I saw a post somewhere today (maybe on DailyCandy?) advertising Bourbon Bacon Caramel Corn and couldn't stop thinking about it all afternoon. When thinking about what to have for dinner, all I could think of was sweet and bacony crunchy popcorn. These thoughts were fueled by the actual presence of bacon in my refrigerator and some popcorn kernels that had been sitting in a Tupperware container on my counter since 2 ears of dried corn showed up in my farm share last summer.
A search on google only found the product for sale, already made. I was only able to find a recipe for caramel corn and used this for my starting point.
I haven't made popcorn from without a microwave since I was young. It was fun to relive these memories. Did anyone else sneak homemade popcorn in brown paper bags into the movies when they were younger?
Some things I learned while making this recipe:
1. 1/3 to 1/2 cups of kernal popcorn yields 3.5 quarts
2. Don't try to reheat unpopped kernel - the ones that do pop are sadly disappointing, they half pop, kinda like those fireworks that go up and explode into one spark and make you say "Booooooo" instead of "Ooooooooooo"
3. Don't try to taste test boiling caramel sauce, it's still really hot even after you've removed it from the stove for 5 minutes.
4. Try not to burn your bacon. I just got a new griddle. It captured and held heat so well the bacon was done before I knew it.
Popcorn and Bacon
3-5 strips bacon
3 Tablespoons canola, peanut, or grapeseed oil (high smoke point oil)
1/3 cup of high quality popcorn kernels
1 3-quart covered saucepan
Instructions
1. Cook the bacon until crispy, place on paper towels to remove grease, cool.
2. Heat the oil in a 3-quart saucepan on medium high heat.
3. Put 3 or 4 popcorn kernels into the oil and cover the pan.
4. When the kernels pop, add the rest of the 1/3 cup of popcorn kernels in an even layer. Cover, remove from heat and count 30 seconds. This step first heats the oil to the right temperature, then waiting 30 seconds brings all of the other kernels to a near-popping temperature so that when they are put back on the heat, they all pop at about the same time.
5. Return the pan to the heat. The popcorn should begin popping soon, and all at once. Once the popping starts in earnest, gently shake the pan by moving it back and forth over the burner. Try to keep the lid slightly ajar to let the steam from the popcorn release (the popcorn will be drier and crisper). Once the popping slows to several seconds between pops, remove the pan from the heat, remove the lid, and dump the popcorn immediately into a wide bowl. With this technique, nearly all of the kernels pop and nothing burns.
6. Crumble bacon. Add bacon to popcorn and toss.
If you don't want to add the caramel and bacon you can....
7. Add butter, you can easily melt it by placing the butter in the now empty, but hot pan.
8. Salt to taste.
Makes 2 quarts, a nice amount for two people, or for one hungry one.
Bourbon Caramel Sauce
1/2 cup real butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup (or light corn syrup)
1 to 2 Tablespoon Bourbon
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda
Instructions
1. Heat oven to 250 degrees F.
2. Bring butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup to a boil, stirring constantly.
3. Reduce heat and boil for 5 minutes; remove from heat.
4. Stir in boubon, vanilla, salt, and baking soda and mix.
5. Pour over popped corn and bacon.
6. Spread coated popcorn into (2) 11" X 9" X 2" baking pans.
7. Bake in a 250 degree oven for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.
8. Cool for 1 hour, then break up before storing.
Ah, the swoop....one of my favorite things in the world. It's been several years since I've had a good swoop. The swoop is so elusive and unpredictable. But when it happens, it is exciting and makes you glow. The swoop is not the Philadelphia Eagles mascot. The swoop is when you meet a fantastic guy who sweeps you off your feet so unexpectedly. He actually calls you and asks you out on dates. He sends you sweet texts messages. He is real and open and honest about himself. He opens the door for you and makes you soup. He makes you laugh. And he asks you out on dates, yes, actually asks you out. All you want to do is spend your time with this special person and share with them and learn more about them.
So, I've been swooped and that's what I've been up to for the last 2 months. One of the many great things about my swoop is that he likes to cook too. So, there has been a lot of cooking going on, some of it while drinking alcohol...but I haven't really been inspired to cook anything with alcohol in the actual recipe. At the end of this post is a rundown and links to some of the recipes I've worked with in the last month: S'Mores Pie, Chocolate Peanut Butter Cupcakes, and Chocolate Chipotle Flourless Cake....all amazing, just like my swoop.
