real life foodie adventures

The amount of natural light in our last house was seriously underwhelming. Taking good photos was a challenge that I struggled to overcome. Some days I met with success. Other days not so much. Of course, my great timing being what it is, I’d finally started to find a little bit of a groove… right about the time we decided to relocate. Figures.

So, here we are in the new house.* The natural light is much better. MUCH. But, when you’ve been at work for eleven hours and you’re tired and hungry and just ready to sit down and relax for a while, you tend to get a little over-anxious and rush your photos.

Rushed photos in the evening? Not such a great idea. You’ll note a bit of an unwelcome cast. Unfortunately for all of us, I just don’t have the will to mess with them any further. There are still dishes to be done and TV to catch up on. But… lesson learned. When you don’t have good photo editing software (yet) nor the patience to use what you do have, go ahead and plan to do it right. You’ll be disappointed if you don’t. And, when the burgers are gone, there’s nothing to use for a re-shoot, is there?

In spite of the less than stellar photography, these turkey burgers are awesome. I just couldn’t wait to share them. So, if you can’t trust the pictures, trust me on this one. These are a winner.

Roasted Red Pepper & Mozz Turkey Burgers
2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 pound ground turkey breast
1/2 cup roasted red peppers, drained and diced
1 cup shredded mozzarella, plus 4 tablespoons for melting over burgers
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon Montreal chicken seasoning
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
2 tablespoons roasted red peppers
Hamburger buns

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Meanwhile, combine the turkey, peppers, mozzarella, and seasonings in a large bowl and mix thoroughly (I use my hands).

Divide mixture into 3-4 patties (depending on the size of your buns) and pat into patties. Fry 5 or so minutes on each side or until cooked through.

While burgers cook, combine mayo and peppers in a food processor and blend until smooth.

When burgers are nearly done, sprinkle with additional cheese and cook until cheese melts. Slather buns with red pepper mayo, top with burgers, and serve.

*Note: I still owe you pictures of the new kitchen… soon, my friends. The kitchen boxes are very nearly unpacked and the counters will soon be clear. And then comes the big reveal!

Man… I’ve been out of the loop for too long. This moving thing? For the birds. I’m never doing it again. No, really… don’t ever let me decide to move again.

There is, however, a good side to all of this. Not only did we find a house, but we closed last week! I really can’t say enough about having a place of our own again! I know what you’re wondering… how’s the kitchen? Well, my friends, it is - in a word - wonderful. And, just as soon as I have everything in order, I will show you just how wonderful.

For now, I’ve got to deal with the chaos of unpacking box after box (after box), and you’ll have to settle for the perfect way to get your chinese take out fix without having to actually pay for take out… or to wait for it to arrive at your door!

Teriyaki Chicken with Edamame and Broccoli
1 lb whole wheat linguine, cooked to al dente and drained
3 Tablespoons olive oil
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
3 Tablespoons AP flour
1 cup chicken broth
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 Tablespoon cornstarch
2 cups frozen broccoli florets
2 cups frozen edamame (shelled)

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. While oil heats, cut chicken into bite-sized pieces and toss in flour to coat. Add chicken to hot oil and fry until golden brown and cooked through.

Meanwhile, mix 3/4 cup of the chicken broth, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, and ginger together and set aside. In a separate bowl, mix remaining 1/4 cup of broth with cornstarch to form a slurry. Set aside.

When chicken is cooked through, remove to a plate and cover to keep warm. Add teriyaki mixture to the pan and bring to a simmer. Whisk in cornstarch slurry and cook until thickened slightly. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. Return chicken to pan along with broccoli and edamame. Cook until vegetables are heated through, then toss with cooked pasta to coat.

I love the challenge of themed food days at work. Rather than everyone just bringing random things all willy-nilly, I love the order that a theme brings to things.

Getting the idea that we recently had a food day? You’re sharp, aren’t you? Well… we did. And the theme was “after school special” which loosely translated to all the fun childhood snacks you got into when you got home from school and just couldn’t wait until dinner.

I was immediately thinking of something peanut butter and jelly like. My first thought was of a PB&J muffin, but then I remembered something I saw on the Food Network ages ago… Ina’s Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars. All the fun flavor of the quintessential after school snack in a bar cookie form? Love it.

