by jackie | Nov 24, 2024 | Books, Cheese, DIY, Food, Holiday DIY, Holidays, Homemade Liquor
Recently, a chat with a friend about holiday spreads set me off pondering a thing I have casually noticed, but never really pondered. My friend used the phrase “I’m known for”.
I have no idea what I am “known for” with regard to specific dishes though you all may feel differently. I honestly have never planned a menu with my signature in mind, and it reminded me sharply of my own family holiday traditions.
I recognized early that there were things “owned” by my mom or her sisters, and those were items that I unconsciously but deliberately did not include on my own holiday table. And honestly, now that my Mom and her sisters are gone, there are massive tradition gaps that are a bit confusing. Is it more respectful to try to recreate? Or is it better to simply feel the absence of the dish and reminisce the contributions and gifts of the missed person? Still working my way through that one, what do you think?
I also noticed that my Mom was not one to avoid someone else’s signature thing, and her cookie tray, while specific and recognizable as hers, included some items that were really signature to one or the other of her sisters.
For my own table, I am guided by my interests, my ethics, and things I want to try. Ingredients I have learned about and am exploring, places I have visited and been inspired by, and generally I am more about process than final product. Things that excited me, that I want to share. I am also motivated to make the spread non-performative, and one that allows me to be a guest at my own party as much as possible.
Densely packed dates, walnuts, apricots, and cherries barely held together with buckwheat flour and very little sugar.
A thing I am very interested in is the more European mindset about pastries and baked goods. Removed from the insanity of mental guilt, cravings, poor nutrition and addictive behaviors inspired by American marketing and advertising, desserts here have become so emotionally complicated. But guess what? They are food. Nutritious food when made with nutritious ingredients.
By swapping whole, ancient, and non-wheat flours & nuts for our nutritionally stripped commodity ingredients, desserts can be returned to their rightful, satiating, and sane place in our everyday diet. And that is precisely the focus of Alice Medrich’s beautiful book, “Flavor Flours”.
I started with buckwheat, because we have a local mill selling their own flour at our local feed store and meat market and it easily presented itself. I did not know yet that buckwheat was not a true grain, but is in fact related to sorrel and rhubarb. Yet, the seeds can be cooked like a grain, and made into flour, and are considered a pseudo-grain. It can have a robust, earthy flavor, and the treatment of the flour matters more than we are used to, yielding varying textures.
To my surprise, both buckwheat recipes I tried from the book ended up disappointing with their blandness. Perhaps my expectations were set too high by lovely descriptives like flowery, rose, and honey and praise for the magical quality added by the buckwheat flour. Which was not untrue, but still not as magical as I expected.
Not ready to give up just yet. I recalled a thing that maybe I was once known for on my holiday baking trays. I used to make these fancy little miniature almond-orange cakes that were finished off with a glaze that was memorable. That glaze made the cakes age so well, and took on a bit of a crystalline quality that I just loved.
And that glaze idea was exactly the thing that makes this date nut cake with cherries and buckwheat a signature thing. But I’m gonna tell you right off, this cake is poorly named. I would not use the word cake, or bread to describe it. It is dense, packed with fruit and nuts, and very little sugar. The batter is just enough to bind the fruit & nut mix into a sliceable loaf. A little goes a long way, carved super thin, the slices look beautiful on a charcuterie board, and pair well with butter, cream cheese, and stronger cheeses – I found the stilton in huntsman to be extra nice.
For the finishing glaze, most liquors you have on hand should be fine excepting things like gin. Brandy always works, Contreau, whiskey, schnapps… I happened to have been gifted a bottle of cherry liquor brought by a friend from Lisbon, and that extra fruitiness was subtle perfection. Homebrew liquor could be very nice.
About the book, “Flavor Flours.” It. Is. LOVELY. GORGEOUS. EQUISITE even.
The Carnegie Library has three available copies, and Alice Medrich has also expanded this topic into another separate book, Flavor Flours Gluten Free. But, this is not the book I would recommend if you are just beginning a journey away from processed foods and looking for practical knowledge to apply to your everyday meals. This is all about digging deeper into non-commodity baked goods.
