Jane Dough's Sun-Kissed Lavender Madeleines

                     Buttery, aromatic and sweet... perfect for a Springtime treat! Try my.....
                                                   Sun-Kissed Lavender Madeleines                                 

2 Large Eggs
2/3 cup Sugar
1 Tsp Orange Extract
Orange zest from 1 Orange
1 Tblsp. Lavender
1 1/4 Cups Pastry Flour ( you can use All Purpose Flour if you do not have Pastry Flour on hand)
1 1/4 sticks unsalted Butter, melted, cooled slightly

                                                 

                                                                                         
                                                         
Preheat oven to 350'
Grease Madeleine pans. Using electric mixer, beat Eggs and 2/3 cup Sugar in large bowl just to blend. beat in Orange Extract, Orange Zest. Add Flour, beat just until blended. Fold in Lavender. Gradually add melted Butter in a steady stream , beating just until blended. Spoon 1 Tblsp. batter into each indentation in pan, as shown. Bake until puffed and lightly browned.

             I lightly dust them with Powdered sugar....  I hope you will give them a go... & Enjoy!

The Tree of Life/ The Importance of All

                                                                The Tree of Life
                                                          Is the Tree of Humanity.
                                                   All people are bound together
                                                By the simple outreach of branches.
                                           What affects an individual branch of the tree, 
                                  Affects the health and well-being of the tree as a whole.
                                   Respect and Protect All... no matter their cycle of living.
                                                                     Like leaves,
                                                               Some sprout new,
                                                                      and tender.
                                                              Some grow strong,
                                                                     and green.
                                                               Some grow aged,
                                                                    and golden.
                                                              Some have fallen,
                                                           and carry forth a promise.
                                                  All are important to the tree of Life.
                     Without the nourishment of the aged and fallen,
                                                                   the new and young
                                                                                  will never
                                                                                               grow.

Jane Dough's Taco Pie

 

Cinco de Mayo is coming up soon and I very much enjoy cooking Hispanic. I was pondering recently how I could create a dish that would allow me to enjoy the beautiful flavor of Tacos, but control the amount of salt and fat in my recipe. So, with that said... I came up with a Taco Pie. The crust is simply an adaptation of my Pie crust, using Corn meal. And I rendered away the fat from the meat... and infused it with wonderful herb and spice. Here is my recipe:

                                                      Jane Dough's Taco Pie

For the Pie crust:

1 Cup ground Corn Meal
1/2 Cup All Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup Shortening
4-5 Tblsp. Cold Tap Water

In a medium bowl, blend the Corn Meal and Flour. Add Shortening and blend that thru with a fork until the dough takes on a peas appearance.

Add cold Tap Water and continue to blend that in with a fork..... until the dough reaches a consistency that when pressed with your fingers it holds shape.

Press the Pie dough firmly into a pie dish as shown, forming your Pie crust. Take the tines of a fork and randomly poke holes into the crust. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 350' until lightly golden.

  
                                                                       







While your Pie Crust is baking... you can work on the 'Pie Filling".  

In a Skillet, place approx. 1.25 Lbs of Ground Beef,  Browning the meat, keeping it loose with a fork, and rendering off the fat from the meat as it cooks. Do be sure to remove the fat from the meat... I know.. some of you might say that removes the flavor... but to that, as a Nurse & an avid Cook... I say.. Nonsense!!... :P Just look at the awfulness that won't be going into your body......

 

                                                       Once the fat is removed from the Ground Beef, add in 2 Tblsp. of Chili Powder, 1 Tblsp. of Smokey Cumin powder and 1 heaping Tsp. of dried Cilantro. Add in 1/2 to 3/4 Cup of TapWater to this and stir through to make a 'Broth' throughout the meat. You will cook this broth down on medium heat until it is infused and absorbed into the meat and the meat is well coated.







Then dice up Avocado and Tomato, finely shred Iceberg Lettuce and set aside.....

 

When your Pie crust is out of the oven, .......

 

Fill it with the coated Ground Beef, and top the Ground Beef with your favorite Low Fat shredded Cheese. Place back into the oven for just a minute or two to let the cheese melt.

