Peppermint Fudge

Tags

candy cane, chocolate, Christmas, fudge, peppermint, white

I love peppermint, especially at this time of year. I’m not really a fan of candy canes though, unless they are crushed up and added to things, such as fudge!This fudge is awesome. Another recipe that I found last year! Everyone who tried it loved it, and so I had to make more to share this year. And more to have for myself, of course… :) This isn’t a true chocolate fudge, since you can use vanilla chips, white melting candy, or white chips, but it’s just as good as any true fudge! And the food coloring is a perfectly festive addition. The red swirls on the white fudge make for a delicious candy cane-colored design! The fudge is quick and easy, and creamy with little crunches from the candy cane bits. A must try for the holiday season!Peppermint Fudge

2½ cups sugar
½ cup margarine
5 ounces evaporated milk (10 tablespoons)
7 ounces jarred marshmallow crème (2 cups)
8 ounces white or vanilla chips
½ cup peppermint candies or candy canes, finely crushed
Red food coloring

Line a 9-inch square pan with foil so that foil extends over sides of pan. Spray with cooking spray or butter the foil.

In a large saucepan, combine sugar, margarine and evaporated milk. Melt butter and bring to a boil. Continue boiling 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add marshmallow crème and vanilla chips. Stir until melted and smooth, then stir in crushed peppermint.

Pour into prepared pan. Add desired number of drops of food coloring to the top of the fudge, and swirl on top of fudge with a knife. Cool to room temperature. Refrigerate until firm then cut into 36 to 48 squares. Store in the refrigerator.

Source: Adapted from Food.com

Gingerbread Cupcakes with Brown Sugar-Cinnamon Buttercream

Tags

buttercream, Christmas, cinnamon, ginger, gingerbread, molasses

I love the flavors of this season. While gingerbread isn’t one of my favorite flavors, it’s so traditional for this time of the year, I couldn’t resist! Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy little gingerbread men and whatnot, just in small doses. And these cupcakes are little cake versions of those tasty seasonal cookies. Cream cheese frosting is such a common pairing with gingerbread, and I know it’s what some people would want and expect. And who am I to disappoint! But at the same time, I saw so many unique frostings paired up with other gingerbread cupcakes, and I really wanted to try a less traditional flavor.I couldn’t decide between the two frosting options, so I asked at work and on Facebook. I didn’t really get a clear winner there, either, though one person recommended putting both frostings on one cupcake! As good as that sounds, I took their suggestion with a sort of twist… I made both frostings and one batch of cupcakes, so now I have extra frosting already made for when I make another batch of cupcakes!! Win-win for me and everyone who gets extra cupcakes! Hehe. The frosting went wonderfully with the cupcakes, and all the flavors complimented each other perfectly. If you are a fan of gingerbread, you’ll absolutely love these cupcakes!Gingerbread Cupcakes with Brown Sugar-Cinnamon Buttercream 

Cupcakes:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup molasses
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
2 teaspoons baking soda
3 cup all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon allspice
½ teaspoon salt

Brown Sugar-Cinnamon Buttercream
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
⅓ cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3½ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2-3 tablespoons cream

To make the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake tins with paper liners.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, and salt; set aside. In another small bowl, stir together the boiling water and baking soda until dissolved; set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the molasses, egg, and vanilla. Slowly beat in the baking soda water. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture; mix until just combined.

Spoon the gingerbread batter into the prepared cupcake tins. Bake about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer the pans to a wire rack and cool for 5 minutes, then remove the cupcakes to the wire rack and cool completely.

To make the frosting: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and brown sugar together until creamy. Add the cinnamon and confectioners’ sugar; beat at medium-low speed until the sugar is fully incorporated. Add the cream 1 tablespoon at a time, until frosting is smooth and fluffy. Frost cupcakes and decorate as desired.

Source: Adapted from The Culinary Chronicles, who adapted it from The Spice Kitchen: Everyday Cooking with Organic Spices

Pumpkin Pie

Tags

Christmas, cinnamon, cream, evaporated milk, pie, Pumpkin, sweetened condensed milk, Thanksgiving

I had a very fun and successful day of holiday baking with my mom yesterday! We made our traditional array of cookies and goodies, including some new ones that we added this year. We made sugar cookies, cinnamon swirls, chocolate cherry thumbprints, melting moments, and pumpkin oatmeal cookies with cranberries and white chocolate. I have a list of cookies and candies I want to try this year, and hopefully they’ll be good enough to make the list for next year!

In the meantime, I wanted to share my favorite pumpkin pie recipe. I don’t know about the rest of you, but my family has pumpkin pie for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’m not a big pumpkin pie fan, unless it’s this pie. I discovered this recipe a few years ago, and have been making it ever since. It’s pumpkin-y, lightly spiced, and creamy, all of which makes for a delicious and perfect pie! The random amount of sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk are kind of inconvenient, but just save the leftovers for fudge or another pumpkin pie!Pumpkin Pie

1½ cups pumpkin puree
½ cup brown sugar
⅔ cup heavy cream
7 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
6½ tablespoons evaporated milk
¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pinch ground clove
Pinch salt
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
Pastry for 1 pie dough, or 1 prebaked pie crust

To prepare pie crust: Place rolled out pie crust in pie dish, leaving at least 1-inch overhang on each side. Ease dough into the plate by gently lifting the edge of the dough with one hand while pressing into the plate bottom with the other hand, making sure to not stretch the dough. Trim overhang to ½-inch beyond the plate rim. Fold overhang under itself onto the flat rim of the plate, and use a thumb and two index fingers to flute the crust. Refrigerate for 15 to 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Remove pie pan from the refrigerator and prick with a fork. Line the crust with 2 pieces of foil, and fill with pie weights, dried beans or uncooked rice. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove foil and weights and bake for 5 to 10 minutes until crust is golden brown and crisp.

To make the filling: Lower the oven to 325 degrees F.

In a medium saucepan, combine the pumpkin and sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until the majority of the water has evaporated and the mixture has thickened, about 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the cream, milks, vanilla, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, and salt. Add eggs and yolk, and whisk until thoroughly combined. Pour the filling into the pie shell and bake until set, about 45 to 55 minutes. Cool and serve.

Source: Adapted from Food Network