Lemon Croutons + Links We Love

One day this week for dinner I made a brothy orzo soup with chicken, herbs, and lemon.  It was delicious, but it wanted something crunchy to go on top. I was in the process of making croutons with a stale baguette (chop it up in squares, sautee in olive oil on medium-low until crispy and golden) when I remembered this lemon infused olive oil I had in my cupboard.  So I made lemon infused croutons.  WHOA.  So good. Amazing on soup as well as salad - the lemon is subtle, fresh, and delicious.  You can buy lemon infused olive oil (I got mine as a free sample from here - cute packaging!) or you can make your own.  Here's a recipe.

Some links we're loving this week:

Dulcie's new favorite last-minute supper.
This fresh dish, by Turntable Kitchen, which would be awesome with homemade ricotta! 
Is organic produce better? A science experiment done by a middle schooler.  Cool.

Ginger Gold Rush Cocktail

This cocktail is sweet and spicy and makes for a delicious fall treat.  The golden color goes perfectly with the leaves, but it’s a refreshing change from all that cinnamon, apple, and pumpkin floating around these days.  This cocktail features pure sweet & spicy ginger, bourbon, and a squeeze of lemon.

We tried out a delicious small batch bourbon for this recipe.  It’s called Black Maple Hill.  An authentic Kentucky Bourbon, this baby has tasting notes of “vanilla, caramel, spice and nectarine. Very smooth without being cloying or flat.”  Thanks to the reviewers here for those notes; my palate loves this bourbon but comes up short with the adjectives. I’d make a terrible perfumier!

Another thing to love about this cocktail is it’s simplicity.  Three ingredients, a citrus twist if you want to be fancy, and serve. 

Ginger Gold Rush

• 1.5 ounces Bourbon
• 1.5 ounces Ginger Liqueur (we used Canton)
• .5 ounces fresh lemon juice

Combine all three ingredients in a shaker with ice.  Shake well, then strain into a martini glass.  Serve with a citrus twist if desired.

Blueberry Hard Lemonade

It has been crazy hot here in Colorado. So hot that, well, much of our state is literally on fire. Thank goodness we are (so far) well out of harm's way, and there is cool weather and rain on the forecast for this weekend! ("Cool weather" now means 80s for us... yeah, it has been rough.) And during these hot, hot days, we've been wanting little else than to sip on cold, refreshing drinks like this one.

This is one of those drinks that my toddler just doesn't understand why she isn't allowed to drink. Lemonade, blueberries, and just a luscious pinky-purple color. Oh yeah, and there's that healthy helping of vodka that makes it strictly adults-only.

We used frozen blueberries in this cocktail because they are something I always have on hand. As a bonus, they help to keep this drink frosty on those 103+ degree days. Sigh. We also love the beautiful color that they provide as they start to melt.

It almost seems silly to provide a recipe because this is so flexible and easy. Feel free to use the proportions of lemonade to vodka to frozen blueberries that makes you happy! But as a guide, here is what we do.

Blueberry Hard Lemonade

• 2 tbs frozen blueberries

• 2 oz vodka

• lemonade (we like Santa Cruz Organic)

• ice

• lemon slice, for garnish

1. Place frozen blueberries into your glass.
2. Add vodka and ice.
3. Add lemonade to fill glass, stir, and garnish with lemon slice.

Lemon Yogurt Cake

It’s amazing how much flavor a healthy dose of lemon zest can contribute. This cake has a brown crisp top, then inside it’s dense and lemony. I personally recommend eating a slice as soon as you pull it out of the oven so you can enjoy the lemony steam this cake creates!

We’ve really been getting our money’s worth from the latest Bon Appetit magazine. The Agave Margaritas were a big success and then we moved right along to this delicious cake. It’s a classic French recipe; the magazine says that it is one of the first recipes French mothers teach to their children. And so I have to assume that everyone in France has this delicious cake recipe memorized. Right? Either way, it’s a great classic recipe.

The lemon zest is added to the sugar, then the two are rubbed together until the oils in the lemon are evenly distributed and the sugar becomes clumpy and moist. The cake comes out of the oven with a shiny brown top, and as you slice it open you’ll release a burst of lemony steam. Enjoy!

Lemon Yogurt Cake

recipe by Bon Appetit

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1 cup sugar

1 Tbsp lemon zest

3/4 cup whole milk Greek yogurt

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 large eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla extract Preheat oven to 350.  Grease & flour an 8 1/2” loaf pan.
Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
Combine lemon zest and sugar in a large bowl, and rub the two together with your fingers until the sugar is moist. Add yogurt, oil, eggs, and vanilla – stir to combine completely.
Fold dry ingredients into wet and stir gently until  just to combined.
Pour batter into pan, smooth top, and bake at 350 for 50-55 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes before cutting.