Not only was the idea lovely, but the recipe resulted in an fun little cookie that was definitely a winner. Perfect, by the way for that Fourth of July event you’re going to this weekend. In fact, I think maybe I’ll whip up another batch myself this weekend and try them with raspberry jam. Yum.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars
(adapted from Ina Garten)
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups creamy peanut butter
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups grape jelly
2/3 cups roasted peanuts
1/2 cup peanut butter chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch cake pan. Line it with parchment paper, then grease and flour the pan.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light yellow, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the vanilla, eggs, and peanut butter and mix until all ingredients are combined.

In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture. Mix just until combined.

Spread 2/3 of the dough into the prepared cake pan and spread over the bottom with a knife or offset spatula. Spread the jelly evenly over the dough. Drop small globs of the remaining dough evenly over the jam. Don’t worry if all the jam isn’t covered; it will spread in the oven. Sprinkle with peanuts and PB chips and bake for 45 minutes, until golden brown. Cool and cut into squares.

Another month is winding down (where in the world does the time go??)… and, with the end of another month, comes another Daring Baker Challenge. After sitting out last month’s challenge, I knew June’s challenge would be a must. And, considering things are still just a TEENY bit busy (more on that soon), I made the conscious effort to actually get a jump on things this time rather than my usual approach of waiting until the last minute. Novel concept, really.

So… the challenge.

This month’s challenge is brought to us by Kelly over at Sass & Veracity, and Ben of What’s Cooking. They decided to kick things up a notch for us - and they found a great recipe with which to do it… the Danish Braid.

Not only did this month’s recipe present yet another technique which I’ve never tried (laminated dough), it also introduced me to a spice I hadn’t yet had the pleasure to get to know (cardomom). I’m happy to report that both of these first experiences were good… very good.

Now… off the top, the idea of laminated dough seemed pretty scary. But, in actuality, I found it to be pretty easy (if time consuming). And to see the fruits of your labor turn into beautiful, flaky layers of pastry? Awesome!

When it was all said and done, I’m glad I made the full recipe. My first braid left a little to be desired from an aesthetic standpoint… but it was my “learning loaf” and, as a result, my second loaf looked great!

When it came to fillings, we had free reign. But, forever the traditionalist, I went with the classic… apple. It complimented the cardamom and citrus perfectly!

I took one loaf to work and my co-workers made easy work of that one. The second loaf disappeared pretty quickly, too… the perfect dessert - especially when warmed for a few seconds in the microwave!

So, I’m calling this another wonderfully successful DB Challenge. Thanks, Kelly and Ben, for a wonderful challenge. I’ll absolutely be making this recipe again - it has “crowd pleaser” written all over it! Be sure to check out the HUNDREDS of other Daring Baker interpretations popping up all over the web today… no doubt you’re going to see some fabulous results!

Danish Braid
(from Sherry Yard’s The Secrets of Baking)
For the dough (Detrempe)
1 ounce fresh yeast or 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup whole milk
1/3 cup sugar
Zest of 1 orange, finely grated
3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
2 large eggs, chilled
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
3-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt

For the butter block (Beurrage)
1/2 pound (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour

To make the dough
Combine yeast and milk in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix on low speed. Slowly add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice. Mix well. Change to the dough hook and add the salt with the flour, 1 cup at a time, increasing speed to medium as the flour is incorporated. Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, or until smooth. You may need to add a little more flour if it is sticky. Transfer dough to a lightly floured baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Without a standing mixer: Combine yeast and milk in a bowl with a hand mixer on low speed or a whisk. Add sugar, orange zest, cardamom, vanilla extract, vanilla seeds, eggs, and orange juice and mix well. Sift flour and salt on your working surface and make a fountain. Make sure that the “walls” of your fountain are thick and even. Pour the liquid in the middle of the fountain. With your fingertips, mix the liquid and the flour starting from the middle of the fountain, slowly working towards the edges. When the ingredients have been incorporated start kneading the dough with the heel of your hands until it becomes smooth and easy to work with, around 5 to 7 minutes. You might need to add more flour if the dough is sticky.

