This Year's Sweets Tray

This year, I gave all my friends these trays of mixed cookies and candies for Christmas. They were so much fun to put together! From left to right: Passionfruit-Raspberry Gelées; Wheatena-Coconut Cookies with Royal Icing; Lapsang Souchong Truffles (top); Pomegranate-Pistachio Truffles (center); Chocolate Turtles with Bourbon-Soaked Pecans (bottom); Salted Maple Honeycomb Candy; more Wheatena Cookies; and Tangerine Gelées. Yum!

Guest Kathy Adelsheim: Banana Bars, Maple Bars, and Midges's Cookies

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Kathy shared some of her altitude adjusted recipes for delicious sweets. And here are a few of her favorites!

Banana Bars

This is a great way to use up mushy, over-ripe bananas.

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed banana
1 cup coconut
1 1/3 cups flour
1 Tablespoon melted butter
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 cup coconut

Procedure
Preheat your oven to 350. Grease a 9 X 13 inch pan.In the bowl of your electric mixer cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add your egg and vanilla and mix. Next add in your baking powder and salt. Mash your banana and combine into bowl with coconut and flour. Spread mixture into prepared pan. Now make topping, in a small bowl combine melted butter, sugar, and coconut. Spread evenly over batter. Bake for 20-30 minutes till coconut is browned and edges begin to pull away from the pan. Cool to room temperature before cutting into bars.

Midge's cookies

This classic cookie is loaded with butter and nuts and it freezes very well.

Ingredients
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup butter room temperature
1 egg
2 1/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped nuts (Pecans or Walnuts)

Procedure
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.Combine dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.In your electric mixer cream butter and both sugars. Whip till light. Add egg and mix well. Add dry ingredients in two parts and then add chopped nuts. Roll into 1 inch balls and then roll in sugar. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Store in airtight tins to keep them soft, or eat them all!

Maple Bars

A truly yummy item, cut them small, they are intense.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup cold butter
1/3 cup real maple syrup
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup toasted pecans coarsely chopped
3/4 cup walnuts coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla

Procedure
Preheat oven to 350. In your food processor, combine flour, powdered suga,r and butter cut into small chunks. Process till crumbly but not till it forms a ball. Dump this mixture into a 9 X 9 inch baking pan and press down with your fingertips. Bake in oven 25 minutes or until it browns slightly and the edges start to pull away a little. Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes. While crust browns, make filling. In a heavy saucepan, combine maple syrup, brown sugar, cream, and butter. Bring this mixture to a boil and boil for two minutes. Remove from heat and add nuts and vanilla. Pour mixture over cooled crust. Bake until it bubbles all over about 20-25 minutes. Let cool about 15 minutes and cut while still a bit warm.

Maple Hook Manhattan

Refreshing Beverage of the Week
Had my first taste of Maple Hook Manhattan a couple years back at Hanny's in summer in Phoenix, but it seems like an autumn drink to me. This is their recipe, but there's plenty of variations on the idea out there.

Ingredients
2 ounces Seagram's 7 (or any whiskey, really)
1/2 ounce Luxardo maraschino liqueur (I use Cherry Heering),
1/2 ounce lemon juice (about half a juicy lemon)
1 ounce maple syrup (1/2 ounce maple syrup, 1/2 ounce water)

Procedure
Combine in shaker over ice, and shake.

This recipe really lends itself to modifications and experiments. Try some interesting bitters, and different whiskies, grades of maple syrup, and proportions.

Maple Pumpkin Custard

The Altitude Adjustment Section
This is a simple job and a delicious result. Very creamy and delicious. Please use real maple syrup and garnish it with a little whipped cream.

