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Happy Hour: Brownie Cognac

partysugar — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:18:31 -0800

Valentine's Day is an excellent excuse to experiment with chocolate cocktails. I'm especially interested in this recipe because it creates a cocktail that tastes like a brownie!

This drink has a rich, glossy color and a decadent, smooth taste. It's a great dessert cocktail, perfect for when you feel like a sweet treat, but don't want something too heavy. To take a look at the recipe, read more.

Brownie Cognac
From Fine Living

1 1/2 oz. Courvoisier or other type of cognac
1 oz. amaretto
Dash of chocolate syrup

Fill pint glass with ice.
Add the cognac, the amaretto, and a dash of chocolate syrup.
Shake and pour into a chilled martini glass.

Serves 1.

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Hershey's Is Thinking Pink!

YumSugar — Thu, 04 Oct 2007 15:29:31 -0700

In honor of National Breast Cancer Awareness month, the Hershey's Company is producing limited edition versions of some of their popular products: Kisses, Nuggets, Syrup, and Peppermint Patties. They will also contribute $300,000 to the Young Survival Coalition, a non-profit network of breast cancer survivors and supporters dedicated to addressing the concerns and issues unique to young women and breast cancer.

“The Young Survival Coalition is proud to work with Hershey’s powerful brands to raise awareness for our important mission,” said Michele Przypysny, Chief Executive Officer, Young Survival Coalition. “Our partnership with The Hershey Company has helped us to provide vital programs and services for young women and their families.”

The products all have special pink packaging and are designed to help raise awareness. They should be available in stores for the entire month of October.

Thanks to TeamSugar for telling me about this one!

Reader Recipe: Chocolate Chip Pancakes With Blueberry Syrup

YumSugar — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 16:00:16 -0700

Cooking when you don't have all the ingredients on hand can be frustrating, but it can also be empowering: Since you have to think on your feet, some of the most successful outcomes are born out of limited circumstances.

TeamSugar regular FinnLover has long been the master of innovatively tweaking reliable recipes based on what she has in her kitchen. So guess what happened when she ran out of maple syrup for her pancakes? Finn improvised (and improved) her recipe by adding chocolate chips to her pancakes and using frozen blueberries stowed in her freezer to make a delectable compote. To see the recipe, which left me with a hankering for a sweet, sticky breakfast, read more.

Submitted by TeamSugar member FinnLover

Dark Chocolate Chip and Blueberry Pancakes
Adaptation of a Nigella Lawson recipe.

I just made these for breakfast and they were so good! They're a twist on a pancake recipe I posted a while ago. I just added some dark chocolate chips to the batter and made a simple blueberry syrup to serve with them because I was out of maple syrup. They were to die for!
Here's the original post:
http://teamsugar.com/group/30207/recipes/2607875

Ingredients

- 225g plain flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 30g butter, melted and cooled
- 300ml milk
- 125g 70% cacao chocolate chips

For the blueberry syrup:
- frozen blueberries
- a splash of water
- brown sugar
- a tbsp or two of lingonberry or raspberry jam

Directions
1. In a big bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Beat in the eggs, melted butter and milk. Add the chocolate chips. Leave the batter for about 20 minutes before using it; and you may then want to add more milk to the mixture if it's too thick to pour in the pan.
2. Put the frozen blueberries in a small saucepan. Add a splash of water to get it going and a bit of brown sugar. Bring it to a boil. Add the jam and more brown sugar if necessary. Let simmer for 5 to 10 minutes until it becomes thicker and syrupy.
3. Pour some batter in a non-stick pan (medium heat). When you cook the pancakes, remember that when the upper side of the pancake is blistering and bubbling it’s time to flip it and cook the second side. It will only take about 1 or 2 minutes.
4. Makes about 11 blini-pan-sized pancakes, maybe 16 silver-dollar-sized ones on the griddle. Serve with the blueberry syrup.

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Come Party With Me: Vampire Party - Drinks

partysugar — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:00:45 -0700

At my vampire party, I'll be offering guests dressed like Buffy and the Cullens an assortment of vampire-themed drink options.

