The Perfect Mimosa Recipe to Serve at Your Next Spring Brunch

March 31, 2016 Callie Cagney

This past weekend I traveled up to New Jersey with my husband and Dolly to spend Easter with my in-laws. We had a wonderful weekend together shopping, going out to dinner and just spending quality time together. The highlight of the weekend would definitely have to have been the delicious brunch my mother-in-law made for us on Easter Sunday. The menu included - a Garden Veggie Gruyere Fritatta, Bacon, Assorted pastries and the most delicious mimosas (pictured above).

I have received a bunch of inquiries from followers wanting to know how to make these fabulous mimosas, so today I am sharing the recipe for making this delicious cocktail. I love this recipe because it is a unique take on the traditional mimosa and is a perfect cocktail for serving/enjoying during the spring and summer months. Below I have included a list of the ingredients, a link to the actual recipe (courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis) and a few ideas for how to style/serve this beverage.

Ingredients

Prosecco
Sparkling Water (Chilled)
Lemons
Agave or Honey
Fresh Strawberries
Fresh Basil

Instructions

See here, for details on how to make Giada's Strawberry, Lemon and Basil Mimosa

Suggestions for Outfitting this Cocktail

Paper Source's Paper Flower Picks
Mackenzie-Childs Blooming Champagne Flutes
Simon Pearce Addison Pitcher
Spring-themed Cocktail Napkins (here and here)

Lemon Gingersnap Cupcakes

September 28, 2015 Callie Cagney

This cupcake recipe is one that I had been dreaming up ever since the creation of my S'more cupcakes. Taking a flavor combination that you love like chocolate, marshmallow and graham crackers, then transposing that flavor profile into an entirely new form is a challenge that I happen to love. For as long as I can remember, I have loved Carr's Ginger Lemon Creme Cookies. The flavor combination of lemon and gingersnap is absolute perfection, so when I began to think about the possibilities for cupcake creations beyond the S'more, Lemon Gingersnap was a no-brainer.

Beyond the fabulous taste of these cupcakes, I love that this recipe is a combination of both homemade and store bought (very Sandra Lee). You are still achieving that homemade product, but saving time during the baking process by incorporating a few pre-made steps (love that!). This is definitely a fabulous and easy dessert idea that I would recommend adding to your recipe arsenal. A crowd pleaser for sure!

Ingredients

For the Crust:

1 Box Nabisco Gingersnaps (*Set 10 cookies aside to use for garnishing)
3 Tbs Granulated Sugar
1 1/2 Sticks Butter (Melted)
1/4 tsp Kosher Salt

For the Cake:

2 Boxes Betty Crocker Super Moist Lemon Cake Mix
Water, Vegetable Oil and Eggs (according to box instructions)

For the Frosting:

1 8oz Package of Cream Cheese (Softened to Room Temperature)
1 Stick Unsalted Butter (Softened to Room Temperature)
1.5lbs Confectioners Sugar
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Zest of 1/2 a Lemon
Juice of 1/2 Lemon (plus more as needed)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees fahrenheit and place oven racks on bottom third section of oven
In a food processor, break down one box of ginger snap cookies until they reach the consistency of crumbs
Combine Crumbs, Sugar and Salt in a bowl with a fork
Once dry ingredients are combined, add melted butter and continue to combine until mixture resembles wet sand
Use a cookie scoop (or similar to achieve uniformity) and add one scoop (approximately 1 Tbs) to each muffin cup that has been lined with a cupcake paper
Press mixture down to create a packed crust (I like to use a 1/4 cup measuring cup with a flat bottom because it fits the space perfectly and I don't have to get my hands dirty)
Bake in oven for about 15 minutes
While the crust is baking, make the cake batter per the instructions on the cake box
When crust is finished baking, remove from oven, move oven rack back to mid-level and increase baking temperature to 350 degrees fahrenheit
Fill each ginger snap crust cupcake cup with batter and then bake in oven for approximately 20-25minutes.
Test cakes with toothpick for doneness. When toothpick comes out clean the cakes are done. **Note- Start with less time and then add extra cooking minutes as needed. You can always bake for additional time but you can "unbake" something that has been over baked.