For the butter block
Combine butter and flour in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle and then beat for 1 minute more, or until smooth and lump free. Set aside at room temperature.

Method
After the detrempe has chilled 30 minutes, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough into a rectangle approximately 18 x 13 inches and ¼ inch thick. The dough may be sticky, so keep dusting it lightly with flour. Spread the butter evenly over the center and right thirds of the dough. Fold the left edge of the detrempe to the right, covering half of the butter. Fold the right third of the rectangle over the center third. The first turn has now been completed. Mark the dough by poking it with your finger to keep track of your turns, or use a sticky and keep a tally. Place the dough on a baking sheet, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Place the dough lengthwise on a floured work surface. The open ends should be to your right and left. Roll the dough into another approximately 13 x 18 inch, ¼-inch-thick rectangle. Again, fold the left third of the rectangle over the center third and the right third over the center third. No additional butter will be added as it is already in the dough. The second turn has now been completed. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes.

Roll out, turn, and refrigerate the dough two more times, for a total of four single turns. Make sure you are keeping track of your turns. Refrigerate the dough after the final turn for at least 5 hours or overnight. The Danish dough is now ready to be used. If you will not be using the dough within 24 hours, freeze it. To do this, roll the dough out to about 1 inch in thickness, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and freeze. Defrost the dough slowly in the refrigerator for easiest handling. Danish dough will keep in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Apple filling
(Makes enough for two braids)
4 Fuji or other apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ¼-inch pieces
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Toss all ingredients except butter in a large bowl. Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat until slightly nutty in color, about 6 - 8 minutes. Then add the apple mixture and sauté until apples are softened and caramelized, 10 to 15 minutes. If you’ve chosen Fujis, the apples will be caramelized, but have still retained their shape. Pour the cooked apples onto a baking sheet to cool completely before forming the braid. (If making ahead, cool to room temperature, seal, and refrigerate.) They will cool faster when spread in a thin layer over the surface of the sheet. After they have cooled, the filling can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Left over filling can be used as an ice cream topping, for muffins, cheesecake, or other pastries.

Making the Braid
Prepare an egg wash by whisking together 1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk. Set aside.

Line a baking sheet with a silicone mat or parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll the Danish Dough into a 15 x 20-inch rectangle, ¼ inch thick. If the dough seems elastic and shrinks back when rolled, let it rest for a few minutes, then roll again. Place the dough on the baking sheet.

Along one long side of the pastry make parallel, 5-inch-long cuts with a knife or rolling pastry wheel, each about 1 inch apart. Repeat on the opposite side, making sure to line up the cuts with those you’ve already made.

Spoon the filling down the center of the rectangle. Starting with the top and bottom “flaps”, fold the top flap down over the filling to cover. Next, fold the bottom “flap” up to cover filling. This helps keep the braid neat and helps to hold in the filling. Now begin folding the cut side strips of dough over the filling, alternating first left, then right, left, right, until finished. Trim any excess dough and tuck in the ends.

Using a pastry brush, lightly coat the braid with the egg wash.

Proofing and Baking
Spray cooking oil (Pam) onto a piece of plastic wrap, and place over the braid. Proof at room temperature or, if possible, in a controlled 90 degree F environment for about 2 hours, or until doubled in volume and light to the touch.

Near the end of proofing, preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Position a rack in the center of the oven.

Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan so that the side of the braid previously in the back of the oven is now in the front. Lower the oven temperature to 350 degrees F, and bake about 15-20 minutes more, or until golden brown.

Cool and serve the braid either still warm from the oven or at room temperature. The cooled braid can be wrapped airtight and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, or freeze for 1 month… if it lasts that long!

This is the Alvin you know.

This is the Alvin you probably don’t know. And, if it’s the Alvin you don’t know… it’s the Alvin you should definitely get to know.

I’ve been spending lots of time with old memories lately… something about coming home, I think. One of those memories is that of an old favorite summertime dessert that found its way to the table just about the time that the honeysuckle and lilac scented the night air and the fireflies began to put on their nightly shows.

It’s no surprise, then, that this one came to mind when it did… because that’s exactly the time of year that we’re in now.