Red wine is a no brainer: it's the color of blood. To tint beer red, I'll use the same technique I employed on St. Patrick Day's only with red food coloring instead of green.

I'll also offer this dessert cocktail. It's a mixture of raspberry vodka, white chocolate liqueur, and half and half. The dripping blood rim is made from strawberry syrup and the ingenious garnish? Plastic fangs! To get the recipe keep reading.

Come Party With Me: My Birthday Party - Dessert

partysugar — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:30:38 -0700

I'm pretty traditional when it comes to birthdays and I can't remember celebrating one without a special cake. It may come as a shock, but every year, I make my own birthday cake. Researching cake recipes and going through the process of baking one has become a ritual that I look forward to and enjoy - as much as the senselessly extravagant birthday party. For 28, I've decided on a chocolate truffle cake with ganache topping and rum syrup. Instead of serving regular vanilla ice cream, I'm upping the ante and pairing the cake with a tropical sorbet terrine. It has three (coconut, raspberry, and mango) layers of sorbet that I think will perfectly complement the richness of the cake. To look at these scrumptious dessert recipes, read more.

Tropical Sorbet Terrine
From Everyday Food

Ingredients

1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1 pint coconut sorbet, softened
1 pint raspberry sorbet, softened
1 pint mango sorbet, softened

Directions

Preheat oven to 350. Line a 6-cup (8 1/2 by 4 1/2 inches) loaf pan with a long strip of plastic wrap, leaving a 2-inch overhang on long sides; set aside.
Spread coconut on a rimmed baking sheet. Toast in oven, tossing occasionally, until golden, 8 to 10 minutes; let cool completely.
Sprinkle 1/2 cup toasted coconut in prepared pan. Dollop coconut sorbet on top, and spread evenly; sprinkle with cup toasted coconut. Repeat with raspberry sorbet and remaining cup toasted coconut, then mango sorbet. Fold plastic overhang over sorbet, and freeze until firm, at least 6 hours and up to 2 weeks.
To serve, unfold plastic, and invert pan onto a plate; remove plastic. Slice terrine crosswise with a serrated knife.

Serves 12.

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Chocolate Truffle Cake
From Saveur

Ingredients

For the cake: 
11 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened 
1 1⁄2 cups flour 6 oz. semisweet chocolate, preferably 54%,  chopped 
1⁄2 cup confectioners' sugar
 7 eggs, separated 
1⁄2 tsp. salt 
1 cup sugar 
1⁄2 cup dark rum
For the ganache
 24 oz. semisweet chocolate, preferably 54%,  roughly chopped
 3 cups heavy cream 
Chocolate shavings 
Cocoa powder, for dusting

Directions

Make the cake: Heat oven to 325°. Line bottom of a 9" springform pan with parchment paper. Grease pan with 1 tbsp. butter. Add 1⁄4 cup flour; shake to evenly coat inside. Invert and tap out excess flour; set pan aside.
Set a medium bowl over a 1-qt.saucepan of simmering water. Add chocolate; melt. Set aside to let cool.
In a large bowl, beat the melted chocolate, butter, and confectioners' sugar with a handheld mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift in the flour and salt and mix until just combined; set batter aside.
In a bowl, beat egg whites on high speed until frothy. Sprinkle in 1⁄4 cup sugar and beat to form stiff, glossy peaks. Using a rubber spatula, fold egg whites into the cake batter. Pour batter into prepared pan and smooth the top with the rubber spatula. Bake until toothpick inserted in cake comes out clean, about 1 hour. Transfer to a rack; let cool. Invert and unmold cake. Cut cake horizontally into 3 even layers; set cake layers aside.
Dissolve remaining sugar and 1⁄4 cup water in a 1-qt. saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, whisking occasionally, until syrup has slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in rum; let cool.
Make the ganache: Place chocolate in bowl of a standing mixer. Bring cream to a boil in a 2-qt. saucepan; pour over chocolate; let sit for 5 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, combine chocolate and cream. Let cool, stirring occasionally, until ganache reaches room temperature. Chill until ganache has the consistency of peanut butter, 2 hours. Transfer bowl to standing mixer fitted with a whisk. Whip on medium speed, 15–20 seconds.
Place bottom cake layer on a cardboard cake circle. Using a pastry brush, brush cake with one-third of rum syrup. Using a butter knife, spread 1 cup ganache evenly across cake top. Top with second cake layer and one-third of rum syrup; repeat process with remaining cake, rum syrup, and ganache. Spread remaining ganache over cake. Press chocolate shavings onto sides. Shake cocoa powder over cake with a mesh sieve.

