Onion Jam Recipe

4 cups prepared onions (you can used diced or slice into strings and then sauteed until browned)
1/4 cup butter (to sautee the onions in)
1 box Sure-Jell Pectin
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons of fresh herb (or garlic) of your choice **
6 cups sugar (you can sub in brown sugar for up to 2 cups of the 6 for a sweeter jam)


1) saute onions in butter
2) add vinegar and pectin, wait for it to boil
3) add your herb (or garlic) and then 6 cups of sugar
4) when this mix boils so that you can not stir it down, time it at this level for 1 minute stirring constantly (so as not to burn the bottom of your pot)
5) turn off heat fill jars (I get 6+ 8oz jars most of the time)
6) finish via your canning method as found in your canning book or on your supplies.


**(recently I used Thyme in one batch, Sage in another and white pepper in a third batch)

For all those wondering "what do I do with it now?"  here are a few examples of how you can use onion jam, because you are not limited to toast anymore.  I've also included links where I found the photos and in some cases they have their own recipes you may like better than mine.

http://saltandsmokefood.com/caramelized-onion-jam/

http://dinnerwithjulie.com/2012/10/02/bangers-mash-onion-jam/

http://paninihappy.com/turkey-gruyere-panini-with-roasted-garlic-onion-jam/

http://cake-o-cake.blogspot.com/2012/04/morel-brioche-with-onion-jam-swirl.html

Recipe Review - Maple Bourbon Bacon Doughnut

Okay folks, here's a great little cake doughnut that has a hint of cinnamon in it. What makes the cake.... the glaze and topping!


I found the recipe here:
http://blog.whiskeydisks.com/maple-bourbon-bacon-doughnut-one-hell-of-a-doughnut/

Dough:

3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/3 cup melted butter, cooled briefly (I did this first, then gathered the rest of my ingredients)
1 cup sour cream


Glaze

2 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
5 tablespoons bourbon ( I had Fireball on hand and used that)

BACON!


Mixing the dough:

 Whisked first 5 ingredients together set a side in my dry ingredient bowl.  In my electric stand mixer, I beat the sugar and eggs for 4 minutes, and added the vanilla.  Gradually I poured in the melted butter, and beat in the sour cream in two parts.    I added the dry ingredients in four batches to the mixer. Then I put this dough aside for about an hour (plus 15 minutes)

 Next I fried the bacon :)  and I'll admit I ate a little bit too!

 Mixing the glaze:

  In a medium bowl that I thought I could later dip the doughnuts in for glazing... I added the powdered sugar and maple syrup. Then I added the bourbon one teaspoon at a time until I had a medium thick but smooth glaze.  Cover this and set aside.  Crumble up the bacon and set very near the glaze.

 Back to the dough-nuts:

 I had my sweetheart roll out the dough for me. We don't have fancy doughnut cutters (yet) so we used what we had around the house.  Just the right size bowl and a cap off the empty rum bottle.  He must have rolled it to about a 1/2 inch thickness, the thicker ones fried up nice but they closed up the hole, and I don't really know how I feel about that yet.

 We filled a frying pan with fry oil and heated it up on medium flame until a doughnut hole cooked through in about a minute.  The holes are a great way to test your hole through out the process too!
 I fried 2- 3 at a time taking about a minute per side until I cooked all of them, maybe 20 in all. (plus the holes)  I had a cookie sheet lined with paper towels, and a baking rack on top of that.   As each cooked doughnut cooled to the touch I dipped it in the glaze, then the crumbled bacon and put back on my pan to let the glaze run until it stopped.  Eventually I piled up the best ones, used the last of the bacon for garnish.... and it's breakfast!  at 130pm in the afternoon...

Strawberry Mango Banana Daiquiri - THE JAM

Believe it or not there is still a haul of mango in my kitchen, even after the mango jam and the mango-jalapeno jam.  I was lucky enough to grab a nice flat of strawberries at the farmer's market and ideas starting going.  I saw this recipe with balsamic vinegar and while I liked that idea, it gave me another idea too...
http://ahawker.blogspot.com/2013/04/strawberry-mango-balsamic-jam.html

Recall my string of cocktail inspired jam recipes?  Yep, that is inspiring!  So I mixed and matched and came up with this baby.

4 1/2 cups smashed or fine diced fruit (strawberries and mango)
3 tablespoons banana rum
juice of one lemon
1 box of pectin
5 1/2 cups sugar
and a pat or so of butter in case of foaming!

