Lamb Marinade
makes enough for 3-4 pounds of meat
3/4 cup olive oil
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
6 cloves of garlic-minced
2 Tbs fresh mint-chopped
4 tsp salt
4 tsp lemon zest
2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
Mix all ingredients together
I used a 1 pound lamb steak and 1 pound of chicken breasts for my kebabs. Cut the meat into roughly 2 inch cubes.
Place the meat in a medium bowl and cover with marinade. Reserve some of the marinade for the vegetables. Allow the meat to marinade for at least 2-3 hours covered in the refrigerator. Cube up some of your favorite vegetables; I used green and red bell peppers, onion, and zucchini.
Preheat your grill. I like to make kebabs with all vegetables or all meat on the skewer for easier cooking since the meat takes a little longer to cook than the vegetables. I cooked the meat kebabs for about 6-7 minutes, flipped them over once and cooked them for another 6-7 minutes. Before you put the vegetables on the grill, give them a quick brushing with the reserved marinade. Cook the vegetables for about 4 minutes per side. Now for a great, light and fresh sauce to accompany our kebabs.
Greek Tzatziki Sauce:
can be made a day in advance
14 ounces Greek yogurt
1 English cucumber- finely shredded (seeded but not peeled)
1/4 cup sour cream
2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
1 Tbs white wine vinegar
1 Tbs fresh dill-minced
1-1/2 tsp garlic-minced
2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl.
Serve your kebabs with the tzatziki sauce on the side to dip the meat in. The combination of the cool fresh tzatziki and the rich marinated lamb is out of this world. Enjoy!!!
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Start by making an oatmeal cookie for the crust. Using a stand mixer, combine 6 Tbs of room temp butter with 4 Tbs of brown sugar and 2 Tbs of white sugar. Mix until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Next, beat in one large egg.
In a separate bowl, combine the 
Line a 9x13 metal baking pan with parchment paper and spray it with nonstick spray. Spread the batter out evenly in the pan. This can be a little tricky because everything wants to slide around and the batter is pretty gooey. Do the best you can, if you have gaps or holes in the batter it's OK, everything will melt together as it bakes. Pop the cookie in the preheated oven for 17-18 minutes or until golden brown. My cookie baked for about 12-13 minutes. Remove the cookie from the oven and allow it to cool completely in the pan on a cooling rack. I mean it, don't sit there and pick at it, I know you'll want to.
When the cookie is completely cool, crumble it with your fingers into a medium sized bowl. Next, add 3 Tbs of melted butter and 1-1/2 Tbs of brown sugar. Mix everything together with your fingers and then press the mixture evenly into a 9inch baking pan, go up the sides as well.
For the filling; in a medium bowl, whisk together 3/4 cup of white sugar, 1/2 cup of packed brown sugar, 1 Tbs of nonfat dry milk powder (you can find this in the baking section of most groceries stores and it's cheap) and 1/4 tsp salt. Add 1 stick of melted butter and whisk until blended. Finally, add 6-1/2 Tbs whipping cream, 4 egg yolks, and 1 tsp of pure vanilla extract. Whisk until well blended.
Pour the filling into the crust. Place the pie dish on a rimmed baking sheet and into a preheated 350 degree F oven for 30 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F and continue baking for 15-20 minutes or until the filling is brown in spots and set around the edges but the center should move slightly when shaken gently.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a rack for at least 20 minutes. Dust with powdered sugar. Refrigerate any left overs.
Start by lightly toasting cumin seeds until fragrant. Grind the cooled seeds into a powder. You could also use powered cumin if you don't have whole seeds.
Next, in a large bowl, combine the rest of the marinade ingredients.
Add the carne asada meat to the bowl and thoroughly coat each piece with marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 4-5 hours.
My daughter had a great time playing in the water and hanging out with her cousin.
My wife's birthday was a few days ago and since I let off with a cake post, I thought I would start back up with one. I made a nice little lemon cake by following one of Martha Stewart's jailhouse recipes, with a few alterations. It was delicious. There was a nice balance of sweet and tart from the lemons.
Start by making the 
Next, cream the butter and sugar together. Beat in the eggs and yolks. Add the 2 Tbs of lemon juice to the buttermilk. Alternate mixing in the buttermilk and the flour mix until thoroughly combined. 
Start by toasting the pecans in a 350 degree F oven for 6-8 minutes. Remove from the oven, allow to cool and chop finely. Next, finely shred 2-1/2 cups of carrots. I used my handy 
Beat the 4 eggs on medium speed for about 1 minute, reduce the speed and slowly pour in the granulated sugar. Once the sugar and eggs are combined (about 3-4 minutes) slowly pour in the oil and vanilla. Next, add the flour mixture and beat just until combined. Finally, use a spatula to fold in the carrots and toasted pecans.
Divide the batter between two well greased 9 inch round cake pans. Bake at 350 F for 25-30 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a cooling rack.
While the cake is cooling, beat together the butter and cream cheese. Next, add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest. Beat until thoroughly combined. Place one layer of cake on a platter, spread an even layer of frosting on top of the cake. Add the second layer of cake. Use the remaining frosting to cover the top and sides of the cake. Eat up and banish your cravings. Refrigerate any leftovers. Enjoy!!!
In a medium bowl, whisk together the 
While the muffins are still hot, quickly dip the top of the muffin into the melted butter followed immediately by a dip into the cinnamon sugar mix. Repeat for each muffin. Allow to cool slightly and then dig in to your little doughnut-flavored treasure. Enjoy!!!
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