Bunny Hair Bow

March 24, 2016

Happy Easter everyone! My daughter doesn’t go anywhere these days. She is two and she is already developing her own sense of fashion! Right now she is on a “princess” trend so she is all about dresses and hair bows. When I made this Bunny hair bow for her she was super excited and wore it to the Easter party she was invited to last weekend!

My daughter is finally getting enough hair to use traditional hair clips, but this can definitely be made with the alligator clips that grasp onto baby fine hair as well. I used a combination of sewing and hot glue for this one, take a look at how I did it.

Some of the supplies you will need are grossgrain ribbon in a white and pink… or whatever color bunny you like with a contrasting color for the inner ear. A spool of tiny pom-pom ribbon, some pink thread (or matching your contrasting color) a glue gun and two googly eyes. You will also need your clip and some fraying solution.

Start out by deciding how big you want your ears. I cut my ribbon about 3″ each for the ears.

Then stack your main color (in my case white) and your contrasting color (in my case pink). And form a tall loop.

Now place a small stitch at the bottom to hold the shape in place.

Once this is done just trip any fraying you see. This doesn’t need the fraying solution because it will be glued shortly.

Now form a bow with a length of ribbon that is your main color. I do this two ways. Either this wa or with that end that is in the front placed behind. You can see the difference at the end.

Place a small stitch to hold.

Now clip off two tiny pom-poms forming a “V” shape.

Now all your preparations are ready. Choose which clip you prefer and cover with your main color ribbon to blend in.

Here are all the pieces.

Stitch the pom-poms onto the bow.

Now dab two bits of hot glue for the ears, they go on first.

You will want to work quickly here.

Now add another dab of glue for the bow itself.

Now glue on the eyes and the little square of pink for the nose and you’ve done it!

Just be sure to go back and use the fraying solution on the ends of the ribbon that are exposed. This is a very important step whenever working with ribbon of any kind.

Bunny Hair Bow

White grossgrain ribbon (or brown or gray etc)

Pink grossgrain ribbon (or blue etc)

Tiny pom-pom ribbon

2 googly eyes

clip

hot glue

fray check

scissors

Chouriço Stuffed Roast Beef (Carne Assada com Chouriço)

March 23, 2016

Carne Assada com Chouriço has always been one of my mother’s signature dishes. Whenever it is time for a special dinner, you can find her making this delicious somewhat fancy version of Portuguese Roast Beef. On any given holiday whether alongside the turkey at Thanksgiving, the Codfish at Christmas or the Ham at Easter, most Portuguese people will always serve a secondary main course dish. My mother loves to make a good Portuguese roast beef. Sometimes it is just the traditional version with chouriço and potatoes on the side (which is delicious), but when she has the extra energy, it is done this way.

Any type of beef cut can be used for this process, but I would suggest something that does not have a ton of connective tissue to get through. You will want something that is rectangular in shape and thick enough to accommodate the chouriço. What I have used today is a 2 lb. boneless chuck tender roast. You will then need one link of chouriço. Whether you chose hot or mild, makes no difference really, it’s all personal preference. The point is to impart the flavor of the chouriço into the meat. (And to have a pretty awesome presentation)

The sauce here pulls the entire dish together and allows for added moisture without being a braise.

Start with a beef roast. This one is a 2 lb. boneless chuck tender roast.

You will need one link of chouriço and a good sharp knife. I am using hot chouriço, but mild would be fine here as well.

In order to impart the flavor of the chouriço into the inside of your roast you first need to peel the link like so.

Once your chouriço is ready to go, you can prepare your meat. Your goal will be to make a cut the length of the chouriço as close to the middle of the roast as you can creating a pocket in which to insert the chouriço.

Start with a horizontal cut. Please be careful in this process, you are sort of doing it blindly.

The next cut will help you to form an “X” in the meat. Again this should be the length of the chouriço link.

Next you need to carefully and slowly introduce the chouriço to the meat.

Remember there is a bit of a curve to the link, so easy does it.

Once the meat is stuffed, sprinkle with kosher salt.

Be sure to rub in and let sit until sauce is ready.

The end of your roast may taper off, at this point tuck in so that it can cook more evenly.

