Candied Carrots

I saw Tyler Florence make this on TV recently and knew I really wanted to try it. I love carrots...especially when they have a nice and spicy sweet glaze on them!

My husband and I totally loved this. It's a great vegetable side dish and would work well with many different kinds of food. His comment was, "The only thing I don't like about these is that you haven't been making them for years." So I guess he liked them!

The only thing I would do different next time is reduce the cumin by just a bit. I definitely liked it in there, I just wish it were more subtle. But overall, this recipe is most certainly a keeper!

Ingredients
Source: Tyler Florence

1 bunch young carrots, with tops
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 orange, halved (I didn't have an orange so I used about an 1/8 - 1/4 cup of orange juice) 1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cumin

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut off all but 1-inch of the carrot tops, leaving a little green. Put the carrots in a large shallow pan, add the oil, and season with salt and pepper. Turn to coat the carrots. Stick them in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the carrots are fork-tender.

In the meantime, melt the butter in a skillet over medium-low heat. Swirl the pan around and cook until the butter begins to become brown and nutty. Squeeze in the juice from the orange halves, add the brown sugar and cumin, and continue to cook for 2 minutes or until syrupy.

Remove the carrots from the oven and arrange them on a platter. Drizzle the orange brown butter over the carrots and serve.

Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding

I chose to make this dish for Christmas dinner this year. My in laws and brother in law came over, and I was really brainstorming for a meal that would be impressive without being too time consuming so I wouldn't have to be a slave to the kitchen. I found this in a cookbook and thought it would be perfect and it truly was.

The beef was incredible...tender, flavorful and delicious. The Yorkshire pudding came out great...perfect texture and flavor and it rose nice and high in the oven like a big popover which made for a lovely presentation.

The introduction to this recipe in my cookbook truly says it best... "This is the perfect recipe for the first holiday feast you host as a married couple. It's impressive, but it's also extremely easy to prepare..."

This was definitely a winner in my book and truly impressed my husband and guests.

(Oh and I apologize for the quality of the photos...people were ready to eat!)

Ingredients
Source: Williams-Sonoma Bride & Groom Cookbook, page 98

For the roast beef:
5 lb beef rip or sirloin tip roast (I used a 6 lb. rib roast, bone in)
2 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
freshly ground pepper

For the Yorkshire pudding:
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups milk
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp. flour
pinch of kosher salt

Directions
One day before serving, season the roast with the salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Let the roast sit at room temperature to temper for 1-2 hours before roasting. This will help the meat cook more evenly.

To roast the beef, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place beef in a large roasting pan and place in oven (I placed my beef on a wire rack in the roasting pan so I'd have better access to the pan juices while basting). Roast for 15 minutes and then lower the heat to 375 degrees. Continue roasting, basting the meat frequently with the pan juices, until an instant read thermometer inserted into the center of the roast away from the bone registers 135 degrees for medium rare (we left it in until it reached about 145 degrees as all of our guests preferred their meat to be medium), about 1 1/4 hours (for a 5lb roast). Also remember that the temperature of the meat will continue to rise outside of the oven. If using a boneless roast, start checking temperature a little earlier. When the roast reaches the desired temperature, transfer it to a carving board and let rest, loosely covered with foil, for 30 minutes. This allows time for the juices to distribute evenly throughout the meat and makes carving easier. Reserve the roasting pan with the drippings and keep the oven on. While the roast rests, make the Yorkshire pudding.

To make the Yorkshire pudding, place a 9 inch cast iron frying pan or Pyrex pie dish (I used the pie dish) in the oven to preheat. Meanwhile in a bowl, whisk the eggs and milk together until well blended. Add the flour a little at a time and continue to whisk constantly until smooth. The batter should have the consistency of heavy cream. Add the salt. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer 2 tbsp of beef fat from the roasting pan into the frying pan. To do this, tilt the roasting pan and spoon off the clear fat from the brown drippings. Pour the batter into the pan with the fat and place the pan in the oven (keeping the oven temperature at 375 degrees). Bake until the pudding is puffy and crisp, about 25 minutes. Cut the pudding into wedges and serve at once with slices of roast beef.

