It happens to.....

 The BEST of US!!!

It happens to all of us sooner or later!   This is the time to make an English Trifle!

Sending Merry Christmas and Happy New Year Wishes to all!

Tasty Peanut Brittle!!

 

It's that time of year for 

Peanut Brittle

I was a little intimidated making Peanut Brittle since my childhood 

was filled with the horror stories about making this holiday candy.  I find out on my first attempt, it is quite simple and the key it having an accurate thermometer.  I don't know I can trust the "soft ball" "hard ball" method that was used in days of old since I haven't found anyone that could show me how!  

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Peanut Brittle

Candy

2 c sugar

1 c water

1 c dark corn syrup

1/2 ts salt

1 c honey roasted peanuts; chopped

2 tb butter

1 ts vanilla

2 ts baking soda

A candy and/or deep fry thermometer is vital. Get it ready now. With parchment paper, line a sheet pan; set aside. To keep paper in place, I use binder clips you can find at any office supply shop.

Add the sugar, water, corn syrup and salt to a large saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Continue cooking over medium heat until mixture reaches 250F. Add the peanuts and continue cooking until mixture reaches 290F. Remove from heat. Add the butter, vanilla and baking soda and beat until frothy. To my surprise, the boiling sugar mixture will turn to a opaque medium golden color.

Pour onto the prepared baking sheet and spread to fill the pan with a even layer of mixture. Place in a freezer for 20 minutes.

Break the brittle into small pieces and store in an airtight container.

Yield: 24 servings

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A new Take on the Vanishing Oatmeal Cookie

 It's a NEW Take on the Vanishing Oatmeal Cookie!!

While browsing the shelves in the baking department, I ran across Hershey's Cinnamon Chips.  Humm....what could I make with those??  The first thing that popped into my mind was Oatmeal Cookies and I headed to the recipe file to find the Vanishing Oatmeal Cookie recipe on the Quaker Box.   Grabbed the recipe and made a few changes, including removing the raisins and adding the Cinnamon Chips and chopped Pecans.  

This is the original off the box recipe.  

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Vanishing Oatmeal Cookies

7 oz butter; softened

3/4 c brown sugar

1/2 c sugar

2 lg eggs

1 tb vanilla

11/2 c flour

1 ts baking soda

1 tb cinnamon

1/2 tb salt

3 c oatmeal

1 bag Hershey's Cinnamon Chips*

1 c pecans, rough chop*

Heat oven to 350°F.

In large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

Notes Bar Cookies: Press dough onto bottom of ungreased 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars. Store tightly covered. 24 BARS. Variations: Stir in 1 cup chopped nuts. Substitute 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips or candy-coated chocolate pieces for raisins; omit cinnamon. Substitute 1 cup diced dried mixed fruit.

*My substitutions

Yield: 48 cookies

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A very thick but manageable dough.  

Oven at 350F and baking for 10 minutes.  


Hope you enjoy this....we sure did here. 


 

Homemade Magic Shell

Who doesn't love Magic Shell!!??    Here is a quick recipe you will want to have in your pantry all the time...and JUST two ingredients.    This recipe calls for semi-sweet chips but I always use Ghirardelli 60% Caco Bittersweet Chocolate Chips.  Just a personal preference.  

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Homemade Magic Shell

1 c semi-sweet chocolate chips; 190 gm

3 tb coconut oil; 39 gm

Add the chocolate chips and coconut oil to a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave in 20-30 second increments, making sure to stir very well after each increment, until completely melted and smooth.

Allow to cool for a few minutes, then top on ice cream of choice.

Notes: Store in an airtight container at room temperature.

DO NOT store in refrigerator or any place that is cool.....it will harden.

Yield: 6 servings

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The BETTER Biscuit!!

The BETTER Biscuit and

Southern Living deserves all the credit

for helping me create them!

When I saw this method, I was a little skeptical about it.   But....I am one to try different recipes and methods.   This is it...PERFECT!     The grated frozen butter is the best new idea in distributing butter in the flour.  