Place in a baking dish that will allow for potatoes on either side and not much else. You will want everything to have contact with the sauce.

Chop one large onion.

Place some peeled potatoes in the pan.

Sprinkle with the onions.

To start the sauce, use one 6 oz. can of plain tomato sauce.

Peel about 6 cloves of garlic.

Mince.

Add to the tomato sauce.

At this point you can also add in some pimenta moida, my mother does, I didn’t on this time around.

Add in some Portuguese All Spice. If you don’t have this spice handy, add in some mild Paprika.

Add in some kosher salt.

Add in olive oil and stir.

Pour sauce over roast and potatoes.

Be sure it is completely covered.

Cover in foil.

After one hour in the oven, remove foil.

Roast in the oven for an additional 30 minutes.

Remove roast from pan and let meat reast. If the potatoes need more time, return them to the oven.

Place foil over the meat for about 10 minutes or so.

After the resting period, slice about 1″ slices.

Carne Assada com Chouriço

Serves 8

Ingredients:

1 2lb. beef roast

1 link of chouriço, hot or mild, peeled

8 medium potatoes, peeled

1 onion, chopped

1 6oz. can plain tomato sauce

1 tsp. kosher salt

6 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. Portuguese All Spice or mild paprika

2 Tbs. olive oil

2 Tbs. Pimenta Moida (optional)

Directions:

Prepare meat by creating a long “X” shaped pocket lengthwise in the meat. Insert peeled chouriço into the pocket. Sprinkle meat with some kosher salt and rub in. Let stand in the roasting pan while preparing the sauce. Also place potatoes and onions in the roasting pan.

For the sauce:

Combine tomato sauce, oil, garlic, salt, Portuguese All Spice and Pimenta Moida.

Pour sauce over the meat and potatoes. Cover tightly with foil. Roast in the oven for 1 hour. Remove foil, rotate potatoes and return to oven for an additional 1/2 hour. Remove from oven and allow to rest tented with foil for 10 minutes before cutting. Slice in 1″ pieces and serve hot. Enjoy!

*Gluten-free

Bunny Cake

March 21, 2016March 21, 2016

A good friend of mine Lisa, who you may remember from her recipe ‘Stuffed Jalapeno’s’, decided to have a little Easter party for her daughter and her friend’s this past weekend. My two little one’s were invited and as I never like to show up to a party empty-handed, I decided to bring a little cake along!

Lisa is a full-time working mom and she did an amazing job with the party, the kid’s had so much fun. She put out a great spread for lunch, had an Easter egg hunt, coloring, a pin the tail on the Bunny game and Easter baskets to top it all off. The kid’s didn’t stop talking about it afternoon after leaving!

I baked my own recipe for chocolate cake and buttercream, you can certainly use a box cake mix for this recipe. However, I would use a real buttercream for filling and decorating. Also, feel free to use any flavor cake for this. Then just collect your candy and nuts and you can get started. The only real rule here is to get creative!

Here are most of your ingredients… You will need three layers of prepared cake, frosting, green sprinkles, chocolate eggs or some sort, bunnies, a spreading spatula and a cake stand.

I decided to go with three different buttercream frostings. I am doing a strawberry buttercream filling, vanilla buttercream colored green for the top and chocolate buttercream for the sides.

Start with any flavor cake baked into three layers.

Start by spreading your filling on each layer. You will want to try to divide your filling in half for this.

Be sure not to go all the way to the edges because when you place your next layer on, it will spread from the weight.

Place the next layer on.

And repeat with the remaining filling.

Place the third and last layer on top.

Next I like to add on the side frosting, spreading evenly, but it’s supposed to mimic dirt, so a little roughness is nice here.

Once you have it all spread on be sure to go up over the edge just a bit and then clean up the plate.

It’s always a good idea to trim the cake bottom… Here I’ve used sliced almonds that mimic rocks in the dirt, but you can really trim with anything you like.

Once this stage is complete, move onto the next step.

Pile your green frosting up on top, right in the middle of the cake.

You will want to be sure you are gentle with this step so you come just to the edge of the top of the cake, spreading evenly.

Now go around the edge of the top of the cake with your chocolate eggs.

