This spring weather has us feeling inspired to find new, fresh ingredients and recipes!
Here are some refreshing spring time treats we thought you might find enjoyable. Both recipes — for lemon-blueberry yogurt cake with lemon cream and chai-spiced banana cream pie — come to us from the Kitchn Blog.
Lemon-Blueberry Yogurt Cake with Lemon Cream
The ingredients:
-For the cake
•1 cup all-purpose flour
•1/2 teaspoon baking powder
•1/2 teaspoon baking soda
•1/4 teaspoon salt
•2/3 cup granulated sugar
•Zest of one lemon (about 1 1/2 teaspoons)
•1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
•1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
•1 large egg
•1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt (whole or 2%)
•1/4 cup milk
•1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries (no need to thaw)
•1 1/2 tablespoons turbinado sugar
-For the lemon cream
•1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
•2 tablespoons store-bought lemon curd
The process:
Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in the middle. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Flour the sides.
Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
Place the granulated sugar and lemon zest in the bowl of a stand mixer or in a large mixing bowl. Using your fingers, rub the zest into the sugar until it is the texture of damp sand and smells like lemon candy. Add the butter and beat in a stand mixer or with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and the egg. Add the yogurt and beat well.
At low speed, beat in half the flour mixture until just combined. Then beat in the milk and remaining flour mixture.
Spread batter evenly in the pan. Scatter berries over top and sprinkle evenly with turbinado sugar.
Bake until cake is golden-brown and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25-30 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a rack and cool for 10-15 more minutes. Remove parchment and invert onto a plate.
Meanwhile, using an electric mixer or immersion blender with a whisk attachment, beat cream and lemon curd on high speed until creamy, smooth and thick. It should be about the consistency of regular yogurt. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
Serve cake warm or at room temperature, dolloped with lemon cream.
The ingredients:
•1 9-inch Butter Pie Crust (1/3 of this recipe)
•5 large egg yolks, divided
•2 1/2 cups whole milk
•3/4 cup granulated sugar
•4 tablespoons cornstarch
•1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
•12 cardamom pods, crushed
•8 whole cloves
•2 cinnamon sticks
•1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
•Pinch allspice
•Few grinds black pepper, optional
•2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
•1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•4 medium-sized ripe bananas, peeled and cut on the bias into 1/4-inch-thick slices
•3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
•2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
•Pinch ground cinnamon, to top
•Pinch nutmeg, to top
The process:
Prepare pie shell: Roll pie dough into a 12-inch circle about ¼-inch thick and fit it into a 9-inch pie plate. Leave 1-inch of overhang (if there’s a great deal of overhang, trim), then fold edges of the dough under and crimp.
Pre-bake the crust: Preheat the oven to 400°F, and using a fork, lightly prick the bottom of the crust. Take a sheet of aluminum foil and layer it on top of the pie crust, gently nudging it down so it’s snug on the bottom and the sides. Fill the foil-covered crust with dried beans or pie weights to hold it in place. Bake for 25 minutes or until edges of the crust turn light golden. Remove from the oven, and remove pie weights/beans and foil. Brush the crust with 1 egg yolk to create a moisture seal (prevents sogginess). Decrease the oven temperature to 350°F, and place pie shell back in the oven to fully bake, an additional 12-15 minutes more or until completely dried out and golden brown.
Make the filling: In a large bowl, whisk together the remaining 4 egg yolks and set aside (use a larger bowl than you think you need as you’ll add the milk to the bowl later). In a medium saucepan over medium heat, whisk together the milk, sugar, cornstarch, salt, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, ginger, allspice and black pepper. Bring to a simmer (don’t let it come to a full boil). Cook, whisking constantly, for 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Strain the milk mixture through a sieve over a bowl, and discard the solids.
Prepare an ice bath by filling your largest bowl or pan with ice water.
Slowly whisk 1/3 of the warm milk mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly. Whisk in the remaining milk. Pour back into the saucepan and cook over medium heat until the custard thickens and small bubbles begin appearing in the center, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in the butter and vanilla extract. Transfer the custard to a medium bowl and set it in ice bath until completely chilled, 35 to 40 minutes. After it’s cooled, give the custard a quick whisk to break up any skin that may have formed on top.
Put together the pie: Arrange the sliced bananas inside the pre-baked crust (I like to work in concentric circles)–it’s okay if they overlap. Spoon custard over the bananas and smooth it into an even layer.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine heavy cream and confectioners’ sugar and beat on high until it thickens into soft peaks, 2-3 minutes. Spread the whipped cream on top of the pie evenly. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours or until completely set. Garnish with sprinkled cinnamon and nutmeg if you’d like. Cover and refrigerate any leftovers for 2-3 days.
For more sweet treat recipes, click here.