In the midst of the all this swooping, I spent some time in Finland and Sweden over the holidays with my good friends Heather and Mikko. Christmas was spent at Mikko's family farm in the village of Suojoki, northwest of Helsinki. After Christmas we took an overnight boat (think carnival cruise ship) to Stockholm, Sweden to spend a few days in a city of lights, design, and H and M. We headed back to Helsinki for a New Year's Eve Russian dinner and then ringing in the new year at a multi-roomed club that played all the favorite american rock and dance hits plus some SoumiBod (Finnish Rock music). Oddly, the Finns don't count down to midnight. Celebration by Kool and the Gang blaring from the 2 rooms over was the only sign of the beginning of 2010. Although there wasn't an official countdown, Heather did bring some USA to the party with party hats, leis, and noise makers and we had our own countdown at 12:10 am.
I've also been taking viola lessons. As a joke, I offered to play Sunrise Sunset at my friend's wedding this coming October. I had played this piece at my sister's wedding over 20 years ago. I've had about 3 weeks of lessons, starting at the very basics - learning how to hold the bow and viola. This past lesson I've been actually reading music and playing simple songs. Next week I start Suzuki book 2. We haven't picked out the official wedding song yet.....hopefully by October I'll be up to something more wedding-like than Ode to Joy.
I hope to get back on track with posting more soused recipes on a regular basis. I do have a little bit of a backlog from tasty things I made over the Thanksgiving/holiday party season. For now, here are some non-alcohol but otherwise fantastic recipes, leaving you more alcohol to actually drink.
S'More Pie From Smitten Kitchen
Did you know that National Pie Day was January 23? I attended a Pie Celebration and brought this tasty S'More Pie. Unfortunately I do not have a photo of my own pie. Although really fun to make and a bit of an exciting challenge to make my own marshmallow, this was all about waiting. There are 3 main parts of the recipe 1) graham cracker crust, 2) chocolate cream filling, and 3) marshmallow topping, with a total of almost 5 hours of waiting time for things to cool or set. That's a lot of time for wine. Don't drink too much because you'll need some faculties for part 3. Making your own marshmallow is awesome, but you could also use mini-marshmallows instead. Second to making marshmallow, you get to "toast" your pie using the broiler setting of your stove. If your lucky, it will catch on fire and you'll rush to remove it from the oven and blow out the flame...bringing you that much closer your campfire memories
The frosting was delicious and will become a go-to recipe for frosting for future chocolate things. I'm still in search of a better chocolate cupcake recipe. This one turned out a little dry which might have been because I did doubled the recipe and mixed too much but most likely because I did not sift the dry ingredients. Thinking about this recipe and the S'More Pie recipe has me thinking about possibilities for S'More Cupcakes - YUM!
Chocolate Chipotle Flourless Cake
Adapted from Simply Recipes and YumSugar
If you are looking for an easy but totally impressive, melt-in-your mouth with a bit of spice chocolate fix, look no further. I combined two recipes for this, one for the flourless cake and one for a chocolate ganache icing. The cake puffed up while cooking and looked a little rough when it came out of the oven. The frosting, decorated with some of the remaining chocolate chips gave it a finished look. Ghirardellichocolate chips are flat and can be easily pushed into the frosting/cake. Props to Mr. Feeling for the great decorating idea.
Cake Ingredients
10 oz. of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
7 tablespoons of unsalted butter, cut into pieces
5 large eggs, room temperature
1 cup of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon of chipotle chili powder
Dash of cayenne pepper
Pinch of salt
Powdered sugar for dusting (optional) Cake Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line the bottom of a 9 ½ inch springform pan with a circle of parchment paper. Grease the sides and the parchment with butter or non-stick cooking spray.
2. Melt the chocolate and butter together over a double boiler or in the microwave, stirring occasionally until smooth.
3. Whisk together the eggs and the sugar in a large bowl, and then slowly, a bit at a time, whisk in the melted chocolate. Add the salt and spices and taste, adjusting the spices if needed.
4. Pour into the springform pan* and bake for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
5. Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Then carefully remove the sides of the springform pan. Cover the top with a wire rack and invert the cake and the rack together. Carefully remove the bottom of the pan and peel off the wax paper. Place a second wire rack over the bottom of the cake and invert it once again, so the top faces up. Allow to cool completely on the rack.
