blueberry-cream cheese fritters

My last batch of fritters I received a few emails from people telling me they love and want to make their own donuts at home, but are a little afraid of deep frying. To quote one of the people "the whole frying thing scares me a bit, so I'll pass..." Yikes I thought. I can understand that it scares you a bit, with the heat of the oil, the fear of burning, soggy/greasy donuts, or worse yet a fire. But if you keep a few things in mind, and play them into practice, you will have a better sense of confidence. First, have a good, sturdy, well made pot for deep frying. I've seen some people use cast iron for frying, and while that might be fine for frying chicken, I'm just not comfortable with it for donuts. Donuts, fritters tend to bubble up a bit and should have high walls of a deep stockpot. You need a high sided pot, or thick/high stockpot is what I use. Or if you have a le creuset pot all the better, those are great or conducting the heat uniformly. Second, invest in a thermometer. You'd be amazed at how many times you'll use if for other baking/cooking adventures, like candy, caramels, french fries, chicken, etc... Third, never use high heat for frying; always use medium heat. I've seen so many people start off thinking they need high heat to "get it nice and hot" No no! That's the worst thing you could do. Go medium and slow, and you'll get there. And lastly, no need to fill the pot up with oil. I'd say 3-5 inches of oil is fine for frying donuts/fritters; a bit less for chicken, wings, egg rolls, potatoes, etc... I've seen way too many people put in about 7 inches or more of oil just for frying donuts! You need to do that if you're frying commercially or for a commercial deep fryer.

blueberry-cream cheese fritters
print recipe

2 cups AP (all purpose) flour
½ cup white sugar
2 ¼ ts baking powder
1 ¼ ts salt
1 ts cinnamon
2 large eggs
¾ cup whole milk
1 ts pure vanilla extract
3 TB melted butter, cooled a bit
½ - ¾ cup fresh blueberries

glaze
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/4 ts salt
1/4 cup half & half (more/less depending on how thick/thin you like glaze; I like mine thick)
4 ounces of cream cheese, room temp

Cook Notes: You are working with hot oil. Never ever walk away from the stove when deep frying. To keep the fritters crunchy, you may want to drizzle the glaze over the fritters instead of dunking. If the fritters get too much glaze they will get soggy. Some blueberries will pop out when frying. To make sure your oil is the perfect temp for frying, use a thermometer. A temp of 360-375 is ideal for donuts/fritters. Always test a small fritter to see if oil is ready. Do not overcrowd pan with fritters, they brings the heat way down and will result in oily fritters.

In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
In a separate bowl, mix the eggs with milk and vanilla extract, then add in cooled melted butter; mix until just combined—do not overmix!
Fold in the dry with the wet ingredients; only mix till just combined. Lumps are good. If you overmix you will have tough chewy fritters—that’s a no no. Next fold in the blueberries.

Heat about 3-4 inches of canola oil over medium to medium-low heat (it takes time to heat up).
When it gets hot, drop a little drop of batter into the oil to see if oil is ready; if it sizzles immediately and rises to the top, the oil is ready; if it burns quickly, turn down the heat.
Drop oversized tablespoons of batter (using a small to medium size ice cream scoop, or use two spoons to roll out the scoops of batter) into the hot oil. Only do about 3 -4 fritters at a time. If you want flatter fritters, use two chopsticks to spread out the batter immediately after you put into oil. They cook fast about 1 ½ - 2 minutes per side or if you want extra crispy about 2 ½ - 3 minutes per side—if that? Make sure to flip them.
Remove and drain on a paper towels or brown paper bags. Let these cool a bit before the glaze bath.

For the glaze:
In a small saucepan, heat the half and half with the cream cheese over low heat. Stir until all melted. Then transfer to a bowl and whisk in the powdered sugar and slat. Mix well using a whisk. I had lumps in my glaze and just used a whisk (for a while and got rid of them). Then quickly dunk each fritter and let them rest on wire rack with cookie sheet on bottom to catch drippings. Or you can easily just drizzle the glaze over the fritters if you want a lighter glaze and want the fritters to stay crispy. Don’t let the fritters sit too long in the glaze as they will get soggy.
Makes about 12-15 fitters depending on size you make them.

friday links PLUS giveaway!

