Happy Easter!

Easter at the Zick house is all about good food and wine! Today was no exception. I loved taking charge and providing most of the amazing dishes we had today. I spent the day in the kitchen wearing a cute apron over my sundress and of course sporting my pearls and making sure I had a glass of red wine in my hand at all times!

The first thing we dug in to was the meat pie that I made on Friday. Here's a picture of the inside of the pie:

I was surprised at how much it reminded me of the pie we usually get at the Italian bakery. Some people commented that there was a little bit too much meat and I'd have to agree. I didn't measure how much I put into the pie because I didn't want any of the meat my mom bought to go to waste (so I just added it all). Next time I'll be sure to add less meat so it doesn't overpower the rest of the cheesy, creamy filling.

My favorite side-dish that we have every Easter are dumplings. This is my great-grandmother's recipe and is a very special addition to our Easter spread.

I started out by taking 3/4's of a package of King's white bread (the really cheap white bread) and cutting off the crusts. I diced the crusts into 1/2 inch pieces. I mixed the bread crusts with 3 cups flour, 1 heaping tsp baking powder, and 2 tsp salt. I incorporated 1 egg and then started adding milk until the mixture came together. I separated the dough into 4 large dumplings:

Next, I boiled the dumplings (2 at a time) for about 20 minutes (flipping them halfway through).

I sliced them up and laid them in a large baking dish. I poured on some melted butter and baked them in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes. We served them with gravy, but they are also so buttery and delicious on their own!

I had some bread in the freezer from culinary school, so I pulled out a nice spread of brioche, bread twists, and croissants to serve with dinner:
Earlier this morning I started marinating the leg of lamb. We had a semi-boneless leg that I marinated with white wine, dijon mustard, thyme, salt, and pepper.

It roasted in the oven for about 2 hours total (starting out at 425 degrees and cooking the rest of the way at 350). I let the lamb rest while I made the gravy.

For the gravy, I used the reserved marinade, pan juices, and some dry sherry. I adjusted the seasonings a lot while I was cooking it and thickened the gravy with my emergency thickening agent: beurre manie (kneaded butter and flour).

My mom sliced the lamb and it was cooked perfectly!

Here's our dining room table with the whole Easter dinner spread. The blazing sun made for a not so nice picture..

To accompany the stars of the meal (the lamb and dumplings) we also had some roasted asparagus, roasted corn with basil, mashed turnips, plain ol' noodles with butta, and a fresh salad with raspberry vinaigrette.

After this extravagant meal, we all digested outside in the beautiful weather. Then, it was time for DESSERT.

I froze the lemon-scented cake from school and de-frosted it yesterday to make this lemon-strawberry layer cake. I split the cake and spread on a layer of vanilla flavored buttercream and sliced strawberries. I let my mom take over for the rest of the cake decorating ;) I forgot to take a picture of it before everyone dug in. It was a huge hit! The lemon was not too overpowering and the cake was very moist. Not to mention buttercream frosting is amazing.


We also had a brownie pie with hot fudge sauce (I can seriously bathe in this hot fudge sauce.. it's incredible). Okay okay, I'll give you the recipe.

Best hot fudge sauce ever:
1. In a small saucepan mix 3/4 cup sugar, 1/3 cup cocoa powder, 1/3 cup light corn syrup, and 5 oz condensed milk. Bring the mixture to a boil and continue to boil for another minute.
2. Stir in 1/3 cup butter and 1 tsp. vanilla extract.

My mom also made some chocolate covered strawberries. These were also a hit and I didn't get a picture until there were only 3 left!

Now I'm stuffed, but happy that today was such a success. Not to mention, I got to spend time with the cutest little girl in the world:

Happy Easter!