Honeyed Pears in Puff Pastry Poaching fruit is one of my favorite things to do when cold weather arrives. It's so warming to stand over a boiling pot of fragrant spices and lose yourself in thought. When I made these, I couldn't help but daydream as I stirred; if I were a pear... That sounds a little silly, but that's what I'd want... if I were a pear. The idea for these came from the Pepperidge Farm website. On a personal note, our Christmas tree is already up courtesy of Mr. Since poaching is a relatively easy task, I'll skip to some helpful tips for wrapping the pears in puff pastry. The poaching liquid has a high concentration of sugar, so your pears will be sticky. When you reach the top, tuck in the end piece of pastry behind the last spiral. 4 small pears 1 sheet of ready made puff pastry dough, thawed 4 cups water 2 cups sugar 1 cup honey 1/2 lemon 1 vanilla bean, seeded with hull reserved 3 sticks of cinnamon 6-8 whole cloves Peel pears and core from the bottom. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Popsicles! Not to sound full of myself, but I’m pretty sure this is the be all, end all of popsicle roundups. There’s a little something for everyone: the foodies, the purists, the ones who prefer frozen yogurt, the ones who prefer a little alcohol, everyone. Tweny-five options to be exact. The post I did last summer on the cold guys was one of DC’s most viewed ever, so I thought you’d all be up for another round – was I right? Click on the photo to be taken to the recipe. All photos and recipes copyright of their respective source unless otherwise noted.
Citrus Love-Lemon Posset, Langues de Chats & Lime Meltaways Posted by Grace Massa Langlois on Monday, 3rd May 2010 After the last couple of weeks of sweets I was looking for something tangy and refreshing, Lemon Posset with Langues de Chats and a few batches of Lime Meltaways definitely fulfilled my craving. I thought for a change I would turn to my vast selection of cookbooks for inspiration. I am a little embarrassed to say that I usually tend to turn to the Internet in search of recipes rather than take a few minutes and go through all the beautiful cookbooks that I have. Of course, my first stop was Gordon Ramsay’s Sunday Lunch. I decided on Gordon’s Lemon Posset recipe because it was so simple to make, 3 ingredients, heavy cream, caster sugar and lemon juice. If you want to lighten up the dessert you could add some Italian Meringue, keep in mind, if serving as is, it is quite dense and rich and you will want to serve a small portion, a shot glass is the perfect size. Another of my favourite tangy desserts is Baked Lemon Tart. Langues de Chats
3 Ingredients, 60 Seconds: Gooey Chocolate Mug Cake It’s Monday. You don’t have time for chocolate, right? Wrongo. No matter what time of the day your chocolate craving hits, you’re just 55 seconds and three ingredients away from your own, personal mug full of the richest, chocolatiest hunk of cake ever. Created one afternoon while in the fits of a crazy-mad chocolate craving, I attempted to mix togther the three vital ingredients for my favorite Chocolate Lava Cake, popped it in the microwave, and had my kids drooling all the ‘miracle mug’ one minute later. Gooey Chocolate Mug Cake 1 egg 1/4 c. powdered sugar 1-2 Tbsp. cocoa powder (depending on how chocolatey you want your cake) 1 standard-sized mug In mug, crack egg, add powdered sugar and cocoa powder.
Cinnamon Toast Rolls The USDA released its new food pyramid the other day (which is actually a plate now instead of a pyramid), and I am sorely disappointed to report that cinnamon rolls did not appear anywhere on that plate. I think by now most of us know what should be on our dinner plate in terms of healthy, well-rounded nutrient-laden meals, but it is my considered opinion that our breakfast plate should include cinnamon rolls now and then. And not just any cinnamon roll, mind you, but how ‘bout a homemade cinnamon roll hybrid that is a cross between a cinnamon roll and cinnamon toast, is super easy to make and gosh darn delicious. In honor of their ancestry, I call these little gems cinnamon toast rolls, and here’s all you need to make them… Yep. Trim the crusts off of the bread Roll the bread really flat Brush both sides of the bread with butter Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar Roll in any fashion you like (I’ve also folded them into little triangles) Cinnamon Toast Rolls Click here for a printable recipe
Recette de Forêt noire aux cerises noires ÉTAPE 1Versez les cerises préalablement dénoyautées dans un saladier et faites-les macérer dans le kirsch 2 heures avant de commencer votre recette. Égouttez-les et conservez le jus. Et pensez à placer la crème fleurette au réfrigérateur. ÉTAPE 2Allumez le four th.6 (180°C). ÉTAPE 3Dans une jatte, mélangez les jaunes d'oeufs et 50 g de sucre en poudre. ÉTAPE 4Versez la pâte dans trois moules de même diamètre (ou dans un moule à bord très haut) beurrés et farinés. ÉTAPE 5Faites un sirop avec le reste du sucre, 1 sachet de sucre vanillé et 25 cl d'eau. ÉTAPE 6Refroidissez un saladier à l'aide de glaçons. ÉTAPE 7Passez maintenant au montage du gâteau : étalez 1/4 de la crème chantilly sur la première génoise, puis répartissez la moitié des cerises. ÉTAPE 8Placez le gâteau 3 heures au réfrigérateur avant de servir.
