This breakfast with the cutest little flags, coasters and plates is all diy created by the Morning by Foley blog where you can also find the templates for the project. { via eatdrinkchic }
Absolutely adorable idea for a birthday breakfast, or for making the weekend breakfast moment extra special.
These apples are sticky and messy, and oh so sweet. I feel joy the way that kids do when I roll red apples in the caramel, and can't wait for them to set in the fridge. I added a little twist to the caramel apples this time by dipping some in melted white chocolate and crushed hard toffee.
It was hard to stop dipping so I kept going. To complete the fun plate of homemade sweets, I dipped mini pretzels in dark chocolate. What a set up for a late autumn party or the upcoming Thanksgiving get-togethers. For kids and adults.
Ingredients (makes 10-12)
- 10-12 medium apples
{ caramel }
- 1 cup (2.4 dl) cream
- 3/4 cup (1.8 dl) sugar
- 1/2 cup (1.2 dl) brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons butter
{ extras, if desired }
- white chocolate
- hard toffee candy
- mini pretzels
- dark chocolate
In a sauce pan, heat up cream, sugar and brown sugar. Let bubble for around 4 minutes on medium heat. The sauce will thicken. Add butter and mix until smooth. Let cool for a minute until the caramel cools down a bit and gets even thicker.
Roll washed apples in the caramel. Place the apples on a tray lined with parchment paper. Refrigerate for half an hour or so until the caramel has set. You can place sticks in the apples to make it easier to eat them. If you would like to add a layer of white chocolate and crunchy toffee on the apples, melt the chocolate in a double boiler until runny. Dip the apples in the white chocolate, and roll them in finely chopped hard toffee. Let the apples sit in the fridge until the chocolate has hardened.
To make chocolate mini pretzels, melt dark chocolate in a double boiler as well. Dip the pretzels half way in the melted chocolate. Place them next to each other on a large tray lined with parchment paper, and let solidify in the fridge. The bad things is that all the dipping is done now. But the good news is, you get to dig in. Happy days!
If you like savory flavors, this weekend night dish can't go wrong. This is something I make when I want something fairly light and small but still full of flavor. And maybe to be accompanied by a good glass of white wine. Have a great weekend!
Ingredients (serves 2)
- 20 small brussel sprouts
- 1 red onion
- 8 slices parma ham
- handful of cashews
{ sauce }
- 2 tablespoons honey dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons apple vinegar
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2-1 garlic clove
- black pepper
Bake thinly sliced parma ham in 350 F (180 C) for 5 minutes. Flip the slices and bake for a few more minutes until crispy. Let cool and chop in strips. To prepare the sauce, combine mustard, vinegar, oil and finely grated garlic. Season with pepper, it will not need extra salt.
Boil brussel sprouts in salted water for 5-8 minutes until tender. Avoid over cooking to keep them firm enough for cutting. Cut in halves and quarters depending on the size. The smallest ones can be left whole. Slice the onion.
Place hot brussels sprouts, onion and parma ham onto plates. Sprinkle chopped cashews on top, and drizzle with the dijon sauce.
Halloween night needs a dessert that fits the atmosphere. Rich chocolate pudding and tangy cranberry compote work perfectly together in this devilishly good dessert. With the colors of deep brown and blood red, it's an impressive finale for a Halloween dinner, or if you simply want to treat yourself with something extra special.
Ingredients (serves 4)
{ pudding }
- 2/3 cup (1.5 dl) sugar
- 1/3 cup (0.8 dl) cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup (0.6 dl) corn starch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/2 cups (6 dl) milk
- 4 egg yolks
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 ounces (110 g) chocolate
{ compote }
- 5 ounces (140 g) cranberries
- 2/5 cup (1 dl) sugar
- splash of water
In a sauce pan, mix together sugar, cocoa powder, corn starch and salt still off the heat. Pour the milk slowly in whisking constantly until completely mixed. Add in the egg yolks and whisk. Heat up the mixture on medium heat whisking the whole time. The pudding will thicken.
