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The backed up archives had an issue, and decided to pack up and disappear when the upgrade to the latest version of WordPress was installed. If you are looking for something here, that isn't anymore --well, that is where it went. That includes recipes as well as comments. So much for a good back up.

Chocolate Covered Peppermint Patties

Posted By admin on December 2, 2009

I love these things.. I love all mint-chocolate recipes, and especially this one, as it is really just yum.  It is, as most of my recipes are, simple and easy to do.  It does take some time, and is a bit messy, but is really worth it.   At Christmas, I usually have cut these into star shapes, or tree shapes, and have, on occasion, colored the peppermint dough a bright green, for fun.

Enjoy!

chocolate-chips

Chocolate Covered Peppermint Patties

1 egg white
4 cups powdered sugar (10x)
1/3 cup light corn syrup
3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
cornstarch
12 ounce bag of chocolate chips (either semi-sweet, or milk)

Beat the egg white until frothy, but don’t let it get stiff.

Begin adding the powdered sugar, blending with a mixer, if you have one. A fast whisk if you don’t.

pure peppermint extractAdd in the corn syrup and the peppermint extract. You will need to knead this with your hands — add in more powdered sugar if you need to, until the mix isn’t sticky.

Cover a surface with cornstarch, and roll our the dough until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Using a cookie cutter (think fun shapes for holidays), cut out the dough. If you use a 2 inch cutter, you should be able to get about 20. Set the cut out pieces on a parchment lined baking sheet, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. If refrigerating overnight, cover with plastic wrap.

Meanwhile, melt the chocolate. Use a microwave, and do short 30 second burts, stirring in-between, so the chocolate melts slowly, and isn’t broken.

Remove the peppermints from the refrigerator. Grab a second baking sheet, and line it with more parchment paper. Dip each piece into the melted chocolate (use a couple of forks, drop the piece in, lift out with the forks, and remove the excess chocolate by tapping the bowl. Place the peppermints on the parchment to cool. If this goes slowly for you, reheat the chocolate, again using the 30 second method, until the chocolate is melted again. Continue to dip the peppermints until you are finished. Don’t forget to lick the forks when you are done ;)

Refrigerate the peppermints for 30 or so minutes, or until the chocolate has hardened up. Wrap in candy wraps, and store in a cool dry area for up to 2 weeks.

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Good Eats Roast Turkey Recipe

Posted By admin on November 25, 2009

This is Alton Brown’s Good Eats Recipe for Turkey.

alton-brown_l

Good Eats Roast Turkey Recipe

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown

1 (14-16 pound) frozen young turkey

For the brine:

1 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 gallon vegetable stock
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1/2 tablespoon allspice berries
1/2 tablespoon candied ginger
1 gallon iced water

For the aromatics:

1 red apple, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 cinnamon stick
1 cup water
4 sprigs rosemary
6 leaves of sage
Canola oil

Combine all brine ingredients, except ice water, in a stock pot and bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve solids, then remove from heat, cool to room temperature refrigerate until thoroughly chilled. Early on the day of cooking, (or late the night before) combine the brine and ice water in a clean 5 gallon bucket. Place thawed turkey breast side down in brine, cover, and refrigerate or set in cool area (like a basement) for 6 hours. Turn turkey over once, half way through brining.

A few minutes before roasting, heat oven to 500°F. Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick and cup of water in a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes.

Remove bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard brine. Place bird on roasting rack inside wide, low pan and pat dry with paper towels. Add steeped aromatics to cavity along with rosemary and sage. Tuck back wings and coat whole bird liberally with canola (or other neutral) oil. Roast on lowest level of the oven at 500°F for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cover breast with double layer of aluminum foil, insert probe thermometer into thickest part of the breast and return to oven, reducing temperature to 350°F. Set thermometer alarm (if available) to 161°F. A 14 to 16 pound bird should require a total of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of roasting. Let turkey rest, loosely covered for 15 minutes before carving.

Yield: 10 to 12 servings

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Thanksgiving Recipe Collection

Posted By admin on November 23, 2009

A few of my Thanksgiving Recipes as a collection:

Thanksgiving Day

Cranberry Orange Pecan Bread

Grandmas Pumpkin Pie Juice

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Dinner:

How To Cook A Thanksgiving Turkey

Sausage & Mushroom Sage Dressing /Stuffing

Simple Baked Cream Corn

Twice Baked Potatoes, with Onion, Peppers and Bacon

Acorn Squash with Cranberry and Apples

Orange Cranberry Sauce, with Cinnamon and Pecans

Desserts:

No Bake Pumpkin Pie, with Pecan Crust

Frozen Cranberry Cream Pie

Maple Pumpkin Fudge

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