Into the pot add the fruit, rum, lemon juice, and pectin.
Watch until it comes to a boil you can not stir down.
add the sugar all at once, stir until it comes to a boil
once it hits the stage that the boil can not be stirred down, this time you time it (continue to stir) for one minute.
Turn the heat off after your minute and start filling your jars and complete with your canning process, see the instructions on your canning equipment.
I got 6  of the 8 oz jars in my first batch!

Mango - Jalapeno Jam

Still on the inspiration that came from Saran in the form of MANGO Jam with the constant reminders that I STILL have a bag full of frozen Jalapenos to deal with.  Here we go Mango-Jalapeno Jam.

I started with a real badass recipe, so there isn't much to tweak... you'll see what I mean when you check it out over here. http://www.cowlickcottagefarm.com/mango-jalapeno-jam/
They list great ways to use this delicious jam as well.


4- 6 medium to large Mangos, sliced diced and mashed
6-8 medium to large Jalapenos, run through the food processor
1 1/2 cups of apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 package sure-jell pectin
6 1/2 cups of sugar
a bit of butter to control foaming (optional)

 

In the pot go the mangoe, jalapeno, vinegar and lemon juice.  Cook it, bring it to a boil and mash it a bit before adding your pectin.

Bring it back to a boil and add your sugar.

Bring to a boil that will not stir down and keep it at that heat stirring constantly for 1 to 2 minutes.

Turn the heat off, and proceed filling your jars and follow up with your own canning method.

We used this jam as filler for a vanilla bean flavored home made marshmallow recipe.  The experience was amazing, and so were the results!  I'll be posting about home made marshmallow in the future.

Mango Jam for Saran

With all my recipes I start with an inspiration, some crazy idea, then I find a recipe and then I make any necessary adjustments to make it suit my needs and my taste buds.

This week I'm inspired by my good friend and AOA sister Saran.  She has a special project (food creation) in mind and asked me to help her out with a homemade jam.  We discussed ideas while we made the Strawberry Jalapeno jam last weekend and came up with MANGO!

My local Costco had a great deal on Mango a box of about 9 lbs for $6.  Sadly non of my local farmers markets had any to sell, as I stopped and talked to them first.

This morning I am starting with this recipe that I found on pinterest, but I'll adjust it as I go.
http://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/2209/Mango-Jam84855.shtml

I used 7 of these medium - large mango.  Cut them up, mashed them with my potato masher and dumped them in my favorite jam pot with 1/4 cup lemon juice and 1 package of my sure-jell pectin.

You know the drill, let it come to a boil, add 6 cups of sugar and then wait for it to boil again.  This time wait for that boil that won't stir down.  Time it for one minute continually stirring at that level of boil.

Turn it off, then start filling your jars and complete your canning process.

I hope you enjoyed your Mango jam as much as we did.

Jalapeno Strawberry Jam

As with all my posts, there is always an inspiration: This time it was a friend who had a box of jalapenos and nothing to make with them.  I took home nearly the whole box after a few other friends had grabbed enough to make some salsa or maybe stuff them, as they were very large.

Me? I'm on my second batch of this jam and have already used the jalapenos to make two batches of pepper jelly.

I started with another persons recipe, and credit should be given where credit is due.
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/jalapeno-strawberry-jam/

I started with
4 cups diced fresh strawberries, but I've used frozen as well
1 cup diced jalapeno (I used a food processor)
1/4 cup lime juice ( I used the fake stuff today, but fresh is best)
1 package pectin
7 yes SEVEN cups of sugar

I first added the strawberries, jalapenos and lime juice to the cooking pot.

I let them cook down, I wanted to see the strawberries begin to break down, but I did this on a low heat.

Then I added the pectin and looked for the first signs of boil, it can be hard to see but the strawberries produced some juice while cooking down.


Then I added the seven (7)  cups of sugar all at once, and stirred it in.

From this point we are looking for a boil that will not stir down.  When you stir the pot, the boil should continue as if your spoon had never been there.  From this point we time it for one minute, continuing to stir, and then shut if off.

 - I had every intention of giving you several more pictures here, however my cell phone dropped right into the pot of boiling jam - not to worry I pulled it out and got it cleaned up after the jam was finished - It seems to still be working okay -

Now we are ready to can it.  Remember to always have clean and warm jars before adding boiling jam to them.  This batch made 6 of the 8oz jars.

Proceed on to your canning process. You can read the directions that came with your equipment or find some in a number of locations online.  Be sure not to process a strawberry jam for longer than they ask, the jam turns brown and is not appetizing at all.

