Black Peppercorn Ice Cream with Vodka Cranberry Sauce

Slightly spiced ice cream, with an almost floral flavor, goes wonderfully with tart-sweet cranberries.

Ice cream:
1 cup milk
1 cup sugar
3/4 tbsp ground black peppercorn
1/2 tbsp bruised/almost cracked black peppercorns
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped out
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups heavy cream
6 egg yolks

Heat the milk, sugar, ground pepper, peppercorns, vanilla bean seeds and bean, salt and 1 cup cream in a sauce pan, when it is hot remove from heat and let sit for half hour or so.

When it has steeped, heat it back up.  Whisk egg yolks together while it it heating.  When it is hot, very slowly pour the pepper mixture into the egg yolks while whisking.  Put the whole bit back in the saucepan.

Set a fine strainer on top of a large bowl, in the bowl put the remaining cup of cream

Return to heat, and stir/scrape constantly until it thickens and coats the back of the spatula.   Then pour through strainer into bowl with cream, throw away peppercorns/bean left in strainer. Stir the mixture together over an ice bath until cool.  Refrigerate until chilled.

Freeze in your ice cream maker.

Cranberry Sauce:
4 cups cranberries (fresh are best)
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup vodka
1 tsp pectin

Heat cranberries, sugar, water, and half of vodka in a sauce pan, cook and stir until cranberries are bursting.  Add pectin, continue heating/stirring until it is pretty thick.  It will thicken as it cools though.  When it is thick enough and most all cranberries have burst, remove from heat.  Let cool for a few minutes, then stir in remaining vodka.

Serve over the ice cream!

Currant and White Peppercorn Scones

Well-loved at every tea party I've ever had.  Good with earthy teas.

Recipe:

2 cups flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp cream of tartar

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp white pepper (more or less to taste)

1/2 cup butter, softened

1/2 - 3/4 cup milk

1/2 - 3/4 cup dried currants

Oven at 400 degrees.  Sift dry ingredients together.  Cut in the butter (I do this with my hands - makes it easier) until it is coarse.  Add the milk until it is doughy, add as much as you need.  Add dried fruit, knead three or four times and roll out.  Cut into whatever shape you'd like, I just use a knife and make triangles.   Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet for 10 minutes or so, until golden, time depending on the size of your scones.   Enjoy with tea!  And lemon curd...recipe coming soon...

Braided Bread

Airy yet satisfying white bread braided and sprinkled with poppy-seeds.

Recipe:
1/2 cup warm water
1 1/2 cups warm milk
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1 tbsp sugar
5 - 5 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp salt
1 egg
poppy-seeds

Add yeast to warm water.  Measure in sugar, and mix until dissolved.  Add 2 cups of flour, mix well, and let proof for ten minutes.  If the bubbles appear, then stir in the salt.  Then add flour 1 cup at a time until it is the right consistency.  Knead for five to ten minutes.  Place in greased bowl, and let rise for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, it should double in size.

Punch the dough down, knead a little, and then divide in half.  Divide each half into thirds.  Roll out the thirds into long snakes, about 1 inch thick or so.  Braid the thirds, pinch and tuck ends under.  You should have two braided loaves now.  Cover and let rise for about thirty minutes.

Oven at 400 degrees.  Whisk egg and 1 tbsp water together. Brush dough with egg wash.  Sprinkle with poppy-seeds.  Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Enjoy hot with topping of your choice.  Also makes good toast and sandwiches!

Linguine with Clams

Fresh linguine in a creamy clam sauce with parmesan cheese and a hint of lemon.

Recipe:
1 pound linguine
3 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 anchovy fillets, chopped
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3/4 tsp red pepper flakes
3/4 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/3 cup white wine
1/3 cup clam juice
1 (15 oz) can baby clams
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1/3 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
1/3 cup cream
1/2 cup shaved or shredded parmesan cheese
1/2 lemon
salt/pepper

Start cooking the pasta until it is a little chewy-crunchy-er than al dente.  Reserve some of the pasta water.

In a large pot heat the oil, saute the onion and anchovies until the onion is getting clear/golden and the anchovies are dissolved.  Add garlic, red pepper, oregano, and thyme.  Cook until garlic is fragrant and beginning to color.  Stir in wine and clam juice, cook until reduced by about a third.  Add clams, cook a few more minutes.

Add the pasta and 1/3 cup of the reserved pasta water.  Cook the pasta in the sauce, adding more pasta water as needed until the pasta is perfectly cooked.  Add the cream, cook until coated but not at all dry.  Stir in butter in small pieces, and stir in cheese.  Stir just until it is a creamy cheesy sauce that coats the pasta, but not dry!   Add salt/pepper as needed.  Stir in parsley.  Serve sprinkled with a little lemon juice and red pepper flakes.  Enjoy!!!

