A
Spring Brunch
Our menu for a spring brunch includes salad burnet harlequin fingers, double lemon tea bread, fruit salad with lemon balm and lemon mint, ham on herbed biscuits, pesto ricotta tart, and minty lemonade.
Salad Burnet Harlequin Fingers
½ pound loaf
unsliced white bread
½ pound loaf
unsliced whole wheat bread
½ cup butter
1 pound cream
cheese, softened
2 tablespoons
freshly snipped garlic chives
¼ cup chopped
salad burnet leaves
¼ cup dry white
wine
chopped lettuce
additional salad
burnet leaves for garnishing
Trim crusts from
loaves and cut bread into ½-inch slices.
Mix together cream cheese, butter, and wine. Add salad burnet, chives, and lettuce. Lightly spread mix on one side of each slice of bread. Stack 4 slices, alternating white and whole
wheat. Stack first 3 slices filled side
up and place the top slice filled side down.
Repeat with remaining slices.
Wrap in foil and refrigerate at least 1 hour. To serve, cut stacks in strips about ½ inch wide, slicing through
all four layers. Garnish with salad
burnet leaves.
Double Lemon Tea Bread
2 cups flour
1½ teaspoons
baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons
margarine
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon
lemon peel
1 tablespoon
lemon pulp
1 tablespoon
snipped leaves of lemon thyme
¾ cup milk
Mix flour,
baking powder, and salt and set aside.
Cream the margarine and sugar.
Beat in eggs one at a time. Beat
until fluffy. Add lemon peel, lemon
pulp, and lemon thyme. Add one-fourth
of the flour mixture. Beat. Add one-third of the milk and beat. Repeat until all the flour and milk has been
added. Pour into greased 9x5x3 inch
loaf pan. Bake in a preheated 325 oven for 50 minutes. While bread is warm, pour glaze over the
top. Cool before cutting.
Glaze: Juice of 2 lemons
Confectioner's sugar
Mix
confectioner's sugar into lemon juice to make a thin glaze.
Fruit Salad with Lemon Balm and Lemon Mint
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup lemon mint,
minced
2 tablespoons lemon
balm, minced
1 cup cantaloupe, cut
into cubes or balls
1 cup honeydew, cut
into cubes or balls
1 cup pineapple
chunks
1 cup strawberries,
halved
Combine lemon
juice, sugar, lemon mint, and lemon balm.
Pour sauce over fruit and refrigerate until chilled. Garnish with lemon mint leaves.
Ham on Herb Biscuits
2 cups flour
4 teaspoons
baking powder
1 tablespoon
sugar
½ teaspoon
cream of tartar
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup margarine
cup milk
2 teaspoons
dried onion flakes
½ teaspoon
dried oregano
½ teaspoon
dried basil
½ teaspoon
dried dill weed (or seed)
½ teaspoon
dried caraway seed
Preheat oven to
450 degrees. Mix dry ingredients. Cut in margarine until mixture resembles
coarse crumbs. Make a well in the
center. Add milk all at once. Stir until dough clings together. Knead gently on a lightly floured
surface. Roll to ¼-inch
thickness. Cut out biscuits with a
biscuit cutter. Place on an ungreased
baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes at 450 degrees. Allow to cool 10
minutes before splitting to add slices of your favorite ham.
Yield: 50 1¾" biscuits
Pesto Ricotta Tart
1 9-inch
unbaked pie shell
2 cups ricotta
cheese
1 large egg,
lightly beaten
¼ cup freshly
grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup fresh
parsley
1 tablespoon
fresh basil
¼ teaspoon salt
1 large tomato
olive oil
1 tablespoon
pesto
Mix together
ricotta cheese, egg, Parmesan cheese, parsley, basil, and salt. Pour into pie shell. Slice tomato vertically, salt tomato slices
and allow to drain on paper towel. Lay
tomato slices on top of filling and brush with olive oil. Bake in a preheated 350 oven for 40 minutes. After removing from oven, spread with
pesto. (Note: Can add sliced artichoke
hearts in addition to tomato if desired.)
Minty Lemonade
1 cup fresh
mint
1 cup fresh
lemon balm or lemon verbena
1 cup water
2 12-ounce
cans frozen lemonade, thawed
3 quarts 7-Up
or ginger ale, chilled
Bruise the
fresh mint and lemon balm (or lemon verbena leaves). Stir into water and thawed lemonade. Let sit for 2-3 hours or overnight in refrigerator. Remove herbs. Mix with soft drink, garnish, and serve.
Yield: 1 gallon.