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Best Ever Biscuits

1/2 cup butter; frozen

2 c White Lily SR Flour

1 c buttermilk

2 tablespoons melted butter

Preheat oven to 475F.

Grate butter on large holes of grater.  or....Cut butter with a sharp knife or pastry blender into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Sprinkle butter slices over flour in a large bowl. Toss butter with flour. Cut butter into flour with a pastry blender until crumbly and mixture resembles small peas. Cover and chill 10 minutes. Add buttermilk, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead 3 or 4 times, gradually adding additional flour as needed. With floured hands, press or pat dough into a 3/4-inch-thick rectangle (about 9 x 5 inches). Sprinkle top of dough with additional flour. Fold dough over onto itself in 3 sections, starting with 1 short end. (Fold dough rectangle as if folding a letter-size piece of paper.) Repeat entire process 2 more times, beginning with pressing into a 3/4-inch-thick dough rectangle (about 9 x 5 inches).

Press or pat dough to 1/2-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface; cut with a 2-inch round cutter, and place, side by side, on a parchment paper-lined or lightly greased jelly-roll pan. (Dough rounds should touch.) Also, place is a 12" iron skillet coated with a small amount of butter.   This will make crispy bottom biscuits.

Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven; brush with 2 Tbs. melted butter.

Note: For testing purposes only, we used White Lily Self-Rising Soft Wheat Flour.

Cinnamon-Raisin Biscuits: Omit 2 Tbs. melted butter. Combine 1/2 cup golden raisins, 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon, and 1/3 cup chopped pecans with flour in a large bowl. Proceed with recipe as directed. Stir together 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 2 Tbs. buttermilk until smooth. Drizzle over warm biscuits.       Makes 2 1/2 dozen.

Black Pepper-Bacon Biscuits: Combine 1/3 cup cooked and crumbled bacon slices (about 5 slices) and 1 tsp. black pepper with flour in a large bowl. Proceed with recipe as directed. Makes 2 1/2 dozen.

Feta-Oregano Biscuits: Combine 1 (4-oz.) package crumbled feta cheese and 1/2 tsp. dried oregano with flour in a large bowl. Proceed with recipe as directed. Makes 2 1/2 dozen.

Pimiento Cheese Biscuits: Combine 1 cup (4 oz.) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese with flour in a large bowl. Reduce buttermilk to 1 cup. Stir together buttermilk and 1 (4-oz.) jar diced pimiento, undrained. Proceed with recipe as directed. Makes 2 1/2 dozen.

Notes:  Southern Living

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Jimmy Dean patties, biscuits and scrambled eggs

These are so good....

You will never buy store bought again!!

I had such good luck making tart shells last week, I though I should put my tortilla press to the real test of making tortillas.   Boy...I am glad that I did since they turned out so good and I will never buy store bought again.  

Here is the recipe.....so simple with four ingredients.  Who would have thought it would be so easy.   I highly recommend investing in a tortilla press.   You can find used ones on eBay at some great prices....it's just the Victoria Press is cast iron and weights quite a bit for shipping.  Maybe Prime Members from Amazon can get free shipping! 

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Soft Flour Tortillas

2 c flour; 260g

1 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup water; very warm

5 tb lard; melted 64g

Add the salt to the warm water and stir together until the salt has dissolved.

In a large bowl, use a fork to combine the flour with the oil (or other fat) until it looks crumbly. Pour in almost all of the salty water and stir until a shaggy dough forms. If the mixture seems dry, add a bit more of the water.

When the dough comes together, transfer to a floured work surface and knead until smooth, two to three minutes. Cover with a clean dish cloth and leave for at least 15 minutes and up to an hour or two. Resting the dough makes rolling it out easier.

Divide the dough into ten equally sized blobs and then shape into small disks. Use a rolling pin to roll each small disc into 8-inch rounds or use a tortilla press. The thinner the better, here.  Each portion is 44g each for continuity of size.  

Stack the rolled tortillas with a piece of parchment paper between them. Alternatively, you can roll and cook the tortillas at the same time. Roll one tortilla out, then while it cooks, roll the next tortilla out.