I don’t know where this one got its name and, if you look around, you’ll find it under a dozen other names as well. But, no matter what name accompanies it, it’s the perfect, easy, crowd-pleasing, summertime dessert. Is it gourmet? No. But it’s definitely the stuff of happy memories.

Alvin
1 cup finely chopped pecans
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 (8 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed, divided
3 cups milk
1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

In a medium mixing bowl, combine pecans, flour, and butter. Press into a 9×13 inch pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside to cool to room temperature.

In a large bowl, beat together cream cheese and confectioners’ sugar until smooth. Fold in half of the whipped topping. Spread on top of cooled crust.

In a large bowl, combine milk and pudding mix. Beat until thick. Set aside about a cup of prepared pudding to snack on later. Spread the remaining over the cream cheese layer. Top with remaining whipped topping. Cover and refrigerate 2-3 hours or until ready to serve.

Well… I made it to the other side! In fact, it’s been two weeks since I made the somewhat painful (just me and two pets… fun!) - but uneventful - drive from North Carolina to Missouri, where I’m staying temporarily with my parents until my hubby joins me (t-minus  six days and counting!) and we find a place to live in Arkansas. Although things are still a bit strained as we wait for life to return to some semblance of normalcy, they are good nonetheless. I’m definitely patting myself on the back for at least thinking ahead enough to pre-plan a couple of posts to get me through the hairiest parts of the transition. I don’t know how inspiring fast food from a sack is.

Anyway…

Tomorrow will be the first opportunity to spend Father’s Day with my dad that I’ve had in five years. And… he has to work. Figures. So, undeterred, we celebrated tonight instead. Any reason to cook a great meal, right?

This is a great dish that comes off as being much more fussy than it actually is. Paired with some crusty bread, a salad, and a glass (or three) of wine, and I can see where the original name might have come from.

Happy Fathers Day to all you dads out there! Enjoy!

Penne a la Vodka with Shrimp
(adapted from Rachael Ray’s You Won’t Be Single for Long Vodka Cream Pasta)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup vodka
1 cup chicken stock
1 32 ounce can diced tomatoes (crushed works great, too)
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Coarse salt and pepper
16 ounces penne rigate
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails off
20 leaves fresh basil, shredded or torn
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Heat a large skillet over moderate heat. Add oil, butter, and garlic. Gently saute garlic for 3 to 5 minutes. Add vodka to the pan, and simmer to reduce vodka by about half - 2 or 3 minutes. Add chicken stock and tomatoes. Bring sauce to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Season with red pepper flakes and salt and pepper.

While sauce simmers, cook pasta in salted boiling water until cooked to al dente (with a bite to it).

Stir cream into sauce. Add shrimp. When sauce returns to a bubble, cook until shrimp are just done and remove from heat. Drain pasta. Toss hot pasta with sauce, basil, and cheese.

It’s been a while since we had a little meme action here at Culinography. Thanks to Kate over at Paved with Good Intentions, we’re going to fix that!

Kate tagged me for a really neat meme - Top 10 food pics…

This meme consists of me choosing 10 of my top food pictures and in return tagging 5 people to choose 10 of their top food pictures. Fun, huh?

Okay… here we go!

Chocolate Cranberry Cupcakes

Mascarpone Brownies with Honey Chocolate Sauce

Warm Quinoa Breakfast Cereal

Mocha Cupcakes

Mesquite Chocolate Chip Cookies

French Bread a la Julia Child

Blondies

Dorie’s Perfect Party Cake

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Brownies with Caramel Sauce

Now… to tag five other wonderful bloggers to do the same…

A Southern Grace
Canela & Comino
Amber’s Delectable Delights
Kalofagas
What’s Cooking

Okay… you made it to the end. You’re wondering where the muffin is, aren’t you? Perserverance pays off, my friend…

This muffin is the perfect combination of peanut butter, banana, and chocolate. Each element plays so nicely with the other, leaving you with a perfectly balanced, wonderfully tasty muffin.

No further dialogue needed here… just go make these muffins. Now.

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
(stolen shamelessly from Noble Pig)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed, golden brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2-3 large, ripe bananas, mashed-enough for 1-1/4 cups banana
1 cup milk
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
3 Tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

In a large bowl, put together, flour, sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, salt and the cinnamon; combine.

