Nanaimo Bars

Do you remember this post on Kevin's delectable Closet Cooking? I remember seeing this and thinking. Holy crap, I must have one of these immediately if not sooner. Well, this post comes to us courtesy of my dear friend Liz from Montreal who made these wonderful treats for our New Year's Eve celebration. What?! Yes, I am still talking about NYE because we had THAT much food. Seriously, you guys would have been in awe of the spread we had. Anyway, after I saw Kevin's post I knew I wanted to try these, but I wasn't sure about the effort for just me. Then Liz took care of that for me and oh wow, YUM!! I usually limit myself in the number of sweets I eat, but these were amazing. There are so many flavors going on, but rather than compete with each other, they compliment each other and make one delicious treat. Bonus, these bars freeze really well. If you can't eat the whole thing, just pop em in the freezer for later. I had never heard of Nanaimo or it's bars until last month, and now I am completely obsessed. Try them and you will see. The recipe and Liz's thoughts are below.

Nanaimo Bars
(From The Joy of Baking)

Bottom Layer:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 large egg, beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup coconut (either sweetened or unsweetened)
1/2 cup (50 grams) walnuts or pecans, coarsely chopped (Liz note: I went somewhere between coarse & fine).

FILLING:
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 - 3 tablespoons milk or cream
2 tablespoons vanilla custard powder (Bird's) or vanilla pudding powder (Liz note: I used Jell-O vanilla pudding powder)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups powdered confectioners or icing sugar

TOPPING:
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped (Liz note: I used 1/4 cup of chips)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Butter (or use a cooking spray) a 9 x 9 inch or 8x8 pan (Liz note: I used an 8x8)

To make the bottom layer:

In a saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Stir in the sugar and cocoa powder and then gradually whisk in the beaten egg. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens (1 - 2 minutes). Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract, graham cracker crumbs, coconut, and chopped nuts. Press the mixture evenly into the prepared pan. Cover and refrigerate until firm (about an hour).

To make the filling:

In your electric mixer cream the butter. Beat in the remaining ingredients. If the mixture is too thick to spread, add a little more milk. Spread the filling over the bottom layer, cover, and refrigerate until firm (about 30 minutes). (Liz note: I added more of the vanilla custard & extract since it tasted too “sugary” and not “vanilla-y” enough...).

To make the top layer:

In a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the chocolate and butter. Spread over the filling and refrigerate. (Liz note: I loathe double-boiling, but it was necessary for this since in the microwave the mix has a tendency to burn and that makes for an ugly top layer)

TO SERVE: To prevent the chocolate from cracking, using a sharp knife, bring the squares to room temperature before cutting.

New Year's Eve Treats

Over the weekend, I shared with you some of the things I made for our NYE celebration at JenFinn's house. Now our lovely hostess is sharing some of the recipes that she herself made (girlfriend went ALL OUT!!). They were all really, incredibly delicious. I actually got to sample the brittle a couple of days before and my friend and I that got to eat it were craving it again later on. I loved the combo of not only sweet and salty, but spicy as well. Jen's thoughts on the brittle: it's very important to work very fast once you pour the candy on the cookie sheet. It gets hard really fast and I found myself stretching it out while it was still warm to make it thinner.



Next up is the Wild Mushroom Macaroni with Three Cheeses and Truffle Oil. As regular readers of this blog know, I am huge fan of the mac and cheese so I gobbled this right up (as did everyone else at the party). Jen's thoughts: It definitely has a spicy bite to it, so if you don't like spicy, you should go easy on the chili flakes...also if you aren't big fans of rosemary, you can either omit it or just half it (I like it and find it reminds me of the holidays, so I used it all)!


Last, but certainly not least, this gorgeous Hazelnut Crunch cake. This was really good and light which was surprising considering how decadent it looks. How awesome does that hazelnut brittle look? It's like stained glass. The cake was so good, you would never have guessed it came from a box!!





Sweet and Spicy Nut Brittle
(From Wilton)

Makes about 1 1/2 pounds of brittle

1 cup cashews, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup pistachios, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
2 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
3/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 325°F.

In medium bowl, combine cashews and pistachios. In small bowl, mix oil, hot pepper sauce, chili powder, kosher salt, and cayenne pepper. Drizzle spice mixture over nuts; stir to coat evenly. Spread nut mixture onto cookie pan in a single layer.

