easter Archives - Eat. Drink. Love.

March 13, 2013 by Stephanie

Ham and Gruyère Crêpes

Have I ever told you guys how much I love breakfast? Well, if not, I love breakfast. It’s definitely the most important meal of the day and I don’t care what you say, I’m speaking the truth here! If I don’t have breakfast, I get super cranky.

Most mornings I am satisfied with a big ol’ bowl of cereal, but me and Hubs like to get a little fancy sometimes. Breakfast for dinner usually occurs about once a week in this house. We always do the typical pancakes, waffles, eggs, or french toast. It was time to get crazy. Crêpes to the rescue!

Ham and Gruyère Crêpes

This is actually the first time I have made crêpes, but after doing some research, my family’s recipe for homemade manicotti shells is basically the exact same so I just used that for these crêpes. The hardest part of this is making sure to swirl the batter around in the pan so that it forms a nice circle and then flipping it can sometimes be tricky. Practice makes perfect though! Years of manicotti shell making has prepared me well for making breakfast crêpes. I love crêpes because your options for fillings are endless! I went for savory with ham and Gruyère crêpes.

These would be perfect to make for your Easter brunch for your family. You can prepare the crêpes the night before and just store them in an airtight container in the fridge. If you do this, make sure you let them come to room temperature before trying to roll them, otherwise they may tear.

Ham and Gruyère Crêpes

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 6 crêpes

Ingredients

3/4 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
butter (for pan)
8-10 slices of thinly sliced ham (about 8oz.)
About 6 oz. of Gruyère cheese, sliced thin
fresh chopped chives for garnish (optional)

Instructions

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the milk, egg, and flour.
Heat a saute pan (or a crepe pan if you have one) over medium heat. Melt a pat of butter. You can use a pastry brush to make sure that the butter coats the pan. Scoop about 2 tbs. of the batter onto the pan and immediately swirl the pan around until the batter forms a circle of about 6-7 inches in diameter. You can add a little more of the batter if needed. Cook for about 2 minutes or until lightly browned. Using a fork or a small spatula, gently flip the crepe over and cook on the other side for another 2 minutes or so until both sides are cooked. Remove from the pan.
Repeat this process with the remaining batter. If the pan gets too hot, remove from the heat and wipe down with a damp cloth. You can also adjust the heat if it gets too hot.
Once the crepes are all cooked, layer 2 slices of ham and some of the cheese onto the center of one of the crepes. Fold in one end and then fold over the sides (see photos).
Add a little more butter to the pan (still on medium heat). Place the folded crepes into the pan, a few at a time. Flip after about 1 minute and cook until the cheese is melted. Remove from the heat. Garnish with fresh chives or other desired toppings and serve.

http://eat-drink-love.com/2013/03/ham-and-gruyere-crepes/

Ham and Gruyère Crêpes

Looking fore more brunch ideas? Try this! Low-Fat Cheddar and Spinach Quiche with Oat Crust!

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Italian Biscuit Cookies

March 28, 2012 by Stephanie

Alright, let’s talk childhood fashion for a minute. I’m sure we all have had crazy 80′s hair and ugly outfits, but my worst fashion memory was neither of those things. For me, it was glasses. But, not like, cute little kid glasses. I’m talkin’ HUGE glasses. Like the size of Russia big.

Bless my grandma’s heart. She took me to get glasses one day after a yearly eye exam. There was a glasses shop on the first floor of the medical building where my doctor was. And this old lady working there, who, by the way, had like zero fashion sense, told my grandma that even though I was a kid, my head was big enough to fit into adult glasses. So my grandma decided to get me adult glasses. But, let me tell you, my head was NOT big enough to fit into adult glasses. These glasses took up like 75% of my face. No joke. I didn’t really care at first and plus I was a kid, what did I know about what really looked good? I just wanted pink glasses.

I’m forever traumatized by my Russia-sized glasses. My family and friends still make fun of me for those glasses. I’ll never live it down. Luckily, my husband still wanted to marry me despite seeing pictures of said glasses. I think I will be okay. But, I will never buy Russia-sized glasses for my kid.

And as for Grandma, it’s okay, I still luh you, girl.

These cookies also remind me of my childhood, my grandma, and my momma. We have made these Italian biscuit cookies every Easter for as long as I can remember. Usually on Holy Saturday followed by coloring Easter eggs. They are so simple. And then comes the icing. To this day, I have yet to master the powdered sugar to milk ratio. And don’t even get me started on how much powdered sugar was all over my kitchen, my clothes, and even in my bra (TMI?). But, whatever, it’s totally worth it because these cookies are tradition.

Italian Biscuit Cookies

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Yield: 3 dozen cookies

Ingredients

For the Cookies

6 eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cups sugar
2 tsp. vanilla or lemon extract
3 heaping teaspoons baking powder
3 1/2 cups flour
pinch of salt

For the Icing

approx. 4 cups confectioners' sugar
approx. 8 tablespoons milk
food coloring
lemon extract (optional)

Instructions

To make the Cookies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease or line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper or baking mat.
Beat the eggs until fluffy. Add the oil, vanilla or lemon extract, and sugar and mix until well-combined. Add all the dry ingredients and continue to mix. Dough should be sticky, but not so sticky that you can't shape it with your hands. If the dough is too sticky, add more flour.
Rub some vegetable oil on your hands. Roll pieces of dough into a finger-shape and then shape into a circle, ribbon, or whatever shape you desire and place onto the pan.
Bake for about 12-15 minutes or until the bottoms are a light golden brown. Allow to cool completely before icing.

To make the Icing

I usually do four colors: pink, blue, green, and yellow. You will need a separate bowl for each color you want. Sift one cup of confectioners' sugar into each bowl. Add about 1 tablespoon of the milk at a time to each bowl and stir. The glaze should be thick enough that when you dip the tops of the cookies into the glaze and put down, most of the glaze remains on the cookie, but not so thick that it clumps and doesn't drizzle down the sides. If the glaze runs off the cookie too quickly or only goes on in a really thin layer, then add additional confectioners' sugar to thicken.
Add a small drop of food coloring to each bowl and stir.
Line your counter with wax paper. Dip the top of each cookie into the icing and then place on the wax paper. Allow for the icing to dry completely before storing into a container. These cookies also freeze well if needed.

http://eat-drink-love.com/2012/03/italian-biscuit-cookies/