Chocolate Ganache Glaze

Chocolate ganache is one of those things that once you have made it, you will try to put it on everything. The first time I made it I was sure that it wouldn't turn out or wouldn't be the same as some fancy bakery, I was wrong. This is one of the easiest recipes that anyone can make and not mess up. Just writing this is making me want to go make a chocolate cake so I can try this as a filling. The possibilities with this are endless, enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 8oz Bittersweet Chocolate bar, Ghirardelli is best 

1 cup heavy cream

2Tbs. Powder Sugar

Finely chop chocolate bar and place in microwave safe bowl. Pour heavy cream over the chocolate then add the powder sugar. Microwave for 30 seconds, then stir. If it is still lumpy microwave for 10-15 seconds at a time until it becomes smooth when you stir it. Do not over heat. Once chocolate is smooth it is ready to be used.

 For the cookies pictured (salted brown butter cookies), i put the ganache in a piping bag to decorate the cookies. However, you can pour the glaze over a cake, drizzle on cupcakes, or dip pretzels. If you refrigerate the glaze until firm and then use an electric mixer to beat until fluffy you will get a completely different ganache which is more like a frosting or a filling. The ganache is amazing both ways. Once you are comfortable with making it you can play around with the ingredients. Lately I have been adding Baileys Irish Cream to mine, replacing a couple Tbs. of the heavy cream for Irish Cream gives the ganache an extra richness that is even more incredible. Plus with all the flavors Baileys offers now the sky is the limit with your gananche.

Antique Door Headboard

Lately I have posted a lot about food which is obviously a passion of mine but I also love projects. A few months ago I was walking through my very favorite hole in the wall antique store/garden, yes it is both. Inside the store they have small antiques but outside they have a variety of plants, ceramic pots, old tables, doors, etc. Most of the doors are just like any other door not decorative or pretty but one caught my eye. It was beautiful and I wanted it. What would I do with it though? Somewhere I remember seeing a door turned into a headboard, this would make an awesome headboard! After very little haggling it was mine for the rock bottom price of $50. Loading a nearly hundred pound door into my highlander with two car seats wasn't the easiest thing in the world and I am sure it looked hilarious but the door and I made it home in one piece. However, my husband was less than thrilled when he saw my amazing find. He did have reason though,  i do bring home a lot of projects. Sometimes they sit for a while or I make him 'help' me with them and by help i mean make him do all the work.  After taking off the hinges and door knob the door sat for a month before I got around to fixing it up.

After a little sanding, some wood putty, and a little more sanding it was almost ready for paint. My husband graciously 'volunteered' to fill in the hole where the door knob had been. He also built a ledge on the side that would be the top to give it a more finished look. It turned out beautiful, even my husband likes it :)

Frito Corn Salad

(picture courtesy of realmomkitchen.com)

This is another great potluck dish, I have brought it to a few events now and everyone raves about it. We have a lot of gatherings in our neighborhood and my friend Becky always shows up with a great dish that everyone loves, this is one of them. For me one of the best parts of this recipe is that you can make it the night before which I actually recommend because it really lets the flavors come together. Just make sure you don't add the Frito's until you are ready to serve.

3 cans corn, drained
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
4 green onions, chopped
1/4 red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 orange bell pepper, chopped
1 cup mayonnaise, i use the olive oil mayo but any will do
1 large bag chili cheese Frito's

Mix all ingredients except Frito's. When ready to server crumble Frito's and add to the top of the corn mixture, do not stir them in or they will become soggy.

BBQ Pulled Pork

This is another wonderful summertime dish that is great if you are having a large gathering and feeding a lot of people. I always receive a lot of compliments on this dish and many recipe requests. Most of the time people look at me a little funny when i tell them how I make it but the proof is in the pork, it's delicious, tender, and full of flavor. With this kind of pulled pork it is best served on a roll or bun, I use the Kings Hawaiian sweet rolls.

1 4-5lb pork loin
4 cans of Root Beer
2 bottles of your favorite BBQ sauce, i prefer a tangy sauce
1 large crock pot/slow cooker
Buns
Coleslaw, optional but recommended

Place pork loin in crock pot and pour in root beer, just enough to cover the meat. Turn the crock pot on low and leave it for 6 hours. At 6 hours drain the liquid, shred the pork with a fork in the crock pot. Add the BBQ sauce and stir. Let sit in crock pot on low for 30 min. Then serve on rolls/buns and top them with coleslaw. It is good to have an extra bottle of BBQ sauce on hand for your guests if they want to put it directly on there sandwich.

Sopapilla Cheeseccake

This is a super easy recipe that my dear neighbor Becky sent my way. At a few neighborhood gatherings she made this delicious faux cheesecake that everyone fell in love with. When you make it and realize how easy and wonderful it is you will fall in love too. This a great potluck dish and I can't say enough good things about it. Even my husband loves this and he is generally not a dessert person. Thanks Becky.

