Welcome spring with a beautiful brunch
Three delicious ways to savour the season’s fresh bounty
Hello, spring. We’re so glad you’re here.
You’re a season that means big changes for cooks. Our thoughts turn to lighter fare and dishes that remind us of warmer weather and fresh-from-the-garden ingredients. You’ve also become the season of brunch, whether it’s brunch in a restaurant or one prepared at home.
Part breakfast and part lunch, brunch is one terrific meal. It allows us to combine eggs and other breakfast fare with quite a mix of sweet and savoury dishes and ingredients. Brunch can be casual or gussied up for special occasions. At this time of year, asparagus and fresh greens help make it cheerful and colourful.
First, the Dreamy Lemon Cheesecake screams spring. Its lemony flavour is in every part of the cheesecake: the crust, the batter and the lemon curd topping.
Next, bacon is mainstay on brunch menus and the recipe for Sea Salt Caramel Bacon Bread Pudding is an amazing treat you can prepare in advance.
Asparagus is a spring musthave and the Asparagus Fontina Tart is a longtime favourite. You can serve it hot or at room temperature. It, too, can be made in advance because it reheats well.
Dreamy Lemon Cheesecake
Makes 12 servings
Baking the cheesecake in a water bath helps prevent the top from cracking. And if it does crack, no worries. The top is covered with a layer of lemon curd.
You can use lemon curd from the store or make your own. Before making this cheesecake, make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature.
2 1⁄2 cups crushed cream-filled lemon sandwich cookies (such as Lemon Oreo Sandwich Cookies) (about 25 cookies) 2 1⁄2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
5 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 1⁄2 cups granulated sugar 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 tbsp lemon zest plus 5 tbsp fresh juice (about 2 large lemons)
2 tbsp heavy whipping cream Yellow food colouring gel paste 1 cup lemon curd (recipe follows or use store-bought)
Prep time: one hour; total time: three hours ( plus cooling and overnight chilling time)
Preheat oven to 350 F. Wrap the outside of a lightly greased 9-inch shiny springform pan in a double layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil.
Stir together crushed cookies and melted butter in a bowl. Press onto bottom of prepared pan.
Bake until lightly browned, seven to eight minutes. Cool on a wire rack until ready to use. Reduce oven temperature to 325 F.
In a mixer bowl, beat cream cheese on medium speed until creamy, about five minutes. Gradually add the sugar and flour, beating until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, beating just until yellow disappears after each addition. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating just until yellow disappears after each addition. Stir in lemon zest, lemon juice and heavy cream.
Place three cups of the batter in a medium bowl. Using a wooden pick, add a small amount of food colouring gel paste to the three cups of batter. Stir until batter is pale yellow, adding more gel paste if necessary.
Dollop half of untinted batter into prepared crust. Dollop half of pale yellow-tinted batter on top of untinted batter dollops. Swirl together, using a small knife, to create a marbled look. Repeat procedure with remaining halves of untinted and pale yellow-tinted batters. Place springform pan in a roasting pan. Add boiling water to reach about halfway up sides of springform pan.
Bake until centre is almost set but still slightly wobbly, 70 to 90 minutes. Turn off oven and let cheesecake stand in oven with door partially open for one hour.
Remove cheesecake from roasting pan and water bath, and place on wire rack. Cool completely, about two hours. Cover with plastic wrap, using wooden picks to prevent plastic wrap from touching top of cheesecake. Chill eight to 24 hours.
Gently run a knife around outer edge of cheesecake to loosen from sides of pan. Remove sides of pan. Spread top with 1 cup Lemon Curd.
Adapted from Southern Living magazine, February 2017 issue.
Lemon Curd
Makes about 3 cups
This lemon curd will keep up to two weeks in the refrigerator.
1⁄2 cup salted butter, softened 2 cups granulated sugar
4 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon lemon zest, plus 1 cup fresh juice (about 4 large lemons)
Beat butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until blended, about 45 seconds. Add eggs and egg yolks, one at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Gradually add lemon juice to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in zest. (Mixture will look curdled.)