Haricots Verts with Herb Butter

Well it's hard for me to believe that Christmas has come and gone for another year. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday that was filled with family, friends and of course, really good food!

I actually hosted two Christmas dinners this year (one for my parents and one for my in-laws), so in the next few days I will be posting some of the recipes I made.

I for one am VERY happy to not be posting a sweet recipe today. I have really found a love of baking but boy am I getting sick of Christmas Cookies, candies, bars, etc....so I'm glad to say that this recipe for haricots verts was simply wonderful. I trimmed and cleaned the green beans two days before serving, and kept them in a zip top bag with a damp paper towel. I also made the herb butter two days before as well. This worked perfectly, as the beans were fresh and crisp when I served them and the butter of course kept well in the fridge.

Not only did this side dish taste great, it was a lovely accompaniment to my Beef Wellington and really dressed up the plate. This is one that I will most certainly make again.

Ingredients
Source: Epicurious - Orignially from Gourmet, November 2007

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
3 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 teaspoons finely chopped tarragon
1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 lb haricots verts or other green beans, trimmed

Directions

Stir together all ingredients except haricots verts with 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl until combined well.

Cook beans in a large pot of boiling salted water (1 tablespoon salt for 6 quarts water), uncovered, until crisp-tender, about 6 minutes, then drain. Toss with herb butter.

Notes: Herb butter can be made ahead and chilled, covered, 3 days or frozen, rolled into a cylinder in plastic wrap and kept in a sealed bag, 1 week. Haricots verts can be trimmed 1 day ahead and chilled in a sealed bag lined with paper towel (I did this two days ahead with no problems).

Chocolate Covered Snow Peaks

When my friend Julie sent me this recipe I was really excited! I love working with meringue...I think it's so fun. These were a great addition to my cookie tray. They were light and airy in contrast to most of the other decadent treats I've made this year. They pair perfectly with a hot cup of tea and are just a great little addition to a cookie tray.
Ingredients
Source: Tyler Florence

4 large egg whites at room temperature
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons superfine granulated sugar (I used regular granulated...not superfine. This worked fine)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I used clear)
1 1/2 cups dark chocolate chips
Directions

Preheat oven to 225 degrees F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat egg whites on low-medium speed with the whisk attachment until the whites become foamy. Add the cream of tartar and turn speed up to medium, beating until just fluffy. Add the sugar gradually, so it incorporates into the whites slowly without collapsing them. Once all the sugar has been added, add the vanilla and increase the speed to high, whisking until the meringue is firm and glossy, about 5 to 7 minutes.

Place meringue mixture into a piping bag with a medium-sized nozzle attached (I used a large star tip...I'm quite sure it was #32) Pipe 24 bite-sized "kiss"-shaped meringues onto the trays and place in the oven. Bake for 1 hour undisturbed then turn off heat and leave in the oven overnight to really dry out.

Melt chocolate over a double-boiler or in the microwave on medium power for 30 seconds. Holding each meringue by the peak dip the bases in chocolate so the bottom half of the meringue is coated. Let any excess chocolate drop off before placing on a cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Allow to set at room temperature - do not put in the fridge. Once set, store in an airtight container.

Eggnog Truffles

Last year I saw this recipe on Good Things Catered and wanted to try it as soon as it was posted. But I had already made my cookie trays and decided to put it on hold until next year. Well next year is here and I was so excited to try these. I absolutely love eggnog and truffles so how could I pass these up?

These are absolutely fabulous truffles. I was worried that the eggnog flavor wouldn't be strong enough but it totally was. It's the first flavor you taste when biting into it. And trust me, I know. I've bitten into (more than) a few of these since I made them!

These are the perfect truffles for your Holiday cookie tray as they bring all the delicious and reminiscent flavors of Christmas into a sweet little candy that no one can resist.