Make ahead: Divide the dough into smaller balls (this recipe makes ten 8-inch tortillas), wrap them very well, and then place into the refrigerator up to three days. About thirty to forty minutes before you are ready to cook the tortillas, take the balls out of the refrigerator and let them come to room temperature before rolling them out.

COOK TORTILLAS Heat a wide, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, add the first tortilla. Within 20 to 30 seconds, you should start to see it puffing up with bubbles forming.

Transfer the cooked tortilla to a dish towel and cover it then continue with the remaining tortillas, adjusting the heat as needed.

Yield: 10 tortillas

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They will puff up while cooking....just flatten them with your spatula and they will deflate when cooling.   As you can see, they also will change color as the cook on your griddle.  They will turn from a transparent wet look to a solid color and begin to change to golden brown.  

 

My Pineapple Pecan Upside Down Cake

Just another "old fashioned" dessert that I just love.    

I have adapted this recipe from a number of other recipes and  really love the result.   

This is a single  layer cake.  Hope you enjoy also!  

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Pineapple Pecan Upside Down Cake

1 1/2 c flour

2 ts baking powder

1/4 ts baking soda

1 ts salt

1/2 ts cinnamon

3/4 c butter; divided, room temp

3/4 c brown sugar

20 oz pineapple chunks; drained

1/2 c pecans; rough chop

1 1/4 c sugar

2 lg eggs; room temp

1 ts vanilla

1/2 c buttermilk; room temperature

  optional:

  whipped cream

  vanilla ice cream

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray 9" round cake pan and line with parchment. Set

aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda,

salt, and cinnamon and set aside.

Add 1/4 cup butter to small sauce pan and melt. Do not let it burn. Add

brown sugar and stir until dissolved. Let boil for a minute. Pour

immediately into cake pan, swirl to distribute over bottom of pan.  Set

side to cool.

When cool, add drained pineapple (reserve pineapple juice for another

purpose, if desired) and chopped pecans scattered over the butter/brown

sugar topping.

Beat the remaining 1/2 cup butter on medium high speed until light and

creamy, about 1 minute. Add sugar and beat until well incorporated. Add

eggs, one at a time; add vanilla and beat for about 1 minute on medium

speed. Add the dry ingredients in thirds with buttermilk alternating in

three additions, starting and ending with the dry. Beat just until the dry

ingredients are incorporated. Do not over mix.

Spread the batter evenly over the pineapple chunks. The batter will be

thick and I find an ice cream scoop helps distribute batter. Smooth batter

to edge of pan. Gently tap the pan on a counter to remove air bubbles. Bake

the cake for 50 to 60 minutes until it is a dark golden brown on top, it

springs back when touched in the center. Test as usual.

Allow the cake to sit for 5 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edges to

loosen the cake from the sides and transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool

for an additional 20 minutes. Run a knife around the edges one more time.

Gently shake the pan up and down a few times, and invert the cake onto a

cake plate.

Yield: 6 servings

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This usually is prepared with pineapple  rings and maraschino cherries, but I opted to use pineapple chunks for ease of cutting and serving.  

Time for some Good Ole Fashioned Dessert??

Thought it was about TIME!   

Hot summer day and I was searching for something cool for a light dessert.  After looking at my pantry supplies I came across my Tapioca box that hadn't been used in some time.   OK....why not?  

  Quick and easy...

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Kraft Minute Tapioca Pudding

1 lg egg

2 3/4 c milk

1/3 c sugar; or Splenda

3 tb minute tapioca

1 ts vanilla**

Whisk egg and milk in medium saucepan until well blended. Stir in sugar and tapioca. Let stand 5 minutes. 

Bring to full boil (a boil that doesn't stop bubbling when stirred) on medium heat stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. 

Cool 20 minutes; cool. Keep refrigerated until serving but can be served warm to room temperature. 

For creamier pudding, press plastic wrap directly onto the surface of putting until it cools. For best results, use whole milk or 2% milk. 

**I decided to drop the vanilla extract and 

added Almond Extract by McCormick

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Topped with whipped topping and sliced almonds

Mom always had this in her cupboard and made up pudding often.   I remember the texture of the tapioca pearls in my mouth and it brought back memories and flavors I had forgotten.