Bake 10 to12 minutes stirring once after 5 minutes. Remove from oven; spread nut mixture over paper towels to cool completely. Place cooled nuts into medium bowl; set aside.

Line 12 x 18 in. cookie pan with parchment paper. Generously grease paper with butter; set aside. Meanwhile, over medium-high heat, combine sugar and water in medium saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. (Use pastry brush dipped in water to wash sugar crystals down on sides of saucepan.) Continue cooking, without stirring, 20-30 minutes until sugar mixture turns deep amber in color and Candy Thermometer registers 300ºF. (Carefully watch sugar mixture, as it can quickly turn from amber to dark brown.)

Once sugar mixture reaches 300ºF, remove from heat; using greased wooden spoon, stir in nuts. Immediately pour brittle mixture into prepared pan. Using greased, large angled spatula, spread sugar mixture as thinly as possible. Cool completely. Break brittle into pieces.

Wild Mushroom Macaroni and Three Cheeses with Truffle Oil
(From What We're Eating)

1 1/2 cups sliced crimini mushrooms
1 1/2 cups sliced shitake mushrooms
2 tbsp oil or bacon fat
1 1/2 tbsp sherry vinegar
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp flour
3 cup whole milk, warmed
4 oz herb chevre, crumbled
4 oz sharp cheddar, shredded
4 oz Parmigiano Reggiano, separated in 2 2oz piles
1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
2 tsp fresh rosemary, minced
1 tsp fresh sage, minced
2-3 tbsp white truffle oil, depending on how strong you like it (yes, this is some rich mac-n-cheese)
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 cup panko
10 oz cavatappi pasta
kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place a large pot of water over high heat and cover. Place a large saute pan with 2 tbsp oil or lard over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the mushrooms to the pan and saute for 7-10 minutes or until the mushrooms are fully cooked and slightly caramelized. Toss or stir occasionally. Season with a pinch of kosher salt and black pepper then deglaze the pan with sherry vinegar. Allow all of the vinegar to cook out, then remove the mushrooms from the pan and set aside.

Begin the cheese sauce. Add 4 tbsp butter to a medium-sized sauce pan and place the pan on the stove over medium heat. Once all the butter is melted and hot, whisk in 4 tbsp flour. Cook the flour, whisking, for about 30 seconds , just long enough to get rid of the raw flour taste, but not long enough for the flour to start caramelizing. Add the thyme, rosemary, sage, and red pepper flakes. Continue stirring and allow the herbs to saute for about another 30 seconds. Slowly pour in the milk while whisking continuously, so the roux and milk incorporate smoothly and there are no lumps. Allow the bechamel to come to a simmer (it won’t gain it’s full thickness until it does), stirring occasionally.

While waiting for the sauce to come to a simmer start the pasta. Liberally salt the pot of boiling water, almost to the point it tastes like sea water. This may take a few handfuls of salt . Add the pasta to the water and cook the pasta for a minute or two less than the suggested time on the box.

Once the bechamel has reached a simmer, stir in the chevre, cheddar, 2oz of parmigiano, and truffle oil until all the cheese has melted. Turn off the heat and and taste the sauce for seasoning levels. Season with salt and pepper as necessary. In small mixing bowl, mix together the panko and remaining 2oz of Parmigiano Reggiano.

Strain the pasta immediately once finished cooking. In a mixing bowl, toss the pasta, cheese sauce, and mushrooms together. Pour the macaroni and cheese into a deep glass or ceramic loaf pan and sprinkle the panko/Parmigiano mixture evenly across the top. Bake the mac-n-cheese in the upper part of the oven for about 15 to 20 minutes or until the topping is golden and the cheese sauce is bubbly. Serve hot. Enjoy!

*if you’re lucky enough to have a real truffle, feel free to substitute shaved truffle for the truffle oil!

Hazelnut Crunch Cake with Mascarpone and Chocolate
(From Giada De Laurentiis)

1 box chocolate cake mix

Crunch:

1 cup (about 4 1/2-ounces) hazelnuts, toasted and skinned
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup water

Filling:

2 (8-ounce) containers mascarpone cheese, room temperature
1 cup cream
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping:

1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon orange zest

For the cake:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter and flour 2 (8-inch) cake pans. Prepare the cake mix according to package instructions. Divide the batter between the 2 cake pans and bake according to package instructions. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.

