FRESH CRANBERRY SAUCE

Cranberry sauce is always one of many holiday highlights. You can make it fresh at home instead of using that stuff in the can that's loaded  with high frutose corn syrup. It's easy and only takes 15 minutes from start to finish.


FRESH CRANBERRY SAUCE

(1) 12 oz. bag of Fresh Cranberries
1/2 to 1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water

Bring the sugar and the water to a boil in a medium heavy saucepan. Add the fresh cranberries, then return to a boil reducing heat to a gentle boil. Boil for 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Pour into a heat/cold proof bowl and cover. Refrigerate until serving time.

BALL VINTAGE BLUE CANNING JARS

 

 

Ball Vintage Blue  canning jars seem to be all the rage these days. And, it's now wonder since they have so many other uses other for use in canning fruits and vegetables.

They make fantastic storage containers for a variety of items. Let's face it...they add so much charm to any space. I like to store my coffee, tea, honey, nuts, etc. in them for display under my vintage kitchen cabinets.

You can use the same idea to display your vintage canning jars. Just secure a vintage zinc or a metal canning jar lid with ring under your cabinet with a screw, fill your jar, then screw into the lid.

If you don't have any Ball Vintage Blue canning jars you can simply use a new canning jar.  You can learn more about where to purchase Ball Vintage Blue  canning jars at: http://www.etsy.com/shop/uniquecozytreasures

Happy Homemade Eggnog

Nothing hits the spot  like a rich and creamy cup of delicious eggnog. With or without rum it is one of my all time favorite things. Added to a  morning cup of  coffee it is simply spectacular! So today I am sharing with you my all time favorite eggnog recipe. Enjoy!

Happy Homemade Eggnog

Ingredients: 

3 large eggs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/8 teas. salt
4 cups whole milk
1 Tab. vanilla extract
1/8 to 1/4 teas. ground nutmeg
1/8 to 1/4 teas. cinnamon
*1/4 cup dark rum (optional)

1/4  pint  heavy whipping cream
1 teas. powdered sugar
1/4 teas. vanilla extract



Ingredients: Yields 32 cups

12 large eggs
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 teas. salt
2 quarts whole milk
3 Tab. vanilla extract
1 teas. ground nutmeg
1 teas. ground cinnamon
*1 cup dark rum(optional)

1 pint heavy whipping cream
2 teas. powdered sugar
1/2 teas. vanilla extract



Directions:

In a heavy 4 qt. saucepan, whisk the eggs, granulated sugar, and salt. Gradually stir in half of the milk and cook over low heat, stirring constantly until the eggnog custard thickens and coats the back of a large metal spoon, about 25 min. The mixture should reached 160 degrees, but don't bring to a boil or it will curdle. Stir in dark rum if desired, otherwise omit. Stir in the vanilla extract, ground nutmeg, ground cinnamon and the rest of the whole milk.

Pour the eggnog custard into a large heat/cold proof bowl or container. Cover, then place in refrigerator for at least 3 hours.  Before serving prepare the whipped cream by whipping the cream, powdered sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer just until soft peaks form. Whipped cream can turn to butter quickly, so stop mixing immediately when the soft peaks form.

With a wire whisk, gently fold the whipped cream into the eggnog custard. Pour eggnog into cups, glasses or punch bowl. Garnish each cup or glass with a dash of ground nutmeg.

DELICIOUS!!!

PERFECT PECAN PIE

 Pecan is one of my favorite pie's in the whole world! Interestingly, I had never even tasted a Pecan Pie until about 5 years ago. However, after that first bite there was no turning back.... I was addicted!

This recipe comes down from my Aunt's finest old time recipes. It was the first Pecan Pie that I ever baked and the first Pecan Pie that I ever tasted. I have made a couple changes to the original recipe, however,  this an  absolutely devine pie.

PERFECT PECAN PIE

4 large eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/2 cups dark corn syrup
1 cup granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Tab. + 1 tsp. melted butter
1 1/2 cups pecan halves
Single uncooked pie crust

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix, roll out pie crust and place in  a pie pan.