For the Frosting:

In a bowl, combine cream cheese, butter and vanilla extract with a hand mixer until smooth.
Add Confectioners Sugar in batches until well incorporated (it will be a little thick)
Add the lemon zest and lemon juice
You want to achieve a thicker frosting so that it is easier to pipe, but if too thick/dry simply add more lemon juice (1tsp at a time) until you achieve a smooth consistency
Using a large spatula, scoop the frosting in a gallon size ziplock bag, cut the tip off of one corner of the bag and squeeze the frosting through that cut opening to pipe onto the cupcakes. I didn't use piping tips, but if you have them, here is a video on how to use a piping tip with a ziplock bag.
Garnish with a rustic piece of gingersnap cookie.

Lemon Dijon Herb Pork Tenderloin (That you can make ahead!)

January 17, 2015 Callie Cagney

I don't know if you have ever felt this way before, but during the work week the only thing I want to do when I come home from the office is flop on the couch with a glass of vino and watch a TV show saved on my DVR. My brain feels like pudding and my body like Jello (maybe too vivid of a description), but the point being--I don't want to do anything but relax! The idea of preparing a homemade dinner seems herculean. I don't want to have to think about shopping for the ingredients, chopping ingredients, cooking and then of course…the clean-up (woof, no thanks).

Changing my tune...

Over the past few years, while dating and then engaged to my now husband, there were definitely nights during the week where I wanted to surprise him with a home-cooked dinner after work. I've had a bunch of trial, error (ex. would not recommend making an apple pie from scratch on a week night), and success (ex. Barefoot Contessa's Herb Marinated Pork Tenderloin)!

This pork tenderloin recipe evolved from the success I have had with making Ina Garten's Recipe. I have tweaked the ingredients a bit and will show you how to take the marinade and turn it into a sauce to serve with your pork. The best part about this recipe is that you can start prepping this meal over the weekend but then cook it on a weeknight! Cooking on a weeknight becomes infinitely easier when all you have to do is cook something because all of the prep has been done the day before. Here is my recipe for Lemon Dijon Herb Pork Tenderloin:

Ingredients

3lbs Pork Tenderloin
3/4c Extra Virgin Olive Oil (plus 3Tbs set aside for cooking)
2 1/2 Tbs Fresh Minced Garlic
Zest of 1 Large Lemon
Juice of 2 Large Lemons
1oz Champagne Vinegar
1/4c Dijon Mustard
1tsp Julienned Sage
2Tbs Fresh Chopped Rosemary
2Tbs Fresh Chopped Thyme
1/2tsp Fresh cracked pepper
1 Tsp Salt
1 Gallon Ziplock Bag (I like to double-up and use 2 bags to make sure nothing leaks in my refrigerator, but 1 Ziplock is certainly sufficient)

**Tip- When shopping for the ingredients above, instead of buying each herb individually, just buy the herb pack that says "Poultry Herb Blend" in the produce section. The "Poultry Herb Blend" contains Rosemary, Thyme and Sage (and enough of each for this recipe!), so you can save money by only purchasing one herb box instead of three!

**Tip 2- Easy way to chop the Fresh Rosemary and Thyme--place herb leaves in a bowl, take a pair of kitchen scissors and snip contents until evenly chopped.

4 Kitchen tools that help to make this recipe even easier

Mini Vegetable Chopper- Great for Slicing, Dicing and Mincing Garlic
Citrus Reamer- Great for Juicing Lemons
Microplane- Can be great for zesting citrus or grating hard cheeses.
Digital Meat Thermometer- Investing in a good quality digital meat thermometer will give you an accurate read for determining the internal temperature/doneness of your meat.

Prep Instructions

Add Pork Tenderloin, Olive Oil, Garlic, Lemon Zest, Lemon Juice, Champagne Vinegar, Dijon Mustard, Sage, Rosemary, Thyme, Pepper and Salt to a 1 gallon Ziplock bag.
Squeeze air out of bag, seal bag shut and mush around (apologies for this non-technical term but it is what you have to do) contents of bag.
Place in refrigerator overnight to marinate.