Serves 16.

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Got Chocolate Milk?

partysugar — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 01:13:33 -0700

I'm not a huge milk drinker, but every now and then I get a craving for a glass of frothy chocolate milk. I've got one of those cravings this morning because I just realized it's National Chocolate Milk Day! In honor of today's celebration, here are my tips for the perfect glass of chocolate milk:

Use chocolate milk syrup instead of chocolate powder. Sometimes the powder doesn't dissolve fully making for some nasty chocolate chunks.
To make foamy chocolate milk, blend the cold milk and syrup in a blender until frothy.
For a bigger chocolate flavor, add more syrup. If there is too much chocolate add more milk.
Fill glass with coffee ice cubes for a mocha flavored variation.
Use vanilla extract, nutmeg, or cinnamon to jazz up chocolate milk.
Got a chocolate craving? FitSugar recommends sucking on chocolate milk ice cubes.

I'm all about Hershey's chocolate milk, but what about you, what kind of chocolate milk do you like to drink?

Source

Happy Hour: Raspberry-Chocolate Kiss Cocktail

partysugar — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 16:00:18 -0800

I consider myself a party chameleon; I can have fabulous fun at any party from a hippie hangout in the Berkeley hills to a swanky soirée on a Manhattan rooftop. I apply the same open-minded mentality to cocktails. While there is a time and place for a whiskey-laced Sazerac, there is also a suitable occasion for this frilly pink concoction. It's served in a rimmed martini glass and known as a raspberry-chocolate kiss.

Valentine's Day is the opportune time for this sort of sweet, girlie drink. It has a chocolate wafer-cookie rim and fresh raspberry flavor. A simple syrup infused with mint provides a delicate herbal essence to the delightfully fruity mixture. If you enjoy cosmopolitans, you'll love this drink.

I sipped the spirit-lifting libation after a long day and trust me - it's the perfect cure to the single girl Valentine's Day blues. To look at the recipe, read more.

Raspberry-Chocolate Kiss Cocktail
From Martha Stewart

Ingredients

1/4 cup Mint-Infused Simple Syrup, plus more for rim (recipe below)
3 chocolate cookies, finely crushed, such as Nabisco Famous Wafers
10 raspberries
1/4 cup vodka
2 tablespoons cranberry juice
Ice cubes

Directions

Fill a shallow dish with enough simple syrup to just cover the bottom. Place crushed cookies into another shallow dish. Invert a martini glass into simple syrup and then immediately into crushed cookies to coat the rim of the glass.
Place raspberries in a cocktail shaker; crush with a muddler.
Add simple syrup and muddle again.
Add vodka and cranberry juice; fill shaker with ice. Shake well until chilled. Strain into prepared martini glass. Serve immediately.

Makes 1 drink.

Mint-Infused Simple Syrup

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
Stems from 1 bunch of fresh mint

In a small saucepan, combine sugar, 1 cup water, and mint stems. Place over medium heat, and cook, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved.
Remove from heat; let cool. Strain through a sieve. Syrup can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about 2 weeks.

Makes 1 1/2 cups.

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Happy Hour: Warre's Otima Port 10

partysugar — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 16:15:24 -0800

With it's warming qualities and syrup-like texture, Port is a great wintertime wine. Warre's Otima 10 Year Tawny Port ($19.99) is my new favorite. It's delightful slightly chilled after dinner. I paired it with dark chocolate, but in the future want to try it with cheese. Otima's goal is to eliminate the usual myth of port being a drink only sipped by dusty old grandmothers. The light wine has a delicate yet full-bodied, well-balanced palate and rich, amber color with reddish undertones. It tastes caramely with hints of dried fruit and nuts. With its long, lush finish and smooth, heady aroma, this award-winning wine proves that port can be contemporary, hip, and perfect for 2009.