Place the pecan halves into the bottom of the crust. Mix all of the pie ingredients in a medium size bowl, then pour into the pie shell. Bake at 375 degrees for 60 minutes.

Let filling set up  by cooling for several hours or overnight before serving. Do Not cover while cooling and Do Not place in refrigerator, to avoid failure of the filling setting properly.

Here is a great video showing how you can  make "Pie Crust the Easy Way".
http://uniquecozytreasures.blogspot.com/2011/11/pies-made-easy.html

KINDLE EDITION - Vintage Ice Creams, Heirloom Recipes. Available Now!

     I have finally published my very first Kindle Edition eBook during December 2011. The eBook itself was written 3 1/2 years ago by myself.  I'm so excited  because with Kindle Publishing I now have the opportunity to offer it for sale worldwide in the Kindle Store on Amazon.com.  So far the Amazon Kindle Store sales have been an unexpected surprise.

     "Vintage Ice Creams, Heirloom Recipes"  shares many interesting facts about the history of ice cream. It   gives the reader our coveted family heirloom recipe for homemade ice cream and how to easily make it in your very own kitchen with ingredients that you mostly likely already obtain. There is an additional section which features over 14 different flavor variations of the original  heirloom recipe including Chocolate Chip, Raspberry, Lemon, Peach, Strawberry and more.

    With the new Kindle Fire now available, readers will be able to take advantage of the color photos, etc. Those with the regular Kindle will also be able to enjoy a nice reading experience, but with color features shown in grayscale.  *If you don't have either type of Kindle you can read Kindle eBooks with all of the color features on your Iphone, Droid phone, many other smart phones, Ipad or on your computer.

     I just love Kindle books because they can be downloaded  and read immediately for pennies.  Our family usually gives out a few Amazon gift cards each year just for that purpose. It makes a nice added low cost gift  to the recipient. It also gives our elderly or handicapped family members and friends  an easy way to obtain quality reading material at a low cost without ever leaving their house. 

     Now that I've learned how to format my eBooks for Kindle Publishing I will be looking forward to writing many more eBooks and adding them to the Kindle Book Store collection. I've also just learned that Amazon has a program to download and sell blogs too. I guess one of these days I may try that!

      "Vintage Ice Creams, Heirloom Recipies" is part of the Kindle Owner's Select Lending Program for Amazon Prime members for the next 90 days. That means if you are an Amazon Prime member my book is available for lending free for the next 90 days. If you are not an Amazon Prime member you can still purchase it  for download to read on any Kindle reading device, computer and many smartphones at any time.

       You may learn more about "Vintage Ice Creams, Heirloom Recipes"  by visiting the Amazon Kindle Store Here.  

    
       Deb............

Pies Made Easy

With the Holiday Season in full swing, cooks everywhere are planning their special pies for the upcoming festive dinners. Some may find making pies to be a real chore, as I did, until I finally mastered the skill of making pie crust from scratch.

My mother helped me with the first pie crust that I ever made when I was about 18 years old. She made it seem so simple and the cherry pie that she tutored me though came out perfectly. It was a fact widely known that mom was a wonderful pie baker. She always made those pies look so easy to make and she could whip one up in no time flat.

Mom once told me that her first pie was a disaster. The crust was a mess and she became very frustrated with the whole ordeal. Well she kept at it to become one of the best pie bakers around. I found it frustrating too and it took me a good amount of time to achieve her status as pie baker.

With that said, I'm going to share with you some tips on how to make the perfect pie crust the easy way. You can learn how quickly and avoid a lot  the frustration by viewing my YouTube video here.

How to Make Flakey Pie Crust From Scratch the Easy Way

I hope this video will make your Holiday pie baking just a little easier.

Please view my other pie how-to videos:

"How to Easily Place a Pie Crust into a Pie Pan"
http://www.youtube.com/user/videohomeandgarden#p/a/u/2/EZDYmYjDC-U

"How to Flute the Edges of the Pie Crust"
http://www.youtube.com/user/videohomeandgarden#p/a/u/1/7Jg0NpoChoo

Deb