I'm a big fan of recipes that combine at least four or more ingredients that they are decadent enough to begin with, but combined, create this magical, sugar coma-inducing masterpiece, much like the one you see above. They're the kind of treats that are so sugary, so powerful, that you widen your eyes and suck in your cheeks in shock at the first bite. That shocks soon wears off into utter delight, and you're lost in a sugary heaven.
Whew. And then I wake up.
Seriously, though these Carmelita bars from Eddybles look amazing. The pretty toasty white parts atop the treat are the streusel topping. And the only slightly daunting part looks to be unwrapping 48 of those little caramel cubes (and making sure you don't burn them on top of the stove). If you really wanted to be bad, you could substitute the suggested bittersweet or semisweet chips for milk chocolate, to achieve that cheek-sucking reaction I described above.
No. that isn't a typo in the title. Yesterday was March 14th, which, in abbreviated form, is 3.14 (feel free to add the 1592653589793238... if you so desire), better known to us non-mathematicians simply as Pi.
As is usually the tradition here at Slashfood, we are willing to turn just about any circumstance into something to celebrate, so why should Pi Day be any exception? Fortunately for us, the blogosphere was full of others who jumped on this bandwagon as well. In fact, Kitchen Parade collected submissions all week, resulting in dozens of mouth-watering pie recipes all linked up on one page.
So without further ado, following are my top eight favorites, which I will be putting on my "need to make" list. (Corresponding photos can be found in the gallery at the bottom of the page after the jump.)
I am constantly in awe of my friend Jennie's (she of Straight from the Farm fame) level of food creativity. She is constantly coming up with delicious new recipes, doing things like making cheese (people keep telling me that cheesemaking is easy, but I've yet to give a whirl) and making cranberries dance and sing (well, not literally). But I do believe that she has outdone herself this time with these jars of homemade dulce de leche. It actually appears to be pretty easy to make and if you're looking for a last-minute homemade holiday gift, this might be your answer.
Many "limited edition" candy bars are limited because they are tied specifically to some event or celebrity (Reese's Peanut Butter and Banana Elvis bars) or maybe a holiday. A lot of limited edition candy bars are also, well, just lame. But this ones sounds promising: Twix Java.
Besides being an excellent name for a video game character, Twix Java is a new limited edition candy bar that consists of coffee, caramel, and chocolate cookie covered in milk chocolate. The Candy Addict has tried it and really likes it.
Since this is a limited edition, maybe you can buy 20 or 30 bars for your favorite coffee/chocolate addict and put them in a Christmas stocking.
Imperial Exclusive Vodka from Emperor Brands L.L.C., made in France, is 40% abv. / 80 proof. This super premium vodka is made from a secret recipe that has been handed down for generations. This is a very clean and clear vodka made from the finest French grains and ultra pure and smooth Normandy water, then distilled five times. Many vodkas have as much taste as a glass of pure medicinal grade alcohol. In other words, none. They have had every trace of taste filtered out until there is no character left. That is not the case with Imperial Exclusive Vodka.
When I first tried this spirit I immediately noticed the aroma. Faint but very evident hints of butter, sweet caramel or toffee, the slightest trace of vanilla. I was trying to place the exact scent when it struck me. It was like the faintest touch of the best part of the aromas from the gorgeous movie theaters I vaguely remember from my childhood. Not the cookie cutter places that have two dozen tiny theaters crowded under one roof that you find today. Perpetually grimy and lacking soul. No, I mean the grand old places that only played one movie for a week or two before the next came along. The ones that were spotlessly clean, had comfy, red velvet chairs to sink deep into; and ushers to help you to your seats. Walls decorated with hand-painted murals and thick velvet curtains thirty feet high that spread across the walls right before the lights dimmed to soften the acoustics of the room.
Caramel is my chocolate. Actually, I believe there is only one thing better than caramel really, and that is dulce de leche. Top it off with crispy, deep fried churros coated in cinnamon sugar and we have reached a whole new level of dessert heaven.
Ellie at Kitchen Wench recently received a jar of dulce de leche from a fellow blogger, and proceeded to whip up a batch of churros for dipping based on a recipe by Jane Milton in her cookbook 'Mexican'. Though churros are traditionally piped from a pastry bag using a star tip, (which forms the ridges along the churro surface) she didn't have one large enough so opted to pipe without a tip instead.