Do you enjoy port? What's your favorite bottle?

Come Party With Me: Baby Shower - Dessert

partysugar — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 15:00:09 -0700

After a rich, savory brunch have the young mother open up her gifts. While guests shower the lady of honor with baby toys, set up a small Belgian waffle bar. Place the batter in a pretty pitcher and plug in several waffle irons. Stack plates and arrange toppings - chocolate sauce, whipped cream, fresh berries, maple syrup, etc. - buffet style near the waffle irons. Once all the presents have been opened, invite everyone to Belgian waffles. For a more diverse spread, purchase dainty pastries from your favorite bakery. To see the waffle recipe I'll be using for Denise's baby shower, read more.

Belgian Waffles
From Food and Wine

Ingredients

1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs, separated
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Belgian Chocolate-Fudge Sauce (recipe below), for serving

Directions

In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water.
In a large bowl, stir the flour with the salt. Whisk in the yeast mixture, milk, butter, egg yolks, and vanilla until smooth.
In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Fold them into the batter and let stand for 20 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 225°F.
Heat and grease a waffle iron. Pour 1 1/4 cups of the batter into the iron and cook until the waffles are golden, 6 minutes. Transfer the waffles to the oven. Repeat with the remaining batter.
Dust the waffles with confectioners’ sugar, drizzle with the Belgian Chocolate-Fudge Sauce and serve.

Makes 4 waffles.

Belgian Hot Fudge Sauce

1 cup heavy cream
10 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar

In a saucepan, bring the cream to a boil. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate.
Let stand for 2 minutes, then stir until the chocolate is melted.
Add the confectioners’ sugar and whisk until smooth.

Makes 2 cups.

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Add Some Flavor to Bland Office Coffee

YumSugar — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 11:13:46 -0800

Office coffee is usually more of a necessity than a luxury. It's often bitter, burnt or bland and you suffer through each cup in order to make it through the day. Well the folks at Bada Beans feel your pain and have come up with a small new coffee confection to help you out. These cutely titled "beans" currently come in three different flavors (Vanilla Bean, Caramel Fudge and Hazelnut) and are meant to jazz up that bland cup of coffee. Created as an alternative to flavored syrups (which are not easily portable or storable), Bada Beans are tiny mint-sized beans that you put into coffee to enhance the flavor.

Since I don't usually enjoy my coffee black, I decided to see if these beans lived up to their potential and gave them all a try. To check out my full review, read more

First of all, Bada Beans are packaged in a small tin. The tin is about half the size of an Altoids mint tin and in fact, the actual "beans" also reminded me of mints as well. Although, word of warning, don't eat them like mints. Pure curiosity led me to put one in my mouth and it tasted like artificial gritty creamer in a pill. It lasted about three seconds before I decided it was a bad idea and had to spit it out.

Secondly, they smell weird. Not bad, but not great, just oddly artificial. They're fat free, sugar free and beneath the almost elegant aromas lurks a heavy smell of artificial sweetener (the number one ingredient is sorbitol). The hazelnut was especially strong and the synthetic odor actually caused me to take the beans out of my desk and into the breakroom. However, I must say, they don't smell any more artificial than any other coffee creamer/syrup I've tried in the past.

To begin my taste test, I poured three identical cups of coffee and put one bean in each cup. The beans dissolved with a bit of stirring and did not dilute the actual taste of the coffee. First I tried the Caramel Fudge flavor and one bean actually had very little effect. So I put a second bean in and it came out slightly richer with a hint of chocolate. The Vanilla Bean was palatable, but ended up being my least favorite. Surprisingly the Hazelnut was relatively smooth and ended up being the winner of my taste test (which was shocking since the smell made me believe it would be the worst).

Overall, I would say if you like flavored coffees, and especially hate dealing with the mess of syrups, powders or fatty creamers, then Bada Bean is definitely worth seeking out. However, if you're a coffee purist and don't like artificially sweetened coffee, then steer away. Although, at $2.99 for approximately 42 servings, it might be worth the try.