I like to go around with a little turn and it is ok if there is green on the outside of these… you don’t want them falling off.

Move all the way around the cake.

Pile up some sprinkles right in the middle of the top of the cake. My sprinkles are an Easter mix with cue little eggs in them. Use whatever you like here. Even brown sprinkles would be cute.

These Peep bunny’s come in rows, so when you detach them from each other, they will have a raw edge.

To mask that raw edge, simply take another bunny and rub the sugar from the back of the bunny on the raw edge of the one you will be displaying.

And it does a good job of masking it.

Now to affix the bunny’s to the top, you will need some tooth picks or serving picks as I am using here.

Insert the tooth pick or serving pick into the bunny.

Once it goes in about halfway, you are ready to use.

I use three different color bunny’s here, you can get creative, use the same color or use 5 bunny’s (I like to stick to odd numbers)

Be sure they are placed just as you like.

Bunny Cake

Serves 12-16

Ingredients:

3 8″-9″ cake layers (any flavor)

4-5 cups buttercream frosting, divided (see recipe below)

1 bag chocolate candy eggs

1/4 cup sliced almonds

1/8 cup green sprinkles

green food coloring

1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

3 Peep bunnys, assorted colors

8-10 chopped strawberries (optional)

Directions:

Divide frosting in 4 parts. Two parts will be filling, add chopped strawberries or any other flavoring if desired. Add green food coloring to third part until desired green color is acheived (usually 4-5 drops). Add melted chocolate to fourth and final part.

Place first cake layer on cake stand. Add one part of filling and spread. Place second cake layer on top. Spread second part of cake filling. Place final cake layer on top.

Spread chocolate frosting on sides of cake. Trim bottom of cake with sliced almonds.

Spread green frosting on top of cake. Rim the top of cake with candy eggs. Pile up green sprinkles in center of top of cake.

Pierce Peep bunny’s with toothpick’s and affix to the top of cake in a decorative fashion.

Enjoy!

Basic Buttercream Frosting

Yield 5 – 6 cups

Ingredients:

3 sticks softened unsalted butter

6 cups confectioner’s sugar

1/3 cup milk

2 tsp. pure vanilla extract

Directions:

Cream butter with an electric mixer. Turn speed to low and add in confectioner’s sugar. Add milk. Add vanilla. Beat until smooth.

*Gluten-free

Portuguese Meringues (Suspiros)

March 2, 2016May 13, 20203 Comments

How can I describe a Suspiro? Well… If you have never had a Suspiro or a meringue before, what I can say is imagine what cotton candy’s opposite would be texture wise while still retaining all the sugar. It’s almost like a chalky consistency, but far from that in flavor. And the best part about the home-made ones most especially is that they have a relatively gooey middle.

Suspiros have been part of my life forever. Every Portuguese market I know of always has these big beautiful sweet treats stocked. More candy than cookie, these special goodies were only bought every so often in my house, but when they were, we were always happy kids! Unlike the American version (Meringues) which are only about the size of a half-dollar, Portuguese Suspiros are about the size of a hamburger bun. They are best eaten slowly with a cup of tea.

In my opinion each and every holiday should include Suspiros, but none more than Easter! After 40 days of Lenten sacrifice, there is nothing more satisfying than pure sugar! They can be colored, of course, to accommodate any theme (think pink for Princess tea parties or blue for a baby shower) and are a great addition to birthday parties and anything you might want something a little “out of the box” for. A major part of making these yummies is drying them out, it is best to make them when it is not too humid out and best stored in an air tight container or zip tight bag.

Preheat your oven to 225°F.

Start by adding about 2″ of water to the bottom of a medium-sized sauce pan. Bring the water to a simmer over medium heat.

You want to be sure the sauce pan you use is smaller than the bowl of your electric mixer.

Separate 4 egg whites into the bowl of your electric mixer. Cold eggs aid in this process.

They won’t look like much in the bowl, but their volume will increase, don’t worry.

Use the egg yolks in a cake recipe or to make lemon curd or just discard.

Measure out 1 1/2 cups of granulated white sugar.

Add directly to the egg whites.

With a hand whisk, incorporate the sugar in with the whites by beating well.

