Coffee Rum Truffettes
Celebrate National Chocolate Covered Anything Day by making a batch of Jacques Pepin’s Coffee Rum Truffettes.
Whole Wheat Banana Walnut Pancakes
We rescued some over-ripe bananas from the fruit market this morning. 15 for $1.00! These pancakes are hearty and heart healthy if you use egg whites. With 13 remaining, there is probably another Roasted Banana Cheesecake in our immediate future!
Whole Wheat Banana Walnut Pancakes
Ingredients
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/3 cup walnuts, chopped
1 T sugar
1/4 tspn. salt
1/4 tspn. ground cardamom (or 3/4 tspn. cinnamon)
1 1/2 tspns. baking powder
1/4 cup water (more if you like thinner pancakes)
1/2 cup skim milk (Soy milk works great too.)
1 tspn. vanilla
2 ripe bananas, mashed
1 egg or two egg whites
Preparation
- Combine dry ingredients, including nuts, in a mixing bowl with a spout.
- Stir together water, milk, vanilla, bananas and egg.
- Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined.
- Heat the griddle to medium/medium-high and spray with non-stick cooking spray.
- Pour the batter onto the griddle.
- Flip when bubbles appear.
- Cook until golden brown on both sides.
Red Pepper Jam
Pepper Jam has been a family favorite for years. We love it best with goat cheese and crackers. My sister hates goat cheese and uses cream cheese instead.
Ingredients
6 red or yellow bell peppers, coarsely chopped
1 cup white vinegar
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
Preparation
- Combine ingredients in a medium saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat for one hour, until it thickens to a jelly-like consistency.
- Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 6 weeks.
Spiced Cranberry Sangria
Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
3 cinnamon sticks
8 whole cloves
6 allspice berries
1 12oz. bag of cranberries (about 3 cups), roughly chopped
2 cups triple sec
2 cups brandy
2 cups tawny port
4-750 ml bottles mediocre red wine (Or one big jug of cheap ‘burgundy’)
Sparkling cider (or ginger ale)
Preparation
- Combine water, sugar, and spices in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat and simmer gently for 5-10 minutes.
- In a large bowl combine spiced syrup, cranberries, triple sec, brandy, and port wine. Refrigerate overnight.
- In a large pitcher combine 2 cups of the macerated cranberry mixture with one bottle of wine. Top off with two cups of sparkling cider or enough to fill the pitcher.
- Serve over ice.
Grilled Brie, Turkey, and Asian Pear Sandwiches
Pretty glamorous for leftovers!
Ingredients
One small Asian pear, cored and thinly sliced
1 cup shredded cooked turkey
1 tspn. fresh thyme leaves
6 slices whole-grain bread
2 T spicy brown mustard
2 T honey
4 oz. Brie, sliced
unsalted butter, softened
Preparation
- Spread each bread slice with honey mustard.
- Arrange half of the Brie on three slices of the bread.
- Layer the Asian pear slices over the Brie.
- Mound the turkey on top of the pears and sprinkle with thyme leaves.
- Layer on the remaining Brie, and top with the remaining bread slices mustard side down.
- Lightly butter the tops of the sandwiches and set them, buttered side down, on a hot griddle. Set a large heavy skillet directly on top of the sandwiches and put 3 – 5 pounds of weights in the empty skillet. (I used a hand weight, but a big can of beans would work too!)
- Cook the sandwiches until golden brown on one side, about 4 minutes.
- Remove the weights, butter the sandwich tops, and turn the sandwiches over. Replace the skillet and weights and continue to cook until the second side is golden brown and the cheese is oozy, about 3 minutes longer.
- Cut the sandwiches in half and serve.
Fresh Cranberry Sauce
Ingredients
1 12 oz. bag fresh cranberries
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup granulated sugar
zest from one orange
1/4 tspn ground allspice (optional)
Preparation
- Combine all ingredients except the allspice in a medium sized sauce pan.
- Stir over medium heat until sugar and jello are dissolved.
- Bring to a boil stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer until cranberries burst, about 5-10 minutes.
- Remove from heat and stir in allspice.
The cranberries make a popping sound when they burst. It’s music to my ears at Thanksgiving.
Cranberry Cake With Toasted Almonds
This delicious cake takes only 20 minutes to prepare. It’s dense, like a pound cake, with the perfect balance of sweet and tart.
Ingredients
3 eggs
2 cups granulated sugar
11 T unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tspn. vanilla
2 T Amaretto
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups cranberries (1 bag), fresh or frozen
1/3 cup almond slivers, lightly toasted
Preparation
- Preheat oven to 350F.
- Lightly grease a 9 or 10” springform pan.
- Beat eggs and sugar together on medium speed until the mixture is pale yellow and silky looking, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add soft butter, vanilla, and Amaretto and continue mixing for 2 minutes.
- Turn the mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour.
- Fold in the cranberries.
- Evenly spread the mixture into the pan and sprinkle with toasted almond slivers.
- Bake for 70 minutes or more depending on the pan size. Cake is done when firm to touch. (If the top gets too brown, lightly cover the pan with foil.)
- Allow to cool several hours before serving.
Roasted Banana Cheesecake With Fromage Blanc
Crust
1/3 cup light brown sugar
7 oz cinnamon cookies (or vanilla wafers or coconut cookies…endless possibilities)
1/2 cup toasted walnuts
5 T melted butter
- Combine ingredients in a food processor and pulse until mixture resembles course-grained cornmeal.
- Press into a 10-inch springform pan and set aside.
Filling
3 roasted bananas (Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes, cool and peel.)
2/3 cup granulated sugar
8oz cream cheese
16oz fromage blanc (Use more cream cheese if you can’t find it at the store.)
3 eggs
2 egg yolks
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 T bourbon
1 tspn vanilla
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Combine sugar and cheeses with an electric mixer on medium-high until fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add eggs and yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Add bananas, cream, bourbon and vanilla. Beat until thoroughly combined.
- Pour over prepared crust.
- Bake for one hour or until the interior is firm to the touch. (If you shake it back and forth gently and the center jiggles, return the pan to the oven.)
- Cool at room temperature and chill for at least four hours before serving.
Bob Vivant 