holidays — A Southern Fairytale

Pumpkin Pie Pudding with Gingersnap Crumbles

12:06 AM ByRachelFiled UnderDesserts, Mouthwatering Monday

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According to my calendar, Fall has arrived.

According to South Texas temperatures… it’s still summer.

After prowling around Hobby Lobby, Michael’s and the mall this past weekend, my senses are primed for Fall with its cooler temperatures, savory scents, rich colors and full flavors; so it should come as no surprise that I was inspired at the grocery store today by a can of organic pumpkin and a bag of gingersnaps.

The following recipe tastes complicated, yet is as easy to make as a bowl of cereal. Once you make this pumpkin pudding with crumbled gingersnap topping, you’ll want to make it again and again.

Not that I’ve gone into my fridge and stuck a finger into the leftover bowl 12 three times or anything…..

Seriously, y’all. It’s amazing.

You will thank me for this recipe and your friends and family will be in awe of your culinary skills after you serve this to them.

Y’all may never have pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving again.

Y’all, this pumpkin pudding is savory and delicious, it’s cool and creamy, rich and heady. It’s full of flavor and it’s honestly easier to make than it is to photograph [/donotprint]

Pumpkin Pie Pudding with Gingersnap Crumbles

My kids like to use whole Gingersnaps to scoop the pudding out of the bowls, edible spoon style

Ingredients

1 small package instant vanilla pudding mix
1/2 C. canned pumpkin
1 3/4 C milk
1 C. whipped topping
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1/8 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg
Gingersnaps

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl whisk together vanilla pudding mix and milk.
Add in pumpkin and seasonings (if you don't have the individual spices, you can use 1/4 tsp to 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice or the measurements above) and whisk until soft set (creamy)
Gently whisk in the whipped topping until it becomes thick and creamy.
Scoop into your serving dishes: tiny and cute, bigger and share-worthy or larger and all for yourself
Top with crushed gingersnap cookies and if you’re feelin’ frisky… add a gingersnap for decoration, too

http://asouthernfairytale.com/2010/09/27/pumpkin-pie-pudding-with-gingersnap-crumbles/

I can’t wait to see what Tonguegasmic recipes y’all have to share this week! I love seeing y’all’s pictures, reading your stories and drooling over your recipes!
Make sure that you link directly to your Mouthwatering Monday recipe URL, leave a comment after linking, link back here in your MWM post and visit the others who’ve linked up their tonguegasms, too
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TaggedDesserts, holidays, pumpkin, pumpkin pie, Recipes 66 Comments

Chocolate Dipped Shortbread

12:24 AM ByRachelFiled UnderDesserts, holiday craft along

Hey y’all!! I hope y’all are as inspired to make this year’s Holidays handmade as I am! Between the amazing non sewing gift ideas on Kelly’s blog and the truly fantastic Sewn gift ideas over on Cindy’s blog and THEN all the delicious treats that the amazing bloggers featured here have been sharing; I’m ready to get started!

Today’s featured Baker is Shaina from Food For My Family:

One of my favorite cookies to bake as a gift is shortbread. While I tend to do a lot of holiday baking, so much of it is intricate and time consuming. Shortbread is the one thing that can get tossed together in a hurry or done in mass quantities with very little extra effort. Plus, a bit of chocolate on the edges, a sprinkle or two of sanding sugar or nonpareils and they look like you’ve spent all the time.

This year I added Orange Gingered Shortbread to my cookie tins and boxes and the response was nothing but positive. In fact, I had more than one person tell me the shortbread was their favorite. For something that takes me a third of the time of the other varieties, I’ll definitely be adding this versatile cookie to my holiday baking list.

Chocolate-Dipped Shortbread

Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup extra fine sugar
6 tablespoons cornstarch
2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 ounces dark chocolate

Method

Preheat oven to 325° F. Line the bottom of an 8″ cake pan with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer beat together butter, sugar and cornstarch. Mix in flour and salt. Press dough into the prepared pan. Dock and score the cookie dough using a knife and pointy object (I used the end of a chopstick).

Bake at 325° F for 35 to 40 minutes, just until edges start to turn a light golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. You can place in the refrigerator to accelerate this process once the pan has cooled. Cut into triangles.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Dip the tips of the triangles into the chocolate. Allow to dry on waxed paper until set. Package and gift.

Makes 12 cookies.

Variations

add 1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts to the dough. Shape dough into a rectangular log and refrigerate until firm. Slice into cookies. Bake for 25 minutes and dip as above.
Add 1/2 cup chopped dried cranberries and orange zest from 1 orange to the dough. Roll out dough and cut into shapes. Bake for 25 minutes.
Orange-Gingered Shortbread on Food for My Family
Make up your own! Add your favorites nuts and candies, dip or don’t, sprinkle or shake. Add a personal touch to your cookies.