 

 Banana Bread CoffeeCake

Here is an easy, quick variation on Banana Bread

but I added streusel and it became a great CoffeeCake!  

Enjoy

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Banana Bread CoffeeCake

2 lg bananas; mashed

1/3 c sugar

2 tb buttermilk

1 1/2 tb canola oil

2 lg eggs

1 1/3 c flour

1/2 ts salt

1 1/2 ts baking powder

1/2 ts cinnamon

1/2 c pecans; rough chop

  for the streusel:

1/2 c flour

1/4 c brown sugar

1/4 c pecans; rough chop

3 tb butter; room temp

Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare 8x8 baking pan with baking spray or butter and flour for batter. 

Mash bananas into rough purée, Add sugar, buttermilk, oil, and eggs. Stir to completely combine. 

In separate bowl, combine flour, salt, baking powder and cinnamon. Whisk to combine. Slowly add to banana mixture and stir just until combined and no flour streaks remain. Fold in pecans. 

Pour into baking dish and spread to corners. 

Prepare streusel topping by combining flour, brown sugar and pecans. Mix in butter and combine until large clumps form. Do not press down but keep light and fluffy. Lightly sprinkle streusel over batter. It will cover the entire cake in a nice layer. 

Bake for 28-32 minutes. Test as usual for doneness. 

Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature

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I do hope you enjoy this as much as I did.....and the coffee is just brewed for a mid morning snack!  

 Why didn't I think of this before.....?

Whenever I get the notion to make tart shells, I always dread rolling out the little rounds and cutting them the right size to fit into my removable bottom tart shells.   It really can get tedious.  

Something this morning struck me and I don't know why I had never thought of this before....why don't you try your tortilla press???    Well I did, and discovered that a regular 9" dough recipe can be divided into 8 equal portions and they are the perfect size for the tart pans.   All it took was to line my tortilla press with parchment paper dusted and in goes the ball of dough and presto!   A perfect round and ready piece to insert in the tart pan.  

Here is my recipe and of course, I only use all natural lard for my pastry.   Grandma was right and it is pure and natural.  

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Grandma's Pie Crust

1 1/3 c flour; plus more, as needed

1/4 ts baking powder

2 ts sugar

1/2 ts salt

4 oz pure lard; cold

1 ts vinegar

4 tb ice water; more, or less

Add flour, baking powder, sugar and salt in workbowl of food processor. Pulse once or twice to combine. 

Add cold lard to bowl and pulse eight or ten times until resembles pea size pieces. This can also be done with a pastry blender, or two knives if your don't have a food processor. 

Add vinegar (produces a tender crust) and ice water. Pulse a few times until dough comes together. Mix with spatula if working in a large bowl. Dough should be able to hold together when you pinch between your fingers. If not, add a teaspoon at a time and gently mix. Do not overwork the pastry. 

Remove and place on plastic wrap and refrigerate for two hours minimum for dough to relax. 

Proceed as usual with filling of choice, or blind bake at 425F for a nice pastry shell.

Courtesy Grandma Lola and Grandma Grace

Yield: 1 9" crust

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Roll Ball onto parchment paper and cover

with another sheet of paper before pressing.  

  Ease into tart shell and trim

I purchased my tortilla press years ago 

from Amazon.  I don't use it much

but it sure is necessary when you need it.  

I do hope this helps you and inspires everyone to get out in the kitchen and make some tart shells.  They freeze easy and are ready to use for a quick dessert.

Apple Fritters!

The Apple Season is Over

Glazed and ready for a cup of coffee

Since it's the end of the apple season, I have ended up with one apple that is about to "blink" as we say in the south.  That means it's about to go bad.  This apple looked like it was just right to make apple fritters.

Ready for cooling and glazing

This is the recipe that I use but you might find it a little "unsweet" so feel free to add more sugar or Splenda if you want a sweeter batter.   After combining the ingredients, you will notice this batter is almost like pancake batter....which I am sure the origins of this recipe started out with extra fruit and batter left over.   As you know, here in the south, we don't waste anything, if it hasn't spoiled.  If it has...maybe the compost bin will be the final destination!  