Ingredients:

2 8oz.pkgs. of cream cheese, softened
2 cans crescent rolls or the seamless crescent dough
1 cup sugar, this would be a good recipe to use vanilla sugar if you have made some
1 & 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 stick butter, melted
1/2 cup cinnamon sugar (mix 1/2 cup of sugar with 2tsp. Cinnamon powder)

Spread one can crescent rolls into greased 9X13 pan for crust.

Mix cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, and vanilla together. 
Spread over the bottom crust.  Cover the cream cheese with the second can of crescent rolls for the top crust.

Pour melted butter over the top crust, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture

Bake at 350* for about 30-35 minutes

Individual Sopapilla Cheescakes

-same ingredients as above

You will need a Jumbo Muffin pan and a 2" biscuit cutter.
Prepare cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, and vanilla as directed above and set aside. Prepare cinnamon sugar mixture and set aside. Roll out both cans of cresent seamless dough on a greased pan and use biscuit cutter to cut out as many as you can, i could get about 9-10 per can. Grease muffin pan and place 1 dough cut out in the bottom of each cup, like this...

Then spread 2-3 Tbs. of cream cheese mixture ontop of each piece of dough...(i threw in a few chocolate chips as a tester)

Then place a new dough circle ontop of the cream cheese mixture...

Then add 1 tsp. melted butter to the top of each cup. Then sprinke with 1-2 tsp of cinnamon sugar...

Bake at 350* for 25-30 minutes

Raspberry Puff Tarts

A few weeks a go I was having a severe turnover craving. After searching the internet I came across this amazing recipe. Originally it was for a standard triangle turnover but after making them as triangles I found that they lost way too much filling. By making them into pouches they lost little to none of the filling and I feel they look even prettier. I have tried the filling two ways. First was with 1/2 raspberries & 1/2 blueberries, so far that is my favorite. Then I tried it with just raspberries and it is delicious, i tried to tweak it and add less sugar but that was a mistake. Stick to the recipe and you should produce some amazing raspberry tarts. The crust is flaky and delicious and I have found myself using it for other recipes as well. Enjoy!

Dough:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup cold butter, cubed
1/2 cup sour cream

Filling:

3 Tbs. cornstarch mixed with 2 Tbs. Water
2/3 cups granulated sugar
3 cups fresh raspberries
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 egg beaten with 1 Tbs. water, to seal pastries *optional*

Directions:

For Crust-
Using an electric mixer with paddle attachment mix flour, salt, and baking powder. On low speed continue mixing while adding cubed butter a few pieces at a time until mixture is crumbly but incorporated. Then add sour cream until well combined. Mixture will be a bit on the wet side. Move the dough mixture to a well floured surface and knead a few times until less sticky. Then pat the dough into a rough rectangle, about an 8"x10". Dust both sides of the dough with four. Starting with the shorter end (8") fold the dough into thirds like a business letter, flip it over so the flap is on the bottom. Roll the dough in to an 8"x10" again and fold it into thirds. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes. (Can be refrigerated overnight)
While the dough is chilling you can start on the filling.
For Filling-
In a medium sauce pan over low heat combine the raspberries, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, and cornstarch/water mixture. Stirring often until the raspberries begin to fall apart and you have a jam like consistency. Cook just until it begins to bubble and thicken, this should only take a few minutes. Refrigerate until you are ready to use. You can make the filling a few days before hand. I usually have a little filling left over and end up using it a few days later to make a few more.

When you are ready to assemble the tarts preheat the oven to 400°F. Roll the chilled dough on a floured surface into a 16" square. Cut sixteen 4" squares. Brush the corners of each pastry with egg/water mixture. Place about 2 Tbs. of filling in the middle of the square. Carefully pull together opposite corners and seal them together, do this to both sides. When you are done it should look like this....

Place turnovers on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. You can brush the top of all of them with milk and sprinkle with organic or raw sugar (coarse sugar, not fine), this is optional but recommended. Bake in preheated 400°oven for 22-25 min or until thy are a golden brown. Remove baking sheet from oven. Allow pastries to cool on sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack. Once cool sprinkle with snow sugar or powder sugar. Serve at room temperature.

Salted Brown Butter Cookies

These gems are lighter and fluffier than other brown butter cookies I have made in the past which are more like shortbread. This recipe was someones attemp to recreate a 'famous' cookie companies recipe. After a few changes to make it my own, this is what I came up with. Using a 1 in cookie scoop my first batch made 32 delightful cookies.

Recipe:
1 & 1/8 cup salted butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 Tbs sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
Coarse Kosher Salt


In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until browned. Pour browned butter into a heat safe bowl then stir in sugars and vanilla.
Let the butter/sugar mixture cool in the refrigerator until it has hardened, at least an hour.
In a mixing bowl combine flour, baking soda, and  baking powder. Set aside.
Take the butter/sugar mixture out of the refrigerator and scrape into a mixing bowl and beat on low speed until creamy, then add flour mixture half a cup at a time.
The mixture will be crumbly, this is normal.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
Roll 1 inch balls of dough and dip in coarse kosher salt. Place on cookie sheet with salt on top.
Bake for 15 minutes.