Key Lime Bread

I think I may have mentioned here a couple of times that my husband likes key lime stuff.  Like a lot.  And I could've possibly mentioned that I love King Arthur Flour things... maybe.  My best friend knows that I love KAF stuff so she's given me a subscription to the KAF Baking Sheet (a bi-monthly newsletter full of yummy recipes) for the last few years as a Christmas gift.  (Aren't best friends... the best??)  So when my Spring 2013 Baking Sheet arrived and I saw the recipe for Key Lime Bread, I jumped at the chance to make it.  This was very different from some of the other quick breads that I've made because it packed such a lime punch but it wasn't overpowering.  Most quick breads are very sweet but this is not.  It's a very refreshing change and a perfect bread to eat on a spring day, sipping some sweet tea :)

Typically, I like to always use recipes that don't call for special ingredients because I want these recipes available to everyone, hoping (hopefully) at-hand items.  This recipe, however, does require one special ingredient that is well worth the effort of purchasing - Key Lime Powder.  It is a great way to add lime flavor without having to worry about adding additional liquids.  You can use it in scones (KAF has a great recipe for Mojito scones), cookies, glazes for cakes/quick breads.  It's worth the price - and if you sign up for the KAF emails, you can receive special offers, some of which are for free/really cheap shipping!  (With all the KAF spotlighting I do, I really should be on ten percent... hehe)

Key Lime Bread
courtesy of The Baking Sheet, Spring 2013

6 Tbsp. Butter, salted (if using unsalted, add 1 tsp. salt), melted
2 Tbsp. Canola Oil
3/4 c. Sugar
1/4 c. Lime Juice Powder
2 Eggs, large
Zest of 1 Lime
1 tsp. Vanilla
2 c. All Purpose Flour
2 tsp. Baking Powder
3/4 c. Milk (I used skim, but whatever you have on hand will be fine)
2 Tbsp. Lime Juice
1/2 c. Walnuts, chopped fine

Lightly grease a 9" x 5" loaf pan using a cooking spray with flour (like Pillsbury).
Preheat oven to 350.
Cream the butter, oil, sugar, and lime juice powder together.
Mix in the eggs.
Add in your zest and vanilla extract.
Make sure everything is all mixed together happily.
In another bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt (if using).
To your butter-sugar mixture, alternate adding the flour mixture and milk (beginning and ending with the flour).
Stir in the lime juice and walnuts.
Pour the batter into your prepared pan and bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a tester can be inserted and come out clean.
Let cool slightly and remove from pan to finish cooling on a rack.
Glaze if desired (recipe follows).

Glaze:
2 Tbsp. Lime Juice
1 Tbsp. Lime Juice Powder
1/2 c. Powdered Sugar
2 Tbsp. Heavy Cream
Zest of 1 Lime

Combine together and brush over the warm bread.

Eat and enjoy!!

Key Lime Cheesecake

I am a twenty-six year old woman and I am not ashamed to admit that I love, LOVE Disney and Pixar movies.  I will happily quote lines from The Lion King, Up (Dug!), Cinderella, Monsters, Inc., Ratatouille... you get the idea.  My latest "obsession" is with Gnomeo and Juliet.  I just love this movie!  It's so adorably cute!  I go around quoting it all day long and humming the songs from the movie (once you hear "Crocodile Rock", its stuck in your head all.day.long.).  I'm sure you're wondering what on earth this has to do with cheesecake.  Well, allow me to explain and tell you a slightly sappy story...

The blogosphere is full of people who cook and post their recipes.  Most of the posts are light-hearted and fun and full of cute anecdotes.  But every once in a while, you'll come across a post that just tugs at your heart strings.  I was searching through one of my favorite blogs (zoebakes.com) when I came across this post.  I'll save you the process of reading and just explain to you that just over a year ago, a blogger by the name of Jennifer lost her husband.  He was in perfect health.  She had popped out to get some groceries with her daughter and returned home to find him dead from a heart attack.  In a very brave post on her blog where she told the world of her loss, she requested that the people who read her post bake a Peanut Butter Pie in memory of her husband (that was his favorite).  One of her biggest regrets was not making him a peanut butter pie before he passed away.  She said that something always got in the way of her making it or she just decided to put it off in favor of baking something else.  That story really got to me.  I read the original post from her blog and her subsequent posts where she chronicled her daily life without her husband.  Yes, I cried - I cried a lot.  I don't like to cry.  At all.  Period.