After the first large bubble appears after around 8 minutes of heating, turn down the heat and keep mixing for 1 minute more. Pour through a sieve into a bowl. Add butter, vanilla and chocolate. Mix until smooth. Cover the bowl and chill for a few hours. You can also make the pudding the day before you want to serve it.
To prepare the compote, bring a splash of water, cranberries (I used frozen) and sugar to boil. Let them simmer for 5 minutes until the berries have burst. Spoon the compote into 4 glasses and let cool. Before spooning the pudding on top of the compote layer, stir it strongly for a smooth texture. Bloody good.
Yay, it's the Halloween week! Even Halloween is not as big of a celebration here in Finland as it is for many of you, I like to do all those fun Halloweeny things with my sweetie like baking, cooking and crafting. This is one of the bonuses of having a two culture home! (Me - one of those blond & blue eyed Scandinavians, and my sweetie being American.) We get to have the fun of both traditions. This week, foods have scary names, the pumpkins glow and we have an excuse to eat candy!
There are as many carrot cake recipes as there are carrot cake makers. Some carrot cakes have nuts, raisins and even pineapple. The spices in the cake can be anything from nutmeg to cardamom. But there's always one thing that's the same - the oh-so moist texture.
We like our cake with no extras. My carrot cake recipe is simple with just carrots and a slight touch of spices. Not to forget about the cream cheese frosting. This recipe makes a large oven pan size cake that satisfies even a bigger crowd.
Ingredients (makes 20)
- 2 1/2 cups (6 dl) flour
- 3 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- pinch of nutmeg
- 6 eggs
- 1 1/4 cups (3 dl) sugar
- 3/4 cup (2 dl) brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 10 oz (280 g) butter
- 3 1/2 cups (8.3 dl) carrot shred
{ frosting }
- 12 oz (340 g) cream cheese
- 1 cup (2.4 dl) confectioner's sugar, or to taste
Peel and finely shred the carrots. For 3 1/2 cups you will need around 8 carrots. Mix the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg. In a separate bowl, combine the sugars and add the eggs in. Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and sugar until foamy. Add the vanilla.
Start gradually adding the dry ingredients, melted butter and carrot shred into the egg foam. Alternate between the three while mixing the batter on slow speed. Mix just until combined.
Pour the batter into a big oven dish or deep oven pan (14 x 15 inches / 36 x 38 cm) lined with oven proof parchment paper. You can also make the cake in two separate dishes. Bake at 375 F (190 C) for 30 minutes. Let the cake cool down.
Beat room temperature cream cheese and confectioner's sugar until smooth. Taste test and add sugar to your taste. Spread frosting on the cake, and cut into desired size squares. If you want to decorate the cake, nuts and orange zest work great with the flavors.
Yay, it's Friday! Freshly made guacamole and toasted nachos are the perfect match for a Friday night snack. This guacamole is an easy one - it really takes only a few minutes to make.
Ingredients (makes about 1 cup, 2.4 dl)
- 2 ripe avocados
- 1/2 lime
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
Scoop the avocados out of their peel. Smash them with a fork until the texture is quite smooth and a bit chunky. Squeeze lime juice in, and add salt. Mix well. Use good quality coarse salt - it really makes a difference. I used Maldon's pure flaky crystals. Avocado discolors quickly, so enjoy the guacamole right away. Happy Friday!
Feeling crafty? These diy projects make party planning fun. A handmade menu wheel and lighted paper garland give any fall party that little extra something. You can find the full instructions for the menu wheel here, and for the garland here.
The clever designs are created by Anna Bond, an illustrator and paper goods designer from Rifle Design. Anna is a contributor at Once Wed, and she also writes the Rifle blog. Busy woman! I just love her work. (Psst, Rifle shop coming soon!)