Let's just dive right in shall we?

I just love when I get emails from PR companies or publishers that want to share the launch or re-launch of a FABULOUS baking book. This one Baking Basics and Beyond by Pat Sinclair is a keeper. Very helpful little baking book. It has kicked up recipes inside. Like savory blue cheesecake, banana bars with brown sugar frosting... Luckily they were nice enough to give away 2 books!
This is the new edition of Baking Basics and Beyond by Pat Sinclair. It's a down-to-earth, reader-friendly baking guide is updated with beautiful full color photos throughout. According to Pat Sinclair, "If a little kneading is good, is a lot of kneading better? Not for biscuits, as I learned the first time I made them. I discovered that biscuits are tender and flaky only if I follow two key baking techniques--cutting in shortening and gentle kneading. I've learned many more secrets like these over decades of baking professionally for companies such as Pillsbury and Land O'Lakes." Included are many traditional and old-fashioned American favorites such as Buttery Crescent Dinner Rolls, Dark Chocolate Cake with Praline Filling and Cranberry Nut Tartlets. Most of the recipes are easy and recognizable, if not extremely familiar. Some of the recipes, such as Turtle Cheesecake Pie, are variations of classics but with a little twist that makes them unique.
Baking Basics and Beyond differs from other books on baking because it concentrates on basic techniques and simple directions. No prior experience is necessary.
Although Sinclair has a master's degree in Foods, much of her baking experience came at home. She began baking in elementary school by learning how to bake from her mother, especially how to make a pie crust.




Reprinted with permission from Baking Basics and Beyond, by Pat Sinclair, Agate Surrey, December 2011.

All you have to do to enter is leave ONE comment telling me what your favorite baking-guided cookbook is/was.
I'll do the drawing Friday March 2, 2012 and announce the TWO winners.

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I must have this coat and this dog. How did the photographer keep a straight face and not giggle the whole time? You can actually buy this on Etsy.

All this hype these days about clean eating for whole body detox; so many theories on it, so many ways to detox each promising to be the right one. NPR recent article about clean eating detox stated one particular VALID point: "The body is constantly filtering the toxins in alcohol, food and medicines, not storing them," Boston dietitian Maria Adams tells The Salt. "So they're not going to build up. I think the reason people feel better on a cleanse is probably just they're losing weight and are less bloated."
Interesting article, and scary the amount money of that crazy GOOP detox program costs: over $400!


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News Boy cap for cats! I need this in my life.......right?

Want a quick and easy Banh Mi meatball rice bowl? All the flavors of bahn mi in a meatball in a rice bowl. FABULOUS.


My neighbors have some of the most gorgeous and friendly chickens I've ever seen. They don't come out much due to coyotes in our area, but when they do I make sure to hang with them for a bit. Here is a video I shot of my favorite rooster kicking it. He loves the camera (no, this was not edited, just perfect timing).

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That's it. Have a fabulous weekend kids! Don't forget to enter the cookbook giveaway (above).

wordless wednesday (artichoke melts)

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homemade chai ice cream with spicy pecans

Wanting to make chai ice cream on the spur of the moment and realizing you have no chai tea? Easy peasy! All you need is black tea leaves or even english breakfast tea leaves, along with a few spices, let it seep for a while in a warm milk bath, and eventually you have the beginnings of your ice cream custard. Happy happy!
Why the spicy pecans? Well, for one, my love of spicy pecans (which helps keep Trader Joe's in business btw), and secondly, chai is already gently sweet, so a spicy pecan helps to balance out the sweetness a bit, as well as a hint of texture. I mean who doesn't love texture in ice cream? I don't think I could ever be one of those "smooth" ice cream lovers (unless it's gelato)-- I mean all those calories and no texture, no chocolate/nut/candy surprises to bite into. Sad.
Could you use walnuts? Sure. Peanuts? Why not? Almonds? Indeed, but use those smokehouse almonds and see that magical flavor come about.





