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Archive for October, 2009
Friday, October 30th, 2009
Brandy and I want to give a huge thank you to everyone who participated. All of your festive recipes impressed us, and we loved your creative uses of seasonal flavors and ingredients. We really enjoyed seeing such a variety of sweet and savory dishes, and Brandy and I think that all of these recipes are the perfect way to celebrate Halloween! Oh, and be sure to check out Nutmeg Nanny on Sunday…she’ll be announcing our Thanksgiving event!
Happy Halloween!
Chippy Spiders & Chocolate Web Cookies by Fuzzykoala’s Caketastic Adventures
 Stout Pumpkin Sous Vide with Goat Cheese and Maple Syrup by 5 Star Foodie Culinary Adventures
Perfect Pumpkin Bars by A Duck in Her Pond
 Coconut Spiced Kissed Pumpkin Pie by Nutmeg Nanny
 Pumpkin Swirl Brownies by Sweet and Savory Says it All
 Roasted Garlic & Butternut Parmesan Soup by Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice
 Easy Bars by A Southern Grace
Pumpkin Bredie, Mango Pickle, & Wild & Brown Basmati by Giddy Gastronome
Pasta with Pumpkin & Sausage by The Wandering Cook
 Pumpkin Spice Cheesecake Brownies by Beantown Baker
 And last but not least, our winner…Indian Corn Cheesecake by Muffin Fixation!
 A big congrats to Karen of Muffin Fixation! We chose your Indian Corn Cheesecake as the winner because we thought it depicted Halloween so well. Brandy and I thought it was very cute and clever how your cheesecake takes candy corn, which is a traditional Halloween candy, and turns it into cheesecake. It’s a very “tricky” dessert, which also was a great play on “trick or treating”! And, it was a complete bonus that it’s got pumpkin in it, which is another great seasonal flavor!
Karen will be receiving the following items from Amazon (Karen please email me your address):
(Images from Amazon)
Tags: All Through the Year Cheer, Halloween, Round-Up
Posted in All Through the Year Cheer | 19 Comments »
Wednesday, October 28th, 2009
Brandy and I are very excited…it’s time to submit your Halloween recipes for All Through the Year Cheer! Your recipe can be for anything that says Halloween to you. You can either enter the link to your recipe in the MckLinky list below, or email your recipe to me at fuelingyourmind@gmail.com (deadline to enter is 9PM EST on Oct. 29). On October 30, I’ll post a round-up and announce the winner, who will receive a prize (the prize was announced here). Brandy and I can’t wait to see what all of you came up with for Halloween!
And speaking of Halloween, I couldn’t let this holiday come and go without making some kind of candy. For me, Halloween evokes images of jack o’ lanterns, ghosts, witches, and last but not least, candy (because of my childhood trick-or-treating days!). This candy is loved by kids and adults alike, and if I had to label a certain flavor as depicting Halloween, these truffles would be it. With their warm spices, pumpkin, and dark chocolate all you need is a crackling fire, a good book, and a hot mug of pumpkin spice tea for the perfect fall evening!
Spiced Pumpkin & Dark Chocolate Truffles
(Yield: about 22 truffles)
½ c unsweetened pumpkin puree
2 TB brown sugar
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
½ c cream
8 oz good quality dark chocolate chips (about 1 1/3 c)
1 TB butter, at room temperature
1 TB pure vanilla extract
Toppings of your choice, such as cocoa powder, chopped nuts, decorative sprinkles/jimmies, powdered sugar, etc.
In a small pot, combine the pumpkin, brown sugar, and pumpkin pie spice; cook on medium-low heat for 5-10 minutes until the mixture is thickened and reduced by about half.
Place the chocolate in a non-reactive bowl (such as glass or stainless steel). In a separate small pan, heat the cream until it boils, then pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for about 3 minutes, then stir the cream/chocolate mixture. Gently whisk in the reduced pumpkin mixture, then whisk in the butter and vanilla. Refrigerate until chilled.
Use a tablespoon to scoop out the truffles, then roll each truffle in the topping of your choice. Keep refrigerated.
(Click on an image to englarge)
Tags: All Through the Year Cheer, Chocolate, Pumpkin, Recipes, Truffles
Posted in All Through the Year Cheer, Recipes | 35 Comments »
Monday, October 26th, 2009
This is a Palestinian dish with many variations; the actual name of the dish (musakhan) means “something that is heated.” The first time I had this and my husband told me that the main spice was sumac, I immediately thought of poison sumac. Unlike the sumac in North America (a.k.a. poison oak), sumac from other parts of the world is commonly used as a spice. Depending on the variety of sumac, it can range in color from brick red to purple to brown. Sumac has a sour taste similar to lemon, and it gives these sandwiches a bright flavor and lovely color.
Chicken and Onion Sandwiches Spiced with Sumac (Musakhan)
(Yield: 5 sandwiches)
1 ½ c shredded chicken
1 ½ c diced onion
4 TB canola oil, divided
2-3 TB sumac (if you like it more tart, use 3)
Pinch allspice
Pinch salt and pepper
5 (8-inch) flat breads (such as lavash, or even flour tortillas)
9 by 13-inch broiler-safe baking dish
In a small-medium sized pot with a lid, heat 3 TB of oil over medium heat; add the onion, sumac, allspice, salt, and pepper; sauté for about 15 minutes or until the onion is softened. Add the chicken and sauté for another minute.