6. Dust with powdered sugar or cover with icing (below) and serve. *I only have a square springform pan as shown in my photo. I would have preferred to use a round one. You can also just use a round cake pan.
Chocolate Icing Ingredients
4 tablespoons butter
2 oz unsweetened chocolate
2 oz semisweet chocolate
3 tablespoons whipping cream
2/3 cup sifted confectioner's sugar (kosher, if desired)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Icing Instructions
1. Melt the butter and both of the chocolates in the top of a double boiler over simmering water, whisking constantly. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the cream. Add the confectioner's sugar and the vanilla and whisk until smooth.
2. Place the cake on a rack on top of a baking sheet to catch the drips, or just put your cake on your serving plate/tray and let the it catch all the drips. Pour the warm icing over the cake. Spread it with a long, thin cake spatula or knife, making sure the sides are iced too. If you want a dripping down the sides effect, let the icing cool and thicken a little bit and then push it over the edge to create the drips. Let the cake rest for two hours for the icing to set.
I admit it: I’m totally on the Julie-Julia bandwagon. I had heard about the Julie/Julia Project, one woman’s quest to cook all 536 recipes in Julia Child’s legendary cookbook Mastering the Art of French Cooking in 365 days, in passing years ago and read the book a few months ago. The whole concept is right up my ally, for a few reasons. First, it combines two things I love, cooking and writing. Second, it resulted in a not-so-secret fantasy of mine coming to life: a normal girl’s blog launching her second career as a writer.
Wipe that smirk off your face and stop laughing. I ask you - what’s so damn funny about that??
Also, as a side note, from someone who has read Julie/Julia, seen the movie and is working her way through Julia Child’s autobiography My Life In France, they are all worth a read/view if you love to cook. Julia/Julia, the book, goes into great detail about the food - from the quest to find marrow bone to the trial/error/error/trial of making the perfect an edible crepe to more information than I ever wanted to know about aspics, it’s all there. The movie goes into much greater detail about the life story of Julia Child, which Julie Powell's book only touches on and is inspiring to anyone who would like to believe her life’s course is not set in concrete by age 30. My Life in France, of course, goes into even greater detail. None of the three are particularly drama-ridden or fast-paced, but I loved them all. You may or may not.
For these reasons and because on Christmas morning I unwrapped my own copy of MTAFC, for my second spot on the Soused Chef, I have decided to step it up a bit, moving on from nuked alcohol-laced cheese to one of Julia Child’s signature recipes, Boeuf a la Bourguignonne - Beef Stew in Red Wine, with Bacon, Onions and Mushrooms.
Some observations I made along the way:
1. First off, I know one of the points of this blog is to post the recipes, but for this one, I highly recommend just picking up a copy of MTAFC if you want to try it. (Available on Amazon for as little as $20.00.) Simply put, there is more to Boeuf a la Bourguignonne than just the recipe.
2. If I were attempting to cook my way through the entire book, attacking BB would’ve enabled me to cross off not one but three recipes, as during the course of the recipe one must also cross-reference and prepare Oignons Glaces a Brun (Brown-Braised Onions) as well as Champignons Sautes au Beurre (Sauteed Mushrooms).
3. This cookbook gives painstaking detail as to not only what you should or should not be doing, but the why behind it. In My Life in France Julia describes her style as one of “culinary exactness” with a “scientific approach”, and the book relays example after example of recipes she went round and round and round perfecting. Much of this painstaking work I will never benefit from, as seen in Exhibit A:
“Through trial and error, for instance, I deduced exactly how much gelatin must go into exactly how much liquid per exactly how much mayonnaise so one can make pretty mayo curlicues on a fish dish.”
But as one who is a self-admitted lover of detail and process, I can appreciate the effort.
One side effect of all this exactness, though, is an almost paralyzing intimidation, the likes of which I have never faced in the kitchen. Most cookbooks do not list the negative consequences of not following the recipe to a T; at times, Julia does:
“Successfully sauteed mushrooms are lightly browned and exude none of their juice while they are being cooked; to achieve this the mushrooms must be dry, the butter very hot, and the mushrooms must not be crowded in the pan. If you saute too many at once they steam rather than fry; their juices escape and they do not brown.”
