Chocolate peppermint candies

Is it worthwhile to spend 3 hours or even more (if you count the time that you spend tempering the chocolate) on making candy?  Taste these and then answer that question.

Oh yeah.

Chocolate Peppermint Candies

12 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2-3/4 c powdered sugar
1-1/2 T corn syrup
1-1/2 T water
1 t peppermint extract
Pinch of salt
1 T sour cream

Chop up the chocolate and set aside.  You'll be melting 1/2 of it at low temperature in the microwave later and using the other half to seed it.

Prepare the filling.  Beat the sugar with the other ingredients until smooth.  Spread it out on waxed paper, wrap and place into the freezer until firm, at least 15 minutes.

Temper the chocolate.  Spread out about 40 mini baking cups on cookie sheets.  Use the small end of a melon baller (about 1/2 t) to fill each cup, spreading the chocolate to the edges.  Freeze to set quickly.  Using a 1/4 t measure, create small balls of filling and place one in each cup, pressing down to flatten.  Freeze again while you heat the chocolate back up if needed.  Top each cup with another 1/2 t chocolate.

Perfect chewy chocolate cookies

I like my chocolate cookies chewy: not too soft, not too hard, just moist and chewy, with some resistance when I bite into them.  To get them the consistency I crave plus maintain the crackled top, I had to mess around with the fat content and the leavening.  I think these are just about perfect, since I started with the recipe for the vanilla cookies that I shared the other day and tinkered from there:


Chewy Chocolate Cookies

2 c +2 T flour
3/4 c cocoa
1 t baking soda
1 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
10 T butter
6 T sour cream
2 c sugar
4 T oil
2 eggs
2 t vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350 with the rack in the middle.  In a medium bowl, stir together the flour through the salt.  In a glass measuring cup, melt the butter.  In a large bowl, mix the sour cream and sugar well.  Pour the melted butter over and beat well.  Add the oil, eggs, and vanilla, incorporating each slowly.  Stir in the flour mixture by hand and refrigerate the dough for at least an hour.

Line sheets with parchment and plan on 8 cookies on each tray.  Dip out 2T size portions of dough and roll them in sugar.  Place on sheets and pat them out to about 3".  Sprinkle tops with additional sugar.  Bake one tray at a time for 12 to 13 minutes, turning tray after 6 minutes.  After removing from the oven, allow cookies to sit on baking sheet for 5 more minutes and then transfer them to a cooling rack.   

The world's most perfect vanilla sugar cookie

 

If you like your sugar cookies to chewy but moist, spread and crackled, here's the perfect recipe.  The combination of fats and leavening ingredients result in the perfect cookie.

Perfect Vanilla Sugar Cookies
(Makes 2 dozen)

2-1/4 c flour
1 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1-1/2 c sugar plus addition for rolling
1/4 c sour cream
6 T butter
1/3 c vegetable oil
1 egg
1 T milk
2 t vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350 with the rack in the middle.  In a medium bowl, stir the flour through the salt together well.  Melt the butter in a glass cup.  In a large bowl, combine the sugar and the sour cream, and pour the warm butter over them.  Beat to combine, adding the oil, egg, milk, and vanilla.  Add the flour mixture, stirring it in thoroughly with a spoon or spatula.  Place dough in the fridge while preparing the baking sheets.

Line sheets with parchment and plan on 8 cookies on each of three trays.  Dip out 2T size portions of dough and roll them in sugar.  Place on sheets and pat them out to about 3".  Sprinkle tops with additional sugar.  Bake one tray at a time for 12 to 13 minutes, turning tray after 6 minutes.  After removing from the oven, allow cookies to sit on baking sheet for 5 more minutes and then transfer them to a cooling rack.

Spiced kumquats

I look forward to kumquat season each year!  They are only in our local market for a very short while, so I was thrilled when I found this very old recipe that was reprinted in Hannaford's Fresh magazine.  I made them exactly as shown, but I packaged and stored them in the freezer instead of in jars.

Just so you know, the online recipe calls for 2 "bags" of kumquats...the printed magazine says 2 pounds.  These are great with poultry, fish, or pork...pretty much anything that calls for a sweet-spicy sauce on the side.

Extra moist coffee cake

This coffee cake is dense and moist, thanks to the mix of fats and leavening ingredients.  Perfect for Christmas morning, and you've still got time to make it!

Extra Moist Coffee Cake

2 c flour
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1 c butter
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1 c sour cream

Crumb filling and topping:
1 c chopped pecans
1/4 c brown sugar
2 t cinnamon

In a small bowl, mix the crumb ingredients and set aside.  In a medium bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and baking soda.  In a large bowl, cream the butter with the sugar until it is light and fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating to incorporate after each addition.  Blend the flour mixture into the butter mixture, alternating with the sour cream a bit at a time.

Spread half of the batter into a prepared 9 inch square baking pan (greased and floured).  Sprinkle half of the crumb mixture over the batter.  Spread on the remaining batter and top with the remaining crumb mixture.  Bake at 375 for about 40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

Traditional stuffing

Stuffing (or more accurately, dressing) is something that I could happily eat every day, not just when there's a turkey involved.  Over the years, I've messed around with my dressing recipe.  Below you'll find a list of almost everything that I might throw into a batch.  But not all these ingredients are actually in every single batch...there's a lot of room for experimentation.  Like maybe adding more bacon and leaving out the carrots? :-)

Traditional Stuffing

Cooking spray
8 slices of whole wheat bread
3-4 slices of bacon
Bacon grease or 2 T olive oil
3 celery ribs, finely chopped
2 onions, finely chopped
1 c carrots, shredded
Black pepper, freshly ground
1 1/2 t poultry seasoning
1/2 c fresh parsley, chopped
1/2 c dried cranberries
1 c sliced almonds
1 1/4 c chicken broth
1/2 c skim milk
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350. To bake the stuffing outside the bird, prepare a 2-quart casserole dish with cooking spray. Toast the bread until dry and lightly toasted. Cut slices into 1/2" cubes without removing the crusts. Place bread cubes in a large mixing bowl and set aside.

Fry up a few slices of bacon until crisp.  Set aside and remove most of the bacon grease from the pan. 
Reheat grease or olive oil in over medium heat. Add celery, onions, and carrots and cook until tender, about 7 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and add to the bread cubes. Add pepper and poultry seasoning and toss to combine. Stir in crumbled bacon, parsley, cranberries, and almonds.

In a liquid measuring cup, stir together broth, milk, and egg with a fork until combined. Pour over bread mixture and stir to distribute evenly. Transfer stuffing mixture to the prepared casserole dish and cover with a lid or foil. Bake 50 to 55 minutes, until set. Remove lid or foil and bake an additional 5 minutes to toast the top of the stuffing.

Fruit and walnut-stuffed pork loin

How many people can you feed with one rolled pork loin?  Quite a few as long as you've got lots of good sides to go with it!  This is a great way to stretch your meat, giving everyone a small but extra-tasty portion.  And pork is lean too, so the moist fruit cooked inside it keeps it juicy and healthy.

I used the recipe from Cooking Light, and was delighted with how delicious this was.  The only change I made to their recipe was to serve mustard on the side rather than smearing the meat with it.  Next time?  I'm smearing the meat!