Strawberry & Mascarpone Crostini

Crostini is made by thinly slicing bread, generally a plain white bread and then toasting it in the oven. It is then topped with a variety of toppings and is often used as an appetizer.

For this recipe I used a bagette, sliced in into thin slices, and then topped it with mascarpone cheese and strawberries.

For those of you who have been following by blog, you will notice that the mascarpone mixture is the same as that used for the stuffed french toast.

For the upcoming Fourth of July weekend, try some blueberries and either strawberries or raspberries on top for a patriot themed snack.

Ingredients:

Bagette - sliced into 1/4 inch slices

Cinnamon

Strawberried

Honey

Lemon juice

4 oz. mascarpone cheese

1 tsp. lemon zest

2 T. honey

Directions:

To prepare to crostini -

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place the bread slices on a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet. This way the bread will toast on both sides. Sprinkle each slice with cinnamon. Toast in the oven for about 10 minutes, until crispy. Set aside to cool.

Mix the cheese, zest and honey together in a small bowl with a spoon or spatula. Set aside.

Slice the strawberries. Drizzle with honey and a little bit of the juice from the lemon you zested - to taste. Set aside.

To put together, simply spread some of the mascarpone mixture on each slice of toast and top with a few berries. It's as simple as that!

Enjoy!

Mascarpone Stuffed French Toast w/ Strawberries

Not sure what to do with your strawberries? Need a new idea? Here's one. ...... Stuffed Mascarpone French Toast with Strawberries!

You may ask, what in the heck is Mascarpone? Mascarpone is a cheese - a triple cream cheese - the main ingredient in Tiramisu. All I know is that it taste very yummy.

This is really quite an easy recipe, and the variations are endless.

Not a big fan of strawberries? Then switch out the strawberries for raspberries, blueberries, apples, peaches, etc. One of my favorite varieties is with apples and walnuts over top.

So, if you don't already have your strawberries, head on down to your local farmers market, or roadside strawberry stand and pick some up. But remember to leave a few for the french toast :)

Ingredients:

Filling -

4 oz. Mascarpone Cheese (cream cheese will work too)

1 tsp. lemon zest

2 T. honey

Mix the cheese, zest and honey together in a small bowl with a spoon or spatula. Set aside.

Toast and batter -

8 slices day old French or Italian bread - (most often I just use the wheat bread I have in the house)

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1/2 tsp cinnamon (cardamon would be a nice touch too)

1 tsp vanilla

Whisk eggs, mild, cinnamon and vanilla together. Set aside.

Topping:

Strawberries (or berry of your choosing)

Honey

Lemon juice

Slice the strawberries. Drizzle with honey and a little bit of the juice from the lemon you zested - to taste. Set aside.

To Prepare:

Spread one fourth of the cheese mixture on a slice of bread. Put a layer of strawberries on top of the cheese mixture.

Top this with another slice of bread, making sandwich.

Place the sandwich in the egg mixture as you normally would for french toast.

Place in a heated skillet or griddle. I like to put a little butter in the pan, or on the griddle for extra flavor. Cook on each side until golden brown - just like normal french toast.

To plate, sprinkle with powdered sugar. If you'd like, add some extra berries and almonds.

Now that's a tasty treat!

Enjoy!

Springtime Asparagus Frittata

Spring has arrived and with it comes a bounty of fresh tender asparagus. If you've been down to your local farmer's market lately you've noticed that about the only produce available this early in the spring season are asparagus, spinach, and scallions.

The question arises as to what to do with the asparagus once you get it home? One of my favorite and simplest ways to prepare asparagus as a side dish is grilling it. Simply brush with olive oil, and sprinkle with sea salt and ground pepper. All is takes is a few minutes. Very tasty!

Another great way to prepare asparagus is in this lovely springtime frittata. I love making frittatas. They are quick and easy, and the variations are endless. Just switch out the asparagus for another veggie of your choosing (perhaps some spinach or broccoli), and have some fun experimenting with different cheeses. The possibilities are endless.

Springtime Asparagus Frittata:

Ingredients:

2 cups asparagus, cut into 1" diagonal pieces

1 1/2 cups button mushrooms, sliced

1 medium onion, diced. (scallions or leeks would work too)

2 Tbsp. EVOO - olive oil

8 eggs

3/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp. sea salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 cup fontini cheese (or other cheese of your choosing - goat cheese is great too)

1-2 Tbs. chives, chopped

fresh grated parmesan cheese

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

In a medium skillet, heat oil over medium high heat. Add the asparagus, mushrooms and onions and saute until the asparagus is tender (about 5-8 minutes).

Meanwhile, in a bowl, beat the eggs, milk, salt and pepper. Stir in the fontini cheese. Once the vegetables are done, gently fold them into the egg mixture. Pour the mixture into a pie plate and place in the oven. Bake for 20- 25 minutes, until the top starts to get golden brown.

In the last few minutes of baking, sprinkle with the grated parmesan and the chives and put back in the oven to finish cooking.

This dish works great for a variety of meals: breakfast, brunch, or a light supper. When I serve this for breakfast or brunch, I simply serve it with whole grain toast and a ice cold glass of milk.

When served as a light supper meal, it is great with a simple salad, which will make good use of the fresh spinach at the farmers market!

So, to all of you who haven't quite made it down to the farmer's market - - - What are you waiting for?

And to all of you who have been there and either didn't know what to do with the asparagus, or were looking for another way to prepare it, I hope you find this recipe to your liking.

Enjoy!

A note about eggs......When it comes to eggs, free range is always the way to go. It's always important to purchase your eggs from somewhere where you know that the chickens who laid them for you, were treated with kindness.

Rustic Broccoli and Mushroom Rotini

Looking for a quick, easy and healthy meal? Look no more. With all the business that spring brings (biking, hiking, kids activities, and of course planting your veggie garden) this dish will get you in and out of the kitchen quickly.

And of course, I must give cud dos to my husband Stephe for its creation. I was a little skeptical when he started throwing this together, but it turned out wonderfully! I don't know why I was skeptical? It is pretty rare that I don't like one of his creations. Great job honey!

Rustic Broccoli and Mushroom Rotini

Ingredients:

8 oz. Rotini pasta (Stephe used veggie rotini)

Broccoli - about 2 small heads. Use the tops only.

8 0z. baby portobello mushrooms

2/3 cup Pine nuts

1/3 cup EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)

5 cloves garlic, minced

2 - 3 Fresh Tarragon, chopped

4 oz. Feta Cheese, crumbled

1/3 tsp. Sea salt

Black Pepper to taste

Preparation:

Prepare the pasta according to package directions.

Meanwhile, in a medium skillet, heat EVOO over medium high heat. Add garlic, mushrooms, salt and pepper and cook for 6-8 minutes.

Add the broccoli and pine nuts, and cook for another 3-4 minutes (until the broccoli is tender crisp).

Drain the pasta and put pan in the cooking pan. Add the feta cheese and tarragon, and gently combine.

To serve: place a serving of pasta on the plate and then scoop the broccoli & mushroom mixture over top. Sprinkle with extra tarragon if you would like.

Enjoy!