Christmas 2010

Merry Christmas!

Flashback Friday ~First Day of Summer?

This coming week is the first of winter although it feels like its been around for a while! So I thought I would flash back 6 months to the beginning of official summer to give us something to look forward to weather wise.


This morning here is in the 20s. And I bet this bee whereever it is, is freezing his little toosh off.


But when June rolls around we will have roses in bloom


Peonies popping


The dogwoods will already be fading


And we will have a whole summer of daylilies to look forward to


For now we do have some reminders of summer. Why is it that oranges scream summer, but we get the best ones in the winter. Like this pretty one that came in my organic fruit/veggie box this week.


For another flashback how about a recipe I've been using for about 10 years now to make Pralines. My grandmother had another great recipe that didn't use milk but this one is very good too. I think it may have originally come out of Southern Living. These made it into my goodie plate this year and most years.

Pralines

1 1/2 cup sugar
3/4 c firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 T butter
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 cups roughly chopped pecans

Coat a length of wax paper with spray. Combine all ingredients in a saucepan. Bring to boil stirring constantly until temperature reaches 220°. Remove from heat and beat by hand with a wooden spoon 4-6 mins or until it begins to thicken. Work quickly at this point and spoon out individual pralines by the tablespoon full. If you don't work fast enough the sugar will begin to crustalize and they won't be as pretty but will still taste great.

If you have a flashback to share add your link below.

I'm joining in with Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum this week HERE and Flaunt your flowers at Tootsie Time HERE

Winter White

Today my friend Kathleen over at Cuisine Kathleen is hosting a White Christmas event. She said anything white goes. She is an expert at tablesetting so I am sure you will see some beautiful tablescapes over there along with a lot of other brilliant white linked posts. Click HERE to pop over there. She even has a give away going on!

I'm not that good at setting a fancy table, so I'm showing a something fluffy and white. Kind of like these precious snowmen that came in my mail this week from a special friend.


I spent part of the evening making my grandmother, MaMa Nezat's No Fail Divinity. As white as white can be flecked with yummy pecans. I have never seen a recipe quite like hers, with the edition of the marshmallows, so maybe that's what makes it no fail. It's also sweet and fluffy and so good you won't know when to stop.

MaMa Nezat's No Fail Divinity

Ingredients:

4 cups sugar
1 cup light karo syrup
3/4 cup water
pinch of salt
2 egg whites
8 large or 32 small marshmallows
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups chopped pecans

Cook sugar, syrup, water and salt to soft ball stage. In the meantime beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Add 1 cup of cooked syrup to beaten eggs along with marshmallows, keeping the mixer going the whole time. Cook remainder of syrup to hard ball stage..this wont take long so keep an eye on the temp. Keep your mixer going this whole time. When syrup has reached hard ball stage, add slowly in a stream to egg white mixture as it continues to mix. Add vanilla and pecans and stop mixing. Beat by hand with a wooden spoon until mixture dulls and is no longer shiny. Move quickly at this point and drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper.

This was one of my grandmother's recipe and her Christmas goodie spread wasn't complete without it. She liked to tell the story of how she got this recipe in trade from one of her kid's teachers when the teacher admired some fudge my grandmother had shared.

Merry Christmas and Happy 2010!

Hope all of you got a visit from Santa and are in good shape to ring in the New Year! Please pardon my tardiness in posting my pre Christmas goodies...I had the best of intentions all year that Christmas on my blog would be filled with frequent sugary and cheery holiday posts. Well LIFE gets in the way sometimes!!! lol or maybe a broken ankle...hehe Well Randy is doing well..still not weight bearing, but he is on the mend and I've got a bit more time on my hands so I will roll all of my Christms baking into this one post! I know you will all forgive me :-)

I found the cutest plates after Christmas last year and I knew thatI'd use them this year to give as gifts. Their smaller size was also the perfect excuse for my having baked less this year! The plates still looked full. Sneaky eh?

Some got Santa


And some got Frosty


And some got paperplates and got to share with everyone else...


I got pics of most of the individual goodies, except the divinity for some reason..its the white snowman poop looking stuff on the bottom left of the plate. Doesn't taste like poop though! I use my MawMaw Nezat's No Fail Divinity recipe and I've never really failed..except like maybe once when they didn't set up and I salvaged those by rolling them into balls! But that was just once out of the many times I've made them..so its nearly No Fail! You just have to be really ready to devote all of your attention to candy making when you decide to make these.

