salted caramels

my Christmas gift to you, whocaresians near & far. the *new* and *improved* recipe, with a *bonus* thrown in a the end!

*ready?*

;)

Salted Caramels

1 c. heavy cream
5 T. unsalted butter
1 t. kosher salt*, plus extra for sprinkling (*see note below ingredients)
1/4 c. water
1 1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. molasses or light corn syrup
1/2 t. vanilla extract

*note about salt: there is a difference between morton kosher salt (it's easier to locate) and 'nicer' kosher salt like the diamond crystal brand (can find it at Penzey's Spices)...morton's is crumbly, while diamond crystal's is flakier. i've made it both ways and the flakier kosher salt is what i prefer (it's not much more expensive at all), and looks nicer on top of the caramels. that said, use either.


1. Line an 8" square baking pan with parchment, allowing it to drape over two sides. Grease the paper well. (I've also just used a glass pan and greased it really well.)

2. In a small saucepan, combine the cream, butter and 1 t. of salt to a simmer over medium heat. Turn off the heat and set aside.

3. In a deep saucepan, combine 1/4 c. water, sugar and corn syrup or molasses, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Stirring occassionally, boil until the mixture is a warm golden brown, if using corn syrup. If using molasses, boil til a candy thermometer reaches 250 F.

4. When the sugar mixture is complete, stir the cream mixture and slowly add it to sugar mixture. Use care - it will bubble up violently. Stir in the vanilla and cook over medium-low heat until your candy thermometer reaches 248 F. Stir constantly - this will take up to 20 minutes.

5. Very carefully pour the caramels into your prepared pan, sprinkle with salt (I wait til it's cooled for about half an hour in the fridge), refrigerating for a few hours, until firm.

6. When the caramel is cold, pry the sheet from the pan onto a cutting board and cut into long strips. Cut each strip into little squares. (I can usually get 4 dozen out of one pan)

*note - using molasses not only give these caramels more depth of flavor, but makes them a bit softer and much easier to cut.

7. Cut parchment or freezer paper into 4x5 inch pieces and wrap each caramel individually, twisting the ends. Store in the refrigerator.

And now, as promised, here's a quick recipe for homemade corn syrup, if you dare:

Light Corn Syrup

2 c. white sugar
3/4 c. water
1/4 t. cream of tarter
dash salt

Combine all ingredients in large pan. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer and cover for 3 minutes to get sugar crystals off side of pan. Uncover & cook until reaches soft ball stage on a candy thermometer. Stir often. Cool and store in covered container at room temp. It will keep for up to 2 months and makes almost 2 cups.

New Fall Soup

This really hit the spot last night. It was so easy and so yummy.

Butternut Squash Soup

Saute the following in 1 T. butter for 5 minutes:
1 roughly chopped onion
1 chopped carrot (don't bother peeling)

Add:
3 c. chicken broth (or veggie broth)
1 apple, peel and chunked
1 butternut squash, peeled and chunked.

Simmer/boil for 10-15 minutes with lid on.

Add: 2 heaping t. of Chaat Masala (i bought this at the INdian grocery on our Spice Crawl)

Puree with an immersion blender. Enjoy!!

Peach Skillet Cake

skillet cake, in the skillet

skillet cake, a la mode, with coffee

I made this with fresh peaches from Wenninghoff's.  It just sounded old-timey and good.  And, it was.

Fruit/caramel layer:

• 1 can of peach slices (I used 2 fresh peaches, peeled)
• 1/4 c. butter
• 1 c. brown sugar

Batter:

• 1/3 c. butter
• 2/3 c. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 t. ginger (I used powdered)
• 1 1/2 c. flour
• 3 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. salt
• 2/3 c. milk

Drain peaches (if app.). Melt butter and brown sugar in 10" iron skillet (mine is larger, but i reduced the baking time to 25 min and it worked out just fine).  Heat until sugar is dissolved.  Remove from heat.  Place peach slices in sunburst effect.

Make batter: Cream butter and sugar.  Beat in eggs.  Combine ginger, flour, baking powder, and salt.  Stir to mix.  Gently pour into skillet over peach slices.  Bake in preheated 350 oven for 35-40 minutes (adjust according to pan size) or until tests done.

Immediately turn upside down onto large serving plate (or cutting board, in my case, b/c of my pan size.  This is likely to be a two-person job and requires good communication/coordination).

The result is a lovely cake that's not too sweet, topped with a gooey layer of fruit and caramel.  The cake has a cornbread-like texture.  Super yummy.  Would be great for breakfast too! 

