Homemade Coconut Balls (faux Mounds)

    I have become the kind of cook/baker I used to hate. I remember after I got married asking my mother in law and grandmother how they make a certain recipe. They both would tell me ... oh just a pinch of this or a handfull of that. I hated trying to figure this out. sometimes it worked, sometimes not. Now I do the same thing. I have been doing some Christmas baking the past coule of days. last night I made peanut butter balls . These taste almost like peanut butter cups. Then hubby asked for his usual coconut balls last night. So this morning I have been working on these this morning.
                                                    COCONUT BALLS

14 oz bag of flaked coconut
1 stick of cold butter or margarine
1 Tablespoon plus 1 tsp vanilla
32 oz bag of powdered sugar

combine about 2/3 of a bag of powdered sugar and remaining ingredients. Using your hands combine ingredients. At first it will feel like there is no way its going to come together, but the heat of your hands softens the butter a little. It should have sort of a play doh consistency. You may need to add the remaining powdered sugar.

Start melting your chocolate chips and wax for the chocolate coating in a double boiler, or just use two small pans. Recipe for coating is below.

Now roll your filling into 1" balls. I got about 52 from the above recipe.

CHOCOLATE COATING

approx 2/3 bag of semi sweet chocolate chips

shave some parafin baking wax ( this part I dont understand, but I was taught to use this many yrs ago, and have even seen it used online. I notice it does make the chocolate a little thinner, and thereby making the balls easier to coat.)

Place ingredients into a double boiler over low heat. Once melted, roll your balls into the chocolate with a fork, and lay out onto wax paper. I had to lay mine on plastic wrap as I was out of wax paper You may need to refridgerate  for a little while before placing them into container. 

TIP: You could also roll up an almond inside for  Almond Joys with nuts.

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Homemade Perpetual Vanilla

      A few months back I decided to find out what all the fuss was about with homemade vanilla. so I ordered some Madagascar Vanilla Beans over the internet. If you value your budget, dont buy in your local Walmart. They may be cheaper in a lot of things but definitely not in vanilla beans. One jar from McCormicks had ONE single bean in it for a whopping $9 and some change. I bought about 45 beans on Ebay for roughly $13 and change.
     I bought a bottle of Vodka from the liquor store. I cant believe they didnt card me,lol. I asked, but I dont think the clerk got the humor in this coming from a 50+ year old woman,lol. Since I am not a drinker, and wasnt sure I would like the vanilla made with bourbon, I only bought one of the 1 oz bottles.

   Once you obtain the vanilla beans, lay one out on the counter and using a sharp knife, split the bean thru one side down the middle. From tip to tip. Dont cut all the way thru. Then place 4-5 beans per cup of liquor in a bottle. Preferably a dark glass bottle. Or keep in a dark place. I stuck mine in a bag and back into the back of a lower cabinet. Let these steep for about 3 months.

  

     As you start getting a little low in vanilla, just add more liquor. Eventually you may need to add a few more beans as well.

    For my small bottle of Jim Beam, I just split and folded one bean in half and placed it in the bottle.

    I have been smelling this new pantry item off and on, and tasting it. I couldnt decide if I liked it or not. But I guess since I had not actually tasted store bought straight from the bottle, I didnt realize there might be a difference when actually cooking with it. Until last night.
     We just got back from a 2 hour drive home on the motorcycle to watch my grand daughters play soccer. I hadnt really dressed warm enough for the 50 degree temps, and was pretty cold by the time we got back. not to mention the cool night air was aggravating my fibromyalgia causing some aching as well. So i immediately took a hot shower then fixed me a cup of hot chocolate. I suddenly decided to get a little creative. After mixing my hot chocolate, i then placed slightly less than a 1/2 tsp of my bourbon vanilla into the cup and stirred, then I dropped in a dollop of marshmallow cream, and a slight pinch of cinnamon. This was the most fabulous cup of hot chocolate I have ever tasted. as i noted before I dont drink. other than an ocassional sample of wine from Olive garden etc. I could only taste a hint of the bourbon in the chocolate. just enough to be a wonderful drink to warm the tummy.