Since Ellie used a jar of pre-made dulce de leche, I'll leave you with my recipe for making it yourself, which you can find after the jump.
All it takes to enjoy caramel is a sweet tooth and, fortunately, I happen to have a large one. I say fortunately, because that sweet tooth is what prompted me to try Caramoo caramels at the SF Winter Fancy Foods Show this weekend. The all-natural caramels are loaded with European butter and full-cream milk, hand made in small batches and individually wrapped. They have the unusual property of being delicate and crumbly, so that with each bite the candies almost seem to dissolve on your tongue. It is a sharp contrast to the very commonly found chewy caramels, but a welcome one, as each buttery candy is incredibly satisfying. They come in original and honey flavors. The latter clearly tastes like honey, but I happened to have a slight preference for the classically flavored original.
The company also stocks Caramoo Creme Fudge in Chocolate, Vanilla and Mocha, each of which starts with the same caramel base as the original caramels and ends with a product that is light, creamy and delicious.
Most of the candies seem to be heading towards wholesalers at the moment, but you can easily place an individual order on the company's website.
Anyone who loves sugar, loves caramel. This is primarily due to the fact that caramel is cooked sugar, often with butter, cream or other flavorings added to it to alter the texture and taste. Regardless of the specifics, however, a good caramel is a wonderful thing and Trish Deseine's Caramel has plenty of wonderful things to offer a reader with a sweet tooth.
The book was originally published in French under the title Du caramel plein la bouche and made it to translation for an English-speaking audience due to the popularity of some of the author's previous works, as well as her fine writing style. The book goes into great detail about the process of making caramel and well over 100 recipes that it can be incorporated into. Desserts and other inherently sweet dishes are obvious inclusions, but Deseine includes recipes that feature meats and vegetables, as well. The idea of a primarily savory caramel dish might sound slightly odd, but only until you consider that there are many dishes that involve natural sugars from fruits and vegetables, including caramelized onions and caramelized pineapple, which is included in Pizza with smoked chicken, caramelized pineapple and mozzarella. Some of the sweet dishes include Caramel Fondue and Caramel Fudge.
I am not a big fan of creamy things, including cream-based soups and cream-based drinks and desserts. That means that while I like the flavor of Bailey's, I just can't drink very much of it at one time. When I got a bottle of the new Bailey's with a hint of Caramel Irish Cream Liqueur, I loved the flavor (more than Jonathan did) and began to come up with recipes that would show it off. I settled on baking a batch of cookies, though the liqueur would do well in a cake, too.
To play up the caramel flavor, I used brown sugar in the cookies and stirred in a combination of white chocolate and butterscotch chips. The overall flavor from the liqueur was subtle, but noticeable, and the mix of sugar, chips and Bailey's was a winning combination. The cookies are on the softer/chewier side, so the chips actually stand out as adding a slightly firmer texture to the treat.
If Bailey's isn't your thing, or if you can't find the caramel, not to worry. I included some variations after the recipe:
I picked up a box of the Fleur de Sel Caramels from Trader Joe's last week as a holiday treat with the intention of reviewing them, as well as enjoying them. At less than $7 for 14-ounces of one of the hottest candy items of the year, they were a terrific deal and I wondered how well they would stack up to some of the other salted caramels that I'm familiar with.
Individually wrapped, the large candies are very sticky and chewy, exactly the sort of things that your orthodontist would have told you to avoid if you ever had braces. They have a pleasant, but relatively mild (compared to some other salted caramels) saltiness that makes your mouth water as you eat them and tempers the naturally sugary taste of caramel. Buttery and smooth, these are very good caramels, especially at the price.
Cybele, from Candyblog, wrote up her own review of these the other day, so be sure to check hers out for another perspective on their flavor and a fantastic shot of what the caramels look like when unwrapped.
The trend of mixing sweet and savory in candies is still going strong - and this is a good think for candy lovers. A pinch of salt really enhances the sweetness of sugar, chocolate, caramel or other sweet things by creating an obvious contrast. It also creates an instant mouthwatering effect - and who doesn't want food that's mouthwateringly good?
