Scotch Bars

I have a lot of posts in progress so I best get started. It is a snowy day here. We got a lot of snow throughout the night and it is not over yet.

Here is the view from my porch. The drooping tree is a River Birch that needs some snow knocked off its branches. I will be doing that later. We have a few more birches closer the the street so I will be busy today!

But back to the Scotch Bars. I found this recipe in magazine about tea. http://www.teatimemagazine.com/
The ingredients and method are the same as the original recipe but I changed the pan size because I like a thicker bar. This is a very rich bar and I ended up getting about 36 pieces from it. I love it with a strong cup of coffee in the afternoon. The bars keep really well. I think they are actually better the second and third day they are made. Go make a batch. They take very little time to make and you don't even have to get out your mixer!
Mm mm, look at that chocolaty richness.

Here is the recipe:


1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup butter, plus 2 TBSP, melted
2 1/4 cups light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 cup flour
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup coconut flakes
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract


1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large microwave safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and 2 tablespoons melted butter. Microwave on high at 20 second intervals, stirring well with a spatula, until chocolate is melted and smooth.
3. In a separate bowl,combine the remaining one cup of melted butter, brown sugar, eggs, flour, pecans, coconut, salt and vanilla extract. Stir thoroughly with a wooden spoon  to combine.
4. Spread approximately half of the dough on an ungreased 13x9x2 inch pan. Drizzle the chocolate mixture over the dough, then drop small spoonfuls of the remaining dough over the chocolate. Gently drag the back of  the wooden  spoon around the mixture creating a swirl pattern

5. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the bars have a light golden brown color. Remove from oven and cool on a rack to room temperature. Cut into bars.

Apple Muffins

I made apple muffins with my niece who visited recently. She is eleven years old and very excited about cooking. Her family visits every year and I usually have an array of breakfast things to feed them but this particular morning, I had nothing really of interest. I thought I would head to the store before they all woke up but then I remembered this recipe and I had some leftover apples. I got the recipe from King Arthur Flour web site but I  tweaked it quite a bit! It was great fun making these muffins with my niece and I look forward to their next visit when we can "play" in the kitchen again.

Scraping the bowl is an important step in mixing the batter!

We filled these muffin tins quite a bit as there is not a lot of rising in the oven.

Yummy muffins! This breakfast got people out of bed.
 Here is the recipe. Find an enthusiastic eleven year old and enjoy!

Apple Muffins

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 Teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup buttermilk
2 large apples, peeled, cored and chopped

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. grease and flour 12 cup muffin tin or line with papers.


2. Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and set aside. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and add the granulated sugar and a 1/2 cup of the dark brown sugar. Beat until fluffy. add the egg and mix well; stop once to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Mix in the buttermilk gently. stir in the dry ingredients. and fold in the apple chunks.

3. Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups, sprinkling the tops with the remaining brown sugar. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out with a few crumbs attached. Remove from oven, cool the muffins for 5 minutes in the tin then remove muffin into a rack to cool completely.
Yields 12 muffins

Hermits

I love Hermits once the weather starts to turn cooler. They are really easy to make and the aroma will scent your home nicer than any candle you will find. I wanted to make something for the bake sale at my son's school recently. I knew from experience there would be a lot of chocolate chip cookies and cupcakes. I wanted to make something a little bit different yet still in the comfort food zone. Oh yeah...and easy to crank out. Hermits are a New England favorite and it is said they originated here. Food Lover's Companion says they were named for their long keeping qualities and they are better when hidden away like a hermit for a few days.

                  Try that!!

 I can barely keep them for a few days. I save all the heel ends of the bars for afternoon tea. Hmm? I wonder if I have time to get some going now?

Here is the recipe:

Hermits

Makes about 18 Bars

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 2/3 teaspoons ground cloves
1 2/3 teaspoons ground ginger
5 ounces unsalted butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup molasses
3/4 cup raisins
1/3 cup confectioner's sugar

1 tablespoon milk

2 drops orange extract

Method:
1. Line a jelly roll pan or half sheet pan with parchment paper.

2. Sift together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves.

3. Cream together the butter and brown sugar for at least 3 minutes, scraping often.
4. Add the eggs one at a time and mix until blended.
5. Add the molasses and mix until blended.

6. Add the dry ingredients and the raisins and mix on medium speed until the dough comes together, about one minute.

7. Portion the dough into 13 ounce logs about the length of the pan and position on sheet pans with at least 2 inches between logs. Use a little flour if the dough gets sticky.

