A growing collection of recipes

Tootsie Roll Shooter

Tue, 01 Nov 2011 08:00:06 -0500

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 oz. Tia Maria

1/3 oz. Brown Creme de Cacao

1/3 oz. Frangelico

DIRECTIONS: Pour the ingredients into a shot glass and serve. It doesn’t get any easier than that!

Apple Cider Caramels

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 16:05:06 -0500

2 cup high-quality apple cider

1 cup heavy cream or whipping cream, divided

1 tsp ground cinnamon

Pinch nutmeg

1/4 tsp allspice

1 1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup real butter, cubed

Pour cider into a medium saucepan and boil on high for about 20 minutes or until the cider is reduced to 1/3 c. Keep an eye on it…it might try to run away. Set aside to cool.

Line an 8” square pan with parchment paper, making sure to leave about 1” hanging over the edges for easy removal. Coat with a bit of vegetable oil and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine 2/3 c. cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and reduced apple cider. Set aside.

In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, 1/3 c. whipping cream + enough water to reach the 1/2 c. line on the measuring cup, and corn syrup. Cook over low heat until the sugar dissolves. Insert the candy thermometer and simmer until the syrup reaches 234 degrees.

Remove from heat and slowly whisk in the cream mixture. Add the cubed butter and stir until the cream and butter are fully incorporated. Return the pan to heat and re-insert the candy thermometer. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until the temperature reaches 248 degrees.

Remove from heat and pour the caramel into the prepared pan. Let the mixture cool completely at room temperature or in the refrigerator. I covered the top of the pan loosely with saran wrap and left it out overnight. You could cut the caramels into 1/2” squares and wrap each caramel in wax paper, but I’m lazy so I cut the caramel into 1/2” logs, which meant that I had exponentially fewer pieces to individually wrap. Store in an airtight container or in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks, but I can guarantee that they won’t last that long. These things are delicious!

For a party, I made two of your recipes yesterday: the orange slice jello shooters and the mini pumpkin pie shooters. They were delicious! The orange slice jello shooters were a hit. I have just two things to add: I highly recommend using a melon baller to scoop out the pulp of the oranges. I froze the orange slices a bit before transferring them to the refrigerator in hopes that it would prevent leaking when I cut them and indeed it did. : )

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 11:05:56 -0500

ohh that is so awesome to hear. :D I’m glad it went went well. And I will edit your tips into the recipe!

Honeycrisp Apple Sangria

Mon, 31 Oct 2011 08:00:05 -0500

2 Honeycrisp apples

One 750-milliliter bottle unoaked Chardonnay

1/3 C. peach Schnapps

1/4 C. pisco (I could not find this so I used a bit more peach schnapps)

1/4 C. honey (I used orange blossom)

2 oranges- 1 quartered

1 lemon – quartered

1 lime – quartered

2 cinnamon sticks

2 quarter-size slices of fresh ginger

3 whole cloves

2 T. sugar

1/2 t. ground cinnamon

Ice

Club soda

Mint sprigs – for garnish (did not use)

Peel, core and chop one of the apples. In a bowl, combine the Chardonnay, Schnapps, pisco and honey. Add the quartered orange, the lemon, lime, cinnamon sticks, the chopped apple, ginger and cloves and refrigerate at least 4 hours. (I let mine sit overnight)

Strain the sangria into a pitcher. Peel, core and finely chop the remaining apple. Peel, section and chop the remaining orange. Mix the apple and orange in a bowl.

On a small plate, blend the sugar and cinnamon. Moisten the rims of wine glasses and dip in the cinnamon sugar to coat. Fill the glasses with ice. Pour in the sangria until three-quarters full. Top with a splash of club soda. Garnish with a spoonful of the chopped apple and orange and a mint sprig.

Perfectly Poisonous Parfait

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 16:05:05 -0500

Ingredients

Vanilla Pudding

Non-pariels (in orange)

Crushed up Oreos

Tall shot glasses (mine are from Pier 1′s tasting line)

Instructions

layer a few spoonfulls of pudding, then non-Pariels, then more pudding, and finally oreos repeat until your glass is full.

