Creme Brûlée!

Copied this from the pioneer woman's blog! So stinking good!!! If you go to her page there are step by step (pictures included) instructions on how to do it!!!

Ingredients

• 4 cups Heavy Cream
• 1 whole Vanilla Bean OR 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract OR 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Paste
• 10 whole Egg Yolks
• 3/4 cups Sugar
• 6 Tablespoons Superfine (Baker's) Sugar

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Pour the cream into the saucepan. Add vanilla (whichever product you're using) and simmer over medium-low heat.

Whip egg yolks with the sugar until pale yellow and thick.

Strain cream using a fine mesh strainer.

Whip yolks while you very slowly drizzle in 1 cup of warm cream. Go slowly so as not to cook the eggs! Once the first cup is added, you can add the rest of the cream slowly.

Place ramekins onto a rimmed baking sheet. Pour custard mixture into ramekins. Pour water in bottom of baking sheet until it comes halfway up the ramekins. Bake for 30 minutes, or until just set. Do not allow to get brown.

Cool ramekins on countertop, then chill for at least 2-3 hours, covered in plastic wrap.

To serve, sprinkle 1 tablespoon over each ramekin of custard. Use a kitchen torch to quickly (but carefully) brown the sugar. There should be a thin, crisp surface of burned sugar on the top.

Serve immediately!

Greek asparagus soup!

Greek Asparagus Soup Recipe

From Nancy Gaifyllia

This asparagus soup is light and delightful, and easy to make. The recipe serves four to six and works well with a salad as a light meal, or as a soup course.

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 pounds of fresh asparagus, tough stem ends removed
• 2 potatoes, peeled
• 2 leeks (white part of stem)
• 1 zucchini
•     2 large onions
• 4-5 stems of fresh parsley
• 1 small stem of celery leaves
• 1 teaspoon of sea salt (or more to taste)
• 1/4 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper
• Cavendars greek seasoning to taste
• 1/4 pound of olive oil margarine (or good quality vegetable margarine)
• 1 teaspoon of cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon 

Preparation:

Cut off asparagus tips and set aside.

Chop potatoes, leeks, zucchini, onions, parsley, and celery leaves into small pieces. Add to a pot with remaining asparagus stems, salt, pepper, and 6 1/3 cups of water (I added chicken boulion to taste). Boil for 45 minutes or until the soup reduces to about 4 1/4 cups.

Press the soup through a coarse strainer or transfer to a blender and puree.

Return soup to the pot, add margarine, stir, and bring to a boil. As soon as it starts to boil, add the asparagus tips and cook just until the tips soften, about 5 minutes.

While the soup is finishing, combine cornstarch and lemon juice in a small bowl and mix until cornstarch dissolves completely. Stir into the soup and allow to boil for 1 minute.

Remove soup from the heat, add more salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

Yield: serves 4-6