Ingredients
Source: Good Things Catered

14 oz. white candy melts (I used vanilla flavored)
1/3 c. eggnog (must be the full fat kind)
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
splash good bourbon (I omitted)
6 oz. dark chocolate

Directions
-In large (shallow and wide) bowl over pan of boiling water over medium low heat, combine white chocolate, eggnog, cinnamon and nutmeg.
-Stir until completely melted and smooth.
-Remove from heat, add bourbon, stir well to incorporate and place bowl in the fridge overnight (or until completely firmed, this will depend on temperature of fridge and deepness of bowl you placed mixture in)
-Remove bowl from fridge and roll tsp of truffle filling into balls.
-Place formed balls onto wax paper lined baking sheet and place in freezer.
-Meanwhile, melt dark chocolate, stirring until smooth.
-Remove truffles from freezer, roll to make sure evenness then dip into chocolate and sprinkle with decoration if using.
-Place finished truffle back onto wax paper lined baking tray and repeat with remaining truffles.
-Let stand for 1 hour or until completely dry and serve or package in airtight container for up to a week.

Yields about 50 truffles

Peppermint Bark

So I know there has been an influx of peppermint bark recipes these past few weeks. It seems like every food blog I look at has a recipe for peppermint bark. But alas, I made this anyways and wanted to share the recipe I used with you all.

To be honest, I haven't even tasted this. I don't like peppermint desserts and candies at all. But I know people do and I LOVE the pretty color it brings to the cookie tray. Plus, this could not be an easier recipe. From start to finish I had this done in less then 10 minutes which is very nice around the Holidays!
Ingredients
Source: McCormick

1 package (12 ounces) white chocolate chips
1 teaspoon McCormick® Pure Peppermint Extract (optional)
8 to 10 drops McCormick® Red Food Color or 8 to 10 drops McCormick® Green Food Color
1/2 cup crushed peppermint candies or candy canes
Directions
1. Microwave chocolate chips in large microwavable bowl on HIGH for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes or until almost melted, stirring after 1 minute. Stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in peppermint extract, if desired. (I melted the chocolate over a double boiler. I used 1/2 tsp. peppermint extract and it made the chocolate seize up a bit...although I knew it would do this before I even tried. I don't think it affected the quality of the chocolate, just keep this in mind.)

2. Spread on large foil-lined baking sheet to 1/4-inch thickness. Add food color, drop by drop, over mixture. Using a wooden skewer, swirl color through chocolate. Sprinkle with crushed candies, pressing lightly into chocolate with spatula.

3. Refrigerate about 10 minutes or until firm. Break into irregular pieces to serve. Store in covered container at cool room temperature or in refrigerator up to 5 days.

Chocolate Covered Cherries

When my friend Julie sent me the link to this recipe...I was admittedly hesitant. I have never liked chocolate covered cherries but then again I've never had a homemade one either. Needless to say, I was intrigued by the recipe and decided to try it because I know many people do like these little treats for the holidays.

I am SO glad I tried it! These are really fantastic. After you let them sit for a week or so the filling gets all mushy and delicious. That combined with the dark chocolate shell just makes for a fabulous little treat.

I actually made this recipe two ways. One with regular maraschino cherries out of the jar, and the other with maraschino cherries that I soaked in a cherry liqueur for the adults. I haven't tried the ones with alcohol yet since they are still soaking, but I know we will just love those too!

Ingredients
Adapted from: AllRecipes

60 maraschino cherries with stems (I used stemless)

3 tablespoons butter, softened

3 tablespoons corn syrup (I used about 4 tbsp...3 wasn't enough for me as the mixture was still very dry)

2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 lb. chocolate confectioners coating (I used dark chocolate candy melts)

Directions

Drain cherries and set on paper towels to dry thoroughly.

In a medium bowl, combine butter and corn syrup until smooth. Stir in confectioners' sugar and knead to form a dough. Chill to stiffen if necessary. Wrap each cherry in about 1 teaspoon of dough. Chill until firm.

Melt confectioners' coating in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Dip each cherry in by its stem, and place on waxed paper lined sheets. Chill until completely set. Store in an airtight container in a cool place. Best after 1 or 2 weeks.