- 1/2 + 2TBS cup buckwheat flour 70 grams
- 1/8 tsp baking soda
- 1/8 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt I use Morton's kosher
- 3 Tbs firmly packed brown sugar 35 grams
- 1 cup dates pitted and cut into quarters 175 grams
- 1/4 cup lightly packed dried apricot halves or dried pluots cut in half 40 grams
- 1/4 cup dried tart or Bing cherries 40 grams
- 1-3/4 cup walnut pieces 175 grams
- 2 eggs large
- 1-1/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 3 TBS liquor Brandy, whiskey, schnapps, etc
- 2 tsp water
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 TBS butter calls for unsalted, but salted is fine
8x4 (four cup) loaf pan
parchament paper
Line an 8 x 4-inch loaf pan, bottom and all four sides wth parchament paper
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 300°F
In a large bowl, whisk the flour with the baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add brown sugar, dates, apricots, cherries and walnuts, and mix thoroughly with your fingers, separating any sticky fruit pieces. Set aside
Whisk the eggs ad vanilla in a medium bowl until lightened in color. Scrape the misture into the fruit & nut mixtureand mix gently with a spatula until all the pieces are coated with batter. Scrape into the prepared pan
To make the glaze, in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, combine the Grand Marnier, water, granulated sugar and butter and heat until the butter melts, about 1 1⁄2 minutes. Bring to a boil and cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and let cool for 1 minute.
Bake for 60 - 80 minutes, until the top feels firm and crusted. Brush the warm cakes with the glaze; allow to cool in the pan on a rack. Let cool completely before serving.
Using the parchament paper, lift the loaf from the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Use a sharp knife to cut very thin slices. This cake can be stored, airtight for at least 1 week at room temperature, longer in the refrigerator. I wrap in waxed paper. Makes an excellent gift.
by jackie | Sep 29, 2024 | Care of the Soul, Dessert, DIY, Eating Local, Food, Foraging, Gratitude, Lard, Local Farmers, Pie, Uncategorized
Hand pie, fry pie, stack pie, fruit pie, cream pie, depression pie…. is there anything more humble yet sublime than homemade pie?
There is nothing that better represents how, with a little ingenuity and elbow grease, pleasure and love can come from the kitchen even when times are tough. Today, as we near October, Pennsylvania is thick into apple season, and my wild trees have been giving up their fruit. This year was a particularly good one for all the fruits here, for which we are all grateful.
I used to get all cheffy and elaborate when making pies and preserves, but now that I have come to savor the difference between supermarket produce and the things I seek out from local farms and forests, I want to keep the focus on the particulars of the fruit, and keep the seasonings simple.
My wild apples are unlike those from the orchard, being a little different in texture and very intense in flavor. They are also as wild as can be, so have odd skin color and blemishes, which do not bother me at all. For baking, I like a mix of varieties – which always makes a pie more interesting. I like a crisp and tart variety mixed with a good Golden delicious or two. Delicious apples have gotten a bad rap after years of being the apple favorite of elementary schools, hospitals, and convenience stores, which is entirely unfair. A good Delicious apple has a juicy-sweet spiciness, and a texture that bakes up soft and tender. I was pretty delighted to discover a wild tree that has knobby, small, very seedy fruit with a Golden Delicious flavor, though they are kind of a pain to peel and woud take a ton to make a full pie.
I do pack my pie with lots of fruit and little else, and stick to crusts made from fats like butter, lard, or a combo. This is a very basic recipe, adapted from my Mom’s McCall’s Cook Book, in which I have discovered a surprising number of new-old ideas. It can be easily adapted to pretty much any fruit, adapting a little for straining the excess liquid when using juicier fruits – I find 1/2 cup of liquid is the perfect amount to form a softly gelled, not runny fruit filling.
Bonus: If you strain off excess fruit liquid, remember to make some fruit shrub using your remaining vinegar water from the pie crust.
So, here’s your next weekend plan – Hit your farmer’s market for apples & snacks, go home & bake yourself a pie, go for a tramp in the woods, come home, enjoy pie. Best of all, Sunday morning pie for breakfast is the best…
- 1 recipe Pastry for 2-crust pie I've included my recipe in this post, but If making dough keeps you from this simple pleasure, use store bought pre-rolled crust
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground clove
- 8 cups peeled and thinly sliced apples 10 - 12 medium apples
- 3 Tablespoons all purpose flour
- dash kosher salt
- 2 Tablespoons Butter
In a small bowl, combine sugar, cinnamon, clove, flour, and salt, mixing well.
