We served these yummy Ricotta Cheese Pies this morning for breakfast.  Another guest favorite.

Ricotta Cheese Pies Waiting to be Served

Ricotta Cheese Pies

½ lb mascarpone cheese, at room temperature

3 egg yolks

15 ounces ricotta cheese

1/3 cup sugar

Zest of l large orange, grated

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon Grand Marnier

½ lb phyllo dough, thawed in refrigerator

½ cup unsalted butter, melted

With an electric mixer, beat the mascarpone cheese and egg yolks until smooth.  Beat in the ricotta, sugar, orange zest, vanilla extract and Grand Marnier, and continue beating until the ingredients are blended.

Place one sheet on the phyllo dough vertically on a work surface (keep unused sheets covered with a dampened towel so they don’t dry out).  Brush the sheet generously with the melted butter.  Place 3 heaping tablespoons of the cheese mixture in a line across the lower center of the sheet.  Fold up one-third of the phyllo sheet, fold in each of the sides, then fold over until you have a compact package.

Repeat this procedure for each pie.

Place the finished pies seam-side-down on a baking sheet.  If you wish, you can refrigerate the pies overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Brush tops of the pies with the remaining melted butter.  Bake them until they are golden brown, about 15 minutes.

Sprinkle the pies with confectioner’s sugar and serve.

As usual, we are busy cooking up a storm in the kitchen.   This frittata is perfect this time of year using all the vegetables from our local farm stand.  You can either enjoy this frittata for breakfast/brunch or serve it for dinner with some crusty artisan bread and a salad.  Enjoy and Bon Appetit!!

Summer Frittata

Grease an 11 x 17-inch baking dish and set aside. In a large sauce pan, heat the oil over medium heat and cook the onion until soft, for 10 minutes, stirring often. Add the garlic and both peppers. Sauté for 15 minutes, stirring often. Add the tomatoes, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Stir thoroughly to combine; reduce the heat to simmer and cook for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Arrange the sliced potatoes in the bottom of the prepared dish. Using a slotted spoon, put the sautéed vegetables on top of the potatoes. In a bowl, whisk together the eggs, heavy cream and mustard. Pour the egg mixture over the vegetables.

Set the dish in the oven and bake for 40 minutes, or until it is just set and lightly golden. Remove the dish from the oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve.

SERVES 8
45 minutes to prepare;
40 minutes to bake

Thought you’d like to see a couple of entrees that we served this week.  The first is an orange/marmalade french toast served with a citrus sauce.  Definitely one of our guests’ favorites.

Orange/Marmalade French Toast

We also tried a new frittata this week – Genoa salami, Fontina cheese, Vermont potatoes and  cherry tomatoes – served with a pesto sauce.   Our guests all gave it rave reviews – can we all say YUM!!!!