Rabbit Food...

So how modern is this?  After having our tortellini on Friday, of course our brains immediately started to wonder what we were going to have for dessertJ.  And how, pray tell, did we come to our final decision??  Via a Tweet from "The Bent Spoon"J  Sooo 2011!

It was TOUGH to pass up their cupcakes, but we were there for ice cream that dayJ  I had a scoop of lavender & marscapone, while Scott had a scoop of mocha.  But the REAL reason for our trip was the twitter-annouced arrival of: CARROT CAKE ICE CREAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh man...it was soooooooooooooo worth the trip!  A tangy cream cheese base combined with carrots, pecans and spices.  Just so creamy & dreamy.  Perfect way to kick off the holiday weekendJ

Soooooo when I woke up to a dreary and rainy Saturday morning, my brain immediately went to baked oatmeal and what kind of new creation I could cook upJ  And after blissfully remembering the carrot cake ice cream from Friday night, I thought:  Why not CARROT baked oatmeal??

Fit for Easter bunnies & people, alike!J

Carrot Cake Baked Oatmeal

Makes 2 servings

• 1 cup dry oats 
• 1 & 1/2 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk 
• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon brown sugar 
• 3 shredded carrots (about 3/4 cup)
• 2 teaspoon vanilla 
• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon cinnamon 
• 1 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon cloves 
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

Mix all of the ingredients together and pour into 2 small baking dishes. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes. While the oats are baking mix:

• 1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon chopped walnuts
• 1 teaspoon butter
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar

Divide between both dishes to top oatmeal and cook for 10 more minutes. Enjoy fresh out of the oven or microwave the leftovers for 3 minutes.

Sweet, spicy and studded with pretty orange carrots...I think that's a pretty good way to have 'cake' for breakfast, don't ya think??:)  (ps-the leftovers tasted EVEN BETTER!) 

Andddd yes, carrot cake even got involved in our Easter morning breakfast as well!  This time with Julie's Carrot Cake Waffles with (the best part!) Maple Nut Cream Cheese Spread.  OMG...freakin TO DIE FOR! 

These 'spiced brown butter/lightened with egg whites' waffles just hit the spot.  And that maple cream cheese, holy heaven, it just put them over the top!  Plus they were super filling too!  We had 2 waffles for breakfast before 8am and these somehow held us over till our dinner at 3 o'clock!  Waffle MagicJ 

After breakfast and mass, yesterday afternoon I got busy putting together a recipe I had been DYING to try out since I had read about it a couple years ago:   Lemon Crepe Cake! 

I was always scared to try this, but after my "successful foray" at crepe making this year, I thought it was about time to finally give it a whirl!J

I made a DOUBLE batch of the crepe batter and let it sit in the fridge for a few hours to settle.  And after 3 botched crepes, I found my nitch and may have found a few secrets to easy crepe makingJ

Secret #1:  Remove the pan from the heat and pour the batter onto the hot (greased or non-stick) pan by a measuring cup with a spout: 

Secret #2: Swirl batter to coat the bottom of the pan....but you need to be quick!  That batter sets really fast! J

Secret #3:  When you see the edges browning (30 seconds or so), start to loosen the edges with a spatula and use a fork to help you pick up the edge... 

Wiggle that spatula under there..... 

And FLIP! J

Once you get the hang of THAT, the crepes are pretty easy to make.  And if you're using TWO skillets, it makes the work just go that much quickerJ 

While the crepes were cooking, I whipped up a pint of heavy cream and mixed 3/4 of it to fold into the lemon curd for the layers.  Once the cream was sturdy (after being refrigerated for about a half hour) and the crepes were cooled, I got to work layerin the cake! 

I layered all TWENTY crepes with the lemon curd whipped cream...(I couldn't believe this actually WORKED, FYI!)

...and topped it off with the regular whipped cream and WALLAH!  CREPE CAKE! 

I thought this was pretty tasty and it seemed to be a big hit with the family!  I loved how the delicate crepe layers had a buttery and savory taste to go along with the sweet & rich whipped cream!  Definitely a unique dessert with a pretty good "WOW" factorJ  I already can't wait to try this with different fillingsJ

The rest of the day was really nice & quiet.  Look how cute my Aunt decorated her table... 

Each plate made complete with a little chickJ 

We had a mix of traditional dinners between my Mom's FABULOUS homemade raviolis, as well as ham, baked apples, scalloped potatoes and saladJ  Not to mention one of the things I look forward to the most:  Italian People's Bakery's special Easter tinted sesame bread wreathJ

I could eat the whole wreath and call it a dayJ hahahahahhahahaa....

And along with my crepe cake, my Aunt had made a COCONUT cake, which you KNOW I pounced onJ 

And I couldn't resist a piece of our traditional Easter dessert: Pastia!  It's a baked egg custard made with small egg noddles.  I know, I hate eggs...but all can be forgiven for pastiaJ  I'm going to have it for breakfast one morning.  I think that's legit, right?? 

So that about wrapped up our surprisingly SUNNY AND HOT Easter Sunday!  Hope you guys had a great one! 

And now that I said THAT, I can officially say that I am already OVER the heatJ How do I just know it's going to go from the 50's directly to the 90's this year!  BLEH!  Guess it's about time we got our sun porch spruced up for summer. 

Hope you guys have a good Monday!  Cioa for nowJ

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