Transfer mixture to a heavy 4-quart saucepan and cook, whisking constantly, over medium-low until mixture thickens and coats the back of a spoon, 14 to 16 minutes.
Transfer curd to a bowl and place plastic wrap directly on warm curd (to prevent a film from forming). Chill until firm, about four hours.
Prep time: 30 minutes; total time: 45 minutes ( plus chilling time)
Salted Caramel Bacon Bread Pudding
Makes 8 servings
Brace yourself. This is the ultimate bread pudding. It’s sweet, salty and savoury all in one bite. You’ll get at least eight servings out of the recipe, and you can easily cut the pieces into appetizer-size portions. Be sure to use bread that’s several days old so it’s dry. You can also dry bread in the oven at 300 F for 20 to 30 minutes.
Salted Caramel Sauce
2 cups cane or granulated sugar
1⁄4 cup water
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into chunks
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1⁄2 teaspoon sea salt Bread Pudding
7 large eggs
1 cup packed light brown sugar 2 cups heavy whipping cream 1 tsp vanilla extract
10 to 12 brioche rolls (dinner roll size), 2 days old, cut into 2-inch cubes (or use other favourite rolls)
1⁄4 cup finely chopped cooked bacon, plus 4 to 6 strips cooked thick-cut bacon for garnish
Sea salt to taste
Prep time: 30 minutes, total time: two hours (not all active time)
To make caramel sauce: In a heavy-bottomed saucepan with a lid, combine the sugar and ¼ cup water. Stir gently until mixture is consistency of wet sand. Cover and cook over medium heat for 10 minutes. Uncover, reduce heat to low and cook until the sugar begins to caramelize and take on the colour of dark honey.
Remove from heat and stir in butter with a long-handled whisk. When the butter is fully melted, stir in 1 cup cream and finish with ½ teaspoon sea salt. Let sauce cool for 20 minutes before tasting or using. The sauce will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one month.
To make bread pudding: In large bowl, whisk eggs, brown sugar, whipping cream and vanilla until completely combined. Add bread cubes and chopped bacon and toss to let bread soak up egg mixture. Lightly press bread mixture into the bowl. Cover surface of bread mixture with plastic and set it aside to rest for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter a 9- by 13-inch baking pan (metal preferred). Spread ¼ cup caramel sauce on bottom of pan, followed by half the bread mixture, then ¼ cup caramel sauce, a pinch of sea salt, then the rest of the bread mixture and another pinch of sea salt. Drizzle ¼ cup caramel sauce on top. Cover and bake for 30 minutes, then uncover and bake 30 minutes more. Serve any extra caramel sauce on the side.
Adapted from “Egg Shop, the Cookbook,” by Nick Korbee (William Morrow, $35.)
Asparagus Fontina Tart
Makes 6 servings
You can also cut this tart into smaller squares and serve it as an appetizer.
Flour, for work surface
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
5 1⁄2 ounces (2 cups) Fontina or Gruyère cheese, shredded 1 1⁄2 pounds medium asparagus 1 tablespoon olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Prep time: 15 minutes; total time: 45 minutes
Preheat oven to 400 F. On a floured surface, roll the puff pastry into a 16-inch-by-10-inch rectangle. Trim uneven edges. Place pastry on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. With a sharp knife, lightly score pastry dough 1 inch in from the edges to mark a rectangle. Using a fork, pierce dough inside the markings at ½-inch intervals.
Bake until golden, about 15 minutes. Remove pastry shell from oven and sprinkle with the cheese. Trim the bottoms of the asparagus spears to fit crosswise inside the tart shell; arrange in a single layer over Gruyère, alternating ends and tips. Brush with oil, and season with salt and pepper.
Bake until spears are tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
Adapted from www.marthastewart.com.