Preheat oven to 375°F, arrange rack in the center of oven.
On a lightly floured surface, roll one of your pastry disks into an 11-inch circle. Line your pie pan and set aside.
Add your sugar mixture to your sliced apples in a large bowl, tossing lightly to combine well
Turn the apples and spice into the prepared pie crust, mounding highest in center. with a knife, cut small chunks of butter and dot evenly atop the apples
Roll out the remaining pastry disk into an 11-inch circle. Gently place on top of pie, trimming excess using a sharp knife so the top crust is very slightly larger than the ecge.
Gently roll top crust under the bottom crust, sealing the filling inside, and pressing gently with your fingertips. Crimp the edge to give a finished edge, either with your fingers or a fork. Gently slice slits in your top crust to allow steam to escape
Place the pie pan on a baking sheet to catch any leaking juices, and slide into preheated oven. Bake 45 - 50 minutes, until crust is golden but not too brown.
Remove to wire rack and allow to cool fully before cutting. Warm pie is delicious, but the juices will not have set and your pie will not slice well. Still good!
Serve with a thin slice of cheddar cheese, custard stirring cream, or ice cream.
- 2-1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 TBS granulated sugar
- 1 stick cold unsalted butter (salted is fine too) cut into 1/2-inch pieces (1 stick equals 1/4 pound)
- 1/2 cup rendered leaf lard, very cold/frozen cut into 1/2-inch pieces
- 1/2 cup very cold water
- 2 TBS cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup ice
Stir the flour, salt, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add the butter and lard piecesand coat with the four mixture. Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour mixture, working quickly until mostly pea-sized pieces of butter/lard remain. Be careful to not overland.
Combine the water, cider vinegar, and ice in a measuring cup. Sprinkle 2 TBS of the ice water misture over the flour mixture, then mix and cut it in with a bench scraper (or your hands). Add as needed additional water - this understanding is something you will gain with practice. Go slowly, sprinkling 1/4 - 1/2 tsp at a time, undil the ball of dough has enough moisture to come together into a ball, with some dry bits remaining.
Squeeze and pinch with your fingertips to bring all the dough together, adding small drops of the water mixture if necessary.
Cut the ball in half, shape into two flat disks, wrapping separately in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 1 hour, preferably overnight, to give the gluten strands in the flour time to relax, and make the crust roll out more easily.
Wrapped well, your dough can be refrigerated for 3 days, or frozen for 1 month.
If you need some guidance about rolling your dough, this is a very comprehensive video and photo series. Pie is a skill, but it is not rocket science and I have every confidence with a little persistence, pie will become a valuable tool in your weekly menu rotation for pies both celebratory and everyday, sweet and savory.
I make crust as one of my regular morning cooking projects, tucking crust into the freezer for a future day. Making pie is no big deal at all when you break down into two sessions the making of the crust and the making of the pie.
The fat quantities remaing the same for an all butter crust pie - simply use two sticks of butter in place of the butter & lard.
My wild, organic-as-can-be apples, ready for pie
by jackie | Mar 29, 2024 | Blog, Books, Care of the Soul, Change, DIY, Eating Local, Every Single Morsel, Grab-and-Go, Holidays, Pastured Eggs, Recipes
To be honest, I was very, very late to discover the joy that is pickled eggs. I worked in restaurants and bars and saw plenty of giant jars of rubbery, bouncy, sketchy ones, and was never tempted. And then I got chickens.
Adapt to the fluctuating abundance of raising your own eggs, and wow. What the supermarket has left out when it comes to categories, flavors and textures in order to focus on extended shelf life and easy transport is a real paradigm shift.
Homemade pickled eggs are perfect because they extend the storage life of good eggs, are delicious, quick, and easy. Good brine can be reused, so when the jar’s empty, you can replenish several times, just make sure the next batch is completely covered with brine.
This weekend odds are good that you’re going to find your fridge crowded with a bunch of hard boiled eggs, and there’s only so much egg salad any person can take. Pickled eggs give you a nutritionally perfect, protein-packed snack on the fly, especially when made wth truly pastured eggs. They make fast and fantastic sandwiches, toppings for salads and hashes, drop into broth, Deviled eggs are next level made wth pickled eggs, and, if you want to get ambitious, bake some into a meatloaf, or use them to make Scotch eggs.
