Cooking... by the seat of my Pants! » sweets

Peanut Butter Ice Cream Recipe

Jerry — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 22:37:58 +0000

It’s summer and it’s hot. In my part of the country this means weeks of 100-plus degree weather. It’s the perfect time for ice cream… And to play with the brand-spanking-new ice cream maker attachment that my wife bought me for my birthday. The timing couldn’t be better.

I searched the bloggosphere for a few days trying to decide what I wanted to make first. I really couldn’t decide if I wanted to make ice cream, sorbet or sherbet and it wasn’t easy narrowing down the choices. There are a ton of great ice cream recipes out there.

Did I want to make this coffee ice cream from Elise at Simply Recipes or should I make David Lebovitz’s Salted Butter Caramel Ice Cream? Was I more in the mood for something lighter like the Very Berry Sherbet from comfy belly or this amazing sounding lime sorbet from Eating Cleveland? This was going to be no easy decision, but a decision had to be made.

One thing that has kept me from diving headlong into making even basic vanilla ice cream is the custard base. It’s time consuming and can be difficult. Custard bases also require a lot of attention, which can be difficult in a house full of rowdy kids and a dog who is usually underfoot.

This fear has been lessened by the discovery of a no cook custard base from Kitchen Mage, but I still wanted to start off with something a little less involved and that’s when I came across the recipe for peanut butter ice cream you see here. Cream, yes! Custard, No. Perfection.

The recipe was a breeze to make, works well and ends up tasting somewhat like peanut butter sugar cookie dough. The peanut flavor is pretty intense, even using bargain brand peanut butter. If you are making ice cream for the first time, this recipe might just be what you’re looking for.

… [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2010. | Permalink | 8 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Desserts, ice cream, peanut butter, Recipes, summer, sweets

Strawberry Smoothies

Jerry — Wed, 12 May 2010 19:43:57 +0000

The weather here in far Northern California is finally edging to warm and sunny, soon to be followed by blazing hot. Along with the rise in temperature comes a steady decrease in the desire for long cooked, slow braised or even warm foods.

To put it simply, we’re entering the salad, ice cream and smoothie months of the year around here. Milkshakes have replaced cakes, cookies and brownies as the dessert of choice and the kids clamber after the ice cream truck in the afternoons. Summer is coming to the North State and there is just no better afternoon pick-me-up than a frosty glass of silken fruity goodness.

Smoothies are a good way to get more fruit into my kids’ diets as well, since only my youngest will readily choose a banana, apple or any other fruit in favor of something else they probably shouldn’t have been going after. (Dad needs to stop buying that stuff… I need to talk to him about that.)

Most smoothie recipes call for banana, but my kids despise them in their smoothies. This recipe is all about the berries, but without the sweetness of the banana a little sugar may be needed to get the smoothy sweet enough to be drinkable. Fortunately that usually translates to less than they would get in a soda, though this particular batch of berries was pretty tart and required more than usual.

Do you have a favorite smoothie recipe? A favorite flavor combination? Is there something that you add that you don’t let your kids know about? We’d love to know, so drop a comment and let us in on your little tips for healthier snacks.

… [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2010. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Berries, Desserts, Fruit, Recipes, strawberries, summer, sweets

Lidia Cooks From The Heart Of Italy

Jerry — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 11:25:09 +0000

By Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali, Author of Lidia Cooks from the Heart of Italy: A Feast of 175 Regional Recipes>

I would like to extend my thanks to Caitlin Price of FSB Associates for making this … [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: cavatelli, Desserts, Italian, News and Reviews, Pasta, Recipes, sweets

Chocolate Vanilla Chip Biscotti

Jerry — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 18:00:00 +0000

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups All-purpose flour

1/3 cup Unsweetened cocoa powder

3 tsp Baking powder

1/2 cup Sugar

1/2 cup Brown sugar; packed

1/4 cup Margarine or butter; softened

3 Eggs

1 cup White vanilla chips

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray 1 large or 2 small cookie sheets with nonstick cooking spray. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. In med … [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2010. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: biscotti, chocola, Chocolate Recipes, cocoa, Cookies, Desserts, sweets

Reindeer Wrangler Cookie Recipe

Jerry — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 18:42:41 +0000

Christmas is for cookies and brownies and other luscious sweets. In my house this has traditionally meant all different kinds of cookies, but none were ever really a true Christmas tradition. None were seasonal, none were specific to the holidays and I suppose most of all, none were mine.

This year I set out to remedy that and to do something that I absolutely never do. I stepped out of my comfort zone completely and modified a cookie recipe to reflect what my kids love to eat and to enhance the flavors that I like.

I was terrified. I was uneasy. I was sure it wouldn’t work, because I’m a cook, not a baker and i was sure to screw this up.

I didn’t. It was wonderful! The cookies were perfect, tasty, sweet, tangy and speckled with tiny glimpses of cranberry and white chocolate.

This is a modified version of my wife’s famous Cowboy Cookie recipe, but with a few twists however, a cowboy cookie has a traditional set of ingredients. This recipe is no longer a cowboy cookie by definition, so I decided in the spirit of the season to dub these “Reindeer Wranglers”, both because the tiny speckles of cranberry reminded me of Rudolph’s nose and because I figured that Santa’s reindeer crew would probably enjoy these a great deal.

Now our family has its very own Christmas cookie tradition, invented in our own kitchen and made with love. It makes me happier than it should, I think.

What are your Christmas cookie traditions? Is there anything that jut HAS to be baked every year? We’d love to hear about it.

