Showing posts with label cranberry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cranberry. Show all posts

Sunday, November 26, 2017

Mulled Cranberry Vodka Cocktail

Pretty to look at, even more delicious to sip, this mulled cranberry vodka cocktail boasts the best flavors of the season in a refreshing drink that goes down way too easy. Mix up a batch for your holiday party!

Food Lust People Love: Pretty to look at, even more delicious to sip, this mulled cranberry vodka cocktail boasts the best flavors of the season in a refreshing drink that goes down way too easy. Mix up a batch for your holiday party!


My younger daughter is a fan of mulled wine. I can take it or leave it. But I think I have finally found a mulled drink I do love. Mulled cranberry juice is lighter than wine and lends itself to a cold cocktail as easily as a warming cup.

I also chose not to simmer the juice with the spices for hours on end. A quick boil and time to infuse while the drink cools gives just the right amount of seasonal spiciness that is not cloying or overwhelming. The tart cranberry still shines through brightly. And look at the beautiful color!

Food Lust People Love: Pretty to look at, even more delicious to sip, this mulled cranberry vodka cocktail boasts the best flavors of the season in a refreshing drink that goes down way too easy. Mix up a batch for your holiday party!


Have I convinced you yet? Do give this a try. And make sure you scroll down to see the rest of the winter cocktail recipes my Sunday Supper group are sharing today.

Mulled Cranberry Vodka Cocktail


Ingredients
For the mulled cranberry juice:
4 1/4 cups or 1 liter cranberry juice
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves
zest 1/2 clementine

For the garnish:
1/4 cup or 35g fresh cranberries
1/8 cup or 25g sugar

For the cocktail:
1 1/2 oz or ml vodka
8 oz or 240ml mulled cranberry juice
Ice

Method
Use a sharp knife to remove the zest from half of your clementine, leaving behind as much of the white pith as possible.

Add the cinnamon stick, cloves and clementine zest to the cranberry juice in a medium sized pot. Bring the juice to a boil. Boil briefly, about 3-4 minutes, then turn the heat off and leave to cool.

Once cool, strained the mulled cranberry juice to remove the spices and clementine zest, then chill it in the refrigerator.

Wash the cranberries thoroughly and dry them in a colander until just damp. Roll them in the sugar until completely coated. Use a sharp cocktail stick to poke through three or four per stick to create the garnish. Set aside on a clean plate sprinkled with a little more sugar.

Food Lust People Love: Pretty to look at, even more delicious to sip, this mulled cranberry vodka cocktail boasts the best flavors of the season in a refreshing drink that goes down way too easy. Mix up a batch for your holiday party!


When you are ready to serve the mulled cranberry vodka cocktail, fill your glasses with 5-6 ice cubes.

Add in the vodka and top up with mulled cranberry juice. Garnish with the sugar-coated cranberry skewers, if desired.

Food Lust People Love: Pretty to look at, even more delicious to sip, this mulled cranberry vodka cocktail boasts the best flavors of the season in a refreshing drink that goes down way too easy. Mix up a batch for your holiday party!

Enjoy!

Check out all of the winter cocktail recipes we are sharing today. Many thanks to our event manager, Christie from A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures.

Cocktail Shakers

Winter Wines and Punch


Pin it!

Food Lust People Love: Pretty to look at, even more delicious to sip, this mulled cranberry vodka cocktail boasts the best flavors of the season in a refreshing drink that goes down way too easy. Mix up a batch for your holiday party!
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Sunday, November 20, 2016

Brie Cranberry Turkey Quesadillas

Brie Cranberry Turkey Quesadillas use up the leftover bits of your cheese board, a little of that cranberry sauce and some sliced up turkey to create a whole new dish for the days after Thanksgiving or Christmas.



For many years my in-laws hosted a New Year’s Day recovery open house where they served vast pots of turkey soup made from the donated carcasses of all of their friends’ Christmas turkeys. Isn’t that a brilliant idea? All afternoon their friends would come by for some restorative soup and a drink or two to welcome in the New Year.

My go-to recipe for Thanksgiving and Christmas leftovers is turkey potpie. I make the filling every year from scratch, the recipe always in flux depending on the leftovers. I finally got around to trying to quantify the amounts when a reader requested it a few years back. Check it out here. The filling is super easy and I top it with store-bought puff pastry, which makes the whole thing a doddle, as my British friends would say.