There’s lots of recipes for brine flavors online too; I’m not a fan of the sweet/sour beet one, though it is popular. I prefer flavors like this, plus bonus for being simple and quick.
I found some fresh takes from this book on options for making full use of my CSA shares last summer, and highly recommend it. At the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, they have 6 copies, go get you one! Now is an excellent time for perusing the library for summer ideas.
- 1 dozen eggs Go for the good ones - preferably truly pastured
- 1-1/4 cup white-wine or apple-cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup Sriracha Hot Chili sauce adjust for taste
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 2 bay leaves
Put raw eggs into a pot large enough to accommodate them in one layer, and cover by at least 1-inch of water. Bring to a boil, turn off the heat, and simmer for 11 minutes. Immediately plunge the eggs into a basin of ice water. Crack the eggs gently, and allow them to rest in the water for about 5 minutes to loosen the shells, then peel*.
Pack the cooked, peeled eggs into a very clean sterilized wide mouth quart jar. You can press them in gently, but to jam too many and push too hard will cause the eggs to split.
Combine the vinegar, Sriracha, salt, and bay leaves in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Ladle the hot liquid over the eggs to completely cover, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Put a lid on the jar and allow to cool at room temp, then store in the refrigerator.
*Note: if using very fresh farm eggs, it can be a struggle to achieve perfectly peeled eggs. I prefer to use older eggs, and resting the carton on its side will help center the yolks before boiling.
by jackie | Nov 15, 2021 | Books, CSA Box, DIY, Eating Local, Every Single Morsel, Food, Pantry, Preserving the Harvest, Recipes, Things We Love
How great is it that locally raised mushrooms are a focus of local producers now, and they are easily found at farmer’s markets and as add-ons to CSA shares? Mushrooms are delicate though, and prone to mold, so a method to extend their usefulness helps make the most of your fungi.
I love this little appreciated, kind-of-plain book I picked up long ago, and many of my basic kitchen ways are based upon things I learned here. Sadly out of print, and probably often overlooked in favor of more visually beautiful photo books, but if you are truly wanting to learn some foundational kitchen skills and habits, I highly recommend this one. Available used online, for cheap, so it is a good one when the budget is tight.
In the Light Basics cookbook, Martha Rose Shulman’s recipe for pan-cooked mushrooms gives you dense little chunks of deep, earthy flavor, which works for pretty much all mushroom varieties.
I make this recipe as soon as I get my mushrooms, and save them in a jar to add later to salads, greens, accompany steaks, pizzas, omlettes, saucy meats, pasta. Really, what isn’t made instantly richer and fancier with some herby, garlicky, flavorful chunks of mushrooms cooked in booze?
King Trumpet and Nameko Mushrooms, fresh rosemary, garlic and thyme.
Personally, I can’t resist nicking them straight from the jar, so preserving them is rarely a problem, but if you find yourself with an abundant haul, this recipe is a good way to extend their life – simply put in a sterilized jar and top with olive oil. Make sure your shrooms are submerged – the flavored oil when the mushrooms are finished is a lovely ingredient in its own right, too.
Because the moisture has been released, and there is salt and olive oil, your mushrooms are intensified in flavor and much less vulnerable to mold.
- 1-1/2 pounds mushrooms
- 1/2 tsp salt or to your taste
- 1/2 cup dry white or red wine brandy, or vermouth
- 1-1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves or 3/4 tsp dried
- 1-1/2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary leaves or 3/4 tsp crumbled dried
- 1-1/2 TBS olive oil
- 2 - 4 large garlic cloves peeled and minced or pressed
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 3 TBS chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
Trim away the tough stemps of the mushrooms or remove the from portabellos, for regular mushrooms just cut the very ends of the stems off. Rinse briefly in cod water to remove any sand and shake or wipe dry with paper towels. Cut into thick slices, halves, or for sall shrooms, leave whole. If using a clumpy variety like oysters, tear in half or cut away the bottom of the stem and separate.