Ingredients
1/3 cup sugar
6 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
A pinch of ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup 1/2 and 1/2
1 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup solidly packed pumpkin mash or canned pumpkin
1/2 cup pure maple syrup

Procedure
Heat the oven to 300. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, yolks, vanilla extract, spices, and salt. Set the mixture aside. In a medium-size saucepan, whisk together the 1/2 and 1/2 and heavy cream, pumpkin, and maple syrup, then bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. Do not let the mixture boil. Remove the pan from the heat once the pumpkin mixture is hot, about 5 minutes. Add it by the ladle-full to the yolk mixture, stirring continuously. Don't pour it all in at once or it will cook the yolks.Once the mixtures are blended, divide the custard evenly among 6 standard custard cups. Pour 3/4 inch of hot water into a large, shallow casserole dish, then arrange the cups, evenly spaced, in the dish. Bake the custards, uncovered, on the center oven rack until their centers are jiggly but no longer soupy, about 45 to 50 minutes. Carefully transfer the cups to a wire rack to cool.When the custards reach room temperature, cover the dishes individually with plastic wrap and refrigerate them for at least 6 hours. Makes 6 servings.

Winter Port Sangria

Refreshing Beverage of the Week
How about a nice beverage for the cold winter days? Here's the Sandeman Ciderhouse Sangria recipe, using rye — my new favorite liquor. I usually think of Sangria a a summer drink, but...

Ingredients
1 bottle Sandeman Porto Founders Reserve
24 oz. Apple Cider
3 oz. Rye Whiskey
1 1/2 oz. Maple Syrup
2 Apples (Granny Smith)
2 Pears (Bosc)

Procedure
Mix all ingredients together in pitcher. Add in apple and pear slices. Let sit for at least 12 hours. The sangria, not you!

Maple Cookies

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Maple Cookies, how autumnal and yummy are these? They use maple sugar, but where do you get that? King Arthur Flour company has it available on line, and so does Amazon and lots of on-line companies. This recipe is from Emeril, not one of my favorites, but this is a recipe from a contest he sponsored.

Ingredients for cookies
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon maple extract
1/4 cup maple syrup
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Heavy cream

Ingredients for maple glaze
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 cup maple sugar
1 teaspoon maple extract
1/4 cup unsalted butter

Procedure
In a medium bowl, cream the butter, then gradually add the sugar and continue to beat. Add the eggs, vanilla extract, maple extract, and maple syrup, and beat until light and fluffy. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together. Thoroughly blend into the butter mixture. Form into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill for at least 4 hours.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Roll the dough out 1/4-inch thick. With a drinking glass, cut out cookies and transfer to parchment lined baking sheet. Brush the cookies with heavy cream. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.Meanwhile make the maple glaze. Mix all the ingredients in a saucepan. Stir over medium heat until it just reaches the boiling point. Brush or dip the tops of the cookies in the maple glaze while still hot. Let cool. These taste better the next day, if you can wait that long!

Punt e Mes

Refreshing Beverage of the Week
Let's start today’s beverage segment with a definition of terms from Wikipedia for Punt e Mes:

It is an Italian vermouth. It is dark brown in color and has a bitter flavor. Punt e Mes literally means "point and a half" in Piedmontese. It has been said that it owes its name to a sudden raise of the stock market (naturally, of a point and a half), which greatly benefited the Carpano distilleries, which then created the vermouth brand to commemorate the occasion. Alternatively, it may refer to the flavor being characterized as one ”point” of sweetness and half a point of bitterness. It can be used as a substitute for regular rosso vermouth in such drinks as the Americano, Manhattan and Negroni.

That being said, I love the flavor of this stuff simply served on the rocks with a twist, but if you want to explore your mixed drink options, here is a recipe for a drink from a recipe by Brendan F. Casey, Café Centro, New York, NY.

Another Fine Mes

Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon maple syrup
2 oz rye whiskey
1 oz tequila
1/2 ounce triple sec
1/2 ounce Punt e Mes
2 dashes Old Fashion bitters
1 orange zest, as garnish

Procedure
First, to dissolve the maple syrup, combine it with the rye and tequila, stirring at room temperature. Then combine all ingredients in a mixing glass full of ice. Stir and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Add the garnish, behave badly.

