Homemade Dulche De Leche

Am I the only one who thought dulche de leche was caramel?  I was wrong!  I found this out via Gretchen over at Woodland Bakery last week! ACK!  Who knew?!  Lots of people use caramel in its place, or call it caramel but it technically isn't caramel!  Anyway, I wanted to give this a try because, duh, I had to, that is why!  It looked beyond delicious.  But here is where my scatterbrain tendencies came in.  Umm, what am I going to do with it when I am done?

Good question.  You can put this on ice cream, in coffee, frost brownies or cake with it, I mean, the options are endless.  I might have accidentally dropped a spoonful into my coffee this morning.  (actually it was on the way to my mouth and slipped off into my coffee if I am honest)

Dulche de leche is distinctly different tasting than caramel, to me anyway.  It is not quite as sweet, but just beautiful in texture and flavor.  I can't wait to figure out what I am going to do with this. 

Admittedly it is a bit of a long process to make.  It will take you about an hour from start to finish.  This is one of "those" recipes, where you better get something good up on Pandora, or your Ipod, or somewhere and get your groove on.  Consider it the opportunity to give a one hour in home vocal concert, OR dance show.  The choice is yours.  It isn't complicated, at all, just time consuming.  Thanks Gretchen for educating me and for the recipe!

You will need:
4 cups whole milk
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
pinch of salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Use a large heavy bottomed pot for this.  It will bubble up a lot!!  Bring your milk to a boil, once it is boiling, add brown sugar, baking soda, salt and vanilla.  Using a whisk combine all ingredients.  Reduce to a simmer and let the singing/dancing begin.  You can NOT walk away from this.  You just can't.  I mean you can, but, don't say I didn't tell you so. 

You will need a slotted spoon to skim the foam off the top ever so often.  Make sure to do this!  Whisk every couple of minutes or when it needs it and let continue to simmer until it becomes dark and eventually thickens.  If you don't keep this at an active simmer it will take longer!  Be patient.  I mean REALLY patient.  It will be so worth it.

When it become thick, like maybe a pudding or a bit looser than pudding, strain mixture through a fine mesh strainer to remove any bits that may have cooked on the bottom, then, pour into a bowl and let cool.  Refrigerate, it will continue to thicken the longer it is in there!!

This is when your imagination takes over.  Use it for something amazing!  I know what I am doing with mine!!!

ENJOY!! 

Chunky Monkey Cake

You know "chunky monkey" can only mean 2 things. CHOCOLATE and BANANA.  I know, there are a few other things in the famous ice cream, but for me, just the chocolate and just the banana please.  Combine it into a moist cake and I am goin' down kids.  DOWN!

I wanted this to be bars.  I turned out cake.  I mean, it COULD be classified as bars.  You just should eat it with a fork, BUT, you don't have to.   I think I like it this way.  I know I like it this way or I wouldn't have posted it for you.  (can you tell I am beyond tired?)

Anyway, if you follow me on Facebook or if Facebook actually shows my posts to you, you will see what I did with these last night.  HA!  I packed a container full to send to work with my hubby, only I planted a fake rubbery, looks like it was cut off finger into the container.  These are the things I do that just make me chuckle to myself.  They found it and I got an email back saying, "it's ON like donkey kong".  He will never shake me.  I will always be the better prankster.  Always. 

Here is the recipe, it is easy and quick and boy is it delectable!

1/2 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
2 very ripe bananas (if not ripened and mushy, microwave for a couple of minutes to soften)
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups milk chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  In a large bowl, combine butter, and sugar until mixed completely.  Add eggs, one at a time until completely mixed in.  Now if your bananas are soft, through them right in and if you are using a stand mixer or hand mixer they will just break up on their own.  Even if you are hand mixing you should be fine.  Now toss in the rest of the ingredients, salt, baking soda, flour, vanilla, and then chocolate chips.  Don't over mix!  Pour mixture into a greased 9x13 pan and bake for 25-30 minutes.  When a toothpick comes out clean, it is done!  Let cool completely and then drizzle with icing.  (recipe below)

Icing
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp. milk

Mix together until combined and drizzle over cooled cake.

Your "chunky monkey lovin'" Chefwannabe

Grecian Orange Cake

You all know by know I have been spending a lot of time at my mom and dads house.  AKA my "ancestoral home".  HAHA!  So we have spent a lot of time talking about old recipes, going through old cookbooks and when my mom had her "lightbulb" moment about this cake, I thought she was going to drop on her bad knees, risking a visit from the ambulance to beg me to make it.  I finally did!  Now she REALLY owes me cookies.  This cake was often made by her and/or her best friend Sharon who is our second mom.  Their family has 9 kids, ours has 10.  We were quite a group! 