Green Bat-inis

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 08:00:06 -0500

Ingredients

1 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice

1/4 - 1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup fresh mint leaves

1 cup sparkling mineral water

Dash ginger ale

2 - 3 cups ice

1 cup vodka

Frozen vodka or sparkling mineral water

Mint sprigs and lemon slices for garnish

Directions

Chill 4 serving glasses in the freezer. Combine lemon juice, sugar, mint, mineral water, ginger ale, and ice in a blender. Slowly blend until thick.

Remove the four glasses from the freezer and pour a jigger (1/4 cup) vodka into each. Top with frozen lemonade mixture.

Add a straw and garnish each glass with a fresh mint sprig and a slice of lemon. Makes 4 servings.

Ghostly Pumpkin Pudding

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 21:29:32 -0500

Ingredients

Pudding:

1 package gelatin

2 cups whole milk

1 cup sugar

6 large egg yolks (reserve 2 whites for topping)

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

1 (15-ounce) can pure pumpkin puree

Topping:

2 large egg whites

1/3 cups sugar

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1 pinch fine salt

Small candy, for eyes

For pudding:

Directions

Put 1 tablespoon of cold water in a large bowl. Sprinkle gelatin over the surface, do not stir, and set aside until gelatins softens and blooms.

Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a saucepan that can hold a stand mixer’s bowl above the water. Whisk milk, sugar, yolks, cinnamon and salt in a heat-proof bowl. Set the bowl above the boiling water and cook, stirring constantly with a heat-proof spatula, until mixture begins to thicken and coats the back of a spoon and almost boils, 10 to 12 minutes. Immediately remove from the heat and pour over the gelatin, whisking constantly until gelatin is completely dissolved and evenly distributed. Whisk in pumpkin until combined and completely smooth.

Evenly divide mixture into 12 small 3-ounce cups (paper works fine) and refrigerate until set, about 4 to 8 hours.

For topping:

Bring a few inches of water to a boil in a saucepan that can hold a stand mixer’s bowl above the water. Whisk the 2 egg whites, sugar, cream of tarter, and salt in the bowl by hand. Set the bowl above the boiling water and continue whisking until the mixture is hot to the touch and the sugar dissolves, about 1 to 2 minutes. Transfer bowl to mixer and beat with the whisk attachment at medium-high speed until eggs hold a stiff peak, about 5 minutes.

Spoon topping onto puddings in the shape of a ghost. Decorate with candy eyes and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Pumpkin Pie French Toast

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 21:04:48 -0500

Ingredients:

2 eggs

1/4 cup milk

1/4 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ginger

1/8 teaspoon cloves

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

2 tablespoons brown sugar

8 slices of bread

Directions:

Mix the eggs, milk, pumpkin puree, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, mutmeg and brown sugar in low flat bowl for easy dipping.

Dip the bread into the egg mixture on both sides and grill in a pan until lightly golden brown, about 2-3 minute per side.

Serve with maple syrup.

Spiderweb Nacho Spread Recipe

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 21:01:02 -0500

Recipe Ingredients

Bean Layer

2 cans (16 oz each) lowfat refried black or pinto beans

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

2 Tbsp lime juice

1 Tbsp hot Mexican chili powder

1 tsp minced garlic

3 large plum tomatoes, sliced

Middle Layer

1 1/2 cups thick and chunky salsa

1 cup (4 oz) shredded Mexican cheese blend

Guacamole Layer

4 ripe Hass avocados

3 Tbsp lime juice

2 Tbsp minced red onion

2 large jalapeno chiles, seeded and minced

1 tsp salt

Web

1 cup reduced fat sour cream

Decoration: a clean plastic toy spider

Serve with: blue, yellow, red corn tortilla chips

Recipe Preparation

Bean Layer: Scrape the mixture onto a 12- to 14-in. round serving plate and smooth into a 10-in. circle with a spatula. Arrange tomato slices around edge of bean layer to make a border.

Drain salsa in a strainer to get rid of excess juice. Spread over bean mixture, leaving some of the bean layer showing around the edge. Sprinkle cheese over salsa, leaving some of the salsa layer showing.