Once the whites and the sugar are beaten to a slightly frothy milky white substance, place the bowl on the sauce pan that you have brought to a simmer. Beat steadily and quickly with your hand whisk for about 3-4 minutes.

You will know the mixture is ready to remove from the heat when it looks like the sugar crystals have melted as you bring the mixture up the side of the bowl as seen here.

Line two sheet pans with parchment paper.

Once sugar crystals appear to have dissolved, place bowl on electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat on high until mixture has cooled and stiff peaks have formed. This should take about 4-5 minutes.

The mixture is so stiff that when I remove it from the machine and let it rest for transport to the sink, it just stays up right.

Stiff peak.

Ready your supplies. I am using a disposable pastry bag and an extra-large tip. If you don’t have these supplies, you can use a gallon size freezer bag and attach whatever size decorating tip you have, or just use no tip at all. The Suspiros will turn out just fine, they just won’t have the pretty carved look to them. (Unless you cut a zig-zag shape into the corner or “tip” of your bag.)

Prepare the bag by cutting off enough tip to accommodate your tip holder.

This is what you should have once it is all assembled.

I like to start by folding back about an inch from the top. whether using a pastry bag or a gallon size freezer bag, this tip helps to fill without incident.

The tip I am using today is a 1M by Wilton.

Fill the bag.

Unfold that top portion you had originally folded down. Pinch at the top so as not to lose too much mixture.

In a circular motion, pipe the mixture onto the parchment lined pan.

Build as high as you like. I like good hearty Suspiros. These are about 2 1/2″ in diameter.

Once all the Suspiros are built, they are ready for the oven.

Bake at 225°F for one hour without opening the oven door. Once the hour is up, shut off the oven and leave the Suspiros in the oven until completely cool about 1-2 hours more.

Suspiros (Meringue)

Serves 16

Ingredients.

4 egg whites

1 1/2 cups white granulated sugar

Instructions:

Pre-heat oven to 225°F,

Beat egg whites with sugar by hand for about 30 seconds in the bowl of an electric mixer. Place a sauce pan on the stove with about 2″ of water in it. Bring water to a simmer. Place the bowl on the sauce pan and beat constantly. (This is an important step as it both builds volume and keeps the mixture moving so that the eggs don’t cook.) After about 3-4 minutes, check that the sugar crystals have mostly dissolved. Remove from heat and return bowl to the electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whisk mixture for about 4-5 minutes until stiff peaks can be formed.

Place mixture in a piping bag (or gallon size freezer bag) fitted with a star tip (or just with the end cut off). Pipe mixture onto a parchment lined sheet pan in 3″ round circles that are about 2″ high.

Place sheet pans in the oven and bake at 225°F for one hour without opening the oven. Then turn off the oven and allow Suspiros to cool completely in the oven before removing. Remove from oven and enjoy! Be sure to store in an air tight container.

Pan Seared Asparagus

November 16, 2015

Sometimes a simple side is the best way to go. And if you haven’t tried asparagus in a while, this is the recipe to try! Please do not confuse this with the stuff you get from the can all mushy and waterlogged. This asparagus is a flavorful and substantial side dish that is tender yet still has some body to it.

I did not grow up eating asparagus. As a matter of fact there really aren’t many Portuguese recipes for vegetable preparation because there was never much room on a Portuguese table for green veggies of any kind (well beyond couves/kale of course)! So, when I became and adult and started exploring the world of veggies on my own, I stumbled upon this one and fell in love! I created this recipe and buy asparagus whenever it is on sale which is about once a month and serve it at my dinner table holiday or not.

If you have never worked with asparagus, you might be surprised at just how simple it is to prepare…

Start with fresh asparagus. This recipe does not work with canned or even frozen asparagus.

Wash and cut off the woody bottoms… I usually remove the bottom 2 1/2 inches.

Heat your oven-safe skillet over high heat with a bit of olive oil. Place asparagus into the skillet altogether.

Sprinkle with kosher salt and Peppercorn & Garlic rub. (I also like to add in some Hungarian Paprika)

Toss in your skillet with some tongs and continue to get a sear on each piece. Then pop in a pre-heated oven for about 5 minutes.