The implied, unwritten next sentence being, “and you will forever be a miserable failure, whose biggest culinary feats will be undercooked Raman Noodles and anything done on a George Forman Grill.”
Even when a consequence is not spelled out, the premise under which you wind up cooking is that Julia specifies a certain amount or parameter because she’s tried it every other way with inferior results. That being said, imagine my horror when after spending an afternoon crawling all over Charm City looking for a “9 to 10 inch fireproof casserole, 3 inches deep”, I came home only to unpack a dish that upon measurement ended up being eight inches across and four inches deep. In a panic, I placed a call to my parents’ house, where one cook and several individuals with advanced degrees in mathematics were congregated. My mom passed the phone to my sister, to whom I shrieked, “I don’t want to talk to Half-Assed Cook Laurie, I want to talk to Math Genius Laurie - will this casserole dish be big enough??”
Together, we pieced together our learnings from 7th grade algebra:
Still, I proceeded very uneasily.
4. This recipe takes time. I cannot fathom why any sane person would attempt to cook and serve BB on a weeknight. I chose to whip through it on a Saturday afternoon to serve for Sunday dinner, as the recipe states it can be prepared a day in advance, subtly hinting it may even be better that way. I started cooking at 3PM, knowing full well I had dinner plans that evening. Two pieces of serendipity saved me from winding up in the dog house that evening: first, the beef cooked in less time than stated (see below). Second, my dinner companion for that night is a champion who can roll with the punches, not batting an eyelash when I opened the door with crazed look on my face, a spatula in my hand and sweatpants on my bum and acquiescing when I requested we grab a quick drink at a bar on the corner, so I could pop home and throw the cooled stew in the fridge before heading across town to dinner. Well played, sir, well played.
5. The recipe states, “Regulate heat so liquid simmers very slowly for 2.5 - 3 hours. The meat is done when a fork pierces it easily.” Thankfully, I set the kitchen timer for 2 hours, for when the buzzer sounded, I discovered a completely cooked stew, though thankfully, not overcooked. I wondered if it was because the casserole dish I used was cast iron, and this puzzled me tremendously to the point of asking the chef at the restaurant to stop by our table so I could ask (another piece my date took in stride). He thought it much more likely that my oven is not calibrated, something I will need to investigate. Bottom line, check in regularly with yo beef. Saying my life flashed before my eyes is a dramatic understatement of how I felt at the two hour mark.
6. Boeuf Bourguignonne is friggen off the hook good. Right out of the pot, served for dinner the next day (better), and lunch the day after (even better yet). Humina, humina, humina.....
7. This whole kitchen color thing is getting a tad out of hand.
To quote the great Carl Weathers, “Now wait a minute. This is just purely a social call. You know, just two adults getting a stew on, man.”
Getting my stew on,
khop
PS: Some additional pictures from along the way....
My friend Missy and I had an abundance of frozen sausage from the summer farm share. We decided to go Iron Chef and create our holiday party around this secret ingredient. And because it's fun to be silly and immature when you are an adult, we decided that all non-sausage items had to be ball shape. Yes, my parents would disapprove. Hopefully they won't read this post. Just as they feared, here is proof that I was corrupted by our high school basketball t-shirts. I was in high school in the early nineties - you know when those "Big Johnson" and "Co-Ed Naked" t-shirts were popular. (Perhaps the Big Johnson T-shirts were only a hick, backwoods Maine popularity?) So along the same lines, one of our team moms thought printing "Lady Cougars Know How To Handle Balls" on t-shirts was appropriate for 16 to 18 year old girls to wear. Thus began my downfall into immaturity and inappropriateness.
I took a cantaloupe, a melon, and a papaya and used a melon baller to create fruit balls for my salad. Unfortunately the snow put a damper on the party and not too many people were able to part take in Tipsy Melonballs. I find the original recipe (below) a little ridiculous - why would one actually measure out fruit for a fruit salad? I think it's best to get 1 to 2 of each fruit you like and then cut it up and throw it in the bowl - don't worry about measuring, that is crazy! I used raspberry preserves for the sauce because that is what I had. It tasted great, but it turned the sauce a brownish color which was a little off putting. I also think you can cut back (or exclude) the confectioners' sugar, especially if your fruit is ripe. Now that sounds like the beginning of a good t-shirt.....
