Wednesday, November 20, 2024

Xmas Eggnog Fudge

Turn everybody's favorite creamy, sweet holiday beverage into Xmas Eggnog Fudge with this simple recipe your friends and family are sure to love. It's perfect as a holiday gift or to take on the road for when you need an eggnog fix.

Turn everybody's favorite creamy, sweet holiday beverage into Xmas Eggnog Fudge with this simple recipe your friends and family are sure to love. It's perfect as a holiday gift or to take on the road for when you need an eggnog fix.

One of my favorite recipes for the holidays is my grandmother's homemade eggnog.  She always made enough for a houseful, starting with a gallon of milk and almost one dozen large eggs. 

I remember one of my last Christmases at home, following her around the kitchen as she made a batch, writing down the ingredients and her steps. Just four ingredients for a thick, rich, wonderful eggnog. When I got back to my house, I copied it out more neatly into a blank leaf at the back of my Good Housekeeping. I didn’t want to lose it.

I tend to halve the recipe for our smaller household and that still makes plenty. Mo’s homemade eggnog is always served warm with a splash of some strong stuff, either bourbon or rum. 

We also always have store-bought eggnog on hand because we like to drink it cold, spiked or not, and use it in baked goods like my streusel coffee cake, eggnog pound cake, muffins and mousse or homemade candy, like this Xmas eggnog fudge. 

I think it would be fair to say that we are huge fans of The Nog. Hope you are too!

Xmas Eggnog Fudge

Abject apologies for the lack of process photos for this recipe. The lighting was terrible and shots of the pot on the stove would genuinely not have been helpful to include. Make sure you use a timer and a candy thermometer and follow the instructions. You’ll be fine. (Any questions? Leave me a comment.)

Ingredients
2 3⁄4 cups or 550g sugar
1 cup or 240ml commercial good quality eggnog (NOT low fat)
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 ounces or 170g white chocolate, chopped roughly (Use good quality- not baking chocolate or chips)
1 1⁄2 cups or 85g mini marshmallows
1⁄2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup or 150g almonds, toasted and chopped coarsely
1⁄8 cup or 30g butter (Do not substitute margarine!)
Freshly grated or powdered nutmeg for decoration. 

Method
Line a 9x9-inch 23x23cm pan with aluminum foil and set aside.

In a heavy bottomed saucepan, mix together the eggnog, sugar and salt, bring to a slow rolling boil over medium to med-high heat. Do not walk away from the pot. If it threatens to boil over, turn the heat down just a little bit. You still need a rapid boil. Set a timer for 2 minutes when it starts to boil.

When the timer rings, remove the pot from the stove and stir in the marshmallows and cinnamon.

Put the pot back on the stove and bring it back to a rolling boil and set the timer for 6 minutes. 

Put your candy thermometer in the pot. The temperature should reach at least 234°F or 112°C but no higher than 238°F or 114°C. Then the pot should be removed from the heat.

When the 6-minute timer rings or the mixture reaches the proper temperature, whichever happens first, remove the pot from the stove and stir in the butter, white chocolate and chopped almonds.

Stir rapidly with a wooden spoon until the butter and chocolate have melted and are completely incorporated and the mixture has a glossy appearance. 

Pour it into your prepared foil-lined pan and quickly sprinkle with nutmeg, if desired. Leave to cool completely at room temperature. 

To cut, remove the fudge from the pan by lifting the foil lining out and cut it into small squares with a sharp knife. It’s very rich so you can cut them quite small. 

Turn everybody's favorite creamy, sweet holiday beverage into Xmas Eggnog Fudge with this simple recipe your friends and family are sure to love. It's perfect as a holiday gift or to take on the road for when you need an eggnog fix.

You can put the squares in little candy liners to serve (or gift) or stack them on a decorative plate. 

Turn everybody's favorite creamy, sweet holiday beverage into Xmas Eggnog Fudge with this simple recipe your friends and family are sure to love. It's perfect as a holiday gift or to take on the road for when you need an eggnog fix.

Store in a sealed container in a cool, dry place. 

Enjoy! 

Welcome to the 24th edition of the 2024 Alphabet Challenge, brought to you by the letter X. Many thanks to Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm for organizing and creating the challenge. Check out all the X recipes below:


X. Xmas Eggnog Fudge -  this post!


Pin this Xmas Eggnog Fudge!

Food Lust People Love: Turn everybody's favorite creamy, sweet holiday beverage into Xmas Eggnog Fudge with this simple recipe your friends and family are sure to love. It's perfect as a holiday gift or to take on the road for when you need an eggnog fix.

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Sunday, November 17, 2024

Figgy Breakfast Parfaits

When you need a dish that looks fancy for a brunch but don’t have much time, these figgy breakfast parfaits are perfect. Simply slice up some figs and assemble!

Food Lust People Love: When you need a dish that looks fancy for a brunch but don’t have much time, these figgy breakfast parfaits are perfect. Simply slice up some figs and assemble!

Figs in season have been my all-time favorite fruit since I was a small child, climbing the swaying branches of the fig trees BOTH of my grandmothers had in their backyards. So, this time of year, I will always choose them first. 