For the Crunch:

Place the toasted nuts close together in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir the sugar mixture until dissolved. Bring to a boil and let cook until the sugar is light brown, about 8 minutes. Let the bubbles subside then pour the caramelized sugar over the nuts. Place the baking sheet in the refrigerator and let the sugar nut mixture cool until hard, about 30 minutes. When the sugar nut mixture is hard and cool, top with another piece of parchment paper and pound into small pieces, or place the sugar nut mixture on a cutting board and cut into small pieces. Set aside.

For the filling:

Put the mascarpone cheese, cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla into a large mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer whip the cream mixture to soft peaks. Fold the Crunch mixture into the whipped cream.

For the topping:

Place the chocolate, sugar and zest in a food processor. Process the mixture until the chocolate is finely ground.

To assemble the cake:

Put 1 cake on a serving plate. Top with 1-inch of the whipped cream crunch mixture. Top with the second layer of cake and continue frosting the entire cake with the remaining whipped cream crunch mixture. Sprinkle the top and sides of the cake with the ground chocolate. Serve.

Vanilla Bean Marshmallows

Thank you guys for the well wishes yesterday! I am feeling sort of better...enough to go to the farmers market and flirt with the cute guy that sells me salad :) I actually got some stuff done too instead of just sitting around all day. Last week, I was introduced to the 101 in 1001 list via Miss Marie. I loved the idea that instead of setting traditional new year's resolutions that you may or may not keep, you come up with a list of specific, attainable goals in a set time period. Plus, I love that the time period is really long so you can set some lofty goals and some immediate goals. As I get closer to 30 (ugh, so scared), I want to come up with some things so that I won't feel I have been completely useless with my life up until that point. I spent much of yesterday coming up with a little more than half my list. Unfortunately for you, I am going to keep my list private, but I may share with you when I reach a few of the goals. What does all of this have to do with homemade marshmallows? Absolutely nothing! Right before I started food blogging, I came across the concept of making your own marshmallows. The thought had never even occurred to me before, but now I think it is a brilliant idea. It gave me a chance to put my new stand mixer to good use and it was kind of fun too!! The marshmallows are good on their own, but put them in a mug of steaming hot homemade cocoa and well... you have something out of this world!!


Vanilla Bean Marshmallows
(From Slashfood)

.75-oz unflavored gelatin (3 envelopes of Knox gelatin)
1/2 cup cold water
2 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cups light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
Seeds from one vanilla bean

Line 9 x 9-inch pan with plastic wrap and lightly oil it. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water. Soak for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine sugar, corn syrup, vanilla bean seeds and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a rapid boil and boil hard for 1 minute. Pour the boiling syrup into soaked gelatin and turn on the mixer, using the whisk attachment, to high speed. Add the salt and beat for 12 minutes.

Using a greased spatula, scrape marshmallow into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Take another piece of lightly oiled plastic wrap and press lightly on top of the marshmallow, creating a seal. Let mixture sit for a few hours, or overnight, until cooled and firmly set.

In a shallow dish, combine equal parts cornstarch and confectioners' sugar. Remove marshmallow from pan and cut into equal pieces with scissors or a chef's knife (it helps if whatever tool you use is greased). Dredge each piece of marshmallow in confectioners' sugar mixture. Store in an airtight container. Makes about 40 large marshmallows, depending on the size you choose to cut them.

Hot Chocolate
(From the back of the Kroger Unsweetened Cocoa carton)

Makes 1 serving

In a large, microwave safe mug combine 1 heaping teaspoon unsweetened cocoa, 2 heaping teaspoons sugar, and a dash of salt. Add 2 teaspoons cold milk and stir until smooth. Full mug with milk, microwave on high 1-4 minutes or until hot. Stir midway through heating and when hot.