Pan Seared asparagus

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 lb. fresh asparagus, washed and trimmed

3-4 Tbs. olive oil

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp. Peppercorn & Garlic Rub

1/4 tsp. Hungarian P

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 375°F. Heat skillet over high heat with olive oil.

Be sure asparagus is dry from washing. Place in heated skillet. Sprinkle with salt, Peppercorn & Garlic Rub and any other desired spices. Allow to sear for one minute, then rotate which asparagus are making contact with the hot skillet using tongs.

Once all asparagus has been seared, place skillet in the oven for 5-7 minutes. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Split Pea Soup

April 6, 2015March 28, 2016

I don’t know about you, but I always have a ton of left over ham after Easter or any holiday really. But, I don’t mind because I love me some Spit Pea Soup and there is nothing like a homemade ham roast to make a great Split Pea Soup with! Spring is beautiful and it’s nice to see all the winter snow melting away, but there can still be some pretty brisk and chilly weather. What better to combat that than a nice steaming bowl of soup? Yum!

For this recipe, I used my Pineapple Honey Glazed ham and turned it into this creamy deliciousness. If you didn’t make ham or don’t have any left overs, you can always make this recipe with some deli ham, just ask the deli to cut you some thick ham or you can grab a ham steak too. Here’s how I did it:

I start off with one bag of split peas, any brand is fine. Wash them and set them aside.

Dice some onions. I like a lot of onions, so I use two medium onions and give them a medium chop (maybe the size of a dime).

I trim my carrots next (sometimes I don’t peel them, but this time I did, so its up to you).

Then chop them to about the same dimensions you did your onions… so for me they are about the size of a dime.

Now add the onions and carrots into a large pot and sautee with some olive oil on medium heat.

Take a couple of cloves of garlic and mince (or use a garlic press). Add to your onions and carrots after they are tender. You want to make sure your garlic doesn’t burn, so add it in toward the end of the sauteeing phase.

Now it’s time to trim up the ham hock. Add this to your vegies. Admittedly, this is not the pretties thing ever, but it is super tasty and adds a hearty dimension to your soup you can’t get with anything else… still if it freaks you out, or if you already threw out your hock, just leave it out.

Add in chicken stock, here I have homemade stock that I made earlier in the week. (If you don’t have homemade stock, just add in an extra large can of low sodium stock.) Also, add in about the same amount of hot water. And one chicken bullion or one packet of bullion powder.

Dice up about a cup of ham… if you have more or less, then use more or less to your taste. I chop this about the size of a quarter, I like chunky ham, if you like more delicate, then give it a smaller chop.

Add in one bay leaf. If you have fresh, that’s great… I only had dry on hand.

Chop up about a teaspoon of fresh thyme and add to the pot. (If you only have dry that’s o.k., just reduce by half and add it in when you are sauteeing your onions and carrots)

Now add in a few cracks of black pepper and a good pinch of kosher salt. Also, add in a dash of white pepper if you have it on hand.

Add in your split peas now and stir. Bring the liquid to a boil on high and then reduce to a simmer and let cook for about 1 hour stiring periodically. When the soup starts to thicken and you can no longer see the shape of your split peas, then you know you are ready for the next and final step. (this could take up to one additonal hour… so keep your eye on it!

When your soup is just about done… You can remove the ham hock and add in about a cup of dilatini pasta (or whatever your favorite soup pasta is ie. elbows, stars, orzo etc)

And you’re done! Enjoy!

Split Pea Soup

(serves 8- 10)

1 package split peas, washed

1 ham hock, trimmed

1 cup diced ham

2 medium onions, chopped

4 medium carrots, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 t. fresh thyme, chopped

1 bay leaf

14-16 cups of liquid, chicken stock and water

1 chicken bullion or bullion powder packet

kosher salt to taste

fresh cracked black pepper to taste

dash of white pepper

2-3 T. olive oil

Directions:

Pepare all ingredients. Sautee onions and carrots in olive oil until tender over medium heat in a large pot. Add in garlic. Add in ham hock and liquid. Add in all other ingredients except the pasta. Cook on high until boiling. Turn down to a medium/low boil or simmer on medium/low heat for about an hour, stirring periodically. Check for dissapearing of peas in soup and thickening of liquid. This could take up to an additional hour. When liquid is thickened, add in pasta, cook an additional 20 minutes or so until pasta is done. Taste for seasonings. Enjoy!

note: This can very easily be made gluten free by omitting the pasta or using gluten-free pasta.

