Spiced Rum Pecan Cupcakes with Candied Rum Pecans

We brought back some spiced rum from St. Maarten when we cruised the Caribbean earlier this year.  I knew when I first tasted it that I would need to bake something with it.  And when the Spiked Recipe Challenge ingredient this month turned out to be spiced rum?  The perfect reason to get out that bottle of rum and do some baking.

I used my go-to vanilla cupcake recipe and got creative.  Warning:  this is not your Grandma's rum cake.

I think you'll like this though.  Just as well - maybe even better!

Spiced Rum Pecan Cupcakes with Candied Rum Pecans

Cupcakes

• 2 2/3 cup all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 4 egg whites
• 1/4 cup whole milk
• 3/4 cup spiced rum
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 2/3 cup salted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift flour, sugar and baking powder into a large mixing bowl and then mix together on low.

In another bowl, stir egg whites, milk, rum and vanilla together.  Add butter to the flour mixture and mix together. As it starts to combine, slowly pour the milk mixture in and mix until completely combined.

Line a muffin tins with 16 baking cups.  Fill baking cups a little more than halfway. Bake for about 15 minutes or until cupcakes bounce back when touched lightly.  Remove and cool. Makes about 16 cupcakes.

Spiced Rum Frosting

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 3 teaspoon spiced rum
• 4 cups confectioner’s sugar
• 1 teaspoons milk

Beat butter and one teaspoon of rum together.  Add sugar slowly and beat until combined.

Scrape down the sides and add remaining rum and milk. Mix until smooth and creamy.  

Frost the cupcakes generously.

Candied Rum Pecans

• 1/2 cup pecan halves
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup spiced rum

Stir all of the ingredients together in a small saucepan.  Heat over medium-low heat until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid nearly reduced.  Stir frequently.  The nuts will be shiny and a bit sticky.  Let cool and divide among the cupcakes to decorate.

Pecans and spiced rum are a wonderful flavor combination!  These cupcakes had just the right level of rum flavor - and the pecans added a lovely texture.  All of my tasters agreed that the star of the show was the candied rum pecan topping.  

I'm joining Carrie from Frugal Foodie Mama and Julie from This Gal Cooks who are hosting another fun Spiked Recipe Challenge.  Stop over and see the other Spiced Rum entries!

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Habanero Honey Caviar

We watch a number of different cooking shows, which leads me into all sorts of mischief.  Like making my own cheese.  Or grinding my own sausage.

We watched a series of Master Chef UK challenges recently, and I saw one of the contestants make a caviar out of a juice.  Call me intrigued!

So I did a little bit of research on molecular gastronomy {semi-fancy words that mean science in the kitchen to me} and purchased a starter kit from Amazon.  After all, I figured, "How hard could it be?"



Honey Caviar 

Ingredients:

• 110 g (3.9 oz) habanero (or regular) honey
• 90 g (3.2 oz) water (filtered water or with low calcium content)
• 1.6 g sodium alginate (0.8%)
  
• 500 g (18 oz) water
• 2.5 g calcium chloride

Directions:

Prepare the honey mix for the caviar. Mix the sodium alginate in the 90 grams of water using an immersion blender until the sodium alginate is completely dissolved. If this is your first time doing this, be aware that this will take longer than expected.

Mix the sodium alginate and water with the honey using the immersion blender. Let the mix rest in the fridge for 12 hours to eliminate the air bubbles created by the immersion blender.

Once the mix has no air bubbles remove it from the fridge until it reaches room temperature - this will help make the mixture easier to drop into the calcium bath.

Prepare the calcium bath in a bowl by dissolving the calcium chloride in the water.

Fill a syringe with the honey-alginate mixture and expel it drop by drop into the calcium bath. The syringe needs to be high enough (about 6 inches from the bath surface) for the drops to sink and to prevent the formation of a tail.  {I found the mixture to be very thick and used a knife to cut the drops.}

They come out like this!

Leave the caviar "cooking" for about 1 minute in the calcium bath and then carefully remove it using a sieve. Then rinse it very gently with water to remove the calcium.

Consume immediately since the jellification process continues even after removing the caviar from the calcium bath and will eventually convert into a solid gel sphere with no magical liquid inside.

This was a really fun experiment!  I served it with a spiced almond ice cream and it was fantastic!  The preparation was not that difficult {once I had made a few anyway} and I really liked the way it looked when finished.

Do you do science experiments in your kitchen?