This year I wanted to try something a little bit different and decided on quesadillas which incorporate the typical leftovers from my cheeseboard as well. There always seems to be a wedge of Brie, but you can surely use whatever cheese you've got. I can’t give exact amounts since you’ll make as many as your leftovers will allow but I’ll try to approximate how much I used for each quesadilla.


If you struggle with the leftover blues, make sure to scroll down to see all the great ideas my Sunday Supper friends are sharing this week.

Ingredients per quesadilla
2 fresh flour tortillas – I used mixed grain
4-5 slices Brie
5-6 teaspoons whole cranberry sauce
2-3 slices turkey

Method
Put 2-3 teaspoons of cranberry sauce dotted around on one tortilla. Break the Brie and turkey slices into smaller pieces and arrange them on top of the cranberry sauce.

Finish with a few more spoons of cranberry sauce. Put the other tortilla on top and press down lightly to stick it all together.



Warm the quesadilla on a griddle or a non-stick pan for a few minutes over a medium heat, waiting to turn it to the other side when the Brie has melted a bit and can act as a “glue” to hold the tortillas together.

Carefully turn the quesadilla over and brown on the other side, cooking for just a minute or two more, until the filling is warmed through.

Remove from the griddle and leave to cool for a few minutes before cutting the quesadillas into quarters (or smaller) with a sharp knife or pizza wheel. Serve with extra cranberry sauce if you have enough left over.



Enjoy!

Many thanks to this week's host, Christie of A Kitchen Hoor's Adventures and our event manager, Cricket of Cricket's Confections. We've got nearly 30 outstanding ideas for transforming your holiday leftovers.

Breakfast

Appetizers

Soups

Mains

Sides

Dessert


Pin these Brie Cranberry Turkey Quesadillas!

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Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Christmas Morning Muffins #BreadBakers


With just a little preparation the day before, your family can enjoy freshly baked cranberry orange muffins on Christmas morning, with the bonus of filling your house with Christmasy baking aromas. What a joy to wake up to these!

The Christmas Day rule of my family growing up was that no presents could be opened before breakfast. I remember being happy with a bowl of cereal - and let’s get this show on the road! - but frustrated by the grownups who wanted eggs or pancakes or, most likely, freshly baked biscuits. Clearly they had their priorities askew! But don’t you know, when I became a mother, I kept the same rule. Turns out that it’s always a good plan to serve a decent breakfast when Christmas dinner won’t be on the table until three or four o’clock in the afternoon.

With just a little preparation, a hot, freshly baked breakfast is a cinch and you can get to the important part: Opening the gifts! This month our Bread Bakers host is Holly from A Baker’s House and she has challenged us to bake breads – quick or yeasty – which can be started one day and baked the next, giving you lots of lovely ideas for a perfectly easy holiday breakfast.

(And don’t forget my friend Donna’s great cookbook, Make Ahead Breads <Amazon affiliate link* which is also a wonderful source of recipes and inspiration for this theme and would make a fabulous Christmas gift for a baker in your life.)

This post is not technically part of Christmas Week but I would be remiss if I didn't tell you to check out my coconut praline post from yesterday, with details on how to enter to win one of three ($500, $250 and $50) Amazon gift cards up for grabs!

These muffins are adapted from this recipe by Nigella Lawson.

Ingredients
2 cups or 250g flour
1/2 cup or 100g sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup or 120ml whole milk
1/3 cup or 75ml canola or other oil
1 large egg
2 clementines (for zest and 1/3 cup or 80ml juice)
1 cup or 140g dried cranberries, plus 12 more for decoration, if desired.

Method
Prepare your muffin pan by greasing it with butter or nonstick spray or lining it with paper muffin cups. I usually line it with the paper cups and give the whole pan a quick spray. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.

Add in the dried cranberries, mixing well, and cover the bowl with cling film and set it aside with the baking pan.



Measure your milk and oil into a large measuring jug. Add the egg and beat until well combined.

Zest the two clementines with a fine grater or microplane straight into the measuring jug.



Juice the clementines and add 1/3 cup or 80ml of the juice into the measuring jug as well. If you don’t get quite enough juice, top up with more milk to reach your required measurement. Cover the jug with cling film and pop it in the refrigerator.

The next morning, preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.