I can't wait to share this delightful beauty with you.  It is a cake from days gone by for my mom and siblings, but I, never have eaten it.  My mom is sure I did, but never that I recall.  When I brought this cake up to my some of my siblings I got responses like, "OHHHHH, I LOVED that cake" and "Mom and Sharon used to make this cake", and simple "yuuummmmmmmm"!  I decided I must get the recipe and try it.  News flash, NOBODY has the recipe anymore.  What?  How could something that is evidently so amazing, be lost?!  I found the recipe on cooks.com and both "moms" agreed it was the recipe they made.  Here are these 2 crazy amazing ladies at my moms 75th birthday party!

So in honor of my mom and the woman who treated us like her own I present to you, Grecian Orange Cake!  I love you both!

You will need:
Yellow Cake Mix
4 eggs
1 pkg instant lemon pudding
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup water

Glaze:
1/2 cup orange juice concentrate
2 cups powdered sugar (confectioners, icing)
2 tbsp. melted butter

Combine all ingredients  for the glaze and set aside. 

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees.  Combine cake mix, lemon pudding, oil and water.  Whisk or mix untl completely combined and smooth.  Spray or grease a bundt cake pan and pur batter into it.  Level your batter and bake for 45 minutes.  Immediately after you remove it from the oven, leaving it in the pan, poke holes with a skewer.  DO NOT poke them all the way to the bottom, maybe 3/4 of the way down.  Pour half of the glaze mixture over the top.  Let sit for 15 minutes.  Remove onto a plate or cake stand or platter, Let sit another 5-10 minutes.  Pour the rest of the glaze over the top and dig in!

Hoping this recipe brings you as much happiness as it does the Smith and Novosad families!

Your "memoriiieesss, like the corners of my mind" Chefwannabe

Bread Pudding w/Eggnog Spiced Glaze; A Family Tradition

Accckk!!!  One more week to Thanksgiving!  Are you ready?  Menu planned, shopping done?  House cleaned?   So much to do, isn't there?  I admit I am slightly obsessive about cleaning daily so I never have much to do in that department.  I haven't even bought my turkey yet.  Oh well, it all falls into place in time.  I like to prep and bake my desserts the day before.  Baking has never been my cup of tea in the past.  I don't like to follow recipes, and in baking, its all a science, and you must follow a recipe for the most part.  I made it my mission a couple of years ago to really practice baking and try and work on some cakes, pies, desserts I can always go to.  That is where we get this recipe.

First let me tell you what happened the second or third time I made this.  I went to the store, I was making a meal of all my husbands favorite things.  I picked up this lovely baguette of crusty bread, got home, ripped it up and let it sit out until I was ready to use it.  I prepared my custard, mixed it up, let it sit, baked it and was letting it cool.  Dinner came, and went and I told my husband I had made him bread pudding.  He took up a huge portion, and I even had some heavy cream to drizzle over the top.  He ate the first bite and said, "Chris, did you do something different with this"?  I said no, and he continued to eat, with a bit of apprehension, but he ate it.  He got to the last bite and said, "OMG, I know what it is, its GARLIC bread".  He ate the entire bowl, so he wouldn't hurt my feelings.  I didn't even smell the garlic.  I have no idea how it happened and I didn't catch it.  He retells this story every chance he gets.  Poor guy.

My dad has always been a huge bread pudding fan.  Although he enjoys his laden with raisins.  My husband and son love it too, with no raisins!  I don't like it at all, as it just feels like soggy bread, which is enough to make me throw myself off a bridge.  Ick.  In light of everyone else I know loving it, I decided to perfect it as best I could to my families liking.  This recipe can be used all through the holidays, and I am wondering how it would do in a muffin tin, for individual portions for a party or potluck.  Bet it would be awesome that way! You know me and my "everyone gets their own" syndrome.  I will post my regular recipe, and I will also list how I changed it up for this great egg noggy flavor.  I will post the glaze recipe underneath.  I don't make the glaze on a regular basis, just for special occasions.

Bread Pudding w/EggNog Spiced Glaze
2 cups granulated sugar 
5 large beaten eggs 
2 cups milk 
3 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 

1 tsp cinnamon (optional)

1 1/2 tsp nutmeg (optional)
4 cups cubed Italian bread
1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar 
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, softened 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x13 pan.

Mix together granulated sugar, eggs, and milk in a bowl; add vanilla. Pour over cubed bread and let sit for 10 minutes.

In another bowl, mix and crumble together brown sugar and butter.

Pour bread mixture into prepared pan. With a spoon, dot the brown sugar mixture all over the top and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until set.  Let cool.

EggNog Spiced Glaze

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tbsp caramel macchiato non dairy creamer (or vanilla, eggnog, milk)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
PINCH of ground cloves
1/2 tsp vanilla

Whisk until smooth and use smell serving pitcher or gravy boat to drizzle over the top of your bread pudding!!

Enjoy this Simmerman family favorite!!  Blessings for a joyous holiday season to you all!!

PS.  If you omit the sauce for the top and the "optional" items in the ingredients, you will have the best plain old bread pudding EVER!

Your "happy holiday" chefwannabe

Chris