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Fancy Brownie Tartlets

With holiday parties and events right around the corner, you will want to have the ingredients for this pretty but oh-so-simple dessert on hand.


Fancy Brownie Tartlets

Ingredients:

• 4 squares (1 ounce each) unsweetened chocolate
• 4 tbsp. butter (1/2 stick)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 of a 17.3-ounce package Pepperidge Farm® Puff Pastry Sheets (1 sheet), thawed
• Confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 cup fresh raspberries
• 2 tablespoons red jelly (such as plum)

Directions:

Heat the oven to 400°F.

Place the chocolate and butter in a large microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on HIGH for 1 minute or until the butter is melted. Stir until the mixture is smooth.

Stir the sugar into the chocolate mixture. Stir in the eggs and vanilla until the mixture is well blended. Stir in the flour until the mixture is smooth.

Unfold the pastry sheet on a lightly floured surface. Roll the pastry sheet into a 15 x12-inch rectangle. Cut the pastry into 20 (3-inch) squares. Press the squares into 20 (3-inch) muffin-pan cups. Spoon about 1 tablespoon chocolate mixture into each square.

Bake the pastries for 18 minutes or they're until golden brown. Remove the pastries from the muffin-pans and cool on wire racks for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, microwave the jelly in a small bowl for 15 - 30 seconds, or until the jelly is liquid.  Drop the raspberries into the bowl and stir gently to coat them in the jelly.

Decorate the tartlets with a raspberry or with confectioners' sugar as desired.

You could use nuts or even pieces of candy {I used some of my Ghost Pepper Almond Brittle - delicious!} to decorate the tops.

However they are decorated, they will not stay on the plate very long!

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Tuesday's Table for November 12, 2013 - And a *Giveaway*!!

<center> <a href="http://zentmrs.blogspot.com/p/tuesdays-table.html" target="new"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_v75srsCQV_KCkh-PdU51jywq62t3RKYSLT3k1hatjAsRKSJF5FMG0yQ5aGanF6fOFzmPxEIaC-yr6W_WmNE88UaA-CsiixlvHwSf8vbR45UgapWXbQN9TgpK15hqc3xmEb0Hw/s1600/TuesdaysTable150x150-horiz+peppers.gif" /></a></center>


Time to fill Tuesday's Table!

Thanks to everyone who linked up last week.  For this week, I chose Couponing and Cooking's Peppermint Bark Donuts as my feature.  I wasn't quite sure I was ready to see Christmas flavors yet, but this put me right over the edge!  You need to head over and see her site.!

Please grab a button  - and thanks so much for sharing!

We also had a giveaway last week.  Picked randomly, the winner is <drumroll>

#44- Taylor Made Ranch!</drumroll>  Please send me your mailing address and I'll get that out to you right away.

Here's what I'll be giving away this week:

Taylor Oven Guide Thermometer

To enter, link up your recipes, crafts and ideas. And for each link you add, you will get one entry. And if you send over a friend who follows me and adds a comment telling me who sent them, you get an extra entry!

Only a few guidelines:

• Please share as many links as you like, but only if you haven't shared them here before
• Add a link back to Tuesday's Table (or grab a button above!) so others can join in the fun
• Follow me via Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Google+, RSS or Bloglovin (see my sidebar!)

No other requirements, but visit the other links here, and I'd love for you to sign up for my email reminder here!

And now, for this week's link party!

An InLinkz Link-up

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We're Crazy For Cranberry!

I love seeing the cranberries come into the stores this time of year.  Cranberry sauce is super easy to make, and tastes much better made from scratch than the canned version.  You'll find too, that cranberries aren't just for cranberry sauce anymore!

Here are some of my favorite cranberry dishes:



Pastry Cornucopia with Cranberry Mousse: These pastry cornucopias were really pretty easy to make, and filled with {yummy} cranberry mousse made a perfect alternative to pumpkin pie.

Kicked Up Cranberry Jam:  Cranberry sauce, with jalapenos, for your toast.

Cranberry Apple Pumpkin Bundt Cake:  One of my favorite cakes -all the flavors of fall.  In a cake.  Does it get better?

Cranberry Sauce:  Traditional cranberry sauce is easy to make.  And easy to can for later!

Pork Loin with Cranberry Balsamic Vinegar Sauce:  Cranberry and balsamic vinegar taste great together - and are a great flavor companion for pork.

Cranberry Couscous:  Creamy and tart.  Pretty too.  Wouldn't it look good next to your turkey?

