Pomegranate Jelly

I know in the last few years I’ve shared with you some of my favourite things:
1. Chocolate ~ of any kind.
2. Beautiful Cupcakes.
3. Frosting.

Add to that list my undying adoration for the pomegranate. It’s such a gorgeous deep crimson fruit that’s full of vitamin C and antioxidants.

I eat one a day, and soon the season will be over around here and my daily treat will be scarce. I thought I needed to bottle up some of that sweet tart juicy pom love so I made a jelly.

It was just the prettiest darn jelly I have ever seen.

As a treat after dinner I made some easy butter puff pastry nests with mascarpone whip piped around the top and a dollop of jelly in the middle. So darn good. A light dessert that’s like a little bite of spring.

No word of a lie, if the world was crumbling around me I would not move an inch until I had licked the mascarpone whip bowl clean. It’s that delicious.  It’s the same whip that I used here only with mascarpone cheese.

Make extra and dip it with some fruit.  Or just selfishly eat it with a spoon like I did.

I read a few recipes and combined them for my own.   The grated orange peel gives this jelly an amazing flavour that can be used for both sweet and savoury dishes.

Enjoy,

*this made eleven 8 oz jars

• 5 cups fresh pomegranate juice – you can use POM juice too for less mess
• 7  cups white sugar
• zest of one orange
• 1 tbsp butter
• 2 packages of liquid pectin

1.   Combine pomegranate juice, butter, zest and sugar in a large saucepan. Bring to boil over high heat and add liquid pectin. Bring back to a full boil, and boil  exactly 1 minute. Remove from heat and skim off foam, if any.

2.  Ladle into hot, sterilized jars to within about 1/2 inch of the top.   Seal with lids (that have been sitting in some hot water) and rings.   Leave the jars to rest on the counter for 24 hours.

** the puff pastry nests are store bought pastry that I cut with a round cutter.

Butterscotch Pudding Tasters with Maple Whiskey { and a GIVEAWAY!}

 I am so pleased to announce the winner of the Delta Faucet Touch2O is Jonnie Hartling and the winner of the the book is Summer Plewes!

Please both contact me at r.mackeyburson@sympatico.ca and leave me your email address.  Thanks to all who entered my first giveaway!

This week-end is just chock full of so many wonderful things.  Here in Canada, it’s Thanksgiving week-end which means a house full of my favourite people and great food.  Add to that a sweet and creamy Butterscotch and Maple Whiskey dessert and it couldn’t get any better.

Or could it?

I’m so delighted to share with you my news of some recent kitchen reno’s here in the SweetRevelations house.  Well, exciting news for me and even better that one lucky reader gets to benefit too!  Our reno’s included a new Delta Trinsic Touch2O Technology Faucet.   This is the faucet that turns on and off with just a tap on the spout.  Oh, and it saves water too, because just a simple tap turns it off between tasks.

Ok, as a serious baker and one of the last people on the planet without a dishwasher (I know, pick your chin up off the floor, it’s disappointing to me too), this faucet has been such a pleasure to have.   We’ve all had those sticky, gooey baking days that require amazing contortions with the body to turn the tap on without messing it up.   It was all the more beautiful to me this morning as I had my hand inside a turkey trying to stuff it.   It really does come on and off with just a tap on the spout.  Beautiful.

And the folks at Delta kindly gave me one to give to a lucky reader so they can find their  dishwashing/food prep happy place too!

Well I’ve never done a blog giveaway before so I’m just tickled about the whole deal.  And in the spirit of ooey gooey sticky hands, I’ve also decided to give away a copy of Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey, by Jill O’Connor.  A recipe book of all things sweet, full of great tips for the dessert lover.  I bought the book and liked it so much I bought one for you!

That’s where these awesome Butterscotch Pudding Tasters came from.  I took her recipe for Butterscotch Pots and adapted it slightly with the addition of some smooth Canadian Maple Whiskey.  Served in small dessert tasters (or a few pots), with some maple and butterscotch flakes and whipped cream on top, these are a simple and elegant after dinner treat.