Guacamole: Halve avocados; remove seeds and spoon flesh into a medium bowl. Add lime juice, onion, jalapeños and salt, and mash until fairly smooth. Spoon over cheese layer and spread into an even layer.

Place sour cream in a ziptop bag; seal bag and snip a small tip off one corner. Pipe a spiderweb design over guacamole and onto the plate. Decorate with toy spider. Serve with tortilla chips.

You can make 4 hours ahead, cover and refrigerate.

Coffin Spinach Dip

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 20:55:31 -0500

1 10-oz package frozen chopped spinach(thaw & sqeeze out liquid)

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 package Lipton Veggie Soup Mix

1 can water chestnuts-chopped

Combine all ingredients and chill for a couple of hours to let flavors blend. Serve with crackers and bread cubes.

Bourbon Pumpkin Pie Milkshake

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 20:39:16 -0500

Yield: 2 small milkshakes

Prep Time: 10 min

ingredients:

6 scoops of vanilla ice cream

2/3 cup milk

4 tablespoons canned (unsweetened) pumpkin puree

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Splash of Bourbon

whipped cream and sprinkles (optional)

directions:

1. Scoop ice cream into the blender. Add milk and pumpkin and cinnamon. Blend it until smooth. Pour it into a glass, put whipped cream and sprinkles on top. Drink!

Pumpkin and cream cheese in wonton wrappers with caramel dip

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 20:32:59 -0500

12 Kraft Caramels

1 tsp. water

1/2 cup Breakstone’s or Knudsen Sour Cream

1 tsp. ground cinnamon, divided

4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) Philadelphia Cream Cheese, softened

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

1 Tbsp. brown sugar

1 tsp. flour

1/4 tsp. orange zest

20 won ton wrappers

1 egg white, lightly beaten

2 cups oil

1 Tbsp. powdered sugar

Directions

Microwave caramels and water in medium microwaveable bowl on HIGH 30 sec.; stir until caramels are completely melted. Cool 2 min. Stir in sour cream and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Whisk cream cheese, pumpkin, brown sugar, flour, zest and remaining cinnamon until well blended. Spoon about 2 tsp. onto center of each won ton wrapper. Moisten edges with egg white; fold diagonally in half. Pinch edges together tightly to seal.

Heat oil in large saucepan on medium-high heat to 350ºF. Add won tons, in batches; cook 2 to 3 min. or until evenly browned. Drain. Cool slightly or to room temperature. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with caramel sauce.

Tips: Since won ton wrappers quickly dry out, keep them covered with a damp clean kitchen towel until you are ready to use them.

Cook won tons as directed. Freeze up to 2 months. When ready to reheat, place frozen won tons on baking sheet. (No need to thaw first.) Bake at 350°F for 15 min. or until heated through.

Frozen Candy Corn Mousse

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 20:23:26 -0500

Makes: 5-6 cups

Prep time: 10 minutes

Total time: 18-24 hours

1 cup candy corn

1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk

In a small (2-cup) container with cover, combine the candy corn and evaporated milk. Cover and refrigerate overnight, stirring occasionally, until candy corn dissolves. Next day: Freeze the candy corn mixture for 30 minutes to chill well. Pour the mixture into a large mixing bowl, and beat with an electric mixer on high speed about 5 minutes or until the mixture is double to triple its original volume. Pour the mixture into a large plastic container; cover and freeze at least 6 hours, or until desired firmness.

Delay in updates

Sat, 29 Oct 2011 20:19:20 -0500

So sorry for the delay, just after I had answered that question I found out my aunt passed away. :< But I’m preparing some posts right now.

I love your blog! Could you do some more non-alcoholic drinks though? And maybe some more deserts!

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 00:09:14 -0500

Yeah, I’m so sorry I haven’t been active. I have quit a few submissions I’ve just been really busy I hope to be active tonight or tomorrow!

Worms for Brains

Sun, 09 Oct 2011 08:06:05 -0500

Ingredients
8 to 10 medium sweet orange peppers
1 package (16 ounces) spaghetti
1 pound ground beef
1 jar (26 ounces) spaghetti sauce
Directions
Cut tops off peppers and set aside; remove seeds and membranes. Cut a jack-o’-lantern face on one side of each pepper; set aside.

Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain.

Drain spaghetti; add to beef. Stir in spaghetti sauce; heat through. Spoon into peppers; replace tops. Yield: 8-10 servings.

The Color-Changing Martini

Sat, 08 Oct 2011 16:27:05 -0500

This drink smokes elegantly, changes from a calm blue to fuschia as it cools from room temperature to drinkably cold, and tastes like a dirty martini.

Dry ice is the sedate, well-behaved little brother of liquid nitrogen. Put some in a drink and it burbles away quietly, producing fog-filled bubbles that pop attractively. It won’t even freeze your drink. So how do you make a dry ice cocktail compete visually with the fierce crackling and raw cooling power of liquid nitrogen (as seen in The Ice-Worm Cocktail)? Read on…

Step 1 Ingredients

You’ll need:

Gin (or vodka, for a vodka martini) ~ Vermouth ~ Dry Ice ~ Baking Soda ~ Red Cabbage

Step 2 Red #$@%! Cabbage?

Yes. Red cabbage contains a water-soluble anthocyanin that is a pH indicator. At low pH (acid), it’s red. It’s purple at neutral pH, and goes blue then green as the solution becomes alkaline. You’re not going to see the full range here, because we want the drink to be, well, drinkable.

To get the indicator, chop up a cabbage leaf, put it in a bowl with some water, and microwave until it’s boiling (or just add boiling water and allow to steep). A purple pigment will stain the water.

Step 3 Build

Add a teaspoon of cabbage juice… I mean indicator solution - to the martini glass. Then add very small quantities of baking soda, just enough to turn the solution blue. Add gin (or vodka) and vermouth (~6:1) to the glass. You should have a pale blue clear liquid.

Step 4 Present

Give the recipient the drink. Tell them to watch closely, then add a chunk of dry ice. It will sink to the bottom of the drink, and bubble away happily, slowly cooling the drink. It will also neutralise the baking soda and change the colour of the martini. See it in action in the video below:

The Color-Changing Martini from Osmcann on Vimeo.

(that’s not me saying “wow, that’s wicked” by the way. This drink was mostly made as a way of keeping three small children entertained while their mother was out Christmas shopping. They liked the look of the cocktail, but thought the mocktail version was “really disgusting”. I did warn them that it was just salty, cabbage-flavoured water…)

Step 5 Taste

In the interests of science, I tried some of the baking soda/indicator mix straight. Baking soda tastes salty on its own, and rather overpowers the cabbage juice. The latter by itself doesn’t taste of much; a slightly sweet, vegetably taste, nothing like what its violent colour suggests. Overall, it flavours the martini in a way reminiscent of a dirty martini (martini with olive brine added). So you’ll only like it if you like dirty martinis, probably a pretty small constituency.

I didn’t initially regard this drink as spooky in any way, so was surprised to see it appear on various “Creepy Halloween Foods” lists (dabbled, neatorama, mentalfloss, etc). The lists were great and well worth checking out (they included some really effective eyeball recipes - see here for my version).

Blog owners notes- I personally don’t think this one sounds that tasty, the author says it tastes like a dirty martini? And there were some suggestions of substituting blueberries for the cabbage for a better flavor.

Candy Corn Martini

Sat, 08 Oct 2011 08:07:06 -0500

Candy Corn Martini - I know some of you are going to say “ooh” and some are going to say “ewww”.

Trick-or-Tini
From Stirrings

1 part coconut cream
1 part tangerine flavored mixer (suggested, Stirrings Tangerini)
1 part banana liqueur
Splash of white rum

1.Chill ingredients in fridge or freezer.
2.Once cooled, pour the first three ingredients, in the order listed above, slowly over the back side of a spoon into a martini glass.
3.Top with a splash of white rum.
Serves 1.

Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Buttercream

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 16:32:05 -0500

1 batch of your favorite pie crust dough (Don’t have a favorite? Use pre-made refrigerated dough, it will work well too.)

1 15 oz. can pumpkin pie filling, prepared according to the can’s

directions (or you can make your pie filling from scratch, you

overachiever, you—either way, you’ll need enough for one pie).