Almond Brittle

Wooohooo!!! As of yesterday at 4PM-ish I have the next two weeks off! Besides my trip, I am planning on spending a lot of time in the kitchen. However, my posting for the next week or so will be light due to the fact that I won't really be around until after Christmas (besides this weekend). I did manage to squeeze in time to make this candy which I plan on sharing with my friends in the spirit of the holiday. Remember back when I stated that I suck at candy making? Well, I attempted that pepita brittle four times before I decided to call it a day and declare the brittle the winner. My best attempt looked like this:


This was so annoying and I blame the recipe because even the switch to refined sugar (from organic) yielded these results. After all the failed attempts and a waste of a whole lotta sugar, I wasn't so sure I wanted to attempt another candy recipe so soon, but I had pretty decent results when I made last month's caramel, that I decided to give it another go. This time, the recipe only took me two tries. The first time, I toasted the almonds first, but realized that they toasted a lot when I added them to the sugar mixture. The first batch came out tasting good, but slightly burned. I immediately tried it again with un-toasted almonds and thought this was the better tasting of the two. I think the only change I would make next time is to add a little bit of salt to the mix to give it another dimension.

I borrowed this recipe from the Daring Bakers' July Challenge who got it from Carole Walter.


Almond Praline
(Adapted from Carole Walter)




1 cup slivered raw almonds
2/3 cup Sugar
Line a jelly roll pan with parchment and lightly butter.

Put the sugar in a heavy 10-inch skillet. Heat on low flame for about 10-20 min until the sugar melts around the edges. Do not stir the sugar. Swirl the pan if necessary to prevent the melted sugar from burning. Brush the sides of the pan with water to remove sugar crystals. If the sugar in the center does not melt, stir briefly.

When the sugar is completely melted and caramel in color, remove from heat. Stir in the nuts with a wooden spoon and separate the clusters. Return to low heat and stir to coat the nuts on all sides. Cook until the mixture starts to bubble. **Remember – extremely hot mixture.** Then onto the parchment lined sheet and spread as evenly as possible. As it cools, it will harden into brittle. Break the candied nuts into pieces.

POM-Tastic!

Here are some more fun things to serve up if you are having a holiday party soon. A few weeks ago, I took a picture of this cocktail that I had before going out to a party. It was delicious and pretty. I got the idea from a yummy drink that I love at Chaya which is just champagne (or sparkling wine) with pomegranate seeds sprinkled in it. I enjoyed several of these cocktails earlier this year while reading a script out on the restaurant's patio. The script was ludicrous (when the movie comes out next year, I may or may not share details with you), but the drinks and the Chaya burger kept me going.


Last week, I got the idea to make a pomegranate granita. I mean, I have done everything else with pomegranates, why not a boozy granita as well? You get your antioxidants and your buzz in one swoop :) I used quite a bit of vodka in this recipe. If you're not down with that amount, or want to make this a virgin granita (which will freeze better), just replace the vodka with water.


I recently came across this pomegranate jam on TasteSpotting that I knew I would have to try. We often talk about preserving our summer harvest, but clearly, I love pomegranates so much, I thought it would be an excellent way to preserve some of the winter harvest. Well, unfortunately for me, the recipe didn't go exactly as planned. I blame my roommate who was hovering around my space while I was trying to recreate culinary genius. Whatever the problem, before I knew it, I had created pomegranate caramel instead of pomegranate jam. Fortunately for me, it was really good!

(When I still thought it could pass for jam)



(The resulting caramel candy)


Pomegranate Bellini

Proseco
Pomegranate juice
Pomegranate seeds

Fill a glass with proseco. Add a splash of pomegranate juice and top with pomegranate seeds.


Pomegranate Granita

1 1/2 cups pomegranate juice
3/4 cup vodka
1/4 cup water
Juice from 1/2 lemon
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar

Whisk together all of the ingredients in a large bowl until sugar is dissolved. Pour into an 8x8 baking dish and place in the freezer. Chill for at least 4 hours, scraping the top every hour. Can be done overnight.

To serve, layer a glass alternately with pomegranate arils, granita, and then top with more arils. Serve immediately.

Pomegranate Carmel Candy

1 3/4 cups pomegranate juice
1 1/2 cups sugar
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1/2 cup pomegranate seeds


Combine pomegranate juice and sugar in a large pot over moderate heat. Stir frequently until the sugar dissolves, turn the heat to medium high and continue cooking for 30 minutes. Skim off the pink foam as necessary.

Add the pomegranate seeds and lemon juice and cook for another 30 minutes.