Here’s how you enter:

1.  Leave a comment about how a new Delta Touch2O technology Faucet would rock your kitchen and head on over to Delta Faucet’s and Lifestyle and Design Blog, Beige Is Dead, to follow them on Twitter or Facebook.

2.   Or, leave a comment about the dessert you make that is sticky and gooey but Oh so good.

3.  For an extra entry, tweet about this giveaway (with the link) and include @SweetRevelations, then come back and let me know or tell your friends on Facebook about this giveaway (with the link), then pop back over here to let me know (your actual blog post comment is your entry, so be sure to write a separate comment for your tweet/Facebook post).

CONTEST RULES:

• The Delta Faucet is available to Canadian residents only.  The book is available to Canadian and American residents.
• One entry per person, plus additional qualified bonus entries.
• Winners will be announced Friday, October 19th, 2012.

*Faucet courtesy of Delta Faucet.  Book courtesy of SweetRevelations.

Peach Fritters

My dad is a great story-teller.   It’s something that I love about him and a bond that we share.  I love to hear the stories of his childhood in a small fishing village.  I love to hear stories about my ancestors and my heritage.  And I appreciate every one of them because they make the generations past seem real to me.

This year for my birthday he gave me the best gift.

He gave me an old cookbook that was my great-grandfathers.  My father is named after him and he died in 1927 in an accident.  He was a cook on a tug boat and my grandmother got this book when they went to retrieve his body and belongings.   It just made me feel so much more that cooking must be in my genes.   That I’m doing the right thing.

I decided to try the recipe for Fruit Fritters that was in there.  I love how some of the pages are marked with pencil and some have drops of  whatever on them.

I wonder, did he make the Fruit Fritters?

On my card my dad said that my great-grandfather would have been proud of the work I have done in the kitchen.

Gosh, that is just the best gift isn’t it?

For my fritters I used peaches.  It’s peach season around here and they are big and juicy and so sweet.  Apples would be good too.

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp grated nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup milk
• 2 eggs
• 4-5 medium peaches, peeled and sliced into 1 inch slices
• powdered sugar for dusting

1.  Sift dry ingredients together.  Add milk and eggs and mix until smooth.

2.  Heat canola oil to 350° in a deep pan or fryer.  Batter peach slices and gently drop into oil.  Fry for 3-5 minutes.  Dust with powdered sugar.  Best eaten warm.

Easy Summer Whipped Parfait

Well I sure have missed this place!  Been a while since I posted a recipe, but it’s not for lack of baking!   Things sure are busy in this house and summer is here in full swing.

I love today’s post for many reasons..

 

1.   It takes less than 15 minutes and looks like a million bucks.

2.  I made this this morning  and let it chill for the rest of the day until our company arrived for dinner which meant I had no dessert hassle.  Just placed it on the table and looked like the wife and hostess of the year (as I wiped my brow…).

 

3.  It’s disposable.  I’m still using that package of disposable wine glasses I got a month ago for this post here.  Then I realised that I also used these cups here, both of which are my last two posts!  I am not for filling the landfills with plastic, but I do have a package of glasses to use up.

4.  It tastes ridiculously summery good.

A lady from our local market shared a similar recipe with me.  I added the jello bottom and couldn’t resist the beautiful cherries for garnish.    For the cream cheese whip I used some frozen mixed berries with pomegranate.  I threw in some of my own frozen summer strawberries too.  Its light and delicious!

 

• 1 pkg jello, any berry flavour prepared and poured into the bottom of serving glasses ( I did this the night before)
• 250 gr cream cheese at room temperature
• 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 2 cups mashed berries
• 1 litre container of frozen whipped topping thawed

1.  Beat sugar and cream cheese until smooth.  Add berries and mix well.  Fold in whipped topping.  Pour over jello that has set.