Braised Turnips with Maple and Mustard

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
Root vegetables are easy to grow, cheap to buy, have a long shelf life and are not eaten enough. I found this recipe for braised turnips with maple and mustard and it just wowed me! Why not braise vegetables, it does wonders for meats. Braising is the process of cooking something long and slow in a flavored liquid, which makes it very tender and flavorful, usually on the stove top, but sometimes in a casserole in the oven. So here it is:

Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup chicken or veg. stock
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 1/2 pounds small white turnips, peeled and halved
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon chopped flat leaf parsley

Procedure
In a large skillet with a good lid or in a Dutch oven, melt the butter. Stir in the broth and the maple syrup and bring to a simmer. Add the turnips bring up to a boil and then reduce heat to medium low, cover and cook for 20-25 minutes until turnips are tender. Transfer the turnips to a medium bowl with a slotted spoon leaving the liquid in the pan. Now turn up the heat and reduce the liquid by at least half till it begins to get syrupy and now stir in the mustard. Return the turnips to the sauce and stir to coat and heat. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with chopped parsley.

Maple Oatmeal Scones

The Altitude Adjustment Section
I love scones. They are so easy and the best thing to do is bake them right before you want to eat them so they are still warm. I love the use of real maple syrup in this recipe, so give them a try. This recipe makes 14 really big scones or 30 small ones.

Ingredients
3 1/2 cups A P. flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup quick cook oats, plus additional for sprinkling on top
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 pound cold unsalted butter diced
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash
Glaze
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla

Procedure
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In the bowl of your electric mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flours, oats, baking powder, sugar and salt. Add the diced cold butter and blend at the lowest speed the mix till the butter forms small pea size shaped bits. Combine the buttermilk, maple syrup and eggs and add quickly to the flour butter mixture. Mix just till blended (the mixture will be sticky). Don’t worry. Dump the dough onto a well-floured table surface. Flour your hands to make it easier to handle. Roll dough into a 3/4 inch round. Using a floured ring cutter cut out circles about 3 inches in diameter. Place on parchment lined sheet pan. Brush tops with egg wash and bake for about 20-25 minutes until tops are crisp and when you break into one the inside is done, not doughy. It’s a tough job but someone has to do it.

Now cool for 5 minutes and combine glaze ingredients in a small bowl. That’s the confectioners sugar, the maple syrup, and the vanilla. Drizzle each scone with glaze and then sprinkle on a little oatmeal for garnish. The great thing about this recipe is you can prepare these days ahead and leave them uncooked but covered on a sheet pan in your fridge and bake when you are ready.

Lamb in Maple Syrup and Hard Cider Sauce

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
Lamb: I seem to love it more and more, especially since I discovered New Mexican Lamb, it’s the best I have ever tasted. And I really feel meat cooked on the bone has the best flavor. Don’t be afraid of bones, they are natural and provide a great built-in handle for dragging the meat around.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons lemon flavored olive oil
1 5-pound, bone-in leg of lamb
2 cloves chopped garlic
1 tablespoon fresh oregano
juice of 1 lemon
3 tablespoons maple syrup
3 cups hard cider
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons water
salt and pepper to taste

Procedure
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Using a sharp knife, trim off any excess fat and make small incisions all over the lamb. This will help the flavors soak in. Transfer the meat to a large roasting pan. In a bowl, combine the garlic, oregano, lemon juice, maple syrup salt and pepper. Pour this mixture over the lamb, then pour the cider over. Roast for 30 minutes, turning once and basting with pan juices often. Now reduce oven temp to 300 and cook for 2 1/4 hours more, till tender and cooked through. Meat thermometer should read 145 degrees. Remove meat to your serving platter and let rest for at least 10 minutes. In the meantime, make gravy. Blend the cornstarch with cold water and stir into pan juices. Stir over low heat till mixture thickens. Garnish with fresh oregano and serve with oven roast rosemary potatoes. Call me!