8. Chill the logs for about 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
9. Bake the logs for about 20 minutes. The dough will flatten out as the logs bake.

10. Cool the logs on the sheet pan. Glaze. Allow the glaze to set for about 30 minutes to an hour; then slice into bars.

Glazed logs ready to cut into bars

Glaze: Stir confectioner sugar, milk and orange extract until smooth gently with a whisk. Thin glaze with more milk if necessary.

11. Brush the glaze thickly over the top of the bars with a pastry brush. Allow the glaze to set for about 30 minutes to an hour; then slice into bars.

Ready for the bake sale!

Muppet Me

I had a great experience recently when I went to The International Sugar Art Collection in Atlanta, GA and learned how to make an edible muppet. Lauren Kitchens with  her team, Ashleigh and Karie, taught the classes with style and humor. I started the first day off muppetizing myself on a cake. Lauren had said that it was difficult to muppetize oneself and she was right. I relied on her suggestions and came away with an acceptable piece.

The second day, I muppetized my hubbie as an edible statue. I felt more confident in my skills and had a better idea of areas to emphasize. I had so much fun putting all the pieces together. I was delighted with the results and so was my husband.

The plane ride home was nerve wracking. The Monday morning transient crowd was not pleased to see me in line with my boxes of fragile items. The airline was wonderful though and everything got home intact.

If you are able to take one of Lauren's classes, you will not be disappointed. I am very excited to start muppetizing friends and family. As a bonus, I now have a profile picture that's muppet me!

New England Beauty

I waited a bit too long to catch this year's leaf peeping. We went to Borderland State Park near my house recently and caught a last glimpse of full color. It was a very warm day, around 74 degrees, as we walked the Pond Edge Trail.

The path was very quiet and peaceful.

Pebbles took a last dip in the water concerned with the little fish swimming around.
I love the reflection of the trees in the water at the top of the picture.

As I look out of my window today, I see the now brownish leaves dropping fast and flying in swirly circles to the ground where they leave a blanket of muted color. I feel the quietness that starts to envelope New England . The birds and animals are disappearing. The bugs are all but gone. I know they will all be back but I miss them already.

As we look towards colder days rather than cooler days, I will come back to this post for the warmth of that last really warm Fall day when the colors and company was perfect.

Thai Dinner Delight

When a close friend of ours married a Thai girl several years ago, we were delighted to welcome his smart and beautiful wife into our clan. Little did we know that the two would make beautiful food together as well.

We were lucky to be treated to dinner recently at their house and it was a memorable meal.

We had Mieng Kam Gai to start the meal. It was spicy, very moist with plenty of veggies to give it color and taste. We were instructed to spoon a bit onto a lettuce leaf, top with a sprig of cilantro, roll it into a little parcel and munch away. The lettuce made a nifty pouch and I loved crunching into the little wrap. These were addictive and I had to tell myself to stop as I watched our friend add the gorgeous shrimp to our next course.



This next dish, Tam Yum Goong, was what I envision Thai comfort food to be like. The aroma of kaffir leaves and lemon grass was intoxicating. The soup was served with a side dish of rice.
The shrimp and mushrooms in the soup absorbed the heady flavors of the broth. We also spooned a bit of the broth onto the rice and ate it along with the soup.






It was very filling...or maybe the Mieng Kam Gai was catching up to me. I managed to finish the whole bowl but I was too full for the Egg Custard with Shredded Coconut. I had a few bites...I am not sure what happened to my camera so no pictures I am sad to say.

Recipes? Well, I asked but I think they made the dishes without a recipe. If they should write one down, I will edit the post. In the meantime, I did a bit of research. I found a nice recipe for the Tam Yum Goong if you will follow this link: http://www.thaitable.com/Thai/recipes/Tom_Yum_Goong.htm
As to the Mieng Kam Gai, I did not find a specific recipe but several versions of minced chicken wrapped in lettuce. It seems to be a dish open to interpretation so choosing one with favorite ingredients may be the order to follow.

I am looking forward to making both these dishes this winter. I can almost smell the lemon grass now!





UPDATE!!!

My friends shared their recipe. You can find it here Mieng Kam Gai

Fungi Foto

Is anyone else a little frightened by what is proliferating in my yard? I know it has been raining a lot lately but seriously, a family of mushrooms???