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Cinnamon Apple Fritters

  for fritters:

2 tb sugar

2  eggs

1/2 ts vanilla

1 c flour

2 ts baking powder

1/2 ts cinnamon

1/8 ts pumpkin pie spice

1/2 ts salt

1/4 c milk, or buttermilk

1 ts lemon juice

2 c granny smith apples; peel, core

  vegetable oil for deep-frying

  for glaze:

1 1/4 c powdered sugar

1/4 ts vanilla

1 tb warm water

In a stand mixer, cream the sugar, eggs and vanilla for 1-2 minutes with the paddle attachment. Add flour, baking powder, cinnamon, pie spice, salt and milk. Mix well, scraping bowl as needed.

In a separate bowl, chop and toss peeled apples with lemon juice. Stir apples into batter.

Heat vegetable oil to 375F. Scoop out large spoonfuls of the batter and carefully and gently slide the fritter batter into the hot oil. When they get to a deep golden brown color, carefully turn the fritters over to brown the other side and continue cooking. When the fritters become brown on both sides, flip them over again.

Using a wire mesh strainer, remove the fritters, one at a time, to a paper-towel lined rack to drain & cool.

For Glaze: Whisk together powdered sugar, vanilla and water in a small bowl until you have a thin glaze. Using a pastry brush, brush glaze over the entire bottoms of the fritters. Let glaze harden slightly, turn over, and paint the glaze on the tops and sides. Place glazed fritters back onto wire cooling rack; let glaze fully harden.

Yield: 10 fritters

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I do hope you enjoy as much as we do....and they make a great breakfast treat!

ICE CREAM CAKE!

What a great dessert for a 

Hot Summer Day

This great dessert is so easy to do...but I must advise it is a bit time consuming.  All the steps require returning to the freezer for a complete refreeze before proceeding to the next step.  

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Ice Cream 'Cake'

Desserts, Ice Cream

15  Oreo Cookies

1 tablespoon cream

9  ice cream sandwiches; or more

1 pint banana ice cream

1 pint vanilla ice cream

1 pint strawberry ice cream

1 1/2 c heavy cream; whipped

1 envelope gelatin; softened in water

  sugar; to taste

Coat bottom and side of a 9-inch round springform pan with nonstick cooking

spray. Line side with waxed paper, using spray to help adhere to pan. Trim

paper to height of pan.

Finely crush 12 Oreo's in a food processor. Add milk; pulse just until

mixture holds together. Set aside.

My tip: Be sure ice cream bars are completely frozen. Do NOT unwrap, but

cut with paper attached. Return to freezer to completely refreeze. This

makes it so much easier to handle the cut bars...but WORK QUICKLY.

Cut each in quarters (cut once horizontally, once vertically). Break apart

and remove paper wrappers. Stack strips of sandwiches on end, packing them

snugly together, around wax-paper-lined pan. Repeat with remaining

sandwiches to form a stand-up edge. Spoon cookie crumbs into center of pan;

press firmly over bottom. Freeze 1 hour.

Remove all 3 flavors of ice cream or frozen yogurt from freezer and let

soften for 15 minutes at room temperature.  Transfer banana ice cream to a

small bowl and stir until good but firm spreading consistency. Return to

freezer for the ice cream layer to refreeze. Repeat with vanilla and

strawberry.

Remove pan from freezer. Spread ice cream on bottom, then top with vanilla

and strawberry, spreading all layers at level. Top with whipped cream,

edging border with star tip. Return to freezer; freeze overnight.

Whip cream until soft peaks form. Add sugar as desired and softened

gelatin. Whip until firm peaks form but do not over beat. Spread over top

and finish edge with whipped cream in a star tip bag.

To serve, remove side of pan, then waxed paper. Cut into wedges.

You can use any flavor of ice cream.  Choose your favorites!!   This would

also be great with Lime, Orange and Pineapple Sherbet.

Notes:  ©WHStoneman

Yield: 8 servings

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Cookie Crust added after Border

Ice Cream Layers Added