Check for consistency by dropping a spoonful of candy on a chilled plate. When you tilt the plate, if it stays in a mound and not run, the candy is done. Alternately, you can cook the mixture until dark amber in color.

Pour into an 9-inch baking dish lined with greased aluminium foil. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Use a pizza cutter to cut the candy into pieces. Alternately, you can break the candy into pieces once it has completely cooled.

November Daring Bakers: Caramel Cake (or Cupcakes)

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend with people you love and that you're eating too much!! It's also time for another Daring Bakers post. November's challenge was hosted by Dolores of Chronicles in Culinary Curiosity, Alex of Blondie and Brownie, and Jenny of Foray into Food. Natalie of Gluten-a-Go-Go helped with the gluten free edition. The challenge, which I accepted, was to bake Shuna Fish Lydon's famous caramel cake with the optional challenge of making Alice Medrich's golden vanilla bean caramels from her book Pure Dessert.

Let me tell you, I was super deluxe nervous about making this recipe. Last month, I mentioned that I suck at candy making and this recipe called for caramel in several ways. There was caramel syrup in the cake and frosting, and of course, being the overachiever in the kitchen that I have been known to be, of course I was going to try making the golden caramels. My first concern was when to make the cake and how to make the cake. The original recipe called for a tall baking pan which I do not have. The other concern was deciding whether to bake the cake for myself or my friends. Luckily, JenFinn decided to host a potluck (which was one of our biggest) at the beginning of the month so the when was not so much an issue. To make this recipe more potluck friendly, I changed it a little to make cupcakes (which many Daring Bakers ended up doing). A little bit of research (and very helpful advice from my fellow bakers), turned me on to this article by David Lebovitz. I realized that my main problem when making the dreadful pepita brittle was that I was using organic sugar. In his article, David explains that one of the secrets to making caramel is to use a white, refined sugar. Lesson learned.

The first part of the recipe that I tried was the caramel syrup that was needed for the cake and for the icing. I found this to be quite easy compared to some of the other Daring Bakers. I have an intense fear of burning things, so I didn't let this syrup get quite as amber in color as others, but I also didn't burn it. I made the syrup the night before the cakes kept it in a jar in the refrigerator until I made the cakes (I still have some left!). Later that same night, I attempted the caramels. The recipe for the caramels calls for something called golden syrup. I have never heard of or seen golden syrup, but my trusty Google led me to a site that said you can use half light corn syrup and half honey to get something that resembles golden syrup so that's what I did. I cooked my caramels to 260 and then poured them into a pan to let them cool. I made two mistakes that night. 1) I really wish I had cooked the caramels to 265 to make a firmer caramel, the ones I made were very soft blobs, 2) I kept tasting the caramels (and burning my fingers) as they cooled. I could not get enough of the flavor of these things. SO INCREDIBLY GOOD! I have never been a huge fan of caramels, but if you get a chance to make these sometime, I strongly suggest you do so. Again, I wish I had cooked mine to a firmer temperature. It was kind of a bitch getting these into wrappers and they kept turning into caramel blobs instead of the lovely squares I cut them into, but all was forgiven once I popped the sugary goodness in my mouth.

The last two parts of the challenge were the cake itself and the brown butter buttercream icing. I found the cake recipe to be very straightforward and the easiest part of the recipe. The only thing I really had to modify was the cooking time because I made cupcakes instead of a full cake. The frosting was...interesting. The measurements were vague and many people were complaining of the overwhelming sweetness in the final recipe. I absolutely hate when things are too sweet so instead of the pound of confectioners sugar called for in the recipe, I only used two cups. I added the beans from a one inch piece of vanilla to give the icing some more flavor and those lovely flecks of vanilla. I also used about a teaspoon of sea salt to counteract the sweetness of the recipe. I topped each cupcake with a caramel blob and I think the flavors all complimented each other nicely.

And there you have it. These seemed to be a big hit at the potluck, but it could have been my friends lying to me, paired with the copious amounts of wine and the thrill of our monster version of Mafia, the game (to this day I maintain my innocence as a townsperson). Again, I hope you are having a most fantastic Thanksgiving weekend. I am off to my highschool reunion. GAH!! Has it really been 10 years already?!?! Enjoy the long weekend. If you would like to see how the other Daring Bakers interpreted this cake, check out the blogroll. To get the full recipes, please visit the sites of any of our hosts.