A Coffee Break Treat

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Here is another one of those great, super-easy desserts. Well, actually more of a breakfast treat, from my newly recovered cookbook from the ladies of the Ravinia Festival in Chicago called Noteworthy. It’s called “A coffee break treat”, but it’s really just a big hunk of love. Who doesn’t love cinnamon, cream cheese, maple sugar and nuts? All you need is a hot beverage!

Ingredients
3 ounces cream cheese
1/4 pound plus 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1 cup flour
melted butter, divided
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon, divided
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1/2 cup chopped pecans
2 tablespoons sugar

Procedure
Cream the cream cheese and the 1/4 pound of butter well, in an electric mixer. Stir in flour, mixing just till blended. Flatten dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours — overnight does not hurt.

Roll dough into an 8 x 16 x 1/8 inch rectangle. Brush liberally with melted butter. Sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. In a saucepan, combine 4 tablespoons remaining butter, brown sugar, and maple syrup. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and add nuts and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Boil 3 minutes until thickened. Spread filling on dough leaving a 2-inch border all around. Roll dough widthwise ending with the seam-side down. Brush on more melted butter and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and 2 tablespoons sugar. Cut into 1 1/2 inch slices. Place on parchment-lined or greased sheet pan. Bake in 350 oven for 18-20 minutes or until browned. Cool on rack but definitely eat warm. Yum! Yum!

Maple Mousse

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Sometimes you can make, and need to make, a great desert without baking. Everyone should be able to make a mousse. All you need is a bucket of heavy cream, some high quality flavorings and an electric mixer. So here is a recipe for maple mousse. Now this can be the whole dessert, or you can layer it into champagne glasses and alternate in Armagnac-soaked prunes or rum-soaked apricots and really knock their socks off. Top with whipped cream with brandy? Why not. Do not operate heavy machinery after eating this dessert!

Ingredients
5 teaspoons (2 envelopes) powdered gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
4 eggs, separated
Pinch of salt
1 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 cups whipped heavy cream

Procedure
Sprinkle the gelatin over the cold water and let sit for 3 to 4 minutes until it softens. Place in the top of a double boiler with the 4 egg yolks and Maple syrup. Over medium heat, cook and whisk till smooth. Add brown sugar and whisk and cook till thickened. Remove from heat and allow to cool. While this is cooking, whip the egg whites till stiff but not dry with a pinch of salt. In a separate bowl, whip the cream till thick and it mounds softly. Fold the whites into the gelatin mixture then fold in the whipped cream. Spoon into goblets and chill till ready to serve.

The Real Deal Granola Bars

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Being that we ate in a real “health food” establishment this week, it got me thinking about hippy foods and tree hugging and Patchouli oil and, of course: granola. Real granola is delicious and nutritious and doesn’t need to be like a dry brick, or be chocolate coated, or have a layer of marshmallow fluff for the kids to eat it. What kids? Do I have kids? I don’t think so. But anyway here is a great recipe for a snack you can take with you hiking or you can sneak it into the movies instead of paying for a 2-pound bag of gummy worms.

Ingredients
3/4 cups (6 ounces) brown sugar
3/4 cups (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter melted
1 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups rolled oats
1 cup chopped almonds
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup dried cranberries or golden raisins
1 cup chopped dried apricots
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Procedure
Preheat oven to 450. Lightly grease an 18 x 13 inch half-sheet pan. Combine brown sugar, butter, syrups, and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to the boil and boil for 5 minutes till mixture reaches 250 degrees on a candy thermometer. While the sugar is boiling, combine oats, almonds sunflower seeds and coconut on prepared sheet pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes stirring every 4-5 minutes so nothing gets burnt. Pour oat mixture into a bowl and add all dried fruit. Add vanilla extract to the syrup mixture and pour over nut and fruit mixture. Once well-combined, put mixture back onto sheet pan and pat flat. Be firm — it needs to be compressed. Now bake for 6-8 minutes, till it bubbles a little bit around the edges and starts to lightly brown. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes and cut into strips while still warm. I use a bakers bench knife or you can use a big cleaver. Remove from pan and then cut into strips. Wrap in plastic so the lint in your backpack doesn’t stick to them.