Recipe: Christmas Jello Shots

These took a while, and tasted...okay. They looked great though, even though I messed up like a million times. Shows it can be saved.

1 3-ounce box cherry gelatin dessert

1 3-ounce box lime gelatin dessert

3 packets unflavored gelatin

1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk

1 1/2 cups vanilla vodka

36 dollops whipped cream (for garnish)

36 mint leaves (for garnish)

72 small red candies (or 36 if using just one for garnish)

DIRECTIONS

Lightly coat a square dish with cooking spray, and then using a paper towel, wipe out the dish. It will leave a light residue to help unmold your shots, but it won’t affect the taste.

For red layer, sprinkle half of a packet of gelatin over ¼ cup of water. Allow it to soak in a minute or two. Add one box of the cherry gelatin, along with 1 cup boiling water. Stir until everything has dissolved. Add 3/4 cup of vodka. Repeat the same process to make the green layer.

To make the white layer, sprinkle two packets of gelatin over ½ cup of water. Allow it to soak in a minute or two. Pour in 1 cup of boiling water and one 14-ounce can of sweetened condensed milk. Stir until everything is thoroughly mixed and gelatin is dissolved. You’ll have approximately 3 cups of liquid. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Pour half of the red mixture into the prepared pan. Place pan in refrigerator to set, about 20 minutes or so. Once set, add 1/3 of the white mixture to the top of the red mixture. Pop any air bubbles and return to fridge to set for about 20 minutes. Repeat with half of the green mixture. Then white, then red, then white again, then green. Allow finished pan to set another 2-3 hours, or overnight.

When you’re ready to serve, gently pull the edges away from the pan, and invert onto a cutting board. Slice into even squares. (Alternately, you can just cut in the pan itself, but it might be harder to remove the first few squares).

Place on serving platter and top with whipped cream, using a piping bag or can. Top with a small mint leaf and a red candy (or two) to simulate a holly leaf.

Recipe Monday - Holiday Bread

Jill from PianissAmma has graciously bestowed upon us a recipe for bread that will impress even the pickiest in-laws this year.

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About two years ago, my sister in law brought her sourdough starter with her to Los Angeles.  She was kind enough to offer me some of her dough, which I cultivated and made dozens of loaves of bread from.   Baking bread is a specialty of mine, but baking sourdough was new to me.  I was excited, because I wanted a chance to make vegan breads all on my own.  Sourdough starter utilizes three ingredients: water, flour, and wild yeast.

On my baking journey, I bought lots of bread books, browsed many a website, and found that many sourdoughs incorporate butter, eggs, milk, and not so wild yeast.  I eventually found dairy and egg free recipes, but I have yet to get my wild yeast to work completely on its own.  It’s okay though, because I have cultivated some fabulous bread anyway.

Today, I give two recipes for your enjoyment.  Two loaves in one oven.  One savory, the other just slightly sweet.  The savory goes well with olive oil and vinegar, or butter, if you like.  The sweet?  Have it with almond butter.  It’s sweet, but not too sweet, and great for breakfast too!

SOURDOUGH GALORE

Cinnamon sourdough. Picture by Tejaswi Kasturi

This recipe makes two loaves of bread.  I generally make one loaf sweet, the other savory.

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup	Fed sourdough starter
2 cups 2 tsp 1 tbsp 1 ½ tsp 5 cups Savory Var: Sweet Var:	Lukewarm water yeast sugar salt flour 2-3 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary Kosher sea salt (as desired) 2 ½ tablespoons water 3 tablespoons sugar ½ teaspoon of cinnamon Cinnamon for dusting

DIRECTIONS:

1) Combine yeast, sugar, and 1 cup of water.  Stir, then let sit for five minutes.  This allows the yeast to activate.

2) In a large mixing bowl, add starter, two cups of flour, salt, and mix.  Add the yeast mixture, and then add the remaining water and three cups of flour slowly.  If using an electric mixer, be sure to use your dough hook.  Mix until the dough is smooth and slightly sticky to the touch.  If kneading by hand, knead until the dough is smooth.

3) Cover dough, and allow the dough to rise.  It should double in size within 60 to 90 minutes.  For faster rising, set the bowl in a clean basin and fill the basin with hot water.

4) After your dough has doubled, divide your dough in half.  Set aside one half of your dough.  Place the other onto a lightly floured cutting board.   If you do not wish to season your bread, skip ahead to step 6.

5a) For savory bread, flatten the dough until it appears to look like a very thick pizza crust.  Sprinkle on 2-3 tablespoons of fresh minced rosemary.

5b) For sweet cinnamon bread, flatten the dough until it appears to look like a very thick pizza crust.   Coat the top with a thin layer of cinnamon.  Glaze your surface with the 2/3 of the sugar solution.  (To create the solution, combine the ingredients, and heat gently until sugar is dissolved and water slightly thickened).

6) Roll the bread up into a loaf, and place in a greased bread pan.  If you do not desire a greased pan, simply nest on parchment paper, then set in the bread pan.  Cover, and let sit for about 1 hour, until puffy.   Drizzle with water.   Take a serrated knife, and make slashes along the middle of the loaf.

(Savory variation):  For your savory loaf, sprinkle kosher sea salt on top.  You may also garnish with more rosemary.    (Sweet variation): Drizzle the remaining cinnamon/sugar solution over the slashed area.

7) Bake at 425° F for 25-27 minutes.  Remove, and place on a cooling rack.

 

Recipe Monday - Mint Fudge

This is always a huge party hit.

4 cups semi-sweet chocolate morsels
2 cans sweetened condensed milk
2 tsp mint extract
crushed candy canes or mints

Dump chocolate chips and milk in a pan, and simmer until melted, stirring constantly.
Add in mint, stirring well
Pour into 9x13 baking dish
Top with crushed candy

Refrigerate overnight.

Easiest holiday fare ever.










 

Recipe Monday - Some Holiday Sides

I made some really easy sides the other day for Christmas dinner. Now, these won't be winning any awards for the "from-scratchiest-bestest-hardest-ever" category, but if you've only got 30 minutes and you need something to bring to a dinner party, they are delicious.

Candied Yams:

I went right for the canned yams with this one. My mom does it from sweet potatoes proper, but I'm just not at that level right  now.

Large can of sweet potatoes / yams in syrup, drained
cup of mini marshmallows
2/3 cup of packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
1 teaspoon of salt
2 tablespoons of melted butter

Mash the yams and melted butter together in a big bowl.

Add the sugar and spices, and 1/2 cup of marshmallows.

Spread in a casserole dish (I used a pie pan)

Spread the remaining marshmallows on top.

Bake for 20 minutes at 350, or until the top marshmallows are golden brown and puffy.



Green Bean Casserole:

I used real green beans for this, but I'm sure you could use canned.

Four to six cups of green beans (steamed)
can of cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup of milk
salt and pepper
cup of French fried onions.

Mix green beans, milk and cream of mushroom soup in a big bowl. Add 1/2 cup onions and spices and stir well.

Pour into 8x8 casserole dish and spread the remaining onions on top.

Bake for 20 minutes at 350.