Canning Praline Syrup

          Well I decided to do something a little special for my hard-working husband today. When i got home from grocery shopping, I made  some Praline syrup. I canned 3 half pint jars of it to be exact. I have never made anything like this before, but when I stumbled upon it on the web, I knew he would love it. he loves pecan pie and butter pecan ice cream. So I figured this was right up his alley. If he gives it the thumbs up, then I will make him some more. I have a bucket of vanilla ice cream waiting for him in the freezer.

Just look at all those delicious  meaty pecans at the top.

 The recipe for the Praline Syrup can be found HERE.

Fabulous, Moist Banana bread

         I have a recipe for banana bread that i have used for years. It makes a wonderfully dense,moist loaf. I recently tried another I found online and the whole family was very disappointed. It was lighter, more bread or cake like. Not my usual rich loaf. Then yesterday i found THIS recipe by Patricia at ButterYum blog. It looked very good. More like my loaves. I liked her idea of a crumbly topping. I have used this similar recipe for my french apple pie, but never thought of it for the banana bread. She also adds sour cream. My recipe called for milk. So I adapted my recipe to include those ingredients. It turned out fabulous. My original loaf was very good, but Patricia's  additions made it so much more delightful.  here is my new, one and only banana bread recipe.

                                                           Banana  Bread


1/2  cup milk
6 very ripe bananas
5 cups flour
1 cup granulated white sugar
1 cup packed brown sugar
7 tsp baking powder
2 tsp salt
10 tbs butter
2 eggs
2 and 1/2  tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground clove
1/2 tsp ground allspice
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/3  cup sour cream
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts or almonds




Topping:
Courtesy of butterYum
6 tb melted butter
2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup flour
1 cup brown sugar
pinch of salt

Combine all ingredients except nuts and raisins, for bread with a blender. then fold in nuts and raisins. Spray bottom of pans.Fill your loaf pans about 3/4 full. Mix crumbly topping, and sprinkle on top of batter. Bake loafs at 350 degrees for 65-70 minutes or till a knife inserted in center comes out clean. With this recipe and the size of my pans, I got 2 nice size loaves and 2 mini loaves.

I enjoyed mine warm smeared with a little country crock margarine.

Homemade Blackberry Jam

          I just made my first Blackberry jam. I started it yesterday and just finished it this morning. My son brought me in a small amount of berries, longing for jelly made from these precious jewels. So how could i resist. I believe the recipe came from the book " Blue Ribbon Preserves". I checked it out of the library and took some extensive notes on things I wanted to try. I only had enough berries to make 2 half pint jelly jars, so had to convert the recipe. So I whipped up 2 jars of Simple Grape Jelly from some Grape juice I had. I hated to run the water bath for just 2 jars,lol.

                                                                   Blackberry Jelly
To make blackberry juice:
3 quarts berries
1/2 cup water
jelly ingredients:
5 cups juice
7 and 1/2 cups sugar
2 (3 oz) pouches liquid pectin

To extract juice, gently rinse berries in cool water in colander and drain. Put berries in 8 qt pot, Combine berries and water over medium low heat. bring to 180 degrees, and heat 5 minutes. DO NOT BOIL!
recipe called for placing berries in a fine meshed sieve. i didnt have one, so i lined my colander with coffee filters and placed this over a bowl. I then poured the berries into this and covered the top with some saran wrap and placed in the fridge to strain over night. You are supposed to do this slow gentle drain, rather than squeezing them. it stated forcing the juice thro would make a cloudy jelly.
      The next day discard the pulp and seeds left in the sieve or colander.This amount of berries is supposed to make approx 5 cups of juice.To make jelly, Place berry juice into 8 qt pot and heat till warm. Add sugar and heat. Stir continuously till sugar dissolved. Increase to medium high heat and bring to a full rolling boil.. Stir in pectin. Return to a full rolling boil. Stir constantly for 1 minute. remove from heat, Quickly skim foam, and ladle into sterilized jars. Clean rims, and apply hot lids and rings. Hand tighten.  Process in boiling water bath with water covering tops of jars for 10 min. I used 15 for my altitude.

