Pickled Asian Pears Hi peaches! SO get this…recently I was invited to a food event featuring some lovely local chefs doing a cooking demonstration. I was in and excited to go, since a few of my friends were planning on attending, too. Sounded like a nice way to spend a few hours…ya know? Plus…there were cocktails. The funny part was that when I checked in and was handed my nametag I honestly was mildly surprised to see I was there representing this blog! It’s not that I forgot I had it, I just somehow didn’t realize other people were still tuned in! Oops. So…after that jolt…and three weeks later, I’m back here…with a quickie post on pickled Asian pears. Try this my peaches, and taste the joy. xoxo Pickled Asian Pears (This is a quick pickle, which means it does not need to ferment and is ready to eat as soon as it is chilled.) 4 large Asian pears, peeled, cored and sliced in to ¼ inch wedges When the flavors are to your taste, then add the pear and simmer 4 minutes. That’s it! Makes about 3 cups.
Bailey’s Chocolate Pudding — No Kids Allowed Bailey’s Chocolate Pudding — No Kids Allowed Posted on 23 February 2010 by Mădălina At first glance, this looks like a cup of dark chocolate hot cocoa, but take a closer look and you’ll find the ultimate after-dinner-dessert. I added Baileys Irish Cream, and used semi-sweet chocolate instead of milk-chocolate, and feel free to splurge on the more expensive chocolate. Bailey’s Dark Chocolate Pudding Cups — NO Kids Allowed Ingredients: (makes 6 – half cup servings) 6 oz. – semi-sweet chocolate (1 oz. used for topping; splurge for the higher quality chocolate) 4 oz. – Bailey’s Irish Cream Liquor 1/3 – cup golden syrup 2 1/2 – cups warm milk 1/3 cup plus 2 tbsp – corn starch 2 – egg yolks, whisked 1 – tsp pure vanilla extract 1 – tbsp butter garnish (optional) – marshmallows, chocolate chips, whip-cream, walnuts, ice cream, etc. Directions: 1. 2. 3. 4. Stir the remaining egg-Baileys-vanilla mixture into the hot pudding. 5. Garnish, and serve. Bailey’s Chocolate Pudding [serves 6] Ingredients: garnish 3. 5.
Homemade Chocolate Syrup Recipe I love it when I can easily make something at home and it turns out to be just as good or better than the more expensive store-bought kind. I’ve been wanting to try some homemade chocolate syrup. The basic recipe is very simple, but there are a few variations of it, so the other day I decided to experiment with them and have a chocolate syrup taste test. Not a shabby way to spend the afternoon! The one I liked the best was from Amy Dacyczyn’s The Complete Tightwad Gazette. ½ cup cocoa powder 1 cup water 2 cups sugar ⅛ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon vanilla Mix the cocoa powder and the water in a saucepan. The result is very rich, so I only use a teaspoon for a glass of chocolate milk. I poured the chocolate into a flip-top glass bottle and added a label. I’ve been gradually learning how to replace some of the foods we used to buy. Small Notebook is full of practical ideas to simplify your life and home.
Sweetheart Cherry Pies — Cake Student Valentine’s Day is one of those holidays that have become a bit too commercialized I think. I like to keep this holiday simple… so I helped my son make and mail valentine’s cards & bake something special. (UPDATE: Sweetheart chocolate chip cookies with love messages for this year!) When I checked out the Kitchen Play February menu, I knew exactly which recipe I would tackle. This month’s sponser is Cherry Marketing Institute, and Julie from The Little Kitchen had a wonderful idea with her cherry mini pockets. I wanted to take her idea and change it up a bit to make a sweet heart shaped pocket for the sweethearts in my life. Use your favorite pie dough. Update: I have been asked where I got my heart-shaped cookie cutter; it’s actually an egg mold! Pit and chop about a handful of fresh sweet cherries. Fill with Ricotta Cheese, and the chopped cherries. Serve for breakfast, dessert, or anytime in between. Summary: Mini Pastries for Valentines Day Ingredients Instructions
Someone Left The Cake Out In The Rain Drunken Coffee Jello Squares OK, kids: This is coffee. In solid form. It’s been sweetened with condensed milk and booze-ified with a healthy dose of Kahlua—then rubberized into a blissful, cocktail-hour finger food thanks to the magic of gelatin. (If you know me, you know how much I love coffee, so you can imagine how excited I was when I came across the recipe.) Now, you have to like Jello, or Jello-like food, for this to work. If you do, you’re in for a treat. Huge thanks to The Food Librarian for sharing their deliciousness. (If you haven’t checked out the Food Librarian’s blog, you should. So, years ago, I had several meals that ended with Classic American Jello Mold Torture. This is not that jello. This jello is the short and stout cousin of Vietnamese iced coffee, that fabulous concoction of espresso and condensed milk. This is jello that you could serve to your foodie friends. This stuff is silly. The short version of the recipe goes like this That’s it. Read on for step-by-step instrux of what that looks like.
Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Glaze I’m not exaggerating when I write that I have been thinking about making these cinnamon rolls for five months. After posting my Sweet Potato Pecan Cinnamon Rolls last November, I started brainstorming other varieties and carrot cake immediately came to mind. I waited all of these months to make these cinnamon rolls because for some reason I associate carrot cake with Spring. Is it the bunnies? Easter? I’m not sure what the connection is, but I stuck to my guns and held off until now to create these Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Glaze. Indisputably a healthier recipe than that of most cinnamon rolls, this one calls for whole wheat pastry flour, applesauce, and a low amount of sugar. I know the directions list looks a bit intimidating, but I assure you none of the steps are too difficult. … rolling the dough up nice & snug and nestling the cut pieces into a cake pan. It’s so rewarding to peek at the rolls an hour later and behold them in their puffed-up risen glory.
Banana Bites! Oh, I love these little guys. Not only are they DELICIOUS, and not only do they feature fruit, so you can tell yourself they are just a little bit healthy, but they are also awesome for using up those bits and pieces that accumulate in your cupboard (if you are me, anyway.) You know what I mean – the last quarter cup of shredded coconut in the bag, the end of that package of mini-chocolate chips, etc etc. Anyway, start with a bunch of bananas. I love bananas. And melt up your favorite kind of chocolate. Then lay out little separate dishes of whatever sweet crunchy odds and ends you have on hand. And chopped peanuts (sweet and salty, whoo-hoo!) And the end of that bag of toffee bits that I was beginning to think I would have in my cupboard forever (can’t even remember what I bought them for in the first place!) And my personal favorite, crushed Oreo cookies. Pop them in the freezer for a few hours and that’s it. Banana Bites! Ingredients 2 cups chocolate chips 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
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.