In another mixing bowl combine the mashed bananas, milk, peanut butter, egg, oil, and vanilla; mix well. Add this to the dry mixture previously prepared; mix just enough to combine. Stir in chocolate chips.

Spray muffin tins with cooking spray and fill tins until almost full. This will make 12 nicely sized muffins. You can double the recipe if you need more. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

We eat a lot of chicken in our house. As such, I had plenty of it stockpiled in our deep freeze. Chicken breasts, chicken tenders, ground chicken… you name it, I had it. And then, suddenly, what I had was a lot of chicken and very little time to cook it all up. Time to get resourceful with the chicken recipes.

Now, I love the idea of buffalo wings… but I don’t actually like the wings. So, when I ran across a recipe for buffalo chicken meatballs, I knew that I had a winner - all the great flavors that I love, without the things that I don’t much care for. And I was right - they were great!

So… back to cleaning out the freezer.

Digging around the deep freeze, I found three pounds of ground chicken. Hmmmm… I knew just where to start. I didn’t quite have everything to make the recipe just as written, but I had enough to get close. And… I had a wedge of blue cheese and a few ciabatta rolls just begging to be used up.

Enter buffalo chicken meatball sandwiches with bleu cheese dressing.

All told, this was probably one of my most successful kitchen cleanout adventures - it took care of a pound of ground chicken, the rest of the sour cream in the fridge, hot sauce, a hunk of blue cheese, and a couple of rolls.

Buffalo Chicken Meatball Sammies
(adapted from Rachael Ray)
1 pound ground all white meat chicken
3 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
Salt, black pepper, and Montreal Chicken Seasoning
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup hot sauce
blue cheese dressing (recipe follows)
crusty rolls

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground chicken with the garlic, breadcrumbs, and seasonings. Shape into approximately 16 meatballs

Arrange the meatballs on a nonstick sheet pan. Place in the oven and bake until the meatballs are cooked through and golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.

While the meatballs are baking, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the hot sauce and whisk to combine. Toss the baked meatballs in the hot sauce to coat.

Blue Cheese Dressing
8 ounces blue cheese
8 ounces sour cream
3 tablespoons mayonaise
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
pinch of salt
pinch of sugar
pinch of garlic powder
freshly ground black pepper

Crumble blue cheese and combine in a bowl with all other ingredients. Adjust seasonings to taste. Cover and place in refrigerator to allow flavors to meld for at least three hours.

To assemble the sandwiches:
Toast rolls and split open. Slice meatballs in half and place on roll.  Top with dressing and additional crumbled blue cheese. Top with other half of roll. Enjoy.

Considering that, by the time this entry posts, I’ll be on the road somewhere between North Carolina and Arkansas, and that the whole goal of the last two to three weeks has been to eliminate items from my kitchen rather than add to them… I just couldn’t bring myself to go buy the things that I needed in order to participate in this month’s Daring Baker Challenge. Not only that, but I didn’t tackle the recipe at the beginning of the month like I should have - and next thing I knew, time had run out on me.

Alas, no Opera Cake for me. This is what I get for procrastinating. You’d think I’d learn, wouldn’t you?

The good news is that there are plenty of other awesome DB’ers out there who have made absolutely beautiful Opera Cakes (I know, because I’ve seen many a beautiful “sneak peek” photo come across our forum) - so get out there and look around!

Now… as a consolation prize, I give you my first successful attempt at caramels. You’ll remember that my first attempt didn’t yield a firm final product, but instead, an amazing caramel sauce.

But, since I still had enough heavy cream to give a second batch a try, I pulled out the other caramel recipe I’d been holding on to and gave it a shot. And, as with every Heidi Swanson recipe I’ve tried, it came out beautifully. The flavor combination of honey and espresso was absolutely amazing.

Oh… and? Just a tip. Once you’ve piled all of your caramels up to take a photo of them? Go ahead and unpile them… wrap them up individually, lay them out flat and separate them with parchment paper, do whatever… but don’t leave them piled up like that and throw them in the fridge promising yourself that you’ll get back to them in just a little while - they fuse to each other and you’ll have to chisel them apart. (NOT that I would know or anything.)

