Frozen

When I told a friend of mine I wanted to get an ice-cream maker to try making my own treats, she gave me hers. She said: “I’ve just never used it – it’s been sitting here forever – you can have it”.

Well, that was a while ago! It then sat in the pantry downstairs with all the other seldom used appliances for over a year…funny how that works. I had a fabulous no-work-and-all-play weekend last week, after coming off a huge all-encompassing couple months of work – and making ice-cream was on my fun list.

I looked at a number of the recipes, but I can’t eat eggs. Many of them are made with a pre-cooked custard. Then I found there were a couple frozen yogurt recipes that were very simple and had only a few ingredients.

So my first try was this: 2 cups of full fat Greek yogurt (vanilla) plus one cup of whipping cream. I flavored it with 2 T of instant coffee and a ¼ c of white sugar, mixed with 2T of boiling water to mix and dissolve it a bit. I whisked this all together and put it in the machine. Presto! 20 minutes later it was thick and creamy and I put it in containers to firm up.

I used tiny little plastic containers for single servings and later, when firm, I held the containers under a warm water tap for a few seconds and then popped them out on to a plate. Great idea for a make-ahead dinner party dessert! And pretty tasty too! Summertime, here we come.

Spicy Salty Sweet

I’ve been experimenting with this combo of seasonings for spiced glazed nuts. This one is working quite well…You can alter to taste: a bit more sugar, less salt, more spice, change the nuts..but it makes a great, lo-carb, upscale cocktail appy.

 

Mix in a bowl:

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

2 Tablespoons olive oil

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ cup brown sugar

½ teaspoon salt

 

Mix well, then add 2 cups of pecans (can be any kind you like, or a mixture). Toss till evenly coated

Place on an oiled cookie sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven for 12-15 minutes.

Watch carefully and stir the nuts a few times during baking. Don’t let them get too dark.

Spread out loosely and cool on a sheet of parchment paper.

Cookie Time

Yes… I start my Xmas baking early. It’s how I get it done….I sneak in a batch of something a few times a week and then presto, mid‐December comes around and there are lots of goodies in the freezer.

Here’s a favorite that I made last night; they’re like a little double chocolate brownie bite covered in icing sugar, and the crackle surface looks great.

Chocolate Crackles (makes approx. 48)

(dough gets made ahead, chilled, then baked – so don’t preheat the oven)

1⁄4 cup          butter

1 cup            semi‐sweet chocolate chips

1⁄4 cup         granulated sugar

2                  eggs

2/3 cup      (half a can) sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp            vanilla

1 1⁄2 cups    flour

1⁄2 tsp          baking powder

1⁄4 tsp          salt

1 1⁄2 cups    milk chocolate chips (or white chocolate chips could be fun to substitute)

3⁄4 cup        icing sugar

1. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper
2. melt butter and semi‐sweet chocolate chips in a saucepan or in the microwave on Medium heat
3. add in sugar and eggs, one at a time, mixing well ‐  let cool for 5 minutes
4. mix in sweetened condensed milk and vanilla
5. add in flour, baking powder, salt and chocolate chips, mix well
6. cover and refrigerate for 1.5 hours or up to 8 hours

(preheat oven to 325 degrees when preparing to bake)

7. sift icing sugar into a bowl, roll dough into 1.25” diameter balls with palms of hand
8. drop balls into the icing sugar and toss lightly to cover/coat
9. place on cookie sheet, flatten slightly, space 1.5” apart
10. bake approx. 11 minutes, or until just beginning to feel firm
11. cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.