2.  Refrigerate several hours.  Garnish with more whipped cream, chocolate shavings, berries, etc.

Note:  You can also pour the whipped mixture over a 9×13 graham crust and refrigerate.

Enjoy!

Decadent Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball

I could not imagine my life without my little girl.  For many reasons.  She has grown into such a great young lady and she’s so bright and beautiful to boot (*ahem* you know..the whole apple falling from the tree thing?..)

She has been so great about being my right hand man when I need her to help me out at work.  She doesn’t complain about the early wake up call or the loads and loads of dishes that need to be done.  She’ll sit and colour oodles of fondant for me without batting a pretty little eyelash.

She’s pretty great.

And I don’t thank her enough.

Today I thought I would make her one of her most favourite treats.  It’s so simple but so incredibly addicting.  A sweet cream cheese ball with chocolate bits mixed in and rolled in Skor bits.  Slather it over a chocolate cracker or spread it on berries and you’ll be in love.  You cannot put this stuff down.   It is that good.  Imagine a spreadable cheesecake.

Ten whole minutes to put it together, seriously.  This is easily one of the fastest things you could throw together if company was coming.  Better yet, put it on your Easter buffet table.  Your guests will thank you!

Enjoy O and thank you.

*adapted from Kraft Canada

Note: you could easily half this recipe as it makes a rather large cheese ball.

•  2 pkg. (250 g each) Brick Cream Cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp.vanilla bean paste
• 1/4 cup mini semi sweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup of Skor Bits

1. Combine cream cheese, sugar and vanilla in a small bowl.  Beat until well incorporated.   Mix in mini chips.  Place the cheese mixture on a large piece of plastic wrap and manipulate into a ball.  Refrigerate for at least 4 hours.  Just before serving roll into Skor bits.

Serve with chocolate crackers or fruit.

Homemade Hazelnut Irish Cream

I’m not an Irish Cream on the rocks kind of girl.

I love it in my morning coffee or as an after dinner dessert drink.

I especially love it in a creamy Swiss Meringue icing.  Gorgeously piled on top of a Guinness Dark Chocolate Cupcake.

Or in a Hazelnut Irish Cream and Chocolate Ice Cream.

Rich Callebaut chocolate chunks marbled throughout a creamy Irish Cream Ice Cream?  Yes Please!

Do you see a theme here?

I think Irish Cream lends a smooth and creamy flavour to many desserts without going overboard.  And, even better when it can be made in an instant.  Literally.  Five minutes of prep time and your guests will love you for it.

Tell me your favourite way to use Irish Cream.

Homemade Hazelnut Irish Cream Liquor

*adapted from allrecipes.com

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
•  1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 oz)
• 1 cup Irish Whiskey
• 1 tsp instant coffee
• 2 tbsp chocolate syrup
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp hazelnut oil

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend on high for 30 seconds.  Store in a sealed container in the fridge.  Shake well before using.

Valentine Cake Pops

This morning I had to make some mini chocolate cupcakes for an event.  I had a few dozen left over, that I usually leave un-iced for a lunch box treat.

On a whim, I thought, what if I use my left over minis and give Cake Pops a whirl?

I have really good whims sometimes…..

Cake Pops are the infamous creation of Bakerella.  She’s had an amazing year and has captured the world over with her Cake Pop creations.

I gotta say, she’s a pretty smart lady, cause these taste really good and look awesome.

These were fun and so incredibly easy.  And, they fit right in with my promise of Valentine’s Day posts for the next few weeks.

Wouldn’t these be great at a class party?  A girl’s night out?  Wrapped up with a sweet saying and some ribbon?

Lovely.

The um, unfortunate part is that I can’t actually give you a recipe.  I can only tell you what I did.

I took about 12 left over cooled mini chocolate cupcakes and crumbled them up in a bowl.  Then I used approximately 3 tablespoons of left over chocolate icing and mixed that all together until I had a nice dough ball.  I rolled them up and put them on parchment and in the fridge for about 15 minutes to firm up a bit.