For the cupcakes you’ll need:

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature

1 1/2 c. granulated sugar

3 eggs

2 t. vanilla

2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. baking soda

1/2 t. salt

1 1/3 c. whole milk

2 1/2 c. flour

For the buttercream you’ll need:

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

8 oz cream cheese, room temperature

2 c. powdered sugar

1 c. Hershey’s cinnamon chips (or any cinnamon chips you like)

splash of whole milk

Directions:

Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees (F).

First, prepare the pumpkin pies. Mix up the pumpkin pie mix according

to the can’s directions (or make your own-fancy!). Roll out the pie

crust dough and cut it into small circles that are large enough to cover

the bottom and sides of mini cupcake tins (I used the opening of a

small juice glass as a cutter).

Press the dough into the lightly greased mini cupcake tins, and then

fill them with the pumpkin pie mix. (Don’t go all the way to the top,

the filling will expand a little while baking.)

Bake the pies for about 7 minutes at 425 degrees (F), and then turn the

oven down to 350 degrees (F) and bake them for another 10 minutes or

so, until the crust is brown and the filling is completely set.

After taking them out of the oven, cool them on a wire rack for about

10 minutes, then take them out of the pan and allow them to cool

further while you mix up the batter.

For the cupcake batter, combine the butter and the cream cheese

together on medium speed for about 90 seconds—you want the ingredients

to be well incorporated. Then mix in the sugar until the mixture is

fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla, baking soda,

baking powder, and salt. Then mix in the milk and the flour,

alternating between the two ingredients. Scrape down the sides and

bottom of the bowl, to make sure everything is getting well-mixed—beat

again on med-high speed for about a minute. It should be smooth and

creamy.

Spoon a heaping tablespoon of batter into regular-sized, paper-lined

cupcake tins. Plop a cooled pumpkin pie into the center, and press

gently into the batter. GENTLY. You don’t want it to touch to the bottom

of the pan.

Cover the pies with another heaping tablespoon of batter, so the top and sides are completely covered.

Bake at 350 degrees (F) for about 25 minutes, until the cake is set and

the edges and tops of the cupcakes have turned golden brown.

Allow them to cool in the cupcake tray for atleast 10 minutes before

moving to a wire rack—they’ll be a little fragile at first.

Once the cakes are cool, frost ‘em!

To make the buttercream, melt down the cinnamon chips with a splash of

whole milk. Pop ‘em in the microwave for about 45 seconds on high. Stir

until all the chips are melted, and allow it to cool a bit while you

whip up the rest of the frosting (you can put the bowl in the fridge,

it’ll cool faster that way, and the milk will keep it from

solidifying).

Cream together the butter and cream cheese until they’re well

incorporated. Then whip in the powdered sugar, a cup at a time, until

the mixture is smooth and creamy. With the mixer on low, drizzle in the

cooled cinnamon chip “ganache” (if it’s too hot it’ll melt the

buttercream and ruin it—you don’t want that). Put in about half, then

stop to taste it and decide if you’d like to add more. Some like it

strong, others like it milder.

If you have any pie crust left over, roll it out and cut smaller discs

and sprinkle them with a little bit of cinnamon and sugar. Bake ‘em

for about 10 minutes at 350 and look at that, a cute and tasty cupcake

topper!

You can also try candied pecans or a drizzle of caramel on top. Tasty!

Ghoulish Petits Fours

Fri, 07 Oct 2011 08:08:06 -0500

Ingredients
White Sheet Cake
Confectioners’ Sugar Icing
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, for eyes and mouth
Directions
1.Using a 1 1/2-inch cookie cutter, cut out circles from cake. Brush off any crumbs with a pastry brush.

2.Fit a pastry bag with a plastic coupler, and top cake rounds with icing in a ghost or hat shape,about 1 inch high.

3.Place a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet; set aside. Set an iced cake round on a fork; hold over bowl of glaze. Using a large spoon, drizzle glaze evenly over cake and icing until completely covered. Transfer to wire rack. Repeat with remaining rounds. Let set, about 5 minutes.

4.Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water; stir chocolate until melted. Transfer to a disposable pastry bag or resealable plastic bag; snip off tip with scissors. Pipe eyes and a mouth onto ghosts.