Kevin's Orange Blossom Angel Food Cake

Kevin asked me to make him something low fat for his birthday treat this year. I wanted it to be simple but unusual and eventually ended up making Sesame Macaroons. While the flavor of the cookies was fine, they lacked the "wow factor" that I wanted.

For the last six months I've had a bottle of Monteux orange blossom water sitting in my cabinet, waiting patiently for just the right recipe. I bought the bottle because one whiff from the bottle and I'm back in the sweet, redolent orange groves of my childhood. So, while I lamented the Sesame Cookies, I decided to search the Net for a more interesting, yet low fat recipe that Kevin would enjoy. It was then that I decided to search for recipes that used the orange blossom essence. The very first recipe I found was the one I decided to make. It was elegant, simple, and low fat. I also thought Kevin, being the foodie that he is, would enjoy it.

I settled upon a simple Moroccan Angel Food Cake that was flavored with both vanilla and orange blossom water. The cake was beautiful as it baked in the oven. It was my first angel food cake and I was terrified it was going to bake up and over the top of the pan! It eventually stopped expanding and baked up to a beautiful golden brown. And just for extra fun, I also prepared a Moroccan Orange Salad to serve over the top of the cake. The recipe for both the cake and the salad can be found here.

Cake and Orange Salad
Yield: 16 servings?
Would I Make This Again? Yes (although I haven't eaten it yet!) 4 stars out of 5

Sesame Macaroons
Yield: About 30 cookies
Would I Make This Again? No. While the taste was just okay, they were just a bit too boring for me. 2 stars out of 5
(pictures coming soon!)

Aleigh's Lemon Poppy-Seed Rice Pudding

I always love to think outside of the culinary box when cooking and it seems the more I cook, the more brazen I get. So when I asked Allison, a fellow foodie, what she wanted for her birthday treat and she said she liked the idea of something with lemon and poppy-seeds, I wanted to make her something out of the ordinary. With Allison's blessings, I opted for to go flour-less. I had seen a recipe in last November's issue of Food & Wine for a lime and poppy-seed rice pudding* that I thought with just a little tweaking, would make both of us happy. The upgraded the rice to arborio, omitted the mango, simply substituted lemon zest for the lime and lo! a delicate, new lemon poppy-seed dessert gem was born. So the next time you want a lemon and poppy-seed confection but a muffin, scone, or cake just won't do, try this pudding. Delishy!

Lemon Poppy-Seed Rice Pudding

• 3 quarts of whole milk
• 1 lb of arborio rice (Risotto quality rice)
• 1 14oz can of unsweetened coconut milk
• 1 whole vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
• 2 Tbsp poppy-seeds
• 1 1/2 cups of sugar
• 1/2 cups of heavy or whipping cream
• Zest of one lemon

1. In a large, heavy pot, combine milk, rice, coconut milk. Mix well and let sit for 30 minutes. Add vanilla bean (entire bean and scraped seeds) and poppy seeds. Mix well and bring to a simmer over a moderately high heat. When it starts to bubble, reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring often, until the rice is tender (approximately 50-75 minutes).

2. Add the sugar, cream, and lemon zest and continue to simmer for another 10 minutes. Let cool to room temperature and cover with plastic wrap. Store in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

Yields about 12 cups

* The adapted Food & Wine recipe can be found here