Angel Food Cake with Lime and Fresh Mango Sauce

For my brother's birthday cake, I wanted to make something fresh and light, since it was just the beginning of spring. We also had a busy day planned, so I had to choose a recipe that could be made in a few hours, without lots of different steps or fillings/frostings.

My brother loves mangoes and limes, and I had tons of egg whites in the freezer, so I decided to make an Angel Food Cake. I decided to flavor it with lime zest and then use the fresh mango sauce from Ellie Krieger's new book as the topping. I figured the lime and mango go well with ginger, so the cake and sauce would compliment the ginger ice cream.


Everyone loved the cake and the mango sauce. I thought the mango sauce overpowered the delicate cake a little bit and preferred the flavor of the cake plain, the next day. I doubled the mango sauce because I knew my brother would probably want to eat it plain. I decreased the amount of sugar in the sauce too, because our mangoes were really flavorful and sweet. I used some of the leftover sauce in a really fun muffin, but that will come later.

I don't know if you have ever made an angel food cake from scratch, but they are so delicious. One from a box mix or from the store just can't compare. I am definitely hooked.



Fresh Mango Sauce adapted from So Easy by Ellie Krieger
2 medium ripe mangoes, peeled, pitted and cut into chunks
2 Tbls fresh lime juice
1 Tbls sugar

In a blender or food processor, process half the mangoes with the lime juice and sugar. Dice the rest of the mangoes.
Serve with angel food cake.

Recipe for Classic Angel Food Cake
* I used the orange variation listed down below the recipe but change it to lime by added the zest of 2 limes to the batter

Cranberry Orange Scones

A couple of weeks ago, Bridget of The Way the Cookie Crumbles, posted a bunch of scone recipes, one after the other.
I had been looking for another way to use my fresh cranberries and had seen lots of scones with dried cranberries, but fresh are so much better!
I made some scones with fresh cranberries last year, which were really good, but I always like trying new recipes and I loved that this recipe had 1 1/2 cups of fresh cranberries.
Bridget noted that the original recipe calls for lemon zest to be used in these scones, but she used orange instead and I wanted to use orange too, because cranberry and orange is a classic combination in my mind.
I was curious if I could make these work using low-fat buttermilk instead of heavy cream, just to make them a little bit on the healthier side.
I did it and they worked.
I reduced the amount by about 2 Tbls and the dough was still very soft, but it worked.

I also made a quick glaze with powdered sugar, fresh orange juice and orange zest.
These were delicious!
My girls and my nephew each gobbled one down, which kind of surprised me since the cranberries are very tart.
I froze a couple, which were already baked and shared them with my sister when she came to visit.
These would also make a great holiday breakfast or brunch item. Very seasonal and festive.

And besides, cranberries have more antioxidants than almost any other fruit. That has to make you feel good about eating one of these scones.


Recipe for Cranberry Orange Scones

Orange Rolls with No-Rise Dough

I can't remember when I saw this recipe, but I actually made it months ago when I had some cottage cheese in the fridge to use and I somehow came upon this recipe that uses cottage cheese in the dough.
I was on a kick of trying out different cinnamon roll/breakfast recipes and decided to give this recipe a try.
I wasn't sure how my family would like the orange filling and glaze, so I made half of the rolls with a cinnamon filling- the one from this recipe.
My daughter helped me put together the dough and different fillings and this recipe was super easy, which I absolutely love.
The thing that is great about these rolls, is that they are ready in no time and they taste just as good as any breakfast roll that contains yeast. I was surprised at how well the orange rolls were received, especially by my hubby. He really liked them.
The only thing I changed was the glaze on the orange rolls. I just used a combination of powdered sugar and fresh orange juice.
These would be a great thing to try at a holiday brunch or breakfast because they are ready in a flash.

Recipe for Orange Rolls with No-Rise Dough from Our Best Bites

Cranberry-Pecan Bread

I have really tried not to buy every Holiday Baking Magazine that I see. I have been successful! There have been a couple that I couldn't resist, but at least I am making some of the recipes out of them, so it hasn't been a waste of money.
I saw this Cranberry-Pecan Bread (the recipe originally used walnuts, but I think pecans are better, so I subbed them in) and thought it would be a fun recipe to try.
A basic quick bread with a hint of orange, cranberries and toasted pecans. Perfect for the holidays.
Of course, everything is easier to share when you make it into minis.
I halved the recipe and it made 5 mini loaves.
The recipe says to top the bread with a chopped cranberry/sugar topping, but I was a bit skeptical as to how it would stay on top of the bread, so topped half of the mini loaves with decorating sugar and half with the cranberry/sugar topping before I baked them.
I also reduced the sugar by about 1/4 cup and have been doing that lately in most recipes I bake, because it seems like it doesn't really affect the taste that much to leave out some of the sugar.