Caramel Apple Pie Cupcakes « The Craving Chronicles It seems like once the weather cools down everyone wants to jump right into pumpkin season. Don’t get me wrong, I love pumpkin as much as anyone else, but to me September is apple season. I was thinking about how often apples get overshadowed by pumpkin a few weeks ago when my husband asked me if I wanted to attend a dinner party with some of his coworkers. “Hrmmm. Maybe…”, I said. It took me a while to decide on an approach for these cupcakes. Ultimately, I decided the best way to pack that punch of apple flavor into a cupcake was to use apple pie filling. I was apprehensive while putting these cupcakes together. In the end, they didn’t. They tasted approximately a million times better than I had imagined. I was hoping for good cupcakes, but these were amazing. Caramel Apple Pie Cupcakes Printable Recipe (Includes all sub-recipes) Makes about 24 cupcakes There are several steps to complete before assembling the cupcakes, but some can be done a day ahead to speed things up. Ingredients
The Best Chocolate Mousse of Your Life Under 5 Minutes : Cafe Fernando – Food Blog - best chocolate mousse - best chocolate mousse recipe - chocolate chantilly - chocolate mousse recipe - herve this - Chocolate December 22nd, 2010 | Category: Chocolate Two ingredients (seriously, only chocolate and water) and five minutes later, you will be eating The Best Chocolate Mousse of Your Life. I promise. And you don’t even need any fancy kitchen gadgets. This amazing discovery was made by the famous French chemist, Hervé This, who is also known as the man who unboiled an egg. Since the recipe has only two ingredients, it all comes down to the quality of the chocolate you use. Don’t take this as a mousse recipe only. You can also flavor it with spices like cinnamon or cayenne pepper or add a tablespoon of liquor like Grand Marnier, Chartreuse or Tia Maria. Or boil the water first, take off heat, place a couple of Earl Grey tea bags, let infuse and then use it as your liquid. The most important part of the recipe is achieving the right consistency. As soon as I hit the publish button, I’ll start working against a very tight deadline for the book. Wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Pâte à Choux Recipe (Cream Puff Pastry) Thursday, November 17, 2011 Simple Pate a Choux and Cheese Puffs Update 11/17/11 I’m re-posting this recipe from 2009 – it’s perfect for Thanksgiving dinner – 3-ingredient recipe with impressive results. Update 12/8/09 I’m thrilled to share that I’m a featured blogger for Oprah’s Holiday 2009 where this recipe is being featured! Pâte à Choux paht-ah-shoo! Sounds like sneeze, those fancy French words that I can’t ever get right! But so easy that it can be summed up with this ratio 1:1:1:1:1 1 cup water: 1 stick butter: 1 cup flour: 1 cup eggs: 1 pinch salt And so easy that even *I* an oven-fearing, non-baker could master it on the very first try. So easy that I’ve made these cute little babies 6 times in the past 6 days. Now that’s easy. Or obsessive. Either way, you MUST make these — like TONIGHT! And if you try to make me pronounce gougeres, I can’t. So we’re calling them “Fancy Cheesy Puffy Poofs” at dinner. Rule #1: Simplest is best. Oh but wait. Easy Mushroom Pate Leave a Comment
Maple Pots de Crème with Almond Praline Recipe at Epicurious photo by Dan Forbes yield Makes 4 active time 40 minutes total time 4 hours The crunchy praline is a nice contrast to the smooth, rich custard. Custard: 6 large egg yolks 1/3 cup maple sugar 2 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar 1/8 teaspoon imitation maple extract Pinch of coarse kosher salt 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream Praline: 2 tablespoons sliced almonds 3 tablespoons sugar 1 tablespoon water 1 teaspoon light corn syrup Pinch of coarse kosher salt Preparation For praline: Preheat oven to 375°F. Stir sugar, 1 tablespoon water, corn syrup, and coarse salt in small heavy saucepan over low heat until sugar dissolves. For custard: Preheat oven to 325°F. Arrange four 3/4-cup ramekins or custard cups in 13 x 9 x 2-inch metal baking pan. Bake custards until center is just set, about 35 minutes. Sprinkle praline over custards.
How To Make Creamy Ice Cream with Just One Ingredient! Yes, that's right; you heard us. Creamy, soft-serve style ice cream with just one ingredient — and no ice cream maker needed! What is this one magic ingredient that can be whipped into perfectly rich and silky ice cream, with no additional dairy, sweeteners, or ingredients needed whatsoever? If you guessed BANANA, congratulations! You're right! What? "That's the sort of thing you discover," she sighed, "when all your friends are vegan, gluten-free, dairy-allergic, and you're on a sugar-free diet." It turns out that frozen bananas are good for more than just dipping in chocolate. Some bananas, depending on their ripeness, have a bit of that green aftertaste. Have you ever tried frozen-banana ice cream? Want more detailed instructions and step-by-step photos? → Step-by-Step Instructions for One-Ingredient Ice Cream Now try more flavors... → Magic One-Ingredient Ice Cream 5 Ways: Peanut Butter, Nutella, and More (Images: Faith Durand)