Almond Peach Jam...Sunshine on a Spoon

            I made peach jam for the first time today. I still had some left over South Carolina peaches still left that no one had eaten yet. I added some almond extract, and this stuff tastes fabulous! Even my 23 yr old daughter, who said she didn't like peach jam, liked it... really well!
            So I peeled, pitted and mashed them. I came up with about 3.5 cups, which was about 1/2 a cup short for my 4 cup recipe. So I added a 1/2 cup of orange juice. The jam set up beautifully, and so crystal clear and gorgeous. There are a few dark reddish/black flecks here and there. Don't start gagging. They aren't bugs,lol. ( I notice the dark flecks aren't visible in this jar.) It's just that I had cooked some blackberries for jelly just before this, and didn't bother to rinse my masher off completely. The addition of the almond extract, it a wonderful compliment.

                                                            Almond-Peach Jam

4 cups peeled, pitted, and crushed yellow peaches ( I added 1/2 OJ to 3.5 c fruit)
1/4 cup strained fresh lemon juice
7 and 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 tsp butter
1 (3 oz) pouch liquid pectin
1 tsp Almond extract

     Cut fruits, in half, remove the pit, and the tough reddish area that surrounds the pit. Drop these into an 8 qt pan with the lemon juice to prevent darkening. Crush these with a potato masher.

Stir in half of the sugar. Cover pan, and let sit 20 minutes. In the mean time, place your jelly jars in a pot of water to sterilize.

     Remove cover and stir in remaining sugar. and butter. Over medium-low heat, stir till sugar is dissolved. Then increase heat to medium-high, and bring to a full rolling boil. Remove pan from heat and skim away any foam.

     Return pan to heat and bring back to a full rolling boil. Stir in pectin, and reheat to full rolling boil. Stirring constantly so it doesn't burn. Boil one minute. Remove from heat and skim foam again. Add 1 tsp of almond extract.

     Cool 5 minutes, stirring every minute. Remove your jars from the pot and set out on a towel. Place your lids into the boiling water and leave till ready. Fill  your jars using a funnel. Clean the rims of your jars and place hot lids on. Hand tighten rings on jars, and place jars in your boiling water bath, with water cover the tops. Process for 10 minutes (depending on your altitude) at 200 degrees. Remove jars and set on towel undisturbed for 24 hours. Then remove rings, label, and store. This makes 8 half pint jelly jars. I think I had about 1/8 cup left over that I placed in a container in the fridge.
     The basis for this recipe, I believe came from the book, "Blue Ribbon Preserves" which I checked out from the library.
     This stuff is fantastic. I love it on toast, but I have also used store bought peach jam in my sweet and sour chicken. Now I can use my own.
   

Glorious South Carolina Peaches!

       We got back from South Carolina with all my precious cargo. Three grand daughters returned to their parents ( with a big sigh of relief, lol ), and my two half bushel baskets of beautiful, mouth watering South Carolina peaches. i can't sing their praises enough. These are a heavenly delight to the taste buds. Their sweet, juicy flesh is like a ray of sunshine. I dont think there is a fruit anywhere that can compare. We bought them fresh to eat there while camping last yr. This year I have the canning bug, and couldn't pass them up. Even at $22 for half bushel. These are huge peaches, some over 10" in diameter. There are a few slightly bruised ones , but with a 12 hour drive home with our fifth wheel in tow. Thats not too bad. I almost hate to can them, since we enjoy eating them fresh so much, but they wont last forever.

Out of the first half bushel, I got 12 quart jars. But lost one when the jar broke as I lowered into the hot water bath for processing.

Yea, I know they are not supposed to be floating. 

Canned Peaches

Peel, pit, and remove fibrous red areas surrounding pit. 

Slice in half or fourths. Place slices in bowl with juice of half a lemon to coat. This keeps peaches from browning as you prepare them. 