Heat skillet over medium-high heat, add the mushrooms and salt. Watch carefully, the mushrooms will soon begin to release liquid. Stir and cook until the liquid has evaporated, which can be anywhere from 5 - 15 minutes, depending on the moisture content and type of mushroom. Stir in the wine, thyme, and rosemary. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring, until the wine has evaporated, 5 - 10 minutes. Add the olive oil and garlic. Cook, stirring, until the garlic begins to color and the dish smells very fragrant, about 5 minutes.
Season with pepper, stir in the parsley, adjust salt if needed, serve.
by jackie | Sep 8, 2021 | DIY, Eating Local, Every Single Morsel, Food, Food Shopping, Freezer, Pantry, Things We Love, Uncategorized
I don’t have much time, or kitchen space for elaborate preserving projects anymore. So, I have to be really selective and spend my time making the one tomato-y thing that will be quick, flexible, but still remind me in the heart of January that the dark, frozen nights will again be soft and desk, with tomatoes, still warm from the garden. See, that connection to my own Pennsylvania summer is a real spirit lifter – one which canned tomatoes from the supermarket just cannot match.
Elimination thinking makes my decision super-easy; this uncooked tomato sauce, straight from the freezer tastes exactly like summer, is compact and efficient to store in my freezer, and quick and easy to use in lots of ways later.
Before beginning, I’d like to make this one plea: Resist the urge to chef this one up until you’ve made it once exactly as it is. Yes, it’s a VERY simple, plain recipe, but therein lies the charm. The simplicity allows the special summertime quality of the tomatoes to shine which is exactly why I love it so much. You can add herbs and spices when you use it later if you wish. Oh, and this sauce plain is beautiful with fresh mozzarella… and allows a bit of good olive oil to really shine.
Here’s a link to the more specific recipe. It makes four servings to be eaten right away but to preserve larger quantities for freezing, simply repeat as many times as you like ( I just figure out how many pounds of tomatoes I have and work it backwards), throw the milled batches together into one large colander, drain over a large bucket then freeze the concentrated sauce in single serving portions.
The split skins will peel right away – then toss into your food mill. I use a Roma and run the tomatoes through two or three times to extract every last drop… If you don’t have a food mill, just do your best to skin, seed and chop as finely as you can. The texture won’t be exactly the same, but don’t let that stop you – it’s still going to be awesome.
The tomatoes after processing. Add kosher salt and ladle into your cheesecloth lined colander. Maybe you’re not like me with large pieces of cheesecloth lying around. Not to worry, you can use a simple cotton dish towel or pillow case but be prepared for it to be forever stained. I toss my clean cheesecloth into the boiling water for a few minutes before using. Line a colander with the cheesecloth and you’re ready to pour in your tomato mixture. Place the colander over a large bowl or bucket and drain for at least a couple of hours or overnight
For me, one cup portions in freezer bags is the perfect size. One cup feeds two with plenty of leftovers for the next few days. Looking at the chicken scratch I wrote on my recipe, apparently I used 24 pounds of tomatoes last year and today I know it was not nearly enough. A word of warning: a little of this sauce goes a long way. I use 2 or 3 Tablespoons to dress a serving of pasta. Really.
Fill your freezer bags, squeeze out any air, and stack flat on a baking sheet or plate to freeze. Onse frozen stiff, the packages can be stacked upright in a container, and are easy to see and access in your freezer, and take little space.
Pouches of finished sauce, in my freezer stash. I freeze this in one cup portions in small freezer bags to use all winter. Thaw it in the bag and gently spoon over cooked pasta tossed with olive oil or butter. If you must heat the sauce, simply warm a little olive oil in a sauce pan and stir in the sauce until just warmed.
Because you are straining away most of the water, the volume will be greatly reduced. I started with a nearly full 5 gallon bucket of tomatoes, and ended up with about 5 cups of sauce. This will vary based on the water content of the tomatoes and the amount of time you leave them drain.
Use your sauce to make summer-fresh Margarita pizzas, toss in the crock pot or dutch oven for a stew or braise, soup, with a pot of beans, anything that can use some fresh tomato flavor. Since the star of this project is the tomato, I wouln’t bother with thick walled, tough-skinned, weak flavored commodity varieties. This is meant as a celebration of the flavor of local, peak-of=freshness, sloppy, flavorful old-fashioned and heirloom varieties.