Sekanjabin - Our Medieval Gatorade

Finally a true period recipe. This is less a recipe and more a ratio!  The rest is up to your imagination.  But I'll still show you how it's done.

My ratio came from: http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/cariadoc/drinks.html

Combinations I have created before include:
Cooking strawberries in the water, then draining out the strawberries and using the flavored water to continue the recipe.
Using a pomegranate juice in place of water - you need to cut out 1 cup of sugar
I once used balsamic vinegar _ not really a fan of this version, but to each their own.
We even used a garlic red whine vinegar and roasted garlic.  It will be a great glaze for chicken.
I've substituted coffee in place of water_ also not a personal fan of this variation.
Honey vinegar makes a great substitution as well.
Most often however I use apple cider vinegar.
You can also change the herbs you use in the final step
The sky is the limit with the flavors you want to use.

And here is the ratio and process for Sickanjabin:
"Dissolve 4 cups sugar in 2 1/2 cups of water;

when it comes to a boil add 1 cup wine vinegar.

 Simmer 1/2 hour. Add a handful of mint,  - tear the leaves for the most flavor -remove from fire, let cool.

- Strain the syrup pulling out the mint leaves -

 Dilute the resulting syrup to taste with ice water (5 to 10 parts water to 1 part syrup).

The syrup stores without refrigeration"

(Oxymel) - A historical medicine similar to Sekanjabin
Andalusian p. A-74
Take a ratl of strong vinegar and mix it with two ratls of sugar, and cook all this until it takes the form of a syrup. Drink an ûqiya of this with three of hot water when fasting: it is beneficial for fevers of jaundice, and calms jaundice and cuts the thirst, since sikanjabîn syrup is beneficial in phlegmatic fevers: make it with six ûqiyas of sour vinegar for a ratl of honey and it is admirable.
.

Purple Shortbread - Hibiscus and Poppy Seed to be exact...

As always I don't come up with these crazy ideas on my own... I find them somewhere on the internet and then make them crazier as I go.

This gem was found via a shortbread recipe search on Pinterest, but the home of the original blogger is http://www.sprinklebakes.com/2012/04/hibiscus-tea-and-poppy-seed-shortbread.html#more

I've never infused butter before so I followed her instructions perfectly.

1 lb butter
1/4 cup hibiscus tea
 ( mine was from Target, Simply Balanced, organic herbal tea, tropical hibiscus, and it took 15 tea bags)


Medium sauce pot on low heat, add 1 lb butter, as it begins to melt add the 1/4 cup loose tea and stir in.
When all the butter is melted and hot, turn off the heat and let the tea steep for 10 minutes.
Strain the butter into a bowl and leave behind the tea.  I used a strainer and some cheesecloth.

Then put the butter in the refrigerator to cool down and stir it occasionally so the color is consistent throughout. - remeasure the butter to 1 lb before beginning with the cookies.

 - Sadly this tea did not result in a reddish or pinkish butter, my butter is still yellow  :(
I'll have to go back in search of a new type of tea and try again.


For the cookies you'll need...
1 lb hibiscus tea butter (see above)
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla ( I used Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey instead)
4 cups all purpose flour (and more for rolling)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup poppy seeds (plus extra for topping)
2-4 TBS cold water

In mixer beat the butter and sugar until fluffy!
Add powdered sugar and beat until its combined
Add Vanilla and mix again
Add 2 cups of the flour and the salt and mix until crumbly
Add remaining 2 cups of flour and mix again
Add poppy seeds
This mixture should be crumbly, so add the cold water a little at a time until a dough is formed.

You can roll out this dough as would most cookies, use cookie cutters, etc.

I however have this awesome new shortbread pan so I put it all in there.

As a good friend called to share with me, these pans are best if greased with actual crisco and not spray pam or the like.

Baking as per the instructions that came with the stone bake ware this is my result....

(picture coming)

Cinco De Mayo Casserole May 2013

My inspiration recipe this round was found on pinterest.
http://www.keyingredient.com/recipes/171719000/chicken-enchilada-casserole/

Wanting a quicker faster method I skipped a few steps and bought more prepared ingredients.

Shredded Chicken (vons now sells it in the deli, rotisserie chicken pre-shredded)
1 can enchillada sauce
1 small package corn (or flour) tortillas
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can black olives
2 cups shredded cheese
(can also add a can of corn, diced peppers, onions, etc)

adjust portions based on a 9X9 or a 9X13 casserole baker

layer ingredients in (leaving cheese on top)

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes

Crescent Sandwich Bake!