When I took out the loaves, I realized that the cranberry topping made the tops of some of the loaves sink a bit, so that is probably why the topping was supposed to be put on after baking. Oh well, I guess that is how you learn, right?
The ones with only the sugar topping was done at 20 minutes. The others took a couple minutes more.

My kids really loved this bread. I also gave a couple of these away, so this would be a good food gift for this time of year.
Cranberry-Pecan Bread from Cuisine at Home Holiday Baking
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp cloves
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries, divided
1 cup granulated sugar, divided
1 cup buttermilk (I used low-fat)
2 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I used canola oil)
2 tsp grated orange zest
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans (the recipe originally called for walnuts)
3 Tbls coarse or turbinado sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F; coat a 9x5-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray.
Whisk together flour and next 5 ingredients in a bowl; make a well in the center. Set dry ingredients aside.
Toss 1 1/4 cups cranberries with 1/4 cup granulated sugar in a small bowl; set sugared cranberries aside.
Whisk together buttermilk, the remaining 3/4 cup granulated sugar, eggs, oil, zest, and vanilla in a separate bowl until fully combined. Pour buttermilk mixture into well of dry ingredients; stir only until dry ingredients are moistened.
Stir the sugared cranberries and pecans into the batter. Pour batter in the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and bread is golden on top, about an hour. Cool in pan on a rack for 15 minutes.
Pulse the remaining 1/4 cup cranberries in a mini food processor (or mince them by hand); toss with coarse sugar for the topping.
Turn bread out onto cooling rack; sprinkle top of loaf with the cranberry-sugar topping. Let bread cool completely before serving.

2 Thanksgiving Sides- Autumn Hash and Vegetable Trio with Orange-Thyme Dressing

I love roasting vegetables. I truly believe that any vegetable can taste delicious if you roast it in the oven with a little bit of olive oil, salt and pepper. It's true for brussel sprouts, parsnips, beets, cauliflower, etc. I could give millions of examples.
I saw a couple of recipes in the Thanksgiving issues of food magazines and these 2 side dishes really looked delicious. I decided to try both of them and see if they would be a great addition at a Thanksgiving dinner. Both of these would be great for a special occasion, but I also think they would be great anytime. Delicious.

The first recipe comes from Bon Appetit and I thought it looked beautiful with all the different colors and I loved that they included the beet greens, mixing them in with the oven-roasted vegetables. The original recipe calls for potatoes, sweet potatos, yams, baby golden beets, and butternut squash. I changed it a little bit and decided to use red potatoes, butternut squash, golden and red beets. The fresh herbs it uses are oregano, Italian parsley, and rosemary.

I couldn't find baby beets, so I just used normal sized beets and cut them into small pieces.
This was really delicious and a great way to get more vegetables on the table!

Recipe for Potato and Autumn Vegetable Hash



The second recipe I found in Ladies Home Journal. It combines acorn squash, carrots, and beets. It also has a fabulous dressing that combines thyme (one of my fave herbs) and orange juice/zest. Delicious! The thyme and orange really go great together and make these vegetables taste amazing.

Spice up your thanksgiving table by adding some delicious color and nutrition with roasted vegetables!


Recipe for Vegetable Trio with Orange-Thyme Dressing

Recipe for Potato and Autumn Vegetable Hash

Sauteed Broccolini

Back in the spring, I had the chance to choose the bonus recipe for Barefoot Bloggers. I am no longer a part of that particular cooking group, but at the time, I could not find Broccolini anywhere!
It was so frustrating. I must have checked at 6 or 7 different stores and just gave up.

So, imagine my surprise and excitement, 6 months later when I spotted Broccolini at Publix!
As soon as I saw it, I decided that I would make this very easy, Barefoot Contessa side dish and find out exactly what I had missed.

Well, if you have had Broccolini, then you know that it is delicious!
This recipe is so easy. It takes only a matter of minutes.
First, you blanch the broccolini and then, you saute it with a little garlic and lemon zest, except I didn't have a lemon, so I used lime. It was soo good with the lime zest.

The best thing about broccolini, is that you can eat the entire stem and it tastes good. It is 20x better than normal broccoli.