Hmm. These cupcakes are a must-try recipe. I mean, what could be more genius than combining tiramisu and cupcakes? The cake tastes like coffee and real vanilla bean, and the frosting is oh-so-smooth mascarpone cream. I had to freeze part of the batch I made, otherwise I would have kept eating them. And luckily the recipe makes some extra frosting enough for some taste testing.
Ingredients (makes 20)
{ cupcakes }
- 1 1/4 cup (3 dl) flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup (0.6 dl) milk
- 1/2 vanilla bean
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 3 eggs
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 cup (2.4 dl) sugar
{ coffee syrup }
- 1/3 cup (0.8 dl) strong coffee
- 1/4 cup (0.6 dl) sugar
{ mascarpone cream }
- 3/4 cup (1.8 dl) whip cream
- 8 oz (220 g) mascarpone cheese
- 2/5 cup (1 dl) confectioner's sugar
+ unsweetened cocoa powder for dusting
Ok, let's start with the cupcakes. Mix the flour, baking powder and salt in a separate bowl. Cut the vanilla bean lengthwise, and scrape out the seeds. In a pot, mix the seeds with milk and add in the vanilla bean pod as well. Heat the mixture until a few bubbles appear on the surface. Remove the pot from the heat, and mix in the butter. Stir until the butter dissolves. Set aside to cool.
Next, you'll need a double boiler. It's easy, fill a large pot around half full of water and heat it up. You'll also need a smaller pot that fits inside the water pot. When the water is steaming, start to beat the eggs, egg yolks and sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer. When the mixture turns thicker and foamy, pour it into the smaller pot and place it on the simmering water. Warm up the egg and sugar mixture for around 5 minutes mixing constantly with a hand whisk. Pour the mixture in a mixing bowl. Using the electric mixer, keep beating the foam on high speed for a few minutes until fluffy and stiffer.
Slowly sift the dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Mix with a hand whisk or spatula until combined. Strain the milk mixture, and mix in a scoop of the batter to make the mixture thicker. This way it mixes better with the rest of the batter. Pour the milk mixture in the batter, and mix just until the batter is even.
Fill the cups of a lined muffin tin 3/4 full. Bake at 325 F (160 C) for around 16-20 minutes until the edges are golden brown. This recipe makes around 20 cupcakes depending on the size of the cups. Remove the cupcakes from the tin when cooled a bit.
Prepare the coffee syrup. Make around 1/3 cup (0.8 dl) strong coffee. Mix the sugar with the hot coffee and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Brush the cupcakes 4-5 times with the coffee syrup. Let the cupcakes absorb the syrup while you make the frosting.
For the frosting, whip cream using an electric mixer. In a separate bowl, beat together the room temperature mascarpone and confectioner's sugar. On low speed, mix the whipped cream and the sweetened mascarpone together.
Dollop a generous amount of the mascarpone cream on each cupcake. Dust with cocoa powder and serve right away.
{ recipe }
We have been cooking Asian food a couple nights in a row now. Soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, wasabi - oh, they all sound so good! We have a few friends coming over tonight, and I though about making something different for a snack to go with a few drinks and a good conversion. Inspired by the amazing Asian flavors, I ended up with a recipe for this spicy nut mix.
- 3 cups (7 dl) nut mix (like cashews, walnuts, peanuts)
- 1 cup (2.4 dl) wasabi covered nuts
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
- 1-2 teaspoons red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, finely grated
- 1 cup (2.4 dl) sugar
- 1/2 cup (1.2 dl) water
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoons sesame oil
Mix the nut mix, wasabi nuts, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes and finely grated ginger. In a sauce pan, bring sugar and water to a boil. Brush down sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush to prevent sugar crystals from forming.
Cook until mixture registers 300 degrees on a candy thermometer (hard-crack stage), about 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in the soy sauce and sesame oil. Add in the nut mixture and stir until everything is evenly coated.
Pour the mixture on an oven sheet covered with parchment paper (oven proof). Flatten and let cool. Break the sheet into bite size pieces. The nut mix stores in an airtight container up to a week.