Home made pasta, uncooked fresh tomato sauce frozen from last summer’s harvest and some good quality parmesan or pecorino – perfection in its simplicity!
Also, when you’ve finished making this sauce, especially if you made a bunch for freezing, you’ll have lots of nutritious tomato essence (the water left after straining the tomato solids for the sauce) left.
- Base for Bloody Marys
- Braising liquid
- Reduction for intensely tomato flavored sauces
- Added flavoring for beer or vodka
- Base for gazpacho or cocktail sauce
- Poaching liquid for seafood, shrimp, calamari or lobster
- Dressing for fresh oysters
- Marinade for white fish
- Vinaigrette mix-in
- Liquid for cooking rice or grains
- Refreshing chilled beverage served over ice, with basil
Or, simply use it in place of any liquid next time you make stock, bread, rice, bulgur, barley or risotto. These are kitchen basics you know you’re going to do anyway, so why not add a little free flavor & nutrient booster?
An icy glass of tomato essence…. yummy and refreshing straight up, and so many great uses in coctails…
The most complicated part of this approach is using a food mill if you have never used one. It makes for a really nice texture and removes the peel and seeds. A food mill is not necessary though, and this sauce will be just as tasty finely chopped by hand.
If you could only do one, what would your single tomato preserving project be?
by jackie | Feb 14, 2021 | DAIRY, DIY, Holiday DIY, Holidays, Recipes, Seasonal, Things We Love, Valentine
Grand gestures are showy, but quiet, small ones are sweeter.
Today is that favorite day of retailers, florists and restauranteurs everywhere, Valentine’s Day.
Here in Pennsylvania, we’ve been very fortunate here with the mildness of our winter so far – unlike those of you suffering some real damage and hardship, we’re mostly just inconvenienced and fatigued. The kind of weariness that can be soothed with a steamy, creamy cup of home-made cocoa.
I nixxed commercial hot chocolate powders a long time ago in favor of the old-fashioned, off the package Hershey’s cocoa recipe that my mom used to make. Real milk, cocoa, salt, sugar and a bit of vanilla – all things found in an average kitchen. At home, it’s not really any more work, and the results are so worth it. Once you’ve spoiled yourself, you’ll want to keep a pint jar in your fridge at all times.
But then, one day, this really lovely post from Molly at Remedial Eating stopped me in my tracks. Something I had to try ASAP. And I’m so glad I did. This is one of the nicest, sweetest DIY gift ideas around – a jar of chocolate ganache ready to spoon into heated milk for a perfectly delicious, creamy, real cup of steaming cocoa.
Hot Chocolate Base (Ganache)
Yield: 2 generous cups ganache (enough for 2 dozen+ mugs of hot cocoa)
This makes a light ganache (1:1), scoop-able straight from the fridge. For firm truffles and heartier frostings, a 2:1 chocolate:cream ratio gives greater body and intensity. FYI.
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream (not ultra-pasteurized, if possible)
12 ounces semisweet chocolate (3 – 4 oz. bars)
Snap chocolate bars into a large, heat-proof bowl. Heat cream over medium, until the first bubble breaks, then remove from heat and pour over chocolate shards. Let sit 5 minutes, then whisk gently to combine, 1-2 minutes. Pour into jar, and refrigerate, up to 1 month.
To Make Hot Cocoa:
Heat milk (2% or whole), as much as you want, over medium heat, until steaming. (Alternatively, for one mug, microwave). Add ganache to hot milk: I use 1 heaping tablespoon per 8 ounces of milk, though there are those under my roof who argue 2 tablespoons are far superior. And no, I don’t measure. Eyeball it. Stir ganache into hot milk until dissolved, 10-15 seconds, taste, and add more, if desired. Pour into mugs, top as desired (whipped cream, marshmallows), wrap fingers ’round, and give thanks for winter.
Who am I kidding? 1-2 TBS? No way. Try 3, or even 4!
So, if you’re still struggling for not-too-big, not-too-small DIY gift ideas, here you go – you still have time. A nice jar of homemade chocolate ganache for a steamy cup of ready-made love for your beloved.
And, if heating milk sounds like too much work, there’s always spoon truffles. Spoon truffles? You know exactly what I’m talking about – no double dipping!