But here’s an idea that works all year round. Slice various fruits, put out bowls of yogurt and granola with a squeezy bottle of honey and some pretty glasses. Make people assemble their own! You are welcome. 

Figgy Breakfast Parfaits

I haven’t quantified the total quantities since who knows how many parfaits you might want to make, but here’s about what you need for each one. Don’t get too hung up on amounts. 

Ingredients
3 fresh figs for slicing
≈ 1/2 cup whole milk yogurt
≈ 1/3 cup your favorite granola – I like Quaker Simply Granola with raisins and almonds
≈ 2 tablespoons honey
1 whole fig for on top

Method
Slice your figs and discard the stems.


Add a generous tablespoon of granola to the parfait glass. 


Top with a couple of tablespoons yogurt. Squeeze on some honey to sweeten. 


Add a good layer of sliced figs. 


Top with a couple of tablespoons of granola. 


The next layer is more yogurt. About a 1/4 cup. And then another drizzle of honey.


Top with another layer of sliced figs. 


Then more granola. 


Finally, finish with a dollop of yogurt, drizzled with honey, topped by a whole fig. Heaven.

Food Lust People Love: When you need a dish that looks fancy for a brunch but don’t have much time, these figgy breakfast parfaits are perfect. Simply slice up some figs and assemble!

With no fancy brunch to go to or host, my husband and I enjoyed this easy, delicious breakfast on a weekday. Who says we have to save parfaits for the weekend? 

Food Lust People Love: When you need a dish that looks fancy for a brunch but don’t have much time, these figgy breakfast parfaits are perfect. Simply slice up some figs and assemble!

Enjoy! 

It’s Sunday FunDay and today we are sharing, as you might have guessed, parfaits! Many thanks to our host, Renu of Cook with Renu. Check out the links below.

 
We are a group of food bloggers who believe that Sunday should be a family fun day, so every Sunday we share recipes that will help you to enjoy your day. If you're a blogger interested in joining us, just visit our Facebook group and request to join.



Pin these Figgy Breakfast Parfaits!

Food Lust People Love: When you need a dish that looks fancy for a brunch but don’t have much time, these figgy breakfast parfaits are perfect. Simply slice up some figs and assemble!

 .

Tuesday, November 12, 2024

Mom’s Golden Cornbread #BreadBakers

My mom’s golden cornbread is a family favorite, fluffy and delicious. It’s made from scratch but is just about as easy as the packets. 

Food Lust People Love: My mom’s golden cornbread is a family favorite, fluffy and delicious. It’s made from scratch but is just about as easy as the packets.

Way back in 2005, my eldest daughter was in the kitchen a lot, working on some project. I finally asked her what the challenge was. She allowed that she had been looking for cornbread recipes online but just couldn’t find a good one. 

I suggested that she email her grandmother, the family expert in corn bread baking. She duly did.


And she received this reply, along with the recipe I am sharing today. 


Mom’s Golden Cornbread

I’ve added the metric equivalents but the rest is all my mom’s instructions. She did like to bake in her iron skillet but knowing we didn’t have one back then, she didn’t include that option in the original recipe.

Ingredients
1 cup or 150g yellow cornmeal
1 cup or 125g all-purpose flour
2 – 4 tablespoons sugar (To go with chili, I use only two)
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup or 240ml milk, sometimes I will add a tiny bit more milk if I find it too thick
1 egg
1/4 cup or 60ml vegetable oil like canola (do not use olive oil)

Method
Preheat oven to 425°F or 218°C.  In a large bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. 


Add milk, egg and oil. 


Beat until fairly smooth, about one minute.  

Scrape bottom and sides well. Bake in greased 8-inch baking pan for 20-23 minutes or until lightly browned on top. 

I like to put some oil in my baking pan first and then put it in the oven to get the oil really hot, then I add the batter and bake.  This gives a nice bottom to the cornbread.
(My edit: I always do this, putting the pan with a little oil in the oven for five minutes before pouring in the batter. You can see how it sizzles when I add the batter.)


You can insert a toothpick in the middle to test for doneness. 

Food Lust People Love: My mom’s golden cornbread is a family favorite, fluffy and delicious. It’s made from scratch but is just about as easy as the packets.

I will add here that Mom loved her cornbread amply buttered and often topped with Steen’s Cane Syrup which hails from her mom’s hometown of Abbeville, Louisiana. Made the old-fashioned way by boiling down cane juice until it is thick, Steen’s is the syrup of choice in Cajun Country. It is great in cakes, on biscuits, pancakes and cornbread.

Food Lust People Love: My mom’s golden cornbread is a family favorite, fluffy and delicious. It’s made from scratch but is just about as easy as the packets.

Enjoy! 

This is the second Tuesday of the month which means it's time for my Bread Bakers to share recipes. Our theme is cornbread, or corn bread, if you prefer. Many thanks to our host, Dorothy from Shockingly Delicious. Check out the links below. 

#BreadBakers is a group of bread loving bakers who get together once a month to bake bread with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. Links are also updated each month on this home page. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient.



Pin Mom's Golden Cornbread for later! 

Food Lust People Love: My mom’s golden cornbread is a family favorite, fluffy and delicious. It’s made from scratch but is just about as easy as the packets.

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