Getting back to candies, sea salt caramels - which are caramels spiked with a bit of salt - are the ultimately combination of salty and sweet. If you're a caramel purist, you'll want to skip the chocolate coated caramels and go straight for The Little Flower Candy Co's sea salt caramels, which are surprisingly salty and crazily addictive. Trader Joe's is also selling sea salt caramels in little wooden gift boxes this month and they are probably priced a little bit lower than LFC's candies. If you want to get some chocolate with your caramels, try Fran's Gray Salt Caramels. The award-winning chocolates have a sprinkle of salt on top and are one of the confections that kicked off the trend to begin with. For a lower priced, but equally chocolaty version, Crate and Barrel is selling a gift tin packed with them. It would also be a great thing to bring as a hostess gift for a holiday party, as it will probably be shared with everyone during dessert.
Baileys has launched a Drinkable Desserts contest to promote their new flavors of cream liqueurs - Baileys Mint Chocolate and Baileys Caramel - which were created to give fans of Baileys Original Irish Cream a few new flavor options. The contest calls drinkers to come up with a drink recipe that features one of the three flavors and is inspired by a real dessert, making the cocktail a drinkable dessert and a holiday indulgence.
You won't be able to see all the recipes and vote on your favorite one until after December 18th, but that still gives you plenty of time to pick up a bottle of Baileys so that you can give your favorites a try over the Christmas holiday or New Year's. The voting will last until January 21st, when the winning recipe will be selected. The grand prize winner will receive a trip to New York City for two for a private cooking class in the Gourmet Cooking Arts Center with Chef de Cuisine, Jennifer Day and the winning recipe will be featured in the April 2007 issue of Gourmet magazine.
Read on for the recipe for Baileys Caramel Apple Pie-tini (pictured).
Joe, at Culinary in the Desert Country, usually does a great job with plating and photographing the recipes that he blogs, in addition to choosing ones that sound promising in the first place. His Snickers Fudge takes the cake, though. Not only does it look perfectly made and far better than a "real" Snickers bar could hope to, but it sounds even more decadent than the popular candy bar. The one significant twist that his recipe offers is that it has peanut butter in several of the layers, adding a distinctive richness to the chocolate layers and the nougat. (Snickers - are you listening?) Normally, making the nougat would be a challenging endeavor for even experienced cooks, but this version is made in part with marshmallow creme - hence the designation of the recipe as fudge - and has a fluffy texture. Salted peanuts are folded into the layer before it is topped of with a thick layer of chewy caramel. Joe points out that the only thing difficult about making these is that you have to wait for each layer to set up before moving on. The actual work is very simple and primarily involves melting and spreading, so this might be a fun thing to make with your kids over the holidays
I'm not a religious person, but I have a friend of the family who had a calling when she was in her 20's to join a religious order. She was welcomed at Mount Saint Mary's Abbey in Wrentham, MA where, since 1956, the sisters have been making Trappistine Quality Candy as a way of being self supporting in their endeavors of monastic labor, 2006 is the Golden Jubilee of their making high quality chocolates, caramel, and fudge "in prayer and with love." They aren't the only monastery out there producing premium food products for us to enjoy. Their fellow Cistercian monasteries produce honey products and syrups among several other items.
All over the country, and world, religious orders make some of the finest foods and drink for us to enjoy. This is a tradition that has been around for a thousand years in Europe and followed over to the US. You have cheese makers, preserve and jam makers, bakers, and brewers, as well as many others working hard to make the best products that they can, as a way to celebrate life and their commitment to self and others. I wish to thank them all, but most especially the Trappist and Abbey brewers in Belgium for their fine and tasty libations that I enjoy on a regular basis.
What are the best and worst fillings that you'll find in your Halloween candy this year? Cracked.com investigates.
Naturally, they pick "caramel" for the best category, and they're OK with nougut too. But don't even mention the words "peanuts" or "coconut." Not only do they believe the peanuts don't belong in candy bars, they wonder "why would anyone voluntarily eat coconut?"
Hey, I kinda like coconut in my candy, within reason. In an Almond Joy or Mounds or in a Whitman's sampler? Thumbs up! But when they start adding it to candy bars that have peanut butter in them...ugh.
Baileys has launched a 
I'm not a religious person, but I have a friend of the family who had a calling when she was in her 20's to join a religious order. She was welcomed at 
What are the best and worst fillings that you'll find in your Halloween candy this year? 
May is National BBQ Month and National Hamburger Month
Cupcakes, not for dessert (unless beef is your idea of a treat)
Because eating French Fries in the car is so tough