Ingredients
3 Tablespoons lime juice
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
3 Tablespoons Grand Marnier liqueur
2 Tablespoons apricot jam (I used raspberry preserves)
Fruit of your Choice, such as
1 cup mandarin orange sections, drained if canned
1 cup seedless grapes
1 cup hulled strawberries, cut in half
1 cup blueberries
1 mango, peeled and diced into 1-inch chunks
1 cup peeled diced apple
1 cup peeled diced pears
1 cup miniature marshmallows, optional
Directions
Place lime juice, sugar, Grand Marnier, and jam in a small bowl. Whisk until combined. Set aside.
Place your fruit (and marshmellow) into a large bowl. Drizzle on the Grand Marnier dressing and gently toss to coat all of the fruit.
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Check out these post ballin' photos. I love these two colors together and I wish I was a little more artistic and had a better camera to create a cooler photo. The texture, shadows and shininess in the remaining fruit was a great contrast.
For those of you who are looking for some healthy eating, this one's for you. Salmon is high in omega-3 fatty acids, the good kind of fat. And if you are calorie counting, here are the nutrition facts: 315 calories (44 percent from fat ), 15 grams fat (2 grams sat. fat ), 8 grams carbohydrates, 35 grams protein, 360 mg sodium, 96 mg cholesterol, 0 grams fiber .
I've made salmon this way a few times and it always turns out well. The flavors are smokey and sweet. I recommend using individual fillets as the recipe suggests (instead of a whole piece of fish as shown in my photos below). Using smaller fillets allows for the glaze to coat the side of each fillet serving, ultimately giving you more flavor with every bite. Fillets will also cook faster than a whole piece of fish.
Ingredients
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons maple syrup
2 tablespoons bourbon
4 (about 6 ounces each) salmon fillets with skin on
Salt to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Rinse the fillets under cold water and pat dry.
In a small bowl combine the oil, Dijon, maple syrup and bourbon. Set aside half the glaze.
Place the salmon fillets in a shallow dish and brush with half the glaze. Refrigerate for 30 minutes and up to 3 hours before broiling.
Preheat the broiler to low. Coat a broiler pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place the salmon fillets on the pan, skin side down. Season with salt and pepper. Broil for about 8 minutes. Brush with the reserved glaze and continue broiling, another 4-5 minutes* depending on the thickness, until the salmon is just cooked through. Remove the salmon by sliding a spatula between the flesh and skin, leaving the skin on the broiler pan.
* I had to broil about 3 to 4 minutes longer when using this larger piece of fish.
Deck the halls with balls of rum, fa la la la laaa, la la la laaaa. It's the time of year for parties and sharing of favorite treats. These rum balls are easy to make and will be a hit at any party. I have found that anything that contains alcohol is a hit at a party.
This recipe brings up two kitchen questions:
1) How do I crush things in the kitchen? You'll need crushed Nilla wafers and pecans for these rum balls.
You could use a food processor, or a blender, or a nut chopper or, here is a combo nut and spice grinder. Or you could use this recipe as an excuse to buy the Slap Chop and you can finally stop having a boring life.
(Those of you with weak stomachs, please skip this paragraph)
I highly recommend avoiding the KitchenAid Immersible Blender for crushing things. I don't know why I thought this was a good idea when I first tried to use it to chop up pecans - but I ended up in the emergency room needing a few stitches. Some of you out there are probably bright enough to avoid using your fingers to clean pecans from the blades while the blender is still plugged in. I blame this accident on being an immersion blender novice and on the early time of day - most of you know that 10am or earlier is not my best time of day. All in all, it was quite an embarrassing attempt at expressing myself for a Valentine's gift one year. I'm now quite meticulous about unplugging the blender unless I'm in the immediate act of blending. Thank you for taking me to the ER that day Emily!
Since my mini food processor died and my dog ate the rubber ring for the blender, I chose to kick it old school and used a rolling pin and a zip-lock bag. This method requires a little more brawn but is not as expensive as the other options.
2) Do I really need a double boiler (or insert other random kitchen tool)?
