Author Archives for Shannon

Mulled Cider

Are you someone like me who reaches for something warm as soon as you get home from work because you are so cold?  I admit I usually reach for some red wine (warm in it’s own way) but sometimes I’ll have some hot tea which just gets boring after a while. Warm apple cider is just a perfect drink around the holidays.  This non-alcoholic Mulled Cider is a perfect way to warm up on a cold day.

Fresh apple cider is simmered with orange slices, brown sugar, cloves, star anise pods and cinnamon sticks and allowed to steep to get a festive, deep flavored, and slightly spicy mulled cider.  Good for both adults and children alike, this cider will warm you to your core and prepare you for a cold night (or morning) by warming up your insides.  Make this ahead of time to sip on Christmas morning and simply warm up (and add a splash of bourbon if you feel so inclined).

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The ingredients:

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                        In a large saucepan, combine apple cider, orange slices, brown sugar, cloves, star anise pods and cinnamon sticks. Bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and allow to steep at least 2 hours.

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Strain out spices before serving.

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Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:  None

Overall Rating:  Like It

Source:  Family Circle magazine

Baked Eggs with Spinach and Tomato

Ahh, eggs.  I swear I could eat them everyday.  And I almost do.  Until recently, I wouldn’t eat any egg that had even a hint of a runny yolk.  As in no over-easy eggs, no “dippy” eggs (aka sunny side up), no eggs Benedict.  Then all of a sudden, I became obsessed with vegetarian eggs Benedicts.  So now, I’m no longer grossed out.  Well, I am a little.  But I’m getting over it quickly.  Because of this new revelation, I am now suddenly even more drawn to eggs than ever because now I have so many more options (how many times can you eat fried, scrambled, or deviled eggs?)!  These Baked Eggs with Spinach and Tomato are slightly dippy in the middle but filled with tons of other flavors making this a not-so-standard breakfast.

Onions, spinach and tomatoes are mixed together with spices before being spooned into ramekins, topped with a fresh egg and feta cheese and baked.  This dish is filled with flavor and puts plain old scrambled eggs to shame.  Serve this with a side salad and you could have this for lunch or dinner.  I left mine in the oven a little longer than the recipe said but not because of the runny yolk, but because I wasn’t sure if the whites were cooked fully.  I haven’t quite mastered the “baking” of eggs yet so I never quite do it right.  But this is a really fantastic alternative to eggs which would be festive for a holiday breakfast one day this week.

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The ingredients:

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Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, heat  oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté until soft, about 5 minutes. Add  spinach and sauté until just wilted, about 2 minutes. Remove from  heat.

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In a medium bowl, stir together tomatoes, cumin, salt, pepper,  paprika, and, if desired, hot sauce. Add onion-spinach mixture  and stir to  combine. Divide among 4 oiled 10-ounce ramekins.

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Crack an egg into the center of each ramekin, then sprinkle on feta.

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Bake until whites are set but yolks remain soft, 12 to 15 minutes.

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Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:

  • Reduced-fat feta cheese

Overall Rating:  Like It

Source:  Country Living magazine

Double Chocolate-Chip Cookies with Bourbon Ganache

This is a cookie that will whip all your other cookies’ asses.  There are cookies…and there are COOKIES.  This, my friends, is a bad-ass COOKIE.  As in it’s almost a meal and if you can eat more than one, then you are my hero.  I took these Double Chocolate-Chip Cookies with Bourbon Ganache to work and got a lot of rave reviews.  One co-worker even commented that he wanted to make a grown-up cookie for a party and could I send him the recipe?  That is a successful cookie in my book.

Semi-sweet chocolate and heavy cream are mixed together and chilled before being knocked out by a hit of some good old bourbon and chilled again until thickened.  The creamy mixture is then spread between two basic chocolate-chip cookies (i.e. if you really wanted to use store-bought cookie dough here, you could) where you now have the chocolateyest (not a word) and most decadent sandwich cookie.  Because of it’s richness, I would consider either using milk chocolate in the ganache (since semi-sweet chips are in the cookie dough) or making the cookies smaller.  I used a small ice cream scoop for my cookies and think they could have been half the size.  These cookies aren’t joking around, I’m just going to tell you.  They have an attitude and aren’t afraid to show you.  I nearly didn’t finish one and I swear I heard it laughing at me.  I dare you to take them on.

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The ingredients:

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Preheat oven to 350°F. Beat butter and sugars at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until creamy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Add vanilla, beating until blended.

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Combine flour and next 2 ingredients in a small bowl; gradually add to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended. Stir in morsels just until combined. Drop dough by level spoonfuls onto parchment paper-lined baking sheets, using a small cookie scoop (about 1 1/8 inches).

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Bake at 350°F for 12 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from baking sheets to wire racks, and cool completely (about 30 minutes).  To make ganache, microwave semisweet chocolate morsels and whipping cream in a 2-qt. microwave-safe bowl at MEDIUM (50% power) 2 1/2 minutes or until chocolate begins to melt, stirring at 30-second intervals.

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Whisk in bourbon, softened butter, and vanilla. Cover and chill, stirring occasionally, 1 hour and 30 minutes or until thickened to a spreadable consistency.

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Spread Bourbon Ganache on flat side of half of cookies (about 1 Tbsp. per cookie); top with remaining cookies.

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Cover and chill cookies 2 hours or until ganache is firm.

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Additions:  None

Omissions:  None

Substitutions:  None

Overall Rating:  Love It

Source:  Southern Living magazine

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