Prepare a syrup. I prefer a light syrup which is 2 cups of white granulated sugar per 6 cups of water. Place this in a pot to simmer until sugar dissolves then bring to a boil. 

Place canning caps into boiling water to hold till ready. 

After placing peaches in a sterilized quart jar, packing them firmly, pour hot syrup over peaches. be sure to leave 1/2" head space. 

Dry off rims of jars. 

Place caps over and hand tighten ring. 

Place jars in boiling water bath with enough water to cover jars. Process for 25 minutes for pints and 30 minutes for quarts.

When done, remove jars from water and set out on towel. Leave untouched for 24 hours, then remove rings and store. Double check your seals to be sure all lids are depressed.

Homemade Banana Cream Pie

   I feel like I have died and gone to heaven. I just ate my first piece of Banana Cream Pie made with real homemade filling.Not my traditional boxed pudding. It was fantastic. I found this recipe while searching for info on menu making, and landed on  Colleens Recipes. You can find her site and this recipe her  site HERE. I am sure I will be trying a lot more of her recipes.

Menu Planning

        I have decided to give menu planning a try. I hate the age old question of "Whats for dinner?". Trying to scramble at the last minute and get food on the table. I don't have a lot to cook for anymore. My kids are grown, but I still have 2 sons at home and my husband. That's a dramatic drop from the 7 I was cooking for.
I have been doing a lot of research on the different methods. Some create themes, such as Pasta night, or Crockpot night. I thought this sounded interesting, but I kinda hated to limit myself to certain meals on certain days. To be honest there are days its just "fend for yourself" night. But they are all adults, and there's always left-overs. They also know how to cook. My Daughter-in-law told me the first time my son tried to make mashed potatoes. Mashing them before cooking is not a very good idea,lol. But when he was little, I was younger, and had more energy. I took care of everything for them. A behavior that I have also gotten on to my husband in the past. When the boys were teens, if a car needed fixed, he did it. He didnt want to take the time required to teach them how to do it. On hind site, that wouldnt have been a bad idea for the girls as well.  But I digress.
        The method I opted on required me to start a folder on the computer. I listed  all the meals I fix for my family. I then started separate files for main meals, soups, sides, breads, and desserts. In each file, I numbered the dishes. If I found a recipe online I wanted to add to my mainstays, then I copied the address, then pasted into the next numbered slot. That way when I am trying to work up a menu, I can just click on the link for directions. Once we try these new meals, then I will probably print it out and slip it into a notebook I started for recipes I have printed off the various sites on the web. If we dont like it, then out it goes.
    Some people also plan their menu's for a month at a time, or  just for a week. Since I shop weekly, I decided to just do a week at a time. In my notebook, i will write my initial plan for the week. Then when completed, I plan on using a dry erase marker to transfer it to the new board I created with scrap book paper. I still have to get a magnetic frame so i can stick it on the fridge, but for now I slipped it into a plastic sleeve protector. Then you just write on the plastic over the designated days of the week, and wipe off later. Some people even frame these in regular frames and stand them on the counter. The meal plan I write on paper with stay in the notebook, and eventually I can just rotate these and save lots of work.
    By the way, I still plan on a few "fend for yourself" days, meaning empty slots on the menu  :)

Cutting strawberries Back For Production

      While doing a search on other garden questions, I found several articles about mowing over your strawberries when they are done producing.This is done with June bearing plants and within a week after crop is finished. This is done to increase production next year, and I believe to control runners somewhat. This is my second season for these strawberry plants and they have grown by leaps and bounds, and extending out of the raised bed I have them in. They are nice and healthy looking but produced very little. In the 2 ft x 25 ft bed I have them in, I was only able to pick a few  now and then to eat fresh while I was in the garden. So I just spent about 45 minutes outside in  52% humidity and 86 degree heat trimming all of mine back to within about 3" of the crown. Other sites say you can safely mow them, but to stay at least 1" from crowns. Since mine were in a raised bed, I had to hand cut them. Then I threw them to the backside of the potager for the start of a compost pile. Heres to an abundant crop of strawberries next season.