Pineapple Honey Glazed Ham

April 4, 2015March 13, 2016

Baked ham… an Easter tradition in my house growing up. I’m part of a big Portuguese family, so of course that wasn’t the only thing on the table, there would usually be some sort of roast or stew as well… but, my favorite was always the ham. My mother always put sliced pineapples on her ham. So, what I’ve done is incorporate that into my pineapple honey glazed ham. It’s simple and delicious.

A lot of people like spiral hams, and they are yummy, but they can also be quite pricy. I’ll be using a 10 lb. ham here and with Easter sales at my grocery store, I paid under $10 for this one, score! Spiral hams usually come with a nice little packet, usually brown sugar based that can be used to glaze the ham with, but regular run of the mill hams don’t. So, I’ve included a simple pineapple honey glaze with this recipe that is almost as simple as opening up that packet.

You’ll want to start with figuring out what size pan you’ll use. It’s a good idea for it to have room enough for the drippings, but not be so overwhelmingly big that the glaze doesn’t hang out near the meat. For this 10lb ham, I am using a 9×12″ baking dish.

You will want to prepare your ham to accept the glaze. This can be done by placing the ham cut side down in your baking dish and scoring in a lattice style, criss crossing over the entire skin.

Here are all the ingredient’s you will need for the glaze: honey, 1 20 oz . can of sliced pineapples, with the juice reserved, 1 T. butter, salt and whole pepper corns.

Take your ingredients and add them in all together to a small sauce pan over medium heat and stir. 1 T butter, 1 t. pepper corns, 2 T. honey, 1/2 t. salt and reserved juice (don’t add the actual pineapples to this mix) The goal here is not to cook it down, but just to get them all mixed in the warmth helps the butter and honey to incorporate. 2-3 minutes should do it.

Next, just pour the glaze over the ham.

Place the pineapples on the ham.

If you have a tough time getting the pineapples to stay put, you can secure them with toothpicks… I didn’t have any trouble due to the shape of my ham.

I like to add a bit more honey to the top for fun… this is about a tablespoon’s worth.

You should cover the ham for cooking, but first what I like to do is spray some cooking spray on the foil so it doesn’t stick to the pineapples.

Next, loosely cover with foil, sprayed side down.

Bake at 325°F for 15 minutes per lb.

It’s a good idea to baste the ham a few times… after your calculated cooking time is through, i like to uncover the ham and put into a 375°F oven for another 20 minutes or so to get some color on your pineapples and crisp up the skin of the ham a bit.

And that’s it… Check to see that the internal temperature is up to 140°F (because ham is fully cooked before you put it in the oven), put it on a platter as seen here with my Rockstar Potatoes. (Be sure to remove toothpicks at this point if you used them)

Baked ham, Rockstar Potatoes and peas! A perfect Easter dinner!

Pineapple Honey Glazed Ham

plan on 1/2 lb. per person for a bone in ham

Ingredients:

1 cured ham, bone in

1 20 oz. can sliced pineapple, juice reserved

2-3 T. honey

1 T. butter

1 t. black pepper corns

1/2 t. kosher salt

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 325°F.

For the glaze: In a small sauce pan over medium heat combine juice, honey, butter, pepper corns and salt. Warm through mixing.

Score the ham in a cross hatch fashion.

Pour warmed glaze over ham. Place pineapples on ham. Add extra honey if desired over top. Cover with foil. Bake 15 minutes per lb. Baste 2-3 time throughout cooking time. Remove foil after cooking time and baste again. Bake for an additional 20 minutes uncovered at 375°F. Check to see that ham is hot throughout and the skin has started to crisp up, internal temp should be 140°F.

***Gluten-free

Peep S’mores

April 2, 2015April 9, 2015

This year we are adding a new tradition to our usual Easter fun… Peep s’mores! As a Portuguese American mom, sweetbread is the good ole standby tradition (a post for another time) and then of course there is coloring and decorating Easter eggs, but I like to shake things up! I’m crazy like that!