This recipe advises to melt the chocolate in a double boiler. A double boiler helps to melt chocolate slowly by heating the bottom of the inset pan with hot water. Much better than finding yourself with burnt chocolate - a disappointment to all since it's not edible in any salvageable way. Many pots and pan sets contain a double-boiler, but some require you to buy an extra pot to inset into a bigger pot. Some sets don't even offer this feature. So, the question is "Do I need this?" Well, if you work with chocolate and sauces, then yes it's probably a good thing to get your hands on. But I'm not sure if I would run out and get one. Instead, I would check out Goodwill, yardsales, Craigslist, or maybe rummage through married friends' basements looking for those wedding gifts they never use. You can take this same approach for other kitchen tools - microplanes, crockpots, ice cream makers, etc. Once you know that you will use them a lot, you can then upgrade and spend some dollars on a better model. My dad actually found my double boiler for me at Goodwill in West Lafayette when I was in college. At first I was skeptical and denied that I needed such a thing "Where am I going to put it?" Yet, it has come in useful, and is another situation where my dad can claim he knows best. It's a little on the large side and made of some aluminum mix making a potholder sometimes necessary, but I haven't had a need to upgrade yet.
Rum Balls
Ingredients
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons corn syrup
1/3 cup rum - spiced or flavored, I used orange*
2 1/2 cups finely crushed vanilla wafers (about 3/4 of a 12 ounce box)
1 cup finely crushed pecans
Instructions
Crush up vanilla wafers and pecans and mix in a bowl. Melt chocolate chips in a pot over boiling water (i.e. in a double boiler). Remove from heat and stir in sugar and corn syrup. Add rum and mix until well blended. Add vanilla wafer and pecans to chocolate mixture. Put in the fridge for a while to harden, about 10 to 15 minutes. Roll into balls, then roll balls in sugar or more crushed pecans.** Sometimes, I even sprinkle more rum over balls for good measure.
*If you only have white rum available, you can use this and experiment with your own flavorings -add vanilla or almond extract (probably about 1 to 2 teaspoons), or add a teaspoon cinnamon to spice it up.
**I think it's really difficult to make the pecans stick. Rolling them is sugar is by far the easier technique, and you can never go wrong with more sugar in anything :)
My current business trip to Vegas has been somewhat of a bomb, but not the good kind that the Gap Band is singing about. I've been here less than 24 hours and have suffered the following:
1) The lobby of the hotel smelled like one of those taxi cabs that never throws away old air fresheners - the driver just hangs one after another making a cardboard bouquet hanging from the rear view mirror
2) There were only smoking optional rooms left when I checked in. The term "smoking optional" made me think - "eh, maybe it won't be that bad." I was very very very wrong. The room was disgusting, I think they pumped smoke into the room as one of the amenities. The ceiling was cover in yellow stains. not all over yellow in color, but splotches of yellow, greasy cigarette remnants. On the bright side, the hotel let me change to a non-smoking rooms the next morning. Unfortunately the damage had been done, and all my clothes and luggage smelled. Yeah, they should not be able to false advertise as smoking optional. Bah, nothing is real in Vegas.
3) There is no mini-bar in my room. Normally this isn't a big deal, but after a 5 hour plane ride I really wanted to head straight to my room have a cold drink...maybe a refreshing gingerale. I did not want wander the Habitrail of the casino floor looking for a bar or an overpriced convenience shop. I wanted to overpay from the convenience of my room.
4) I woke up groggy with bloodshot nicotine stained eyes and NEEDED coffee. There is no coffeemaker in my room. Now this is a BIG DEAL.
5) There were no lanyards left when I got to the registration booth. I had to clip my name badge to my collar all cockeyed. How was any high rolling gambler going to be able to flirt with me by name? The free conference tote bag that I picked up had the logo printed upside down.
6) The one block to the convention center was more like 5 blocks weaving in and out of people offering things I wasn't interested in. Again, not a big deal, until I had to walk back in the rain this afternoon, no umbrella.
7) and finally, I'm back in my hotel and change into my comfy clothes and realize that the pant hem on my new suit pants has begun to unravel.
I'm not exaggerating when I say that I was near tears after 2 minutes in my smokey room. But all in all, my mood is still pretty good considering all the bad things that have happened....but I realize that I'm just not feeling Las Vegas right now. I'd rather be home making cupcakes. Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes to be specific.
These cupcakes contain three kinds of alcohol and are the bomb, for real. The cake part of the cupcake is made with stoudt. A center piece is of cupcake is hollowed out, removed, and replaced with whiskey chocolate ganache. The frosting top is made with Irish Cream. My friend Emily directed me to this recipe and gave a fist pump when I told her I would need her help to make them for Thanksgiving festivities. I shared them at a Thanksgiving Eve party and already have a request for a repeat appearance.