Cooking Instructions

Remove pork tenderloin bag from the refrigerator an hour before you are planning to cook it.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
In an oven safe 12 inch skillet, heat 3 Tbs of extra virgin olive oil on medium high heat
When the pan is hot, pull the pork tenderloin out of the marinade bag shaking off as much excess liquid as you can and place the tenderloin in the heated pan
Brown the tenderloin on all sides (**If there is an excess of liquid in your pan you may need to drain some of it out…otherwise it will take significantly longer to brown the meat because you will have to wait for all of the liquid to evaporate first).
Once the meat has been browned on all sides, remove from stove and place entire pan straight into the oven to finish cooking
Cook the tenderloin in the oven until it reaches an internal temperature between 160 (medium-well) and 170 (well-done) degrees.
Once the meat reaches the suggested internal temperature, remove from oven and cover meat lightly with aluminum foil. Allow meat to rest for approximately 10 minutes before slicing and serving. (Cutting into the meat right out of the oven will cause all of the juices to run out and your meat will be dry.)

For the Sauce

Once the pork tenderloin has been removed from the marinade bag to cook, dump the remaining contents of the ziplock back (the marinade) into a small sauce pot (2qt) and set aside
As soon as the pork goes into the oven, bring the sauce pot to a boil stirring frequently
Continue to cook/boil the marinade for approximately 20min (stirring frequently)
Once the sauce is done cooking, pour through a sieve into a heat safe container (I use a pyrex measuring cup)

To Serve

Cut the pork tenderloin into 1/2 inch thick pieces on the diagonal
Assemble on plate and drizzle with sauce
I like to serve this dish with my Roasted Sweet Potato Discs and Microwave Steamed Green Beans (*Reference first photo in this post*)

Simple Arugula Salad with Homemade Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette

January 9, 2015 Callie Cagney

One thing I love regardless of the season, is a good salad. Filled with so many healthy veggies, fruits and other toppings, the versatility in prepping the salad gives it the ability to work as an appetizer, lunch or dinner entree.

Since it's the dead of winter and the citrus is in abundance at the grocery store, I have created an arugula salad with a homemade Citrus Dijon dressing that is easy to make, packed with flavor and healthy!

Ingredients for the Salad

4-5 cups Arugula
1 cup Cherry or Grape Tomatoes Sliced Lengthwise (Red or Yellow)
1/3 of a thinly sliced red onion that has soaked in apple cider vinegar for at least 4hrs (**Soaking your onion in vinegar will take the bite out)
1/2 of a Fresh Avocado Diced
4-5 Fresh Basil Leaves Julienned
Parmesan Cheese Shavings for Garnish (either store bought shavings or you can take a clean vegetable peeler to a block of parmesan)

Ingredients for the Dressing

2oz Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1oz Champagne Vinegar
1/2oz Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice (I use Meyer Lemons because I find them to be juicier, but any lemon will do).
1 Tbs Dijon Mustard
1/2 Sweetener Packet (I use Splenda, but any sweetener packet variation will work)
1 Shake of Tabasco (or hot sauce equivalent)
1 tsp Basil Paste (Found in the herb section of Safeway, Publix, Harris Teeter, etc.)

(*If you aren't a fan of a lot of acid in your salad, cut the vinegar out of this recipe and increase the lemon juice to 1oz)

Instructions:

In a large salad bowl, combine Arugula, Tomatoes, Fresh Basil, Soaked Onions (drained) and Avocado. Set bowl aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together Olive Oil, Vinegar, Lemon Juice, Sweetener, Hot Sauce, Dijon Mustard and Basil Paste
Once the vinaigrette has been whisked together, add it to your salad and toss.
Plate each salad portion and then add parmesan shavings
OPTIONAL- This salad would also be delicious with the addition of Grilled Chicken, Shrimp or even Grilled Tofu!

Lemon Basil Cocktail

January 5, 2015 Callie Cagney

Looking for a refreshing cocktail to serve at your next get together or for a post work happy hour at home? Try making this Lemon Basil Cocktail. It's easy to make, refreshing, packed with flavor but also low in sugar. This skinny cocktail is great for keeping to those healthy New Years Resolutions, but also shines during the spring and summer months (it is really refreshing). Cheers to the New Year!