Preheat the broiler portion of your oven (if you don’t have a broiler, turn your oven up to its highest setting). In a 9 by 13-inch baking dish, drizzle ½ TB of oil and spread it evenly over the bottom of the dish. Divide the chicken mixture into 5 equal portions and roll up the bread. Place the rolled sandwiches in the baking dish and drizzle the tops with the remaining ½ TB of oil; use your hands to evenly spread the oil on the sandwich tops. Broil for about 2-3 minutes, then flip the sandwiches and broil the other side for another few (both sides should be light golden brown).
Tags: Arabic Recipes, Chicken, Musakhan, Recipes, Sumac
Posted in Arabic Recipes | 21 Comments »
Sunday, October 25th, 2009
Drying fruits and vegetables is a great way to preserve the fruit while keeping as many of the nutrients as possible. Plus, drying concentrates and intensifies the natural flavor of whatever is being dried. Since I had so many apples, I decided to dry some. Dried apples are sweet, chewy, and full of intense apple flavor. I like to chop them up and add them to salads, cereal, oats, trail mix, and yogurt. You could also add them to cakes, muffins, or cookies, and I think they’d be a fantastic addition to Thanksgiving turkey stuffing.
A Note on the Oven Temperature: Try to get your oven as close to 135F as possible. If the oven is too hot then moisture can leave the apples too quickly, and you’ll end up with apples that are dry outside but full of moisture inside. On the other hand, if the temperature isn’t hot enough, the apples could mold before they have a chance to dry.
How to Dehydrate Apples
You’ll need:
Apples
Lemon juice (1/4 c for every 1 c of water to soak the apples)
Water
Sweetener (optional)
Baking pans
Parchment paper
An oven that can be set between 135-180F
(1) Prep your supplies. Preheat the oven to as close to 135F as you can get it. Line your baking sheets with parchment paper. Prepare a large bowl with lemon water for soaking the apples by mixing ¼ c lemon juice for every 1 c of water.
(2) Prep the apples. Wash and peel the apples, then core them (an apple corer makes this an easy task). Remove any bad spots on the apples. Slice the apples as uniformly as possible into 1/4 to 1/2-inch thick slices (if you’re more adept at it than I am, you can use a mandolin for this). Drop the apple slices into the lemon water as you go; let the apples soak in the lemon water for about 5 minutes after all the apples have been sliced.
(3) Get ready to bake the apples. Drain the apples and lightly pat them dry. Line them up in a single layer on the parchment paper, making sure that none overlap. You can sprinkle on a little sugar or stevia if you like.
(4) Bake the apples. The apples are done when most of the moisture is removed, yet they’re still pliable; the apples should feel dry to the touch, not sticky or wet. How long the apples need to bake depends on several factors, such as the type and ripeness of the apples you use, and how hot your oven is. My apples took around 10-14 hours.
(5) Condition the apples. This is necessary to equally distribute any remaining moisture in the apples, which in turn reduces the risk of mold. This can be done by placing the dried apples in a closed jar and leaving it on the countertop for 7-10 days; shake the jar once a day but do not open the jar until conditioning is done.
Tags: Apples, Dehydrating, How To, Recipes
Posted in How To, Recipes | 24 Comments »
Thursday, October 22nd, 2009
This dish is as delicious as it is simple. The crispy potato, the creamy yolks, and the sharpness of the cheddar all come together wonderfully. And the veggies take on a lovely, nutty flavor after being roasted. This meal is perfectly hearty without being heavy, and since the amounts can be easily adjusted to serve any number, it’s a great dish to serve at a brunch.
Feel free to switch up the vegetables for your favorites (I think zucchini would be delicious), or you could add some kind of breakfast meat.
Baked Egg Skillet with Vegetable Hash
(Yield: 1 serving)
1 TB olive oil
1 small potato, cleaned and diced
½ small white onion, diced
1 small bell pepper (or ½ medium bell pepper), any color
1 clove garlic, minced
2 large eggs
Salt and pepper
½ oz sharp white Cheddar, shredded
Chopped fresh parsley (optional, for garnish)
Preheat the oven to 400F. Heat a small-medium pan (an 8- or 10-inch pan works well here) on medium-high heat. Add the oil and potato and cook over medium to medium-high for 5-10 minutes (stirring occasionally), until the potatoes are browned and cooked through. Add the onion, pepper, garlic, and a pinch of salt and pepper, turn the heat down to medium or medium-low and cook another 3-5 minutes, until the veggies start to soften.
Make two wells in the veggies so that the eggs have a place to go, then gently crack each egg into a well. Sprinkle a little more salt and pepper on top of each egg. Bake until the whites are set and the yolks are cooked to your desired consistency (about 8-10 minutes will give you runny yolks with set whites). Sprinkle the cheese on top then bake for 45-60 seconds longer, just to melt the cheese. Serve with parsley sprinkled on top.
 Making the Wells for the Eggs  
Tags: Eggs, Recipes
Posted in Recipes | 25 Comments »
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