Give your liquid ingredients a good mix with a fork and pour them into the dry ingredient bowl.



Fold to combine, being careful not to over mix. If a little flour still shows here and there, that’s a good thing.



Divide the batter between the muffin cups. Add one more dried cranberry to each muffin, if desired. I like to see a little of what's inside on top of my muffins.



Bake in your preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until the muffins are golden and a toothpick stuck in the middle comes out clean. I cannot begin to tell you how wonderful these smell while baking! The aroma will get the laggards out of bed and running to the kitchen.



Leave the muffins to cool for a few minutes in the pan and then remove them to a wire rack. Serve them warm with a hot cup of coffee or a glass of Champagne, if you are so inclined, in front of the sparkling Christmas tree.



Enjoy!

Check out all the other great recipes for Overnight Bread! Which one will you make first this holiday season?

BreadBakers
#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.


*Items purchased through an Amazon affiliate link cost no extra to the buyer but earn me a few pennies to buy more bacon. Thanks for the support.


Monday, October 1, 2012

Grand Marnier White Chocolate Cranberry Muffins #MuffinMonday


It's Muffin Monday again!  Sometimes I don't know how the week goes by so quickly but this week, oh, my goodness, this week was special.  I was honored to be invited on a Benevolence Committee charity audit to Damanhour, a two-hour train ride north of Cairo.  I took the Cairo metro for the very first time and only got knocked down once by the stampeding hordes.  No kidding!  I was trying to get off at our stop and the women (I was traveling in the ladies-only car.) pushed in so hard that they knocked me over backwards, back into the car.  I don't know who was more stunned, them or me!  They helped me up and I went on my way.  Next time I know to lean into the crowd and push just as hard to get out.  Anyhoo, I caught the train to Damanhour with two other lovely ladies and we were met on the other side by Father Daniel, a Coptic Christian priest, who took us around to several orphanages, charity dental and medical clinics, a preschool and a small home that houses needy girls and teaches them to sew so they can earn money for themselves now and later for their families.  We were told that when a girl gets married, she is given a sewing machine so she can always provide for herself.

We collected receipts from purchases the Benevolence Committee had funded this last year and I took a ton of photos of people and places as well as the items that were purchased.  It was such a joy to meet the gentle folk that run the homes and clinics and other enterprises and clearly care so deeply for the needy they serve.  The orphanages house the sweetest girls and boys, all Coptic Christians, but the clinics help anyone, Christian and Muslim alike.  (Scroll down past the recipe to see a few photos of our trip.)

It was my privilege to be a part of the visit and help in a small way by asking questions which will become part of the audit report and taking photos.  I am going to miss the Benevolence Committee ladies when I leave.  Do they ever have a heart for the poor here in Egypt!

Meanwhile back to our regularly scheduled muffins!  This week's muffin is from a culinary mystery - frankly a genre I didn't even know existed! - called Killer Pancake.  It called for actual cranberries, which I didn't have, so I had to change the recipe to include jellied cranberry sauce, which I did have.  I also added white chocolate chips because they go so well with cranberries.  They turned out wonderful!

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups or 220g flour
3/4 cup or 170g sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 14 oz or 397g can jellied cranberry sauce, divided into 1 cup and a 1/2 cup or about 235ml and 120ml.
1/8 cup or 30ml Grand Marnier liqueur
1/3 cup or 80ml canola oil
2 eggs
1/2 cup or about 85g white chocolate chips

Method
Preheat the oven to 400°F or 200°C and either grease your 12-cup muffin tin or line it with paper liners.  (I use paper liners but give the whole thing a quick spray with Pam so that any drips or overflow on the tin will clean off easily.)

In one big mixing bowl, add your dry ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.


Whisk the one cup or 235ml cranberry sauce, the Grand Marnier, the oil and the eggs together.


Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture, stirring until just moist.



Fold in the white chocolate chips.


Put one scoop or large spoon into each muffin cup.


Divide the extra cranberry sauce between the muffins.


Top with the rest of the batter.



Bake for 25 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes.


Remove from the muffin tin and finish cooling on a rack.





Enjoy!


For those who are interested, here are a few photos from the Benevolence Committee trip to Damanhour.

Father Daniel and our translator, examining receipts


Dr. Ebraam showing off the blood analyser that was funded by the Benevolence Committee. 
One of the dental clinics.  The machines are powered by a small generator so that power outages won't stop treatment. 

