Treats for your sweet for Easter.

christy — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 17:42:00 GMT

So what do you get when you take this...

...and mix it with this?

You get, well, this. Chocolate Rice Krispies.

Now there are many things you can do with this mixture. But taking my cue from Mowielicious I made bird nests out of them.

I added a few of these homemade peeps

and some candy coated chocolate eggs and BOO-YAH

Sooooooo, whadda ya think? Are they cute, or what?

Little mother hens sitting on their pretty colored eggs.

Watching.

Waiting.

Protecting them from curious fingers and hungry mouths.

She better keep an extra eye out. I know where she lives and I'm feeling ravenous for sugar coated marshmallows. Dun. Dun. Dun....

Here's the recipes.

Chocolate Rice Krispy Nests
adapted from Kellogg's recipe
Makes approx 12-14 (3 inch) nests

4 Tbls butter
1/2 cup chocolate chips
4 cups mini marshmallows
4 cups Cocoa Krispies
2 cups Rice Krispies

Melt butter and chocolate chips in a large pot over medium low heat. Add marshmallow's and mix till melted and smooth. Add the cocoa and rice krispies and mix till coated. Hand form large scoops of the mixture into nest shapes or form in 3 inch tart molds (which is what I did). Let them set up for about 10 min then unmold and put on squares of wax paper and set in large muffin papers.

Marshmallow Peeps
From Martha Stewart

Makes about 1 1/2 cups

1 packet unflavored gelatin (2 1/2 teaspoons)
1/3 cup cold water, for gelatin, plus 1/4 cup for syrup
1 cup sugar

In the bowl of an electric mixer, sprinkle gelatin over 1/3 cup cold water. Allow gelatin to soften while cooking the sugar syrup. In a small saucepan, combine 1/4 cup water and sugar, and stir over medium-high heat until sugar is dissolved. Stop stirring, and place a candy thermometer into sugar water. Boil sugar until temperature reaches the soft-ball stage (238 degrees). Remove syrup from heat; add to softened gelatin. Place bowl on the mixer stand and stir on low for a few minutes to cool. Beat on medium high with the whisk attachment until soft peaks form and the marshmallow mixture holds shape, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer marshmallow mixture to a large (14-inch) pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch (No. 11 Ateco) tip, and use immediately.

Here's instructions on how to pipe the chick's from Martha's website.

1. Pipe an oval shape onto sugar, about 1 inch wide, tapering the end and pulling upward to finish with the tail.

2. For the head, pipe a mound on the end opposite the tail, about the width of the body, pushing toward the tail and up. Pull away from the head to form the beak.

3. Immediately sprinkle sugar over the entire surface of the chick. Allow a few minutes for the shape to set.

4. Pipe on royal-icing eyes with a #1 Ateco icing tip; lift chick out of sugar with a spoon or small offset spatula. Place in a parchment-lined airtight container until ready to serve, or for up to 2 weeks.

Clarified Butter

christy — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:44:00 GMT

I never really understood the purpose in clarifying butter. Until a recipe I was making called for it. I had to look up the how and the why. Wikipedia Rocks! Clarified butter has a higher smoke point, which makes it great for sauteing vegetables or fish. And it has a longer shelf life than fresh butter.

So, I was making Potato Crusted Tilapia with Buerre Blanc Sauce and it called for the fish to be cooked in clarified butter. From what I read you have to start with more solid fresh butter than what you're going to need at the end.

We're going to be channeling Paula Deen here a little with all this butter! But that's never stopped me before! Starting with two stickes of unsalted butter in a pan set on low heat until it is melted.

The milk solids sink to the bottom and some water evaporates and the rest of the solids float to the top which need to be skimmed off.

Stretch a piece of cheese cloth over a bowl then gently pour the butter through the cloth straining out any other solids.

And what you're left with is clear more shelf stable butter with a higher smoke point! Whoo hooo. Now what?

Check back soon and I will show you one thing I did with it.

Recipes : butter

Treats for your sweet for Easter.

Clarified Butter