 

 

You can then finish layering on the lovely fresh vegetables... placing Lettuce first, then Avocado, then Tomato. If you like Black Olives, you can dice those onto the pie. Cut into slices and top with your favorite Salsa ... and if you must be bad... Sour Cream... but do me a favor... go with low fat Sour Cream... :P This was really fun for me to make...I hope you enjoy it as well.... xo  

In Celebration of Warmer Weather! Taste of Tropics for Springtime

Happy Easter! And happy Springtime!!... Such a marvelous time of year... the Weather is warming up... Sun is shining, Plants are beginning to grow again, Birds are singing ..and having babies.... :)
This Easter I made my traditional Angel Food cake...so light and fluffy!  I don't ever remember an Easter without one.... and of course, the annual colored eggs... fun to do, for big kids too!.... I decided, for Easter, to bring a little Tropical taste to my menu with lots of fruit and veggies to enjoy...A toast to Sunny Days with wonderful Apricot Bellinis with Prosecco at Breakfast... And Sun inspired slaw, as well as Couscous with palate warming Chicken Fingers for Dinner. BTW... any of the three recipes I'm about to share with you would be great going into Summer! Easy, quick to make.. and fun to eat!  This is what I came up with...

First, let's get going the main Entrée... my Hot Chick Chicken Tenders. To make them...

7-8 Chicken Tenders
1/2 Cup of Honey
1 Tblsp. Sriracha Sauce
2-3 Cups of Panko Crumbs

Line a baking pan with Heavy duty Foil. Spray the foil with cooking spray.

I combine the Honey and Sriracha sauce in a small bowl. ( you may want to adjust the Honey/ Sriracha Sauce ratio to your own taste, as the Sriracha is very hot and spicy)

I place the Panko Crumbs on a plate.

One at a time, dip the Chicken Tenders in the Honey/Sriracha Sauce, then roll the tenders in the Panko Crumbs. Place on the foil lined baking tray. Spray the Crumb coated tenders with a little cooking spray. ( This both seals the juice in the tenders as well as encourages the crumbs to brown nicely. Bake the tenders at 385' until the Panko crumbs are Deep Golden Brown. See my Photo below.

Caribbean Carrot Slaw

1 Cup diced fresh Pineapple
1/2 Cup Raisins
10 Oz. matchstick cut Carrots
2 Tblsp light Olive Oil
2 Tblsp. Lemon Juice
2 Tblsp. Maple Syrup
1 Tblsp. Pineapple juice
2 Tblsp. chopped fresh Italian Parsley                       
Cracked Black Pepper to taste



Combine the Carrots, Raisins, Pineapple and Parsley in a medium sized bowl, and toss. In a Salad Dressing Cruet, combine the Olive Oil, Lemon Juice, Maple Syrup, Pineapple Juice, and cracked Pepper. Shake well and pour over the tossed Fruit/ Vegetables. ( If you don't have a Cruet, then whisk the liquid ingredients in a separate bowl) Toss further to coat.


Coucous a L'Orange         

                                          

3/4 Cup of Orange Juice
1/2 Cup of Water
1 Tsp. ground Coriander
1/4 Tsp. Cinnamon
Cracked Black pepper to taste

Combine the Orange Juice, Water, Coriander, Cinnamon and Pepper in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil. Then remove from the heat. Add in

1 Cup of uncooked Couscous 
1/4 Cup of dried Cranberries
1/4 Cup of chopped Red Onion

Cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Transfer to a large bowl.

Meanwhile take 1/4 Cup of slice Almonds and toast. ( I toasted mine in my toaster oven, or you can toast stovetop in a skillet)

Add the toasted Almonds, and 3 Tblsp chopped fresh Italian Parsley to the Couscous.

In a small bowl,  whisk

1/4 Cup Orange Juice
1 Tblsp. Lime Juice
2 Tsp. Stoneground Mustard
1 1/2 Tblsp. Olive Oil

Drizzle this mixture over the Couscous and toss to coat.

If you have a taste for adventure, You are going to love these...  Amusez-vous!