Shaved Asparagus Salad

This salad is my new obsession.  The recipe couldn't have come at a better time - the markets are bursting with the first bunches of asparagus, and that means summer is almost here!  This salad is incredibly light, crisp, bright and refreshing. It is a perfect side-dish that takes next to no time to prepare - yay!  It can be customized in any number of ways, but the recipe I'm posting below is my favorite flavor combination so far.  I honestly had never considered eating raw asparagus before...but now I'm not sure if I'm going to roast it ever again ;)

Shaved Asparagus Salad
from Smitten Kitchen

First, there are no exact measurements in this recipe - everything is to taste, so taste as you go along to make sure you’re getting all the parmesan, nutty, and lemony flavors you want (or however else you want to customize the salad)

• 1 pound asparagus, rinsed
• 1 lemon, halved
• 1/4 cup pine nuts or sliced almonds, toasted and cooled
• Olive oil
• Coarse salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 to 2 ounces shredded or grated parmesan cheese

No need to snap off the tough ends of your asparagus, just lay a stalk of asparagus on a cutting board. Holding onto the tough end, use a vegetable peeler to shave off thin asparagus ribbons from stalk to tip, peeling away from the tough end in your hand. Discard the tough ends once you’re done peeling. (I was left with some asparagus parts that wouldn't shave, but I found that I had plenty of ribbons for a very satisfying salad). Gently pile your ribbons on a medium-sized serving platter or in a medium bowl. Squeeze some lemon juice over the asparagus, drizzle it with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle it with parmesan cheese and salt and pepper. Toss gently. Sprinkle with some toasted nuts and serve immediately!

Sour Cream Sugar Cookies

I used to think that sugar cookies were only for Christmastime.  I used to make them with my mom on Christmas Eve, along with a gingerbread house.  We'd frost them and pour sprinkles on them, and put them out for Santa. But since reading Annie's tutorial on how to decorate with royal icing, I've discovered that sugar cookies can be for any occasion!


I had some girlfriends over for a Valentine's cookie decorating party - it was so much fun!  We made lots of icing colors and had sprinkles and just went to town decorating a ton of cookies and watching The Bachelor :)


I've tried several types of sugar cookies over the past year, but this recipe is my new favorite.  It is my Aunt Kathy's recipe, and everyone who has tried these cookies loves them!  I took a big batch into work today, and even people who said they don't normally like sugar cookies loved these!  So there you go - these cookies convert people.  You should whip up a batch!

Aunt Kathy's Sour Cream Sugar Cookies
[yield approx. 5 dozen cookies, depending on how big you cut them and how thick you roll them out. I rolled them to 1/8 inch]


Ingredients:

• 3/4 c. butter
• 3/4 c. shortening
• 1 1/2 c. sugar
• 1 c. sour cream
• 3 egg yolks
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/4 tsp vanilla
• 6 c. flour

Directions:

1. Cream butter, shortening, sugar in large bowl. Set aside.
2. Add baking soda to egg yolks in a medium bowl.
3. Combine sour cream, yolks and vanilla; mix well.
4. In another bowl, sift salt, flour, and baking powder.
5. Add flour mixture to creamed mixture, alternating with the sour cream mixture. (Aunt Kathy's note - this dough can get pretty crumbly at this stage, so don't be afraid to use your hands to mix it together!) 
6. Roll out dough and use cookie cutters. (There is no need to chill the dough before rolling it out.  In fact, it makes it much harder to do so. I chilled my dough and ended up needing it to be warmer in order to roll it out. Just use a well-floured counter, and you'll be good to go!)
7. Bake at 350 about 10 minutes depending on thickness.
8. Decorate with royal icing.

Starbucks' Pumpkin Scones

One of my girlfriends loves Starbucks. She is in law school and frequently studies at the Starbucks near her house.  She loves to get a chai latte and a pumpkin scone, and is upset if she arrives too late in the day and the pumpkin scones are all gone!  She asked me once if I could make these scones for her, so I found a recipe that I wanted to try.  She came to visit this past weekend, along with our other two best friends for our annual girls' trip, and we made these scones together.  They were heaven.

They weren't at all hard to make, and they were DELICIOUS!  Pumpkin scones from that coffee shop will never be the same. H - I hope you make these again and pack them with you when you go studying!

Starbucks' Pumpkin Scones
from Recipe Girl

Ingredients: 
-Scones -

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 7 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 1 Tbsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• ¼ tsp ground cloves
• ¼ tsp ground ginger
• ½ cup canned pure pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
• 3 Tbsp half and half (or whole milk)
• 1 large egg
• 6 Tbsp cold butter, cut into cubes

-Plain Glaze-

• 1 cup plus 1 Tbsp powdered sugar
• 2 Tbsp whole milk

-Spiced Icing-

• 1 cup plus 3 Tbsp powdered sugar
• 2 Tbsp whole milk
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
• pinch of ground ginger
• pinch of ground cloves

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F. Spray baking sheet with cooking spray or line with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients (through ginger).
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, half and half and egg.
4. Use a pastry cutter or two knives to cut butter into the dry ingredients. Continue cutting until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. (You may also use a food processor for this step. Pulse until the mixture resembles fine crumbs).
5. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients, then form the dough into a ball. Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a 1-inch thick circle that is about 9-inches in diameter.
6. Use a large knife or a pizza wheel to slice the dough into 6 equal portions (think slicing like a pizza into 6 pieces with 3 cuts through the circle)

7. Bake 14 to 16 minutes on prepared baking sheet. Scones should begin to turn light brown.
8. While scones are cooling, prepare plain glaze by combining ingredients in a medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed. Mix until smooth.
9. When scones are cool, use a brush to paint a coating of the glaze over the top of each scone.
10. As the white glaze firms up, prepare spiced icing by combining ingredients in another medium bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed. Drizzle this thicker icing over each scone and allow the icing to dry before serving (at least 1 hour). A squirt bottle works great for this, or you can drizzle with a whisk.

Yield: 6 scones