Get the recipe HERE.

Next up are the common but oh so yummy Peanut Butter Blossom, Recipe found HERE.



Oreo Truffles..... If you have one candy in your repertoire let it be this. They are always a big hit and I even have some recipients that say I don't care what else you put on the plate just make sure I get some Oreo Truffles. Get the Recipe HERE.



This is a new one I tried this year, although I've made something similar. Get the recipe for Pecan Caramels HERE. I'm saving some to make caramel apples.


Another can't be beat recipe is this Soft Peanut Brittle which will remind you of the insides of a Butterfinger. So what that the name doesn't make sense...this is insanely good. Here's the Recipe.



Cinnamon Bun Cookies..similar to those I posted earlier, but a bit different. Get the recipe HERE.


And finally, Buckeyes...those little peanutbuttery balls dipped in chocolate. They can be found HERE.



I'm going to be out of pocket for a week or so while I visit my family in Louisiana and to celebrate my Mom's 75th birthday. I may or may not get to blog during that time, so I'd like to wish all of my readers a very Happy New Year! May 2010 surround you with good food and beautiful flowers!

Flashback and Foodie Friday ~Christmas Decorations

I'm flashing back to last Christmas to show how beautifully my sweet hubby decorated our little home. He always goes above and beyond that call of duty to make it look like a little gingerbread house.



Well this year he went a step to far!! Off the roof that is. The innocent looking Christmas lights got the best of him and he broke his ankle..just a short jump from one roof line to the other, but enough for him to land wrong. He's going to have a rough few weeks ahead of him, but he's hanging tough.


I will give things my best try this year, but I know it won't hold a candle to how he would do it. On this day after Thanksgiving I am very thankful he's only got a broken ankle!!!!



I'm also flashing back to these Marshmallows! A group of us gave it a try last year and I had a blast making them. Wayyyy better than store bought too!



I used Dorie Greenspan's recipe - always reliable in my experience. Don't be afraid of the long recipe. She gives very detailed instructions.

Marshmallows
(Source: Dorie Greenspan “Baking: From My Home to Yours” pages 404-405)

Makes about 1 pound marshmallows

About 1 cup potato starch or cornstarch
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 1/4-ounce packets unflavored gelatin
3 large egg whites, at room temperature
3/4 cup cold water
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon sugar

GETTING READY: Line a rimmed baking sheet — choose one with a rim that is 1 inch high — with parchment paper and dust the paper generously with potato starch or cornstarch. Have a candy thermometer at hand.

Put 1/3 cup of the water, 1 1/4 cups of the sugar and the corn syrup in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Once the sugar is dissolved, continue to cook the syrup — without stirring — until it reaches 265 degrees F on the candy thermometer, about 10 minutes.

While the syrup is cooking, work on the gelatin and egg whites. In a microwave-safe bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the remaining cold water (a scant 7 tablespoons) and let it sit for about 5 minutes, until it is spongy, then heat the gelatin in a microwave oven for 20 to 30 seconds to liquefy it. (Alternatively, you can dissolve the gelatin in a saucepan over low heat.)

Working in the clean, dry bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or in another large bowl with a hand mixer, beat the egg whites on medium-high speed until firm but still glossy — don’t overbeat them and have them go dull.

As soon as the syrup reaches 265 degrees F, remove the pan from the heat and, with the mixer on medium speed, add the syrup, pouring it between the spinning beater(s) and the sides of the bowl. Add the gelatin and continue to beat for another 3 minutes, so that the syrup and the gelatin are fully incorporated. Beat in the vanilla.

Using a large rubber spatula, scrape the meringue mixture onto the baking sheet, laying it down close to a short end of the sheet. Then spread it into the corners and continue to spread it out, taking care to keep the height of the batter at 1 inch; you won’t fill the pan. Lift the excess parchment paper up to meet the edge of the batter, then rest something against the paper so that it stays in place (I use custard cups).

Dust the top of the marshmallows with potato starch or cornstarch and let the marshmallows set in a cool, dry place. They’ll need about 3 hours, but they can rest for 12 hours or more.