Some thoughts about this recipe:
I highly recommend investing in tools to decorate cupcakes. It's one of the reason why making cupcakes get me all excited. This pastry bag kit provides several decorating tips and disposable plastic pastry bags. I'm still learning different techniques about how to use the pastry bag. Emily taught me that you should fold over the top of the bag when you are trying to fill it as she demonstrates in this photo. Although I'll never complain about having to lick frosting off my fingers, this technique makes things a little neater and sanitary. If the frosting or ganache warms up from handling the bag, stick the bag in the refrigerator to cool it down. The Wilton website has some good pastry bag instructions and decorating tips. But, it's just as easy to jump head first into the frosting (wouldn't that be heavenly?) and just figure it out as you go.
I'm more of a towering frosting kind of girl, but the frosting was delegated (and unsupervised) to Emily. This recipe makes a small amount of very sweet frosting. It was plenty to cover the cupcakes, so I'm grateful for her agreeing to frost the cupcakes so that I could change and get ready for the party. But, if you like to be more liberal with your frosting, you should double the recipe.
This recipe prompted me to buy another cupcake pan so I could make all 24 at once the next time I make cupcakes. Makes it easier to pace yourself and evenly distribute the batter. Since I plan on making oodles of more cupcakes in the future, this investment was worth it.
Makes 20 to 24 cupcakes Ingredients For the Guinness Chocolate Cupcakes
1 cup stout (such as Guinness or a chocolate stoudt)
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream
Ganache Filling
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 to 2 teaspoons Irish whiskey (optional)
Baileys Frosting (double recipe if you like frosting towers!)
3 to 4 cups confections sugar
1 stick (1/2 cup or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperatue
3 to 4 tablespoons Baileys Irish Creme (or milk, or heavy cream, or a combination thereof)
Special equipment: 1-inch round cookie cutter or an apple corer (or a sharp knife and a steady hand will work) and a piping bag (a plastic bag with the corner snipped off will also work)
Instructions Make the cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350°F. Line 24 cupcake cups with liners. Bring 1 cup stout and 1 cup butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 3/4 teaspoon salt in large bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend. Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine. Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Divide batter among cupcake liners, filling them 2/3 to 3/4 of the way. Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, rotating them once front to back if your oven bakes unevenly, about 17 minutes. Cool cupcakes on a rack completely.
Make the filling: Chop the chocolate and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until simmering and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for one minute and then stir until smooth. (If this has not sufficiently melted the chocolate, you can return it to a double-boiler to gently melt what remains. 20 seconds in the microwave, watching carefully, will also work.) Add the butter and whiskey (if you’re using it) and stir until combined.
Fill the cupcakes: Let the ganache cool until thick but still soft enough to be piped (the fridge will speed this along but you must stir it every 10 minutes). Meanwhile, hollow out the center of the cupcake. You can use a 1-inch round cookie cutter or an apple corer to cut the centers out of the cooled cupcakes. Or you can just use a knife. You want to go most of the way down the cupcake but not cut through the bottom — aim for 2/3 of the way. A slim spoon or grapefruit knife will help you get the center out. These center pieces are yummy, so taste away. Put the ganache into a piping bag with a wide tip and fill the holes in each cupcake to the top. If the ganache isn't cool enough, it will dribble out of the bottom of the pastry bag, making quite a mess, but a tasty mess! Be sure the ganache has cooled enough to avoid a mess, especially if you have a dog that likes to help clean up.
Make the frosting: Whip the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, for several minutes. You want to get it very light and fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar, a few tablespoons at a time. Adding the powdered sugar slowly helps prevent the frosting from being grainy.
When the frosting looks thick enough to spread, drizzle in the Baileys (or milk) and whip it until combined. If this has made the frosting too thin, add in another spoonful or two of powdered sugar and beat. Ice and decorate the cupcakes. You can use a star tip and dot the cupcake with frosting stars. To add your own touch - sprinkled the cupcakes with various colors of sanding sugar or shaved dark and white chocolates would look and taste fantastic as well.
Do ahead: You can bake the cupcakes a week or two in advance and store them, well wrapped, in the freezer. You can also fill them before you freeze them. They also keep filled — or filled and frosted — in the fridge for a day. (Longer, they will start to get stale.)
3-5 strips bacon