Chocolate Cranberry Cupcakes:  Chocolate and cranberries are another great match.

Mulled Cranberry Apple Cider:  This warm, comforting drink is easy to prepare and is a great finale for a holiday meal.


Which of these tickle your fancy?

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Best Ever Southern Cornbread

I'm participating in a Virtual Recipe Swap where we all shared a favorite family recipe.  We get matched with another blogger - they make our recipe and we make theirs.

I was lucky to draw Heather who blogs at The Homesteading Hippy.  Her blog is incredible - packed full of great ideas.  The recipe she shared with me was her Best Ever Southern Cornbread.  Like me, Heather is not from the South, but her husband is and she perfected this recipe to satisfy his Southern soul.  I loved this recipe and hope that I did it justice.


Best Ever Southern Cornbread

Ingredients:

• 1½ cups ground cornmeal
• ½ cup whole wheat flour (I used all purpose flour)
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1½ cups buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 8 tablespoons melted, unsalted butter

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 400°. While it is heating, place the butter in a cast iron skillet to melt.

In a large mixing bowl, add the dry ingredients and blend.  In a separate bowl, mix the buttermilk and egg and mix well.  Blend the wet ingredients into the dry until just moist.

Add the melted butter from the skillet, saving a bit in the pan.

Swirl remaining butter in pan to coat.  Pour cornbread batter in the skillet.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown. Dot with butter on top after removing from oven.

Although, being a Yankee, I can't comment on the authenticity of this Southern Cornbread, I can certainly tell you that it is indeed delicious!  It is light and moist, and has just a touch of sweetness.  I loved baking it in my cast iron skillet - I think that is what gave it the delightful crispy crust.

And Heather was right - a slice of this makes a fantastic breakfast the next day if you have leftovers.

I've made some (which is waiting patiently in my freezer) to use with a great cornbread stuffing recipe - keep an eye out for it!  Thanks so much Heather for sharing your recipe!

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Slow Cooker Pot Roast

I really love my crock pot.  Though I do love to spend hours in the kitchen, sometimes I like to do other things.  And with my crock pot, it seems like I am doing both!

This pot roast tastes almost like the ones my Grandma used to make.  Of course, back in "olden times" one found pork roasts with more fat, changing both the flavor and the relative healthiness of the roast.  This recipe is best with a boneless pork shoulder, but is delicious with pork loin as well.


Slow Cooker Pot Roast

Ingredients:

• 2-3 pound boneless pork roast
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cups sliced carrots
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes
• 6 ounces tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup beef broth
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 8-10 red potatoes, quartered
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper (or more or less to taste)
• 2 sprigs fresh oregano

Directions:

Spray the inside of your 6 or 7 quart slow cooker with cooking spray.  Add the carrots, onion and cherry tomatoes to the slow cooker.

Brown the roast - 2 to 3 minutes on each side over medium-high heat usually does it.  Salt and pepper the roast.

Add the roast to the slow cooker, then add the tomato sauce, beef broth and red wine vinegar.  Sprinkle with cayenne pepper.

Gently stir the ingredients to coat and to bring some of the vegetables up around the roast.  Add the potatoes, and place the oregano on top.

Cook for 8 hours on low.  Serve with crusty Italian bread or maybe a spicy cornbread.

This is a delicious and hearty meal that pleases just about everyone.  Not only that, but you spent only a few minutes in the kitchen in the morning, leaving the rest of the day free for yourself!  

Leftovers of this Slow Cooker Pot Roast make great soup when you add some beef or chicken broth, additional vegetables (frozen peas are great) and brown rice.  Two meals, minimal cooking!

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Tuesday's Table for November 5, 2013 - And a *Giveaway*!!

<center> <a href="http://zentmrs.blogspot.com/p/tuesdays-table.html" target="new"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_v75srsCQV_KCkh-PdU51jywq62t3RKYSLT3k1hatjAsRKSJF5FMG0yQ5aGanF6fOFzmPxEIaC-yr6W_WmNE88UaA-CsiixlvHwSf8vbR45UgapWXbQN9TgpK15hqc3xmEb0Hw/s1600/TuesdaysTable150x150-horiz+peppers.gif" /></a></center>


Time to fill Tuesday's Table!

Thanks to everyone who linked up last week.  For this week, I chose Cooking the Recipe's Pumpkin Krispies as my feature.  Such a cute and tasty twist on a classic!  You need to head over and see her site.!