Recently I’ve been seeing people having lots of fun dipping their Peeps in chocolate… I have even seen them packaged this way from the company. I, however, am taking this a step further. Every year at Christmas I make s’mores on a stick as little treats to give out and they are a BIG hit (check back around Christmas time for that fun project). Soooo… I thought elevating the chocolate dipped Peep to a new level was just the ticket.

I have a one and a two year old and this project is perfect for them to help with. It’s cheap, its colorful, fun and their little hands do great with the soft tactile nature of a Peep. But, I think this is fun at any age!

Here’s what you’ll need:

Peeps… any color… you can even do this with Peep bunnies if you are really feeling like jumping out of that box!

Peeps, chocolate chips, graham crackers and sprinkles

Crush your crackers with your fingers.

Place your chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. Start out with a minute, mix and then do 15 second intervals until it is mostly melted. Don’t add anything extra to the chocolate. (If you don’t have a microwave or if you prefer, this step can be done with a double boiler)

Mix until smooth.

This is what you should have now… along with whichever Peeps you decide on.

Now, give your Peep a little bath… dip him about half way in.

Now, into the crackers he goes!

Now, get him over to a piece of wax paper. I like to like a cookie tray so that it is easily moved into the fridge if need be.

Now, get him over to a piece of wax paper. I like to line a cookie tray so that it is easily moved into the fridge if need be. tip: place cookie sheet in the fridge beforehand to speed up cooling time… if you didn’t do this, you can just pop the whole tray in the fridge for 5-10 mins and you’re good.

sprinkles

Now dress him up with some sprinkles and let him cool.

…and repeat

Now you have these little guys! Enjoy!

Peep s’mores recipe:

20 Peeps

8 graham cracker squares

1/2 package of chocolate chips (I use semi-sweet)

colorful sprinkles

You will also need a microwave safe bowl and some wax paper or parchment.

Directions:

Get all your ingredients prepped before you begin because once the chocolate is melted, you will want to work fairly quickly. So, be sure to lay out some wax paper on a cookie sheet, set aside. Crush the graham crackers with your fingers, set aside. Separate the Peeps; I do this by cutting them with a knife so they stay neat, if you don’t care about that, they can just be pulled apart. Then, place the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for one minute, then in 15 second increments until melted, stirring throughout the process.

Now dip a peep into the chocolate, about half way in. Then directly dip into the graham crackers. Place onto a the cookie sheet and sprinkle. Let cool. Cooling may mean placing the tray into the fridge for 5-10 mins.

Once cooled, they can be packaged for Easter gift giving or just gobble them up! If you are keeping them, they will keep for up to a week or two in an airtight container… do not store in the fridge, but in a cool dry place.

Have fun!

Mom’s Portuguese Rice Pudding (Arroz Doce)

April 1, 2015May 19, 20153 Comments

Arroz Doce! Mmmmm… This is a great way to start off my blog for a couple of reasons. #1 – This is Easter week and coming from a Portuguese family, no Easter (or any holiday really) is complete without rich and creamy, Portuguese Rice Pudding. Growing up, I can’t recall a gathering without it. #2 – This is a super easy recipe, but for some reason, it took me years to master it. My mother can attest to the many times I called her reviewing her recipe and trying to figure out how I possibly could have missed a step. So, what I would like to do is take you through the process to help you avoid the pain I endured from failed attempt after failed attempt and lead you to a perfect rice pudding in one shot for your Easter table!

Now please, please, please don’t confuse Portuguese Rice Pudding with traditional American style rice pudding you may find on your grocer’s shelves which is little more than vanilla pudding with cooked rice mixed in for kicks. No, no, no… My mother’s rice pudding is anything but!