… [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2009. | Permalink | 4 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: christmas, Cookies, Holiday-Recipes, Recipes, sweets

Cranberry Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies

Jerry — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 23:37:37 +0000

‘Tis the season once again. with that comes the call for cookies, candies and other sweets to thrill and delight both young and old. (And not-so-old, as well.) This year I’m trying to focus on the flavors of the season with a highlight on seasonal fruits, berries nuts and whatever else I can find that fits well with winter fare. These cookies fit the bill for all of these things.

Cranberries are everywhere at this time of year, both in their plump and tart ripe state and in their dried form. It was the latter that inspired me to make this recipe, which is adapted from one I found at Baking Bites and yet another I found somewhere else, but can’t remember at the moment.

These may not be traditional Christmas cookies for most people, but I think for my family they have just found a permanent place on my “must bake for the Holidays” list, along with my Aunt Thelma’s Tea cookies and my mothers peanut butter cookies. they are crisp, light, pack a ton of flavor into every bite and were adored by my kids (and the neighbor’s kids). Anything that gets the whole family rummaging at the cookie jar is a surefire winner for me, especially when the batch makes 48, so there is no need to double the recipe.

C’mon, put a little seasonal love in your holiday baking. make these cookies. Do it now! I’ll continue when you get back…

… [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2009. | Permalink | 7 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: christmas, Cookies, Desserts, Holiday-Recipes, Recipes, sweets

Honey Walnut Baked Apples

Jerry — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 20:15:54 +0000

Recipe ideas can come from anywhere. This post is proof of that. The idea for baked apples was driven into both my head and that of my oldest son one afternoon during an episode of “Little Bear” that the youngest was watching on NickJr. It only took one mention of honey baked apples to have us both drooling over the concept.

Luckily for us, Fall is upon us and with it are apples. The stores are overflowing with fresh, delicious apples of every variety, shape and color, all perfectly ripe and in-season, so getting the right ingredients was no chore at all. The only difficulty was in coring the apples… Or it would have been, if I hadn’t had two very eager kids helping me with it.

So here I present to you the new favorite dessert in the Russell household. A dish that has been given nods of approval from all but my youngest, the nuggetarian. (I couldn’t get him to try it. Had he done so, I’m sure he would like it as well.) It’s cold outside folks. Isn’t this the perfect way to end a long day? Just this and a Muscatto and all is well.

… [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2009. | Permalink | 8 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: apples, baking, Desserts, Nuts, Recipes, sweets, Vegetarian

Glazed Lemon Wedges

Jerry — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 01:19:40 +0000

Summer is here and as much as I love chocolate in all its many incarnations, warm weather calls for treats that are a bit lighter and brighter than my favorite winter fare. The higher temperatures also mean we’re less likely to gravitate towards large treats, preferring instead to savor smaller bites and brighter flavors. This dessert fits that bill in all ways and more.

These may be mix based, but I guarantee that you’ll overlook that once you’ve gotten a taste of these little explosions of flavor. There is simply nothing here not to love. Every bite is an immersion in all that is wonderful about lemon. Tart, sweet and tangy with just a hint of saltiness in the glaze. Eating one of these bars is sort of like drinking lemonade mixed with rocket fuel. It’s an unforgettable experience.

Simple, wonderful and light. Perfect for the summer no matter where you are. Please give this recipe a try. And if you make something like it, feel free to leave a link in the comments.

… [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2009. | Permalink | 4 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Cookies, dessert, Desserts, lemon, summer, sweets, treats

Chocolate Cafe Mocha Cheesecake Recipe

Jerry — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 00:45:55 +0000

Cheesecake may just be the perfect food. It is certainly one of the oldest on record. It is believed that cheesecake was served to the Olympic athletes during the first Olympic games in 776 B.C. Any food with that kind of staying power just has to have something to … [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2008. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: cakes, cheesecake, chocolate, dessert, Desserts, Holiday-Recipes, liqueur, sweet, sweets

The Best German Apple Pie Recipe Ever

Jerry — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 15:57:32 +0000

When we invited our friends over for Christmas this year, I only asked for one thing. I asked for the apple pie pictured above and the recipe that went with it. The fact that the pie dish pictured was also given to us was a bonus (and a very nice one, thanks guys!) but the real gift is a pie that I will gladly make and share with friends and family for the rest of my life.

I know I say this all the time, but the simple things in life are usually the best. This hods true with food as well. Overcomplicating a recipe usually does little to enhance the flavors of the food, it just adds extra steps that are not necessary. (There are, of course, times when this rule does not hold true, but this is not one of those cases.)

This has to be just about the simplest recipe for a German apple pie I have ever seen. There’s no fuss, nothing picky or finicky, just a good-solid recipe that tastes far better than you would expect for the ingredients used. In my opinion this is true perfection.

I know that statement may ruffle a few feathers. Everyone has their own favorite apple pie recipe. Of those, I’m sure that 99% would be a pie that I would enjoy as well. But for me, Brie’s German Apple Pie is quite simply the pie I will crave whenever I think of apple pie in the future. I’ve been spoiled, but I’m not complaining.

The recipe as given to m is only for the pie filling. I’m not sure if she made her own crust or if she used a prepared crust, so I’ll leave that decision up to you. If you’re bent on making your own pie crust, the best recipe I’ve ever seen for one is here. I am not a baker by nature, so if my wife wants to make a crust from scratch, great! If not, I’ll use what I can get. With this filling adorning it, it could be shoe leather, I really wouldn’t care.

… [visit site to read more]

© Jerry D. Russell and Cooking... by the seat of my Pants!.com, 2008. | Permalink | 24 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: apples, christmas, cinnamon, Desserts, Holiday-Recipes, pie, pies, sweet, sweets, Thanksgiving