My inspiration this morning was this recipe

http://thesaltykitchen.blogspot.com/2012/09/ham-turkey-and-cheese-bake.html

What I had was more mouths to feed and a 'frig full of sliced cheese.... so here's my take on it.

2 tubes crescent dough

1 lb sliced turkey

1 lb sliced ham

12-16 slices of cheese (I had Muenster, Gouda and Provalone)

3 eggs beaten

 was fresh out of veggies, but would have added the bell pepper, carmalized onions, sauteed mushrooms, or any number of other tasty things.

tooks - a whisk to beat the eggs, and a 9X13 baking dish.

I laid out the first roll of crescent dough in a full sheet along the bottom of my baking dish.

Then I layered 1/2 the ham, turkey and cheese, pouring half the egg over it and repeating.

I covered the top with foil and baked it at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, then removed the cover and baked another 22 minutes.

This recipe was severed for Royal Court and Guard snacks at Summergate Anniversary on April 27th 2013.

It came out a beautiful golden brown.  I'll do my best to take photos at the event and post them here later!

Breakfast Bundt!

So I usually start every recipe with some one else's recipe as an inspiration... this time, I don't remember the first time I got the idea for this.  It was simply something I saw and held onto for weeks or months and this morning I decided to give it a go.   - I blame Pinterest.

I had no recipe to begin with so it's pretty much made up of what I had on hand.  A great leftover user upper of a recipe if I ever saw one.

2 crescent dough tubes (especially awesome are the seamless ones)
4 eggs - scrambled with milk and salt and pepper (or however you do them)
5 slices turkey ( or meat of your choice, sliced for sandwiches or diced smallish)
4 oz shredded cheese ( I used Guyere this time)
1 cup sauteed diced onions (and/or, mushrooms, peppers, whatever you like)
* tobasco if you like it

You will need a bundt pan for this!  Also preheat that oven to 350 degrees (or follow directions on your crescent dough packaging)

To assemble...

I opened up one crescent dough on the work surface and situated a layer of the sliced turkey and then all the shredded cheese on top of it.  Then I rolled this up and put it in the bottom of the bundt pan.
I opened up the second dough laid it open and added the cooked scrambled eggs and the onions and followed the same process of rolling it up then placing it on top of the other dough roll in the bundt pan.
I cooked this for about 45 minutes, but since I haven't done a second test yet, you may want to just check on it (even cutting it open) to see that all the dough is cooked through before calling it done!  Also about half way through the dough was about as browned on top as I could stand, so I covered it loosely with foil to prevent further darkening (burning)!

I do recommend you putting your "lighter" of the rolls down first and then the "heavier" on top, because when you flip it those will reverse! I can see in the picture above that my turkey on top is a bit imposing to the scrambled eggs below :)

I'm very happy with this product and will try it again to update the blog with more absolutes as well as to try different combinations. What meat/cheese/veggie combo would you use?  How could you make it a lunch sandwich instead of a breakfast cake?  Let me hear your ideas and experiments!

My Attempt at Unicorn Poop(tm)

Finding a lovely instructables page on a colorful and fun cookie, I've decided to give it a try myself and record my attempt here for you.  http://www.instructables.com/id/Unicorn-Poop/


I went with a "Joy of Baking" Sugar cookie recipe to start of with and doubled it, because hey I need a bunch of poopey cookies to take to a party tomorrow.

Sugar Cookies:

3 cups (390 grams) all purposeflour 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup (227 grams) unsalted butter room temperature

1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Read more:http://www.joyofbaking.com/SugarCookies.html#ixzz2QMjWTrYl

The rolling of the different colors wasn't so bad, it was the adding them together that created issues.  It is indeed a frustrating task to set about.   As the dough warms it is more and more difficult to manage.  Flour can help you, so use a floured surface. However too much flower prevents your colors from sticking together when you want them to.

Bake 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Cool, then decorate.

I added some $1 rack bright green doilies to my serving plate to assist in the effect.

In decorating I used the sparkle gel from Wiltons that I found at Michaels.   Thankfully my talented boyfriend is skilled at painting some objects :)   Then I used Silver Stars Edible Accents also from Wiltons and some colorful sprinkles of hearts, flowers and butterflies.

All told this was half a day in the making.  The time to make the dough, refrigerate the dough, roll the colorful dough out, shaping, baking and decorating.  With decorating being the longest process of all.