Girls are the same the world over!  Bed in the girls' orphanage. 

Except, perhaps here, they are more devout than most.

Some of the sweet girls leaned out to say goodbye as we left. 
Sewing uniforms on contract from one of the Christian schools. 


They do a most professional job. 

The old Coptic church built in 1885.  I did get permission before taking photos. 
And right next door, the brand new church.

Outside.

And inside.
The bishop's reception room.  This was in his residence and we only got a quick peek
on the way to the bathroom.  It was very grand and formal. 

A few street scenes from Damanhour.


Laundry day.

Looks like someone got a bread delivery when they weren't home. 

View from the roof of one of the homes. Don't miss the lady watching the scenery from her curtained balcony. 

Lady cleaning her roof top home.  Must confess I had hidden
my camera by the time she looked up.  We nodded at each other and smiled. :)

Beautiful mosque near the train station. 



Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Cranberry Cake with Cranberry Glaze


Beautiful buttery Bundt cake made with sour cream and filled with whole cranberry sauce and topped with bright red cranberry glaze.

One of my favorite parts of travel is poking about in foreign stores and markets and lusting over the available ingredients and cookware, only some of which I can bring home in a suitcase. Other people, I hesitate to say normal people because with my new addiction of reading foodie blogs, it appears I am in good company, tend to bring home trinkets and fabric and souvenirs of a more personal or mass-produced nature. Eiffel Tower paperweight, anyone? I went to Switzerland in April and, aside from some chocolate, this is the one thing I bought. From an antique store.


I adore its shape and its potential. I also love that it will always bring back memories of a perfect day in the Swiss countryside, making new friends and reconnecting with one dear friend from many years ago.


Today I am using it to make a delicious, moist cranberry cake – the perfect use for any leftover cans of whole cranberry sauce after Thanksgiving – but good enough to buy a can of whole cranberry sauce, just to make it.  I did. Many thanks to my friend, Lizann, for sharing this great recipe with me!

Ingredients
For the cake:
1 cup or 227g butter
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 oz or 240ml sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup or 200g sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups or 250g flour
1 can (14 oz or 397g) whole cranberry sauce (3/4 for the cake, 1/4 for the glaze)

For the glaze:
1/4 can whole cranberry sauce
1 heaped teaspoon cornstarch or corn flour
1/4 cup or 31g confectioners’ or powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon butter

Method
Preheat oven to 350°F or 180°C.

Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  


Still beating, add in the eggs, one at a time.  


In a separate bowl or in the measuring cup, add your vanilla to the sour cream.  Sift dry ingredients together and add to butter/sugar/egg bowl, alternating with the sour cream and vanilla.  


First some dry ingredients.

Then some sour cream. And so on. 
Beat until all is mixed well.

Spoon half the batter into well-greased AND FLOURED tube or Bundt pan.  (If you have a vintage one, perhaps a gift from your grandmother or great-aunt, or a trip to Geneva, take a few moments to recall fond memories while you butter it good! Do not skimp on the butter. You do not want this cake to stick.)



Smooth it out and make a sort of very shallow trench in the middle. 



Mash the cranberry sauce with a fork, just to break up the jelly part.  Whole berries are fine.  


Spoon in 3/4 of the can of cranberry sauce on top of the batter.


Top with remaining batter and spread it around.


Bake for about 55-65 minutes or until a wooden skewer comes out clean. If the top starts to get too brown, cover it loosely with a piece of foil. 

Meanwhile, the glaze!  Add the cornstarch to the rest of the can of cranberries and stir until it is dissolved.  Add the confectioners’ sugar and the vanilla and stir again.




Put the mixture in a pan on a gentle fire and cook, stirring frequently, until it begins to bubble and thicken.

Take the pan off the fire and whisk in the butter.  Allow to cool until the cake is ready.


When the cake is done, take it out and allow to cool for 10 minutes.  It should pull away from the sides slightly here.  You can run your toothpick or wooden skewer around the edge of the cake to encourage it to turn loose when turned over.


Turn pan upside down on platter and remove pan while still warm.

Drizzle on the glaze after the cake has cooled a bit.  A too-hot cake will make the glaze melt right off.   Enjoy!



Enjoy!

What do YOU bring home from your holidays?  Leave me a comment.  I’d love to know.