Please grab a button  - and thanks so much for sharing!

We also had a giveaway last week.  Picked randomly, the winner is <drumroll>

#64 - Hot Momma's Kitchen!</drumroll>  Please send me your mailing address and I'll get that out to you right away.

Here's what I'll be giving away this week:

Tovolo Clear Dripless Baster

To enter, link up your recipes, crafts and ideas. And for each link you add, you will get one entry. And if you send over a friend who follows me and adds a comment telling me who sent them, you get an extra entry!

Only a few guidelines:

• Please share as many links as you like, but only if you haven't shared them here before
• Add a link back to Tuesday's Table (or grab a button above!) so others can join in the fun
• Follow me via Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Google+, RSS or Bloglovin (see my sidebar!)

No other requirements, but visit the other links here, and I'd love for you to sign up for my email reminder here!

And now, for this week's link party!

An InLinkz Link-up

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30 Minute Chili Con Carne

One of the things I like best about fall is hearty soups and stews... and chili is one of the best stews around.  This recipe goes together really quickly, but packs a lot of flavor.  Great for a weeknight meal!  {Make extra - it keeps well and is wonderful the next day too!}


30 Minute Chili Con Carne

Ingredients:

• 2 red bell peppers, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into bite-sized strips
• 1 pound beef tenderloin, cut into bite-sized strips
• 2 tablespoons flour 
• 3 tablespoons chili powder 
• 2 tablespoons ground cumin 
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper 
• 2 15-ounce cans diced tomatoes
• 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
• 1/4 cup red wine vinegar 

Directions:


Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a Dutch oven or deep skillet. Add the bell peppers, garlic, onion, pork and beef and saute for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Stir in the flour, chili powder, cumin, and cayenne pepper. Stir over low heat, stirring frequently, for 3 minutes to cook the spices.

Add the tomatoes, tomato paste and vinegar and bring to a boil over medium heat. Simmer the chili, stirring occasionally for 20-25 minutes, until thick and the meat is tender.

I love this chili.  I actually add more cayenne because I like it extra spicy, but you can tailor that to your taste.

You can also add cooked black beans if you like beans in your chili.  Cook the beans at least 5 minutes with the chili so that take on some of the amazing flavor.

Serve with hot cornbread for a traditional offering or tortillas if you'd like a bit of a twist.  Or even over a baked potato.  This is versatile!

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10 Super Side Dishes

Now that we've enjoyed all of our Halloween activities and eaten our share of Halloween candy, it's time to start thinking about Thanksgiving.  I love Thanksgiving, but I think we shortchange it a bit in our race to Christmas.  In an attempt to be deliberate about enjoying each part of this holiday season, I put together 10 of my favorite side dishes, appropriate for the Thanksgiving table.

1. Spicy Sour Cream Hash Browns - This particular recipe has been a family favorite for many years, and makes its way to just about every family holiday meal.
2. Roasted Ranch Root Vegetables - Looking for a way to get your kids to eat any vegetable that isn't covered in ranch dressing?  Try this recipe - it has the flavor of ranch but lets the sweet natural flavor of the vegetables shine through.
3. Grilled Artichokes with Herb Aioli - Break out the grill for this artichoke recipe.  Before trying this recipe, I'd never had artichokes with anything besides butter.  Glad I decided to broaden my range.
4. Coconut Pineapple Rice - Simple to make, with loads of tropical flavor.
5. Rosemary and Thyme Shortbread - These are fantastic.  Salty and sweet, herbaceous and buttery, with a hint of pepper.  And the smell that fills your house as they are baking is out of this world! 
6. Fresh Corn Salad - This is the perfect combination of sweet and salty and spicy from the corn and cheese and jalapenos.  Yum!
7. Spicy Corn and Pepper Casserole -  I love corn (could eat it every single day) and I love peppers (ditto).  And this casserole brings those flavors together in a wonderful, creamy, spicy combination that is out of this world.  Give it a whirl! 
8. Roasted Potatoes with Lemon Vinaigrette - Oh my, are these tasty.  Crisp and hot with lovely herb-y lemon flavor. 
9. Sweet and Spicy Cornbread - This is wonderful hot from the over, with butter and honey.  Perhaps habanero honey if you're looking for a bit of extra oomph!
10. Italian Rice Balls - Serve with your favorite marinara sauce, and enjoy the delicious, melty insides and the crispy outside!

Which ones do you think would be delicious on your Thanksgiving table?

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