chai ice cream with spicy pecans
print recipe

14 ounces of sweetened condensed mik
1 cup whole milk

6-8 regular size black tea bags or the equivalent in loose leaves (if you use chai tea then you might not need the spices—taste test as you go)
¾ cup white sugar
5 large egg yolks
Dash or two fresh ground black pepper
¼ ts salt
1 cup half & half
1 cup heavy cream, room temp
½ cup – ¾ cup of chopped spicy pecans (optional but wonderful)

Spices to use:
(these may not be needed if you use chai tea bags)
I used, a couple pinches of: cloves, cinnamon and fresh ginger.
You can also use a couple pinches of: cardamom, allspice.

Cook notes: I got the spicy pecans from trader joes. You can easily use walnuts, pistachios or even peanuts. You can also make your own candied walnuts too. When the custard is done steeping, do a quick taste test and see what it needs. Some people have different takes/tastes when it comes to chai tea.

IN a large saucepan, bring the milk and condensed milk to an almost boil. Take off heat then add in the tea bags, your spices, and salt. Mix quickly then cover with lid, and let steep at least 1 hour.
Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, mix the sugar with the five egg yolks, and salt until well combined.
Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the leaves from milk; (not needed if you used tea bags).
Return mixture back to pot and add in the half & half; bring to a simmer.
Take your egg mixture and slowly, a few tablespoons to begin with, then gradually ¼ cup at a time, add in the hot mixture. Do not add in all at once as you will cook the eggs. Once the mixture is nicely tempered, pour mixture back into the pot and heat on low heat. Whisk for a while until mixture is slightly thickened. DO NOT BOIL!
Once a thickness has developed, remove from heat, strain into a bowl, and cool.
Stir in the room temp. heavy cream.
Cover and refrigerate until cold or overnight.
When ready to churn in ice cream maker, churn according to the ice cream manufacturer directions. At the last 2-3 minutes of churning add in your ½ cup (or more if desired) of spicy pecans.

the best sweet & salty chocolate bark

Quite a title to live up to right? I know. But trust me on this one? I've made a lot of barks in my life and I tell you this one is the best hands down. It's not just me who claims this. I gave a sample of this to a few people who said the same thing.
Why does it taste so good? I'm certain it's the combo of the peanut butter, honey, butter and chocolate. That alone is a creamy good taste--and you could actually just make that alone and it would be fabulous. But I added in toasted coconut (for texture), salty pretzels (for salt), and pecans (for extra crunch).
I know I've said this before to you, but if you make one bark, this is it.

the best sweet & salty chocolate bark
print recipe

the base:
1/2 cup peanut butter (smooth or chunky)
1/3 cup + 1 TB local honey
1/4 cup unsalted butter
¾ cup milk or semi-sweet chocolate chips or chunks

the add ins:
1/2 cup toasted coconut
½ cup salty pretzels, rough chop
½ cup salty pecans (any kind of salty nut)

Cook notes:
You can add in anything you want to this. But keep the add ins to 3-4, as you don’t want too many add ins or it won’t set up right. I found using a thin pretzel works best than a thick one. I think using potato chips would be fabulous for this. Have all your add ins at the ready; you want to add them in fast when the chocolate base is all melted.

Get all your add ins at the ready and lined up ready to go. If you want uniform bars instead of bark, use an 8 X 8 square pan and really grease it up and line with parchment paper. If you want bark, then line a jelly roll pan with parchment paper.
Melt butter, peanut butter and honey in a pot over medium to low heat, stirring constantly.
Add in the chocolate chips and keep stirring—takes a while for everything to incorporate and you want to melt the chocolate slowly (almost like tempering). When all is melted, remove from stove.
Pour in all your add ins, mix well, and immediately transfer to the jelly roll pan or square pan. Using a spatula flatten out bark mixture. Don’t spread it too thin! Let cool at room temperature about 2 hours. When bark has set up, use a sharp knife to cut into chunks.