Rhubarb Custard Pie Filling

This is from my Mom's good friend Clare Pincock. It makes an amazing filling for those rhubarb purists that don't want strawberries muddling the flavor of their pie.

3 c. rhubarb in 8" pie plate lined with pastry
1 c. sugar
2 T flour
1/8 tsp salt
2 eggs, beaten

Mix the last for ingredients well and pour over the rhubarb.
Bake 450 for 10 min, 325 for 30 min.
For a 10" pie, double the recipe and bake for an additional 20 minutes.

Blueberry Scones

2 1/4 c. sifted flour
3 T sugar/honey
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Cut in 6 T butter

1 c. buttermilk OR 3/4 c. milk + 3 T white vinegar OR 3/4 c. milk plus 2 - 3 T of sour cream

Combine dry ingredients. Add buttermilk and honey. Mix loosely.
Add two handfuls (2 c.) of blueberries (frozen work best).
Fold in berries. Press dough or gently roll into a small oval.
Cut into pie wedges. Place in a greased cookie sheet.
Cook 12 - 15 min in preheated oven at 400 degrees

If you wish, you may add a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar to the tops of the scones before baking.

European Peasant Bread

From _Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day_.  My friend Xandy introduced me to this bread when I was visiting her in Seattle and I instantly knew I had to make it.

I like this bread a lot.  I've been halving the recipe, so I can actually eat it all before the 14 days are up.  I like that it makes 1 pound loaves, which seem really manageable.  I like making them in round boule shapes, but you can make them oblong or whatever you like.  The BEST part of this recipe is that you can store the dough in the fridge for 14 days (I keep it in a disposable ziploc container and write the date I made it on the lid in permanent marker) and make it when you want it.  It's good and crusty and the flavor gets better the longer the dough is in the fridge, I think.

Okay.  Here goes.

Ingredients (makes 4 1-pound loaves):

3c. lukewarm water
1 1/2 T. instant yeast
1 1/2 T. salt
1/2 c. rye flour (I just use whole wheat, but rye makes it more peasant-y I think)
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
5 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
cornmeal

1.  Mixing and storing the dough: Mix the yeast and salt with the water in a 5 qt. bowl or lidded (not air-tight) container. (I do it in the bowl of my kitchenaid, using the dough hook).

2.  Mix in the remaining dry ingredients without kneading, using a spoon or stand mixer with a dough hook.

3.  Cover (not airtight--I used a kitchen towel), and allow to rest at room temperature until the dough rises and flattens on top (approx. 2 hours).

4.  The dough can be used immediately after the initial rise, though it is easier to handle when cold.  Refrigerate in a lidded (not airtight--following Xandy's lead, I use a disposable ziploc container) container and use over the next 14 days.

5.  On baking day, dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1 pound (grapefruit size) piece.  Dust with some flour and quickly shape it into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go.  Allow to rest on a cornmeal-covered pizza peel (available at Target for $10) for 40 minutes.

6.  20 minutes before baking time, preheat the oven to 450 F, with a baking stone placed on the middle rack.  Place an empty broiler tray (or cookie sheet with sides) on lower shelf.

7.  Sprinkle the loaf liberally with flour and slash a cross, scallop, or tic-tac-toe pattern into the top, using a serrated bread knife (don't forget to do this--I did and the loaf was crazy tall and skinny.  Weird.)  Leave the flour in place for baking; tap some off before slicing.

8.  Slide the loaf directly onto the hot stone.  Pour 1 c. of hot tap water into the broiler tray, and quickly close the oven door (I think this makes the crust crusty).  Bake for about 35 min., or until the top crust is deeply browned and very firm.  Adjust baking times according to size of loaf.

9.  Allow to cool before slicing.  Eat and enjoy!

Food Blogs

Brooke, you're inspired a resurgence of Who Cares Cooks! At least for me. Thanks.

So, food blogs. I get the impression lots of us look at 101 cookbooks, simply recipes, smitten kitchen, orangette, the kitchn, pioneer woman and of course chocolate&zucchini...those are some of my faves that I cook from often. Here are a few others I have been enjoying lately, too.

Sprouted Kitchen

Homesick Texan (Tex Mex/Mexican)

Saliu's Kitchen (Indian)

Shutterbean

Food Eaten (a shout out to a great Omaha food blogger)

Del Marie Creamery (ha! but seriously I use the recipe section a lot!)


What are some of your favorite food blogs or websites?