Next, I melted some chocolate and dipped my candy sticks into it and then into the cake ball.  I left them in the fridge for a good hour to get nice and firm.

See?

I used Candy Melts to dip my cake balls when they were firm.  Keep some in the fridge while you are working so they are nice and cold when you need them.

Decorate with sprinkles, sparkles, jimmies, coloured Candy Melts, whatever you have on hand!  I found these super cute printables from Mommy By Day…Crafter By Night  and attached them to my candy sticks.

If you want a full recipe, that will yield 48 or more…look here.

I hope you give these a whirl when you have left over cake!

Buttermilk Scones with Clotted Cream

What a beautiful morning!  The sun is shining through every window and I can hear the birds outside!  It’s a bit unusual though because my house is eerily quiet and I’m the only one home this morning.  It’s just me and the dog.

I must say the peace is heavenly…..

O.K. ….two really important things are happening today…

First, it’s my friend’s birthday.  Happy Birthday girl!  She lives in London, England and is currently roaming the streets of Italy with another friend of ours.  I am so jealous, envious, HAPPY for them!  They will be eating great food and drinking great wine.   Cheers to you my friend, have a wonderful day.

Second, I made Clotted Cream yesterday and am feeling all smug and proud of myself.  It’s a cross between butter and whipped cream.  I sometimes buy English Double Devon as a treat for myself but it is hard to find and costly.   My girlfriend and I had a Cream Tea on one of my last nights in England a few years ago and it was “lovely’ as she says.  Homemade scones piled high with Clotted Cream and preserves, and of course a cup of tea.  Delish.   How appropriate that I made it the day before her birthday then.  And here I sit, birthday morning, thinking of my friend, eating one of these goodies with the homemade preserves I made here.

The Clotted Cream is ridiculously easy.  Almost embarrassing frankly, for my inflated ego at the moment.  Use the heaviest whipping cream you can find, with a high fat content (mine was 35%).  Pour 4 cups into a heavy-bottomed oven safe pan.  Cover and place in the oven at 180° and leave it for 12 hours.  Untouched.  Done.  No kidding.  Remove after 12 hours (try not to slosh the cream during transport) and allow to cool for about an hour.  Place in the fridge over night and tah-dah!  When you wake, there will be a glorious, thick layer of clotted cream on top.  Skim off with a slotted spoon and put in a jar.  Use on scones, pancakes, muffins, etc.  The remaining heavy cream can still be used for baking.  Shamelessly easy, but still feelin smug.

The scones are Buttermilk Scones from Nigella Lawson.  These are not sweet which makes them a perfect fit for cream and preserves.  So easy to make and I made them this morning in under 1/2 hour.  One of the reasons scones tend to be so dry is because they are baked far too long.  Twelve minutes is all that’s needed.   Once the scones are dry on the bottom, remove from the oven and allow to cool.

Nigella Lawson’s Buttermilk Scones

• 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons soft vegetable shortening
• 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
• 1 egg, beaten, for an egg wash (optional)
• 1 large lipped baking sheet or half sheet pan
• 1 (2-inch) biscuit cutter, preferably fluted

Preheat the oven to 425° and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

1.  Put the flour into a bowl with the baking soda, cream of tartar, and sugar. Chop the butter and the vegetable shortening into pieces and drop them into the flour. Rub the fats into the flour – or just mix any old how – and then pour in the buttermilk, working everything together to form a dough.

2..Lightly flour your work surface. Pat the dough into a round-edged oblong about 1 3/4 inches thick and cut out 2-inch scones with a biscuit cutter. (Mine are never a uniform height, as I only pat the dough into its shape without worrying whether it’s irregular or not.)

3.  Arrange the scones fairly close together on your lined baking sheet, and brush with beaten egg (to give golden tops) or not as you wish.

4.  Bake for 12 minutes, by which time the scones will be dry on the bottom and have a relatively light feel. Remove them to a wire rack to cool, and serve with clotted cream and your favourite jam.