We ate ours with our fingers, while we were having a picnic in the front yard, with pizza.
My kids went crazy for it, but who doesn't love finger food?


Recipe for Sauteed Broccolini

One Year Ago-Pink Grapefruit Sandwich Cookies and Grapefruit Mousse

Dorie's Tiramisu Cake with Mixed Berries and Lime Curd

Back in May, Megan chose Tiramisu Cake for Tuesday's with Dorie and I didn't make it for some reason or another, one of the reasons being that I don't drink coffee and didn't spend the time trying to figure out some kind of flavor substitute. Then, a few weeks later, the June issue of Bon Appetit arrived in the mail and it had a recipe for Mixed-Berry Tiramisu with Lime Curd. As soon as I looked at the recipe, I knew I would be making Dorie's cake and the berries/lime curd from Bon Appetit and somehow combining these 2 recipes for an awesome cake. I just didn't know when.
Fast forward a couple of months. My mother-in-law asked me to make a cake for her mother/my hubby's grandma's 89th birthday.

Without thinking twice- I knew this was the cake.

I made the cake and filling/frosting from Dorie's recipe (subbing 1/3 less fat cream cheese for the mascarpone because someone mentioned that it worked great when they did that for TWD) and the mixed berries, lime curd, and lime syrup from the Bon Appetit recipe.

The lime curd and berries are made the night before and then they sit in the fridge to chill.

The cake baked up perfectly. I soaked it with the lime syrup, then filled the middle with the lime curd, and frosted it.

It sat in the fridge for a couple hours and then everyone came to our house to eat the cake. (I was too scared to transport it in the heat/humidity-no one wants a melting cake!)
Everyone loved it. There were even a few requests that it be made again in the future. It would be great as a trifle too.

I am so glad my recipe mixing turned out so deliciously!

Tiramisu Cake from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: from my home to yours

For the cake:
2 cups cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 ¼ sticks (10 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
¾ cup buttermilk

For the espresso extract: I didn't make this
2 tbs. instant espresso powder
2 tbs. boiling water

For the espresso syrup: I didn't make this
½ cup water
1/3 cup sugar
1 tbs. amaretto, Kahlua, or brandy

For the filling and frosting:
1 8-oz. container mascarpone cheese
½ cup confectioners sugar, sifted
1 ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
1 tbs. amaretto, Kahlua, or brandy I didn't add this to my frosting
1 cup cold heavy cream
2 ½ oz. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped, or about ½ cup store bought mini chocolate chips

Chocolate covered espresso beans, for decoration (optional)
Cocoa powder, for dusting

Getting ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 9 x 2 inch round cake pans, dust the insides with flour, tap out the excess and line the bottoms of the pans with parchment or wax paper. Put the pans on a baking sheet.

To make the cake: Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter on medium speed until soft and creamy. Add the sugar and beat for another 3 minutes. Add the eggs one by one, and then the yolk, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla; don’t be concerned if the mixture looks curdled. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, adding the dry ingredients in three additions and the buttermilk in two (begin and end with the dry ingredients); scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed and mix only until the ingredients disappear into the batter. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.Bake for 28-30 minutes(I baked my cakes for 27 minutes and they were perfect!), rotating the pans at the midway point. When fully baked, the cakes will be golden and springy to the touch and a thin knife inserted into the centers will come out clean. Transfer the cakes to a rack and cool then for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unmold them and peel off the paper liners. Invert and cool to room temperature right side up.

To make the extract: Stir the espresso powder and boiling water together in a small cup until blended. Set aside.

To make the syrup: Stir the water and sugar together in a small saucepan and bring just to a boil. Pour the syrup into a small heatproof bowl and stir 1 tablespoon of the espresso extract and the liqueur or brandy; set aside.

To make the filling and frosting: Put the mascarpone, sugar, vanilla and liqueur in a large bowl and whisk just until blended and smooth. Working with the stand mixer with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer, whip the heavy cream until it holds firm peaks. Switch to a rubber spatula and stir about one quarter of the whipped cream into the mascarpone. Fold in the rest of the whipped cream with a light touch.

I used the lime curd, lime syrup, and mixed berry recipes below

Recipe for Mixed-Berry Tiramisu with Lime Curd from Bon Appetit

Recipe for Lime Curd from Bon Appetit

One Year Ago- Peaches and Cream Chiffon Cake, Raspberry-Lime Sorbet, and Vanilla-Raspberry Ice Cream