Ginger | Adventures in Thyme

Hard Cider Brittle

November 22, 2016 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Pistachio Brittle

I love Fall. The changing colors of the leaves, the crisp mornings, and the fellowship of holiday season. Our gifts to friends and family are usually small tins of baked yumminess, or a cookie variety plate. This year in our quest to add to the gifting repertoire I considered brittle. Hot sugar however requires a little extra minding than a mere oven timer. Please be careful if you have little ones in the house, or are attending to chores elsewhere – a boiling pot of sugar needs to be watched! You’ll also need a candy thermometer for this one. Let’s get cooking!

Ingredients

1 cup hard cider (I used a pumpkin flavored)
1 cup light corn syrup
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda
2 Tbsp butter (room temperature) + extra for baking pan
~1 cup roasted/salted pistachios (shelled of course)

Warm an oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare a baking pan lined with tin foil (and lightly butter). Place in oven.

Into a pot add the hard cider down to cinnamon. Stir to combine and heat until 300 degrees Fahrenheit, which is Hard Crack stage. You will be tempted to stir this as it boils, DON’T. The sugar up the side of the pot crystallizes and can alter the consistency of your brittle. It probably took my pot about 30 mins to hit hard crack so be patient.

As you get ready for Hard Crack to be reached on your candy thermometer, have the butter and baking soda standing by. Once the magic number is reached, swiftly remove the pan from the oven and set close by. Remove your pot from the burner and add the butter and baking soda to your pot. Stir quickly and thoroughly to incorporate. Add pistachios and stir – your mixture will be solidifying which is going to make spreading it in the pan difficult – hence the warm pan and your expeditious stirring skills!

Pour the mixture onto the pan and quickly spread out as best as you can. This sugar will be VERY hot, please be careful. Sprinkle more pistachios on the top as you like. Set aside to cool.

The pot and any utensils you used should be soaked in hot water to help you clean up.

Once the brittle is cooled, break into bite sized or gift bag sizes. I angled sheet of cooked brittle and gently knocked it from the underside with a lemon squeezer so as not to damage the pretty face of the brittle. 🙂

Enjoy!

Jalapeno Artichoke Dip

November 12, 2016 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Artichoke Jalapeno Dip by D Fenwick, http://dfenwickphotography.com

Jalapeno Artichoke Dip

So there we were faced with a spicy food photography assignment. Out of time, I resorted to a favorite family recipe. Well, it’s my favorite and it’s my sister’s so I guess that makes it a family favorite. 🙂

Ultimately, the photo above didn’t have that epic spicy look to it; so we settled on a close up of me biting into a bright orange habanero. Believe me, that WAS spicy, and the photo well received at the webinar. But this post is about Dip! Creamy, yummy Jalapeno Artichoke Dip, so let’s get started.

You’ll need:
1 jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained (I used 6.5 oz, but if you like artichoke hearts, use the bigger one!)
1 8oz package of cream cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup Parmesan cheese
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 jalapenos (I love the seeds, but most can’t tolerate them, so leave them or remove them, your choice)

Using a food processor, drop in the artichoke hearts and pulse a few times, then add the garlic and jalapenos. Process till finely chopped then add remaining ingredients. Pulse to combine fully.

Into an oven safe dish bake at 350 degrees F until it begins to bubble. In my oven that’s about 40 minutes. A slightly brown crust on the top will begin to develop. Remove, let cool a bit and serve with crackers or sourdough bread. Enjoy!

Grain Free “Strawberry Shortcake” Cookies

March 23, 2016 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Gluten Free Cookies

Note: M&M’s cannot be reliably assumed to be gluten free, nor with wheat in the facilities, reliably grain free either. If you are highly sensitive to even trace amounts of gluten or grains, please don’t take a chance with M&Ms.

So there I was, meandering through Target and a pink bag of M&M’s caught my eye. White Strawberry Shortcake M&M’s to be exact. I knew these little treats would be wonderful in a cookie, and thus my quest began.

I’ll be honest with you, grain free cookies are not for everyone. The coconut flour I used can be oft-putting to some, but for those sensitive to grains this is an enjoyable little cookie. The applesauce keeps them quite moist. I loved them best straight out of the fridge, where their cold chewiness paired well with a hot cup of Earl Grey Tea. The addition of the M&Ms into the batter upped the yummy factor, but switching them out for dried fruit would work well too.

Let’s get cooking!

Preheat oven to 350 and place a silpat/non stick baking sheet in the pan.

2 eggs, beaten
1 cup applesauce
1-1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar (packed)
2 Cups coconut flour
1 tsp salt
1 8oz bag of White Strawberry Shortcake M&Ms

Begin by mixing the eggs and applesauce, then slowly move down the list. So mix in the vanilla. Next mix in the sugar, etc.

Because these cookies will not rise, the amount of dough you use and how you shape that dough will be what the final cookies look like. I used a melon baller to scoop out about a tablespoon, rolled and then pressed them into shape on the baking mat. Cook about 12-15 mins.

These cookies will be crumbly for a few hours after baking. Placing them in the fridge will help them stay together.

Enjoy!

Baked Salmon in Puff Pastry

January 20, 2016 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Salmon in Pastry

On a recent shopping adventure to Costco, I noticed a beautiful filet of Salmon in the meat department. I love salmon. I love it most at my local sushi joint, sake salmon, it’s like butter on the tongue with a sliver of fresh lemon…but I digress…

Tonight we are baking salmon in puff pastry. Because of food sensitives we *try* to avoid onion and garlic most evenings. Although this recipe is ideal for both, I did not use them – but go for it if your tummy can tolerate them. Let’s get cooking.