Bacon Caramel Corn

A salty-sweet treat for fall, caramel corn with crispy bacon and cayenne pepper, you'll find yourself eating the whole bowl!

Recipe:
1/2 cup popcorn kernels, popped however you'd like
1/2 pound bacon (+ or - depending on how bacon-y you want it)
1 tsp salt
1/4 - 3/4 tsp cayenne pepper (to taste, I like mine spicy)
a pinch ground cardamom
1/4 cup whipping cream
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp light corn syrup
oil for coating utensils

Oven at 350 degrees.

Chop bacon into bits, the size is up to you, I prefer slightly larger bacon pieces so mine were about an inch. Cook until almost crispy, it will crisp more in the oven.

Grease a bowl, and in it combine popcorn, cooked bacon, salt, cayenne pepper, and cardamom.  Toss it around a little.

Put sugar, water, and corn syrup in saucepan.  Stir to combine.  Heat until sugar dissolves, then let it cook on high until it is amber with no stirring.  Swirl the pan occasionally.  While that is heating, line a cookie sheet (a rim around the edges makes it easier, but is not necessary) with foil, and then grease the foil.  Grease two wooden spoons.  Now, back to the caramel, when it is the right color, take it off the stove and add the whipping cream.  It will bubble, but stir it until it is all blended.

Pour over popcorn mixture, and toss with greased spoons until it is all coated.  Now put it on the cookie sheet.  Put it in the oven. Bake until shiny and getting crispier. Stir it around once in a while. I test mine by taking a piece out and waiting for it to cool, then seeing if it is crisp.  Don't let it burn! Mine took about 15 minutes.  When it is done, let it cool on the sheet, and break up large clumps.  Then it is done!  Very delicious with spiced cider.

Anchovy Crackers with Habanero Honey and Goat Cheese

Savory crackers lightly flavored with anchovy, spicy-sweet honey and creamy goat cheese - perfect with before dinner drinks!

For the anchovy crackers:

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup butter, chilled

1/3 cup parmesan, grated

6-8 anchovies in oil, drained

1 tsp ground black pepper

Oven at 400 degrees.  Grease a baking sheet or two.  Pulse all ingredients in a food processor until it comes together into dough.  Press dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for about twenty minutes.  Roll out dough to about 1/4 inch thickness.  Cut with cookie cutter, or into squares/wedges with a knife.  Place on greased baking sheets, and put in oven for 6-8 minutes, or longer, until golden around the edges.  

For the habanero honey:
1-2 habanero peppers
1 cup honey

Heat honey in a small saucepan until warm and liquid-y.  Meanwhile slice habanero pepper(s) into quarters, removing stem, and seeds if you want, I leave the seeds in.  Add as many quarters to the honey as you would like.  Eight quarters in very very very very spicy!  I only recommend it if you are sure you like spicy food, very spicy food.  I use three quarters. And it is plenty spicy for my taste. Leave the pepper quarters in the honey for a bit, the longer you leave them in the spicier it gets.  Stir and taste often.  When it is spiced enough for your liking, strain the peppers and seeds out.  Let it get to room temperature and thicken up.

To serve:


Arrange the crackers on a platter, alongside the honey and some goat cheese.  I rolled a goat cheese log in fresh cut chives, which was nice.  Habanero honey is good on lots of things - I like it in tea and on peanut butter sandwiches, but try in in place of honey anywhere you see fit!

Red Wine and Ginger Syrup (with poached pears)

Rich dark syrup with a strong wine flavor and a hint of ginger and spice.  Goes wonderful with pears.

Recipe:
1 bottle red wine (this is what your syrup will taste like, so use one you enjoy)
1 1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup fresh ginger, sliced
1/2 cup water
2-4 tsp ground white pepper

Boil the water with the ginger in it, after five minutes add wine, sugar and pepper and reduce heat.  Simmer until it is a medium-thin syrup, it will thicken quite a bit as it cools.  Strain out ginger.  It's done now.  Use it warm or at room temperature.

Variation with pears:

Increase water to 2 1/2 cups, add all ingredients to pot at once and also add a few peeled pears (I used the Bosc variety).  Simmer for about half an hour, turn the pears over a few times while it is simmering so they cook evenly and get pretty colored.  Remove pears.  Let the remaining liquid turn to syrup.  Remove from heat, strain out ginger.  Serve the pears with the syrup.  I like whipped cream on it.

Uses:
Over waffles (especially good with my new recipe coming soon - spicy nut waffles)
On yogurt for breakfast (good with the greek yogurt, feels like dessert for breakfast!)
In drinks (I like it in sparkling water)
As a drizzle on a plate (very pretty with a slice of chocolate cake)

And whatever else you can think of!