Ryan is always asking me to make a key lime cheesecake and I, just like Jennifer did, put it off to do something else.  But when I read her post and how her grief showed through her words, I felt like she was speaking to me when she would mention that we may not have another day with the person we love the most and we should do what we can for them while we have them.  So I decided to not wait another day and make my husband a key lime cheesecake.  (end of sappy story.)

Okay, so what all does this have to do with cartoons?  Well, like I said before, Gnomeo and Juliet has been my cartoon movie of choice here lately.  (I mean, its GNOMES!  That's just beyond awesome.)  When I made this pie, I proudly went to Ryan and said, "This recipe has been made before.  A lot.  And now I've made it AGAIN!  But different."  He gave me a very strange look and I then explained to him that I was paraphrasing this:

It made perfect sense to him and gave him a good laugh.  Oh and he really liked the cheesecake too.  And isn't that what love is all about?  Laughing with those you care about over some good food?  (And I'm from the south where we celebrate EVERYTHING with food so that answer should obviously be yes.)

(This cheesecake is so simple it's ridiculous.  If you don't like using key lime juice, the original recipe called for lemon juice so you can easily make that.  No, it doesn't make lemon cheesecake.  Don't ask me why the key lime flavor comes out so much more in this and not with the lemon.  Blame it on the rain or whatever.)

Key Lime Cheesecake
adapted from my Aunt Betty's recipe

1 Graham Cracker Crust
1 8 oz. Cream Cheese (full fat please!), room temp
1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk (you can use the reduced fat version)
1/3 c. Key Lime Juice (bottled is fine)
1 tsp. Vanilla

Open graham cracker crust package.
Combine ALL remaining ingredients in a bowl.
Pour into crust.
Seal top of graham cracker crust package.
Open fridge.
Place in fridge.
Close door.
Refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.  (I've found it sets better if you let it rest overnight.)
(I told you it was so simple it was ridiculous.)

Uncle Bubba's Key Lime Pie

Every fall, Ryan requests pumpkin items.  Without fail.  I've been with him for five years now (wow.) and like clockwork, I know that once September rolls around, he'll start asking for pumpkin.  What does this have to do with key lime pie, you may find yourself asking.  Allow me to explain...  Every fall, Ryan wants pumpkin.  The rest of the year?  He wants key lime.  Key lime pie.  Key lime cookies.  Key lime bars.  It's only February (almost March but I digress) and he's already asking for key lime pie.  So I decided last Sunday, I'd make him one.

Now, take a trip down memory lane with me for just a moment.  Picture it... Savannah, GA, June 2009.   It was a second anniversary trip for me and Ryan (we had been dating for two years).  I've always wanted to visit Savannah simply because I love Paula Deen.  So off we went.  We ate at The Lady and Sons Restaurant and then we visited a little place on Whitemarsh Island called Uncle Bubba's Oyster House.  You may know Uncle Bubba - he's Paula's brother.  I hated to admit it at the time but we preferred Uncle Bubba's to Paula's restaurant.  The issue was not the food (quite the contrary - the food was delicious at both places) but it was more the atmosphere.  At Paula's, it was rather crowded, full of people.  At Uncle Bubba's, everything was relaxed and laid back.  The view was beautiful.  We ate outside, under fans, with a view of the marshes.  Ryan had crab cakes.  I had fried shrimp.  (Yeah, it was so good, I still remember what we ate.)  For dessert, we ordered the key lime pie.  The piece they brought us was huge!  It was a good thing we were going to split it anyway.  The pie was unreal, it was so good.  I normally don't like key lime pie.  But this pie was certainly one that I could have eaten every single day if you asked me too.  It was so rich and delicious.... yummy.

The point of this little story is that the recipe I used for this particular key lime pie is from Uncle Bubba's Savannah Seafood Cookbook.  The recipes in that cookbook are the same recipes he uses in his restaurant.  And I can say with complete certainty that the recipes I've made from that cookbook taste *exactly the same* as what we had at the restaurant and this pie is no exception. 

Want a taste of Savannah?  Make this pie - it's super simple and extra rich!

Uncle Bubba's Key Lime Pie
recipe from Uncle Bubba's Savannah Seafood

1/4 c. Key Lime Juice (I use Nelly and Joe's)
1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk
3 Egg Yolks
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
Graham Cracker Crust

Preheat the oven to 325.
Combine all ingredients in a bowl.
Pour into your graham cracker crust (did I mention this recipe was simple?).
Bake for 20 minutes.
Let stand at room temp for at least 20 minutes before serving.
Top with whipped cream (if you like - Ryan and I do.).
Enjoy :)

(Note:  This pie tastes much better after its been chilled in the refrigerator.)