We have some special days in March. We may have just missed Ash Wednesday and the start of Mardi Gras, but St. Patrick’s Day is still coming. Here are a few recipes to mark the occasions.
For Mardi Gras, we have the traditional King Cake. The rounded pastry is usually colored in a white frosting and decorated in sections of green, gold, and purple sugar. These represent faith, power, and justice. A tiny plastic baby is hidden in the cake. The person who finds it (hopefully not by swallowing it) gets to be king for the day.
Easy Recipe for King Cake
2 rolls refrigerated crescent rolls in the can
4 oz. half a block of cream cheese
½ c. brown sugar packed
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
¼ c. raisins soaked in hot water for 15 minutes, drained
½ c. pecan halves
1-1/2 c. confectioners’ sugar powdered sugar
4 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Purple, green, and yellow colored sugar crystals
¼ c. butter softened
Instructions
TO MAKE FILLING:
Place cream cheese, brown sugar, ½ tsp. cinnamon, and raisins in the bowl of a food processor or mixer. Process until combined.
Add in pecan halves and process until pecans are chopped. Set aside.
FOR THE CAKE:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray.
Unroll first can of crescent roll dough and lay flat on surface. Do not separate dough. Instead, use fingers to pinch/press together the seams.
In a microwave, melt ¼ cup butter. Add the remaining ½ tsp. cinnamon to the melted butter.
Using a basting brush, spread half of the melted butter-cinnamon mixture onto the dough.
Place half of the filling in the middle of the dough and roll the dough to form a tube. Pinch together the seams. Position the rolled dough on the baking sheet and shape into a half-moon to form half of the King Cake.
Repeat the above steps with the second can of crescent rolls and remaining melted butter and filling to form the bottom of the King Cake. Form into a half moon shape.
Place second half of rolled dough against the other half moon to form one full circle. Pinch together the edges of the top of the cake and the bottom to form one complete circle.
Bake 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown, and then cool completely before icing.
TO MAKE THE ICING:
Whisk together the confectioner’s sugar, milk, and vanilla until smooth. You want the consistency thick, but still thin enough to drip down the sides of the cake. (If necessary, add more milk.)
Spoon the icing in a ring over the top of the baked and cooled King Cake. Sprinkle wide strips of purple, then green, then gold, alternating until you’ve covered the icing on the cake.
BABY: Before serving, cut the cake into slices and place the plastic baby either in or under one of the pieces. Do not bake the plastic baby in the cake.
Be sure to warn your guests so that they are aware of the baby and don’t accidentally bite down on it
If you celebrate meatless Fridays, here is a delicious recipe for you. This is another of my go-to recipes.
Creamy Garlic Tuscan Butter Shrimp
2 tbsp. salted butter, divided
1 tbsp. cooking oil
1 lb. shrimp or prawns, tails on or off (find them in the freezer section on sale)
1 small yellow onion, diced
6 cloves garlic finely diced
½ c. white wine, optional
5 oz. sun-dried tomato strips in oil, drained (reserve 1 teaspoon of the jarred oil for cooking)
1 ¾ c. half and half or heavy cream
1 pinch salt, to taste
1 pinch pepper, to taste
3 c. baby spinach leaves, washed
⅔ c. parmesan cheese
1 tsp. cornstarch mixed with 1 tbsp. of water (optional)
2 tsp. dried Italian herbs
1 tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Melt one tablespoon of butter with the oil. Add in the shrimp and fry for two minutes on each side, until just cooked through and pink. Transfer to a bowl; set aside.
Fry the onion in the remaining butter until soft. Add in the garlic and sauté until fragrant (about one minute). Pour in the white wine (if using) and reduce to half, while scraping any bits off of the bottom of the pan. Add the sun-dried tomatoes and fry for 2 minutes to release their flavors.
Reduce heat to low-medium, add the half and half or heavy cream, and bring to a gentle simmer while stirring occasionally. Season with salt and pepper to your taste.
Add in the spinach leaves and allow it to wilt in the sauce. Mix in the parmesan cheese. Allow sauce to simmer for a further minute until cheese melts through the sauce. (For a thicker sauce, add the milk/cornstarch mixture to the center of the pan, and continue to simmer while quickly stirring the mixture through until the sauce thickens.)
Add the shrimp back into the pan; sprinkle with the herbs and parsley, and stir through.
Serve over pasta, rice or steamed veg.
Let’s not forget St. Patrick’s Day!
Shamrock Shake Cupcakes
For the Shamrock Shake Cupcakes
If you’re in a hurry, you can use a white cake mix and add some green dye
OR if making from scratch:
1 ¾ c. cake flour
1 ¼ c. all-purpose flour
2 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 ¾ c. white sugar
1 c. butter, softened
4 eggs
1 c. buttermilk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 tsp. mint extract
green food coloring if desired
For the Whipped Cream Topping
1 pt. heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp. white chocolate instant pudding mix
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake pan with paper liners.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add buttermilk, then eggs one at a time until just combined. Stir in vanilla, mint extract, baking powder, and salt.
Gradually stir in flours a little at a time until just combined. Do not over mix.
Stir in green food coloring, if desired.
Fill cupcake liners ¾ of the way full. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely.
Whipped Cream Topping
Using an ice cold bowl/whisk to whip cream and white chocolate pudding mix until stiff peaks form. Spread or pipe onto cupcakes. Top with maraschino cherries if desired.
St. Patrick’s Day Brownie Trifle
1 box brownie mix plus ingredients on box, 8×8 pan size
3.5 oz. instant vanilla pudding mix
8 oz. Cool Whip
Green food coloring
Mint Oreo’s, crushed
Cook brownies according to directions. Allow to cool completely.
Make pudding according to directions. Once pudding is done, add in a few drops of green food coloring, or until desired shade of green is reached.
Take a Ziploc bag and place a few Oreos inside. Seal the bag and smash the bag to crush the Oreo’s.
To assemble trifle; layer cut up brownie, a layer of pudding, a layer of cool whip, another layer of cut up brownie, a layer of pudding, and a few crushed Oreo’s on top.
Chill in refrigerator until ready to serve. You can also use pistachio pudding if you don’t want to use food coloring.
St. Patrick’s Day Crack
50 saltine crackers
1 c. butter cut into chunks to melt down, 2 sticks
1 c. light brown sugar
2 c. white chocolate chips
1/4 c. green chocolate melts
St. Patrick Day inspired sprinkles
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a large cookie try with aluminum foil. Spray with cooking spray. Line saltines up neatly in rows.
In a medium sized pot, melt your butter and brown sugar. Once the butter is melted down, bring to a boil. Continue to stir the entire time and boil for about 2 minutes. Pour over the top of the saltines. Gently spread across the saltines.
Place in oven and bake for about 7 minutes.
While your crack is in the oven, melt your green chocolate melts according to the package directions.
Remove the pan from the oven and then sprinkle your white chocolate chips over the saltines. Your hot toffee mixture will melt the chips. Once your chips are melting, spread across the top evenly with a spatula.
Mix your green chocolate into the white chocolate by pouring it over the top in a decorative way. Quickly decorate with sprinkles.