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Meet Shaina:

Shaina Olmanson is the home cook and photographer behind Food for My Family, where she shares recipes, tips, opinions and her philosophy on food as she strives to teach her four children how to eat well: seasonally, locally, organically, deliciously and balanced.

Taggedbaking, chocolate, Desserts, holidays, shortbread 7 Comments

Homemade Chocolate Dipped Marshmallows

5:30 AM ByRachelFiled UnderDesserts, holiday craft along

[donotprint]Welcome to our Holiday Bake, Craft & Sew along! I’m hosting all the delectable yummy recipes and the inspirational non-sewing craft ideas are on Kelly’s Blog and the amazing and beautiful sewn gift ideas are on on Cindy’s. Make sure to visit each of them every day for amazing Holiday Gift inspirations!

Today’s featured Baker is Katie from Good Life {Eats}

I love to make candies and other goodies around the holidays for gifts. And I also like to eat them myself. I love the idea of a Christmas in July to get prepared for the time of year that always seems to sneak up on you. These marshmallows can’t be made that far in advance (they can only be stored for about a week), but you can start collecting recipes and getting organized so you’ll know what you need to buy and what you want to make when the time comes.

I suggest starting a file folder with your holiday candy and baking recipes. Keep a copy of each recipe in the folder and a list of the items you will typically need to shop for before you can get started. (i.e. the items that you don’t usually have on hand in your pantry). You can start stocking up on some of those ingredients ahead of time. If you see a great sale on sugar or vanilla beans, definitely take advantage of that.

Another great idea for staying on top of things is to test out the recipes you’ve chosen to use as gifts in advance. That way you’ll feel comfortable with them and it won’t be such an event to make a bunch of new recipes. You’ll also see what works and what doesn’t. We all know that sometimes recipes don’t turn out (I had a cupcake implosion last week) or maybe you just don’t like it as much as you thought. No matter what you do, anything you do in advance will help you when the most wonderful time of year comes around.[/donotprint]
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Homemade Chocolate Dipped Marshmallows
from Katie Goodman at goodLife {eats}

2 tablespoons plus 2 1/2 teaspoons unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup cold water
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites
1/2 of a scraped vanilla bean or 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2/3 cup powdered sugar
6-8 ounces dark baking chocolate
2/3 cup crushed candy canes

Grease the bottom and sides of a 9×13 rectangular metal baking.
In a large bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over 1/2 cup cold water. Allow to stand and soften while you complete the next step.

Combine the sugar, cold water, and corn syrup in a heavy 3-quart saucepan. Cook mixture over low heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar has dissolved.

Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat without stirring. Cook until mixture registers 240 degrees F on a candy thermometer. This should take about 8-12 minutes.

Turn heat off. Pour sugar mixture over the gelatin mixture Cut the vanilla bean in half, then cut a slit down the middle in the half you are using. Use a knife or spoon to scrape out the beans.

Add to the sugar and gelatin mixture. Beat on high speed (using either a hand mixer or a stand mixer) until it is tripled in volume, thick, and white – approximately 10 minutes if you’re using a hand mixer and 5 for a stand mixer.

Using a clean bowl and beaters beat the egg whites until they begin to hold stiff peaks. Add the whites to the sugar mixture and beat until combined. Pour the mixture into the prepared 9×13 – note: you will not be able to get all of the mixture out. Don’t worry! Smooth batter across the top using a greased spatula.

Place the uncovered marshmallows in the fridge and chill for 3 hours, or until firm.

Loosen the marshmallows and invert over a large cutting board. Cut into one inch cubes using a large knife.

Place the cut marshmallows back in the baking pan, sift with powdered sugar, and toss until fully coated.

Remove the marshmallows from the pan, discard any excess powdered sugar and store in an airtight container or Ziploc back. Marshmallows keep for one week.

Melt 6-8 ounces baking chocolate per instructions on the packaging. Cover a work area with parchment paper. Arrange the marshmallows, melted chocolate, and crushed candy cane in separate containers on the parchment paper. Set a rimmed baking sheet, such as a jelly roll pan, to the side.

Dip marshmallows in melted chocolate, place on the baking sheet, and sprinkle with crushed candy cane, sprinkles, coconut, or whatever you like. You will have to reheat the chocolate throughout this process as it cools and thickens. Lay dipped marshmallows out across a rimmed baking sheet (such as a jelly roll pan) and place in the refrigerator until the chocolate has hardened. [donotprint]

Katie Goodman believes that part of the goodness in life is sharing good food with friends and family. She’s a SAHM determined to make family meal time a priority while providing a variety of healthy and delicious food choices. Katie blogs at goodLife {eats}, where she shares what she finds good in the kitchen and in life. Katie also contributes to Craftzine, Tablespoon, and Paula Deen Online.[/donotprint]