rare meat. Transfer the racks to a carving board, stand them upright and let rest for 10 minutes.

Carve the racks in between the rib bones and transfer to plates. Serve right away.

Happy Friday!

It's just been one of those days that has dragged on forever...

...so I thought I'd post one of our favorite videos because it always puts a smile on my face (especially on days like this).

Happy Friday!

Growing Mushrooms

...well, not quite the Alice in Wonderland mushrooms that will make you grow taller and shorter... but equally as awesome!

Carl and Holley are growing shiitake mushrooms!  They inoculated the logs last weekend and I couldn't contain myself so I had to post photos:

Shiitake mushrooms have some great health benefits so we're definitely going to look for some delicious recipes when these little babies are harvested!

And last but not least, Ernie helped too...

Easy Jam Tart

The crust is what makes this super simple tart.  It reminds me of buttery cornbread.

Spring is the perfect time for sweet and easy treats!  I found this recipe on Smitten Kitchen, and she got it from David Lebovitz... and since I love both blogs so much, I figured this recipe had to be a winner.

Now, I'd love to try this recipe with apricot jam but I didn't have any in my pantry.  However, I did have two delicious looking jams in my kitchen so we did a bake-off: Cherry vs. Orange Cranberry Marmalade.

VS.

And the winner is.....

CHERRY!  (The marmalade is truly delicious but the cherry tastes better in this tart)

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cups (210 grams) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (70 grams) stone-ground cornmeal or polenta
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
9 tablespoons (4 1/2 ounces or 130 grams) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
1 large egg, whole
1 large egg, separated
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/3 to 1 3/4 cups (450 grams) jam (see Note above; I used the smaller amount) or marmalade
2 tablespoons (30 grams) coarse-crystal or granulated sugar

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or in a food processor, mix the butter and 1/2 cup (100 grams) sugar together until smooth. Add the egg, egg yolk (keep the egg white from the second egg on hand for later) and almond extract and beat until combined. Gradually add the flour mixture and mix until the dough just comes together.

Transfer about one-third of the dough to a lightly floured counter and shape it into a log about 2 inches (5 cm) in diameter. Wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate it until needed. (As always, I was in a rush and put this in the freezer.)

Transfer the remaining dough to a buttered 9-inch (23-cm) tart pan with a removable bottom of a 9-inch (23-cm) springform pan. Using your hands, press the dough evenly into the bottom. If using a tart pan, press the dough up the sides to the rim of the pan and set the tart pan on a baking sheet. If using a springform pan, press the dough about 3/4-inch (2-cm) up the sides of the pan. Refrigerate the dough-lined pan until firm, at least one hour. (Again, I used the freezer and it was firm in 30 minutes. I am impatient.)

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Spread the jam or marmalade evenly over the dough in the pan. Cut the chilled dough into very thin discs with a sharp paring knife. Arrange them slightly overlapped in concentric circles over the jam to form a top crust. Whisk the remaining egg white with a teaspoon of water until frothy; brush evenly over the tart lid and then sprinkle with 2 tablespoons (30 grams) coarse sugar. Bake until the top crust is golden brown, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely.

Do ahead: This tart keeps beautifully for up to 3 days if well-wrapped at room temperature. David says that it’s pretty sturdy, so perfect to take along on a picnic.

Garden Party & Bonfire 2011

Let us know if you want to join us in Barnardsville for Independence Day weekend!  We'd love to see you!

Easy Monkey Bread Muffins

I've always had a little sweet spot of monkey bread but it's always seemed so messy when baked in a loaf or in a bundt pan.  So when I saw this recipe on Two Peas and their Pod, I had to try it out.  Here's my version of the recipe with a couple tweaks:

INGREDIENTS

3 cans of refrigerated biscuits (I used the Safeway Jumbo biscuits)
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 cup of sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1 stick of butter
1 cup of brown sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray.
2. Cut the biscuits in quarters and roll the dough into little balls.
3. Combine the cinnamon, sugar and optional chopped pecans. Roll the balls in the mixture.
4. Place four balls in one muffin cup. Fill the pan.
5. Melt the butter and brown sugar in a small pot on the stove. Stir until melted and bubbly.
6. Pour the gooey sauce over the muffins.
7. Bake for 10-15 minutes (depending on oven... mine took about 15 mins)
8. Cool for a minute in pan. Remove muffins from pan and enjoy the pretty little muffin!
Makes 24 muffins

Forget about your diet momentarily... you're going to want to make this for breakfast next weekend...