Bonus Recipe: Thick Caramel Sauce

I searched, I hunted, I quested long and hard for a filling for chocolates for my husband this Valentine's Day.  His favorite chocolate from Holl's is the royal truffle, full of a gooey caramel sauce that we both love.

I wasn't sure: did I want to use a "real" caramel and just coat it with chocolate? (not the same, but delicious) Or did I want to try for that authentic goo?

We'll see how this goes!  It's certainly delicious by itself!

Important note:  This is not a good recipe to make with children.  Besides the patience factor, the caramel will rise up and possibly spit molten sugar at the stage where you add the heavy cream.

Ingredients:
2 cups of sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tbsp butter (chopped into small chunks)
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp rum (optional)

Directions:
Measure out and set aside all your ingredients in advance.  I usually do this anyway, but for this recipe it is ESSENTIAL.  Set them within easy reach of a cleared work space (I use the top of my stove since I have a flat top)

In a large saucepan (at least 4 qts), stir sugar and water until all the sugar is moistened.  Put on stove on medium high.

STAY WITH YOUR PAN.*  Watch it, without stirring, as it comes to a boil, and bubbles begin to slow down as the sugar melts off.  (This took mine about 5 minutes)   Continue to watch, now very closely, until the mixture begins to turn the color of honey.

Pull the pan off the heat and stir the mixture vigorously.   Continuing to stir, add the first 1/2 cup of heavy cream and the chunks of butter.  THE SUGAR WILL RISE UP.  Keep stirring until it settles back down and all the butter is worked in.  Still stirring, add the remaining heavy cream, vanilla, and rum.  Stir until totally incorporated, then pour into a glass jar or storage container.

DO NOT LICK THE SPOON UNTIL COOLED!  (Yes, I totally did this)

Let cool on the counter until no longer hot to the touch, then cover and refrigerate until ready to use.  It will get thicker in the fridge.

*I cannot emphasize highly enough the chaos that may ensue if you do not stay with your pan.  Let's just leave it at "burnt, crusted sugar water all over your stove and kitchen floor" or "burnt, crusted sugar water nearly or actually ruining your pan"

Comforting Rice Pudding

Known in the cookbook I picked up the original from as Skansk Grot (yum...), this stuff is the perfect tasty breakfast food for the holidays since it makes a massive batch.  It's good hot, cold, and reheated.

Ingredients:
1 large apple (I like golden grimes or delicious, but pick what you like best) diced
1 tbsp butter
1 cup white rice (do not use brown  DO NOT USE BROWN!!!!!)
1 cup water
3 inch cinnamon stick OR 2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 cups milk
3 tbsp brown sugar
1/3 cup raisins (I like gold because they're prettier)
1 tsp vanilla

Directions:
Rub butter all over the bottom and sides of a LARGE saucepan (I use a spaghetti pot).  Let any leftovers melt onto the bottom.  Add rice, water, and cinnamon to the pan and heat over medium.

When the mixture boils, drop to a simmer and cover for 10-15 minutes or until the water has been absorbed.

Pour milk into saucepan, turn up the heat and stir until it begins to simmer.  Turn back down to low and add everything else except the vanilla.  Stir gently.

Cover the pan and simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat and add vanilla.

Pizza Crust for the Fluffies

There are two camps of pizza crust eaters: the crispies and the fluffies.  I'm a fluffy.  I like big, fluffy crusts with chewy centers and crispy outsides.  This is my favorite crust recipe

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 1/4 tsp yeast (or 1 packet)
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp olive oil
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt

Directions:
 In a small bowl (or measuring cup, if you're like me and hate extra dishes) mix together the warm water, brown sugar, and yeast.  In another, larger, bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups flour with salt.  As soon as the yeast blooms*, mix the olive oil into the water mixture, then dump everything in on top of the flour and salt.  Mix together as thoroughly as possible, adding more flour if necessary to get the dough to the point where it's thick enough (and not sticky) to knead.  Knead it for 5 minutes, adding more flour as necessary, then coat lightly with olive oil, drop back in the bowl, and cover with a towel or plate.  Let it sit for 1 hour.

 Preheat oven to 425.

VERY lightly oil only the bottom of your pizza pan.  Do not oil the lip of the pan.  Plop your pizza dough down in the middle of the pan and squish and push the dough towards the lip.  Here comes the reason I  told you not to oil the lip of the pan: if you've oiled everything, your dough is going to shrink back towards the middle as soon as you stop pushing it.  Therefore, you want to push the dough up over the lip and curl it slightly down on the sides of the pan so it will stick.  Jab at the parts of the crust that are touching the bottom of the pan with a fork a few times so steam can escape.  Bake for 5 minutes.

Add toppings and cook until cheese/crust/toppings achieve desired brown-ness (for me, about 12 minutes)

*Instead of being  merely murky, you'll see the water/sugar/yeast mixture start to have light "blobs" of color that push out from the center of the bowl.  Fun to watch.

Beef Stew

This is my absolute winter favorite (chubby little bear cub I turn into in winter...)

Ingredients:
Roughly 1 1/2 lbs of beef chunks.*
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1 can of dark beer (Guiness or other stouts recommended)
3 cubes beef bullion
2 cups water
1 onion, quatered
1 stick celery sliced
4 large carrots or about 1 cup of baby carrots chopped into small pieces
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup quick-cook barley

Mix together flour, salt, and pepper. Toss the beef in the flour mixture until totally coated.

Heat oil in a soup pot on the oven (I use a spaghetti pot). Toss in beef and extra flour. Brown on all sides. Pour in beer and water. Add bullion and onion. Bring to a boil, then reduce to medium low heat.^ If you, like me, like the flavor of celery but not the texture add it now so it can cook to mush.

Let cook for at least 30 minutes. Add carrots. Cook another 15 minutes. Add peas and barley. Let cook for 10 minutes or until a lentil that has been fished out is tender.

OPTIONS!
-Potatoes instead of lentils: add at the same time as carrots
-Rice instead of lentils: add at same point as lentil would be added
-Additional veggies: rule of thumb is that you should add them at the same time as one of the other veggies of similar toughness. For example, corn would go in about the same time as peas (ditto other types of beans) radishes would go in at the same time as carrots.
-Tomatoes: always add last. Even after the lentils. They fall apart quickly.
-Red wine: different sort of flavor. I think the stew needs thyme mixed in with the flour if you use red wine. (About 1/4tsp)


*You can buy a tenderloin or other large pieces of meat if you like and cut it down. Flank steak is often a good choice for price alone
^The longer you cook this the more tender your beef will be. If you don't want to take the time, leave at medium and keep an eye on it (chances are good your pot will be almost full.)