Once they are cool and set, cut the marshmallows with a pair of scissors or a long thin knife. Whatever you use, you’ll have to rinse and dry it frequently. Have a big bowl with the remaining potato starch or cornstarch at hand and cut the marshmallows as you’d like — into squares, rectangles or even strips (as they’re cut in France). As each piece is cut, drop it into the bowl. When you’ve got 4 or 5 marshmallows in the bowl, reach in with your fingers and turn the marshmallows to coat them with starch, then, one by one, toss the marshmallows from one hand to the other to shake off the excess starch; transfer them to a serving bowl. Cut and coat the rest of the batch.

SERVING: Put the marshmallows out and let everyone nibble as they wish. Sometimes I fill a tall glass vase with the marshmallows and put it in the center of the table — it never fails to make friends smile. You can also top hot chocolate or cold sundaes with the marshmallows.

STORING: Keep the marshmallows in a cool, dry place; don’t cover them closely. Stored in this way, they will keep for about 1 week — they might develop a little crust on the outside or they might get a little firmer on the inside, but they’ll still be very good.

If you have a Flashback of any kind please join me by linking below!


I am participating in Foodie Friday this week as well. Check out all of the other links at Designs by Gollum.

Flashback and Foodie Friday ~Christmas in July

In the words of my father...I need to "Think Cool". The Pacific Northwest is experiencing record high heat this week. 106° is hot enough when you live in the south and have the air running 24/7 & 365 days a year. But 106° in a house without air is just plain ridiculous!!!! Needless to say I haven't even gone near the stove or grill much less cooked anything. Even making a sandwich has me working up a sweat so there's been a lot of eating out and takeout going on in this household. So, this week I flashback to the days of winter (when I was whining about too much snow)and get in a chilly frame of mind! I know Jigs needs a reminder..he loves the snow! He turns into one big snowball too!


These days he's spending his days in front of the fan and getting misted under the sprinkler! Here he is savoring the crisp air.


I'm not so sure the birds appreciate it as much as Jigs does. But we keep them well fed so I don't think they suffer too much!



Even the hummy stuck around during all of the snow this winter.


My flowers aren't too happy right now..not sure they were any happier under this blanket :-) But ahhhh doesn't it look refreshing?


I love seeing all of the frosty tips



I'm not sure what's worse...getting in a car as hot as an oven and burning yourself on the seatbelt buckle...or facing the slick roads? Right now I'd take the roads...or stay at home and snuggle up on the couch!


Because if you get out in it..you just have to come home again! Looks like more snow in the distance...


Falling allll night long.....how I would love that right now!


I could bake Christmas goodies all day and cook all night instead of visiting Jack in the Box!


I had thought of showing some wintry fare like soup or stew but the thought of it had me breaking out in hives, so I figured

no-cook was the way to go. There is some microwaving involved but if the microwave is heating up your house I'd suggest you go buy a new one and get tested for microwave poisoning...um...don't worry. I just made that up!


These are two recipes that make an easy tasty addition to your holiday gift plates. The hardest part is the dipping and thats not too hard!

Oreo Truffles

• 1 package regular size Oreo cookies, crushed
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1 package white almond bark
• 1 package chocolate almond bark

1. Using a blender or hand held mixer, mix Oreos and cream cheese together.
2. Roll into walnut size balls.
3. Chill for an hour.
4. Melt approximately 3/4 package of white almond bark.
5. Stick a toothpick in an Oreo ball and dip it in the melted white almond bark.
6. Allow to harden on wax paper.
7. Takes about 15 min.
8. While waiting, melt about 1/4 package of chocolate almond bark.
9. When Oreo balls are no longer sticky to the touch, decorate with drizzles of chocolate and white almond bark.
10. I just use a sandwich bag with a tiny hole cut in one corner to drizzle the almond bark.

Martha Washington Balls

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 8 ounces sweetened condensed milk
• 2 lbs powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 cups pecans, finely chopped
• 1 (24 ounce) package sweetened flaked coconut
• 1-2 packages chocolate bark
  

1. Combine all ingredients except for chocolate bark.
2. Refrigerate over night or until well chilled.
3. Shape coconut mixture into walnut-size balls.
4. Freeze until firm.
5. Melt chocolate in microwave following package directions.
6. Pierce balls with a tooth pick or wooden skewer, dip balls into chocolate.
7. Lay on wax paper until set.

If it's warm whereever you are...take my Dad's advice (I'm trying to) and Think Coooooooooool!



If you have a flashback of any kind you'd like to share post your link below!



This is my Foodie Friday Contribution too! Go check out all of the foodie fun at Designs by Gollum!