Fresh salmon filet – deboned, I left the skin on, but that’s your choice
4 tablespoons of butter
1/4 cup of white wine
1/4 cup of fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon dried tarragon
1 2” piece of lemongrass, cut lengthwise
1 egg – plus a little water beaten together for an egg wash
~ 1/3 cup grated pecorino cheese
1/4 cup crumbled goat feta
1/4 cup pine nuts
2 thawed puff pastry sheets
Dash of salt
Flour
Preheat your oven to 350F.

On a clean cutting board or serving dish place a layer of paper towels. Gently rinse your salmon, check for any bones then place on the paper towels and pat the fish dry. Set aside.

In a small saucepan melt the butter then add the salt, chopped parsley, and cut lemongrass. When the butter begins to sizzle add the wine and tarragon, bring to a simmer then add the pine nuts. Let this percolate for about five minutes then remove from heat and set aside to cool.

Next, prep your baking pan. I used a large baking pan with non-stick cookie mat laid in it. The mat was then lightly floured. Set aside.

On a floured rolling board place one of your puff pastry sheets and roll out to a size longer and wider than your filet. The sides will all need to be rolled to seal in the fish so make sure you have rolled the pastry enough to accomplish this later. When you’ve finished rolling one sheet place this in your baking pan.

Now center your filet in the middle of the pastry sheet skin side down. With a slotted spoon carefully scoop out the marinated parsley and nuts from the cooled butter mixture and scatter on top of the fish. If your fish looks a little dry, drizzle some of the butter mixture on it. No harm done, this will help the fish steam inside the pastry. Next sprinkle your goat cheese on the fish, then the grated pecorino. Next, roll out the 2^nd pastry sheet to fit the size of the 1^st one and cover the fish.

Carefully tuck the top pastry sheet around the fish, you’ll want a tight seal here. Now take your egg wash and paint around the edges of the pastry. You’ll be rolling the edge over twice and hopefully to the edge of the fish, so paint enough wash to roll this much. If you have more pastry than needed, cut some off BEFORE you start to roll. Once the edges are rolled up and close to the fish take a fork and press down the rolled edges for a tighter seal.

Finally, use the remaining egg wash to paint over the entire pastry for a nice golden appearance after baking. Make a 2″ slice in the top of the pastry to let out steam

We’ll be baking this for about 40 minutes. The pastry should turn a golden brown. I inserted a thermometer into the salmon and it was approximately 165F which was perfect for us.

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Spiced Marshmallows

November 9, 2015 by Ginger Leave a Comment

Pumpkin Marshmallows

I had to jump onto the pumpkin spice bandwagon again – if only for a brief flirtation with it’s seductive seasonal charms. Marshmallow Madness by Shauna Sever is a great book that takes you step by step thru the marshmallow making world. My instructions won’t give her detail justice – so be warned, and buy the book! I’ve also adjusted her pumpkin recipe slightly to make for a more personally appealing mallow. I enjoy spices, so I cater to that. I’ve used these marshmallows in my coffee AND layered between pancakes hot off the griddle – oh yes indeed-ie!

My secret to success was preparation. The mallows come together really quickly so having everything prepped and ready to add was key. Let’s get cooking!

What you’ll need:

First and foremost an electric mixer with a whisk attachment. We’ve killed a hand-held mixer making Divinity, so be kind to your kitchen tools and just go for the larger mixer.

5 tsps. unflavored gelatin + 1/2 cup cold water
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup canned pumpkin puree
3/4 tsp cinnamon
scant 1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla extract

food coloring is optional

Dusting powder: 1/4 cup cornstarch + 1/2 cup powdered sugar + 1/4 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice

1.) Prep an 8×8 baking pan with your oil of choice. I used coconut butter, but whatever your tummy can tolerate to keep the mallows from sticking will work.

2.) In a microwave safe bowl mix the gelatin & 1/2 cup cold water well and set aside.

3.) Into a medium sauce pan mix the sugar, 1/4 cup of corn syrup water and salt. You’ll want to heat this to a boil and 250 degrees F. Keep an eye on this and stir occasionally. While this is heating, into an electric mixer bowl pour the remaining 1/4 cup corn syrup.

4.) Take the gelatin bowl from Step 2 and heat in the microwave about 20-30 seconds depending on your appliance. You’ll want this melted. Pour into the electric mixer’s bowl and mix with the corn syrup on low.

5.) Last bit of prep – while the sauce pan is still heating to 250 degrees F, and your mixer is keeping the gelatin from solidifying, mix the last of your ingredients together in another bowl (pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla) and set aside.

6.) Once the heating corn syrup reaches 250 degrees F carefully add this to the mixer. Syrup flung onto the sides of the bowl will not make for good marshmallows. Once added to the bowl increase the speed to medium for 5 minutes, then increase to medium-high for 5 more minutes, then to high for 1 minute. Add the pumpkin mixture, return to high speed for 1 minute of mixing. You can add coloring at this point if you have a preference.

7.) Carefully pour the marshmallow mixture into the prepared pan, spreading it into the corners and flattening it as best as you can. Now take your dusting powder and sprinkle all over the top. Set aside. Overnight is good.

In the morning sprinkle the dusting powder onto your cutting board and layout the marshallows cutting to your preferred size. Roll in more powder to keep them from sticking together. We made a template of pumpkin faces and used cinnamon sugar to make the face.

Enjoy!