A couple of tips I have learned over the years before we get started. First, you will need a heavy bottom stainless steel pot with a lid. I’ll be honest, most of my cooking is done in non-stick cookware, but it just doesn’t work so well for this recipe because sometimes the rice will stick to the bottom (regardless of what type of cookware you use) and if it does, we need it to stay there; otherwise, you will end up with a bunch of brown bits floating through your final product, not so pretty or tasty. Next, the type of rice you use for this dish is pretty critical. You will need to find regular medium grain rice. Please don’t try this with a brown rice or a boil in the bag rice or any type of minute rice and absolutely nothing parboiled. Just plain cheap medium grain white rice is fine. If you want to get fancy, you can get the slightly pricier River Rice, which is my Mom’s preferred brand, but its not necessary if you just follow these guidelines. Also, I want to note that this recipe is very easily doubled or even tripled if you have a big enough pot, but I would not go further than that.

OK… Let’s get started…

Start off with 3 cups of milk and one cup of water in that heavy bottom pot I mentioned.

Whole milk is preferred, but 1% or 2% works just fine too… however, I would stay away from skim… note: I have done this with lactose free milk and it works out just great!

Add a small pinch of salt, don’t go crazy here.

Add in one lemon rind, just like this and turn the burner on to medium/high until the liquid comes to the start of a boil… so, you’ll want to watch that pot because the start of a boil can turn into a boil over in seconds with that much milk in the pot. (if you don’t care for lemon, you can absolutely leave this ingredient out, it will still be delicious… this method leaves the dish with a subtle undertone of lemon – nothing strong)

Next, add in the rice and stir. Then cover the pot and turn the burner down to med/low – low. (so just above the lowest setting on your knob) Be sure to stir periodically.

After about 20 minutes or so, this is what you should see in your pot. If not, give it a bit more time, but keep your eye on it, because it can happen quickly.

Sugar is essential to this recipe… Please don’t reduce this ingredient as you will not have the results you are looking for. Stir this in when your rice is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed as shown above. The sugar will then cause your rice to have more liquid as the sugar melts in. (((Here is where I always messed up… for some reason I skipped this step, DON’T SKIP THIS STEP! This is what gives the pudding it’s proper consistency))) Cover the pan and cook another 5-10 minutes on med/low heat… Stir frequently! (every 2-3 minutes)

Once the liquid has once again mostly absorbed into your rice, very very quickly stir in the yolk of one large egg… you want to mix in rapidly so you don’t end up with chunks of cooked egg… this is meant to thicken your pudding and add some richness. And you are done! (If you have an egg allergy, this step can be left out, it will be a little different, but still pretty yummy)

Now you will have something that looks like this… pour into a shallow dish and gently shake back and forth to disperse the pudding… at this point, fish out the lemon rind as it has done it’s job.

While your pudding is still hot, grab some cinnamon and a cookie cutter or anything with a small rim, it’s traditional in my family to use a shot glass as seen here, for decorating.

Gently touch the rim of your glass on pudding to moisten. Then dip into the cinnamon. Then back to the pudding to start your design. Repeat in any pattern you like. If I’m not doing this for a party or to serve as dessert for a dinner party or something, I will totally just sprinkle the cinnamon on top. But, since we are talking about Easter, this is what I do. A fun bunny design cut out of paper and laid on top would be great too… be creative.

And here it is! Yum!

Portuguese Rice Pudding recipe:

(serves 6)

1 cup rice, medium grain, white

1 cup water

3 cups milk, whole (1 or 2% also works)

1 cup white sugar

1 lg. egg yolk

1 lemon rind

1 scant pinch of salt

cinnamon for dusting

Instructions:

Bring water and milk to a boil with the lemon rind and salt on medium high. Add in rice and stir, turn burner down to just above the lowest setting, cover the pot. Stir occasionally. About 20 minutes later most of the liquid should be evaporated… also, test the rice to see that it is fully tender… this is when you add in the sugar and stir. The mixture will become liquefied again, continue cooking on low for another 5-10 minutes, stirring more frequently. Once most of the liquid has once again absorbed into the rice, add in the egg yolk, stirring vigorously. Pour into a shallow dish and sprinkle with cinnamon or form a design with cinnamon. Enjoy!

note: this is a naturally gluten free recipe… just ensure that each ingredient brand you use specifically is gluten free (as it should naturally be) and you are good to go!

the portuguese american mom

stay awhile… have a cup of tea, let's get creative!

Tag: Easter

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