Candied Carrots

Another side dish worth noting were these delicious candied carrots we made for Easter. They were so sweet and sticky, you wouldn't believe you were eating a vegetable.

Ingredients:

1 bunch young carrots, with tops
1/4 cup olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 orange, zested and halved
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut off all but 1-inch of the carrot tops, leaving a little green. Put the carrots in a large shallow pan, add the oil, and season with salt and pepper. Turn to coat the carrots. Stick them in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the carrots are fork-tender.

In the meantime, melt the butter in a skillet over medium-low heat. Swirl the pan around and cook until the butter begins to become brown and nutty. Squeeze in the juice from the orange halves, add the zest, brown sugar, cumin and cinnamon and continue to cook for 2 minutes or until syrupy.

Remove the carrots from the oven, drizzle the orange brown butter over the carrots and serve.

Horseradish Mashed Potatoes with Balsamic Carmelized Onions

I'm always looking for new ways to spruce up classic side dishes and I love experimenting by adding different ingredients to mashed potatoes.....nowadays, you can go into any Steak House and find "Blue Cheese Mashed" or "Loaded Mashed" but I wanted something a little more unique. SO, when I went home for Easter dinner and was told we were making mashed potatoes I decided to come up with something new.....they were a huge hit!

Ingredients:
1 stick butter
3 med-large white onions, sliced thinly
3 T. balsamic vinegar
2 T. chopped fresh Thyme

3 1/2 lbs. potatoes (yukon gold, russets), peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
6-8 T. milk
6 T. butter
1/4 cup prepared white horseradish

Melt 1/4 cup butter in large skillet over medium heat. Add onions; sauté until deep golden, about 30 minutes. Add vinegar and thyme. Reduce heat to low; sauté 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, cook potatoes in large pot of boiling salted water until very tender, about 20 minutes. Drain. Return to same pot; mash until smooth. Add 6 tablespoons milk, horseradish and 6 tablespoons butter; stir to blend. Thin with 2 tablespoons milk if necessary. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer potatoes to serving dish. Spoon onion mixture atop potatoes. (Can be prepared 8 hours ahead. Cover with foil and refrigerate. Rewarm in 350°F oven about 30 minutes.) Serve hot.

White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake

I have such a sweet tooth and my favorite - roll my eyes in the back of my head - dessert is cheesecake. I'm always looking for different flavors to create in a cheesecake and it seemed that white chocolate and raspberry go together perfectly.

Ingredients:

1 cup chocolate cookie crumbs
3 tablespoons white sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 (10 ounce) package frozen raspberries
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 cup water
2 cups white chocolate chips
1/2 cup half-and-half cream
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, mix together cookie crumbs, 3 tablespoons sugar, and melted butter. Press mixture into the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan. In a saucepan, combine raspberries, 2 tablespoons sugar, cornstarch, and water. Bring to boil, and continue boiling 5 minutes, or until sauce is thick. Strain sauce through a mesh strainer to remove seeds. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, melt white chocolate chips with half-and-half, stirring occasionally until smooth. In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese and 1/2 cup sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs one at a time. Blend in vanilla and melted white chocolate. Pour half of batter over crust. Spoon 3 tablespoons raspberry sauce over batter. Pour remaining cheesecake batter into pan, and again spoon 3 tablespoons raspberry sauce over the top. Swirl batter with the tip of a knife to create a marbled effect.
Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until filling is set. Cool, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 8 hours before removing from pan. Serve with remaining raspberry sauce.

Linguini with Clam Sauce

As the weather starts to warm we tend to want a lighter fare. Linguini with Clam sauce is a perfect way to stay elegant but light. It's perfect for those warm nights when you want to eat a nice meal on the deck by candlelight. Over the years I have made this dish as simple as possible so that it can be perfectly created on a weeknight.....

Ingredients:
2 T. olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced
dash red pepper flakes
1/4 white wine
1 can white clam sauce
1 can whole clams, with juice
1 can chopped clams, with juice
6 T. butter
chopped fresh parsley
1 lb. cooked linguini
1 lb. little neck clams (optional)

Heat olive oil in saute pan and add garlic cloves and red pepper flakes to taste. Be careful not to burn, garlic cooks quickly. Add can of clam sauce and clams with juices. Once it begins to boil bring down to simmer. Add wine and 4 T. butter. Cover and simmer until pasta is done. Just before tossing with pasta, add 2 T. butter to round out flavor and chopped fresh parsley. Toss with linguini and serve.

Note: for a more romantic flare, add fresh littleneck clams to sauce 5 minutes before finished. Allow to steam open and toss with pasta.