*The next few entries will be auto-posted while I make the transition to a new state, new job, and new life. Please forgive the lack of replies to comments and bear with me until I can get settled in.

Espresso Caramels
(adapted from 101 Cookbooks)
1 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon espresso powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup honey

In a medium, thick-bottomed saucepan heat the cream, butter, espresso powder, and salt until tiny bubbles start forming where the milk touches the pan - just before a simmer. Stir in the honey. Bring the mixture to a boil. Now reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, for about 15-20 minutes minutes or until the mixture reaches 260F degrees - hard ball stage. Remove from heat.

Pour the caramel out on a slab or parchment-lined pan, let it cool completely before cutting into small pieces. Wrap & twist in parchment paper.

In either case keep the caramels in a cool place (or refrigerate) until completely set.

Makes 1 1/2 dozen nut caramels, or a couple dozen individual caramels (depending on the size).

Well… the house is almost packed - just a couple of closets and half the kitchen remain. Only a few more days until I hit the road, leaving my husband here to wrap things up, and turning the page to a new chapter in our life. Scary… exciting… hectic…

And, in the meantime, we continue to try to clear out the perishable items from the kitchen. I’d like to tell you that I’ve been all sorts of industrious… cooking up all kinds of dinners and whatnot. But, in actuality, we’ve been eating a lot of take out and, when I do get into the kitchen, it’s mostly to bring a little sweet relief into our lives.

I had some heavy cream hanging out in the fridge. Always the last one to the game, I decided I wanted to make caramels which, you may remember, was ALL the rage last Christmas. Yes… six months ago. Like I said, last one to the game.

My first attempt seemed to go well. Until, that is, my beautiful caramel didn’t set up properly. I tried coaxing it along by putting it into the fridge. Still liquidy. In retrospect, I suspect it was a temperature issue (and totally my fault). But, in the moment, I was pretty disappointed. After all, I had such plans!

But, this was not a failure. In fact, it was quite the happy accident. Seconds before I was ready to pour my liquid caramel back into the pan to try to heat it up to the correct temperature, I realized that my not-so-set-up-caramels were, instead, the tastiest caramel sauce I’d ever tasted. This stuff was just begging to be poured over something ooey gooey chocolatey. So, into the pantry I went… for my canister of Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Chocolate.

My brilliant solution? Brownies smothered in caramel sauce.

Lordy these were awesome.

The brownie recipe is from the back of the Ghirardelli can… and I promise you it doesn’t disappoint. The caramel (errr… caramel sauce) came from a recipe I found over at Dessert First. I’m sure the fact that the caramels didn’t set up was due to some error of my own because I’ve seen the recipe replicated on a few other food blogs. No worries, though… no matter which way you do it, you won’t be dissappointed!

Ghirardelli Award Winning Brownies
(slightly adapted)
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Chocolate
2/3 cup unsifted flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Using a spoon, stir eggs with sugar and vanilla; add butter. Mix in ground chocolate, flour, baking powder, and salt. Spread into a greased 8″ square pan. Bake 20-30 minutes, to desired consistency. Cool to room temp or refrigerate before cutting into squares.

Honey & Sea Salt Caramel Sauce
Adapted from Dessert First
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup honey
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons butter, cut into small pieces

In a large saucepan (use at least a 3 quart saucepan, as the boiling caramel will increase in volume), combine the corn syrup, honey, sugar, and sea salt, and bring to a boil. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, place the cream in a small saucepan and warm on the stove until it is just at a simmer. Turn off the heat and cover the saucepan to keep the cream warm (you do not want to add cold cream to the hot caramel or it will seize up and harden.)

When the caramel has cooked for the allotted time, take it off the heat and add in the butter, stirring until it is melted and combined.

Add in the cream slowly - when you pour it in it will bubble up violently, so don’t add the cream all at once or it might overflow. When you have added all the cream, stir the mixture until combined.

Return the saucepan to the stove and cook on medium heat for another 3 minutes or so.

Pour the caramel into a heatproof container. Cool completely before slathering over your favorite brownie, ice cream, or cake.