Stone Fruit Upside-Down Cake

Yesterday we went on our annual road trip through Niagara Wine Country.   It’s miles and miles of scenic estate wineries and orchards.   Niagara-On-The-Lake is a quaint place with beautiful boutiques and restaurants.

We go every year to get some fresh peaches and of course wine.  Yesterday we stopped at a local orchard and picked up a variety of stone fruits.  And then off to none other than The Great One, Wayne Gretzky’s Estate Winery.    All perfect ingredients for some Stone Fruit Upside-Down Cake and White Wine Sangria.

*adapted from Cake Goddess

• 2-3 medium peaches, halved, pitted, skinned and thinly sliced
• 2 apricots, halved, pitted and thinly slice
• 6 cherries, halved and pitted
• 4 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of nutmeg
• 12 tablespoons (3 ounces) unsalted butter, softened (4 for bottom of pan, 8 tablespoons for the batter)
• 3/4 cup  granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
• 1/2 cup buttermilk, room temperature

Heat the oven to 350°F degrees.

1.  In the bottom of a springform pan pour 4 tbsp melted butter.  Sprinkle the brown sugar on top.  Place sliced fruit, slightly overlapping, to cover the entire bottom of pan.

2. In a small bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Set aside.  In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the sugar and rest of the butter until fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating for 30 seconds between each addition.  Add lemon zest and mix well.

3. Slowly add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the butter mixture in 5 additions.  Start and end with flour mixture.  Mix last addition of flour by hand.

4.  Pour batter over fruit mixture and bake for 55-60 minutes until toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Serve with a dollop of cream.

White Wine Sangria

• 1 Bottle of white wine (Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Sauvignon Blanc)
• 1/2 cup Peach Schnapps
• 2 sliced peaches
• 1 sliced apricot
• handful of cherries
• 1/2 liter of ginger ale (if preferred)

1.  Pour wine and Schnapps in a pitcher and add sliced peaches, apricots and cherries.  Chill mixture for at least one hour.  Add ginger ale just before serving.

Wild Blueberry and Lemon Preserves

I love the whole exercise of preserving things even though it seems so old-fashioned.  Fresh summer fruit, preserved in all of its sweetness.  It’s taking the beauty of a gardens harvest and ‘putting it up’ at the peak of freshness.  And the process is so simple.

I use preserves for a lot of things.  Raspberry preserves (here) on a sponge cake, in cobblers, pies and of course as a filling for cupcakes (these were filled with an amazing pineapple sauce)!  I can use these goodies all year round and nothing banishes the winter blues like spooning some blueberry preserves over your hotcakes.  Lovely.

Today I made some Wild Blueberry and Lemon Preserves.  This recipe takes maybe an hour from start to finish and so worth the time.

I used wild blueberries.  I had a little bit of  fresh picked local berries that I threw in this batch as well.

I do a mixture of 250 ml and 500 ml jars.  When I need just a little, I can open a small jar and it usually gets gobbled up pretty quickly.  If I need to use it for a layer cake or to fill cupcakes I open a bigger jar.  Seems to cut down on waste and my husband is always saying our fridge has more condiments than food in it!

Homemade Wild Blueberry and Lemon Preserves

*adapted from Paula Dean

5 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (thaw frozen berries in the refrigerator the night before)
6 1/2 cups sugar
Zest of two lemons
Juice of two lemons
2  envelops liquid fruit pectin, such as Certo
7 (250 ml) canning jars with lids, washed and full of boiling water

In a large heavy bottomed pot put berries, sugar, juice and zest.  On medium-high heat bring berries to a full boil (stirring frequently).  Add liquid pectin and boil one minute longer.  Remove from heat and skim any foam if necessary.  Ladle into prepared jars and leave 1/4 inch head space.  Place the caps on the jars and process in a canner of boiling water for 15 minutes.

Store in a cool dark place.