YumSugar

Monkey Tea, Monkey Do

YumSugar — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 10:03:33 -0800

This tea is called Monkey Picked Tea, and it's not just a name it's a fact. According to legend, monkeys used to pick tea from high branches and brought them to their masters. The masters - mostly monks - thought it was delicious and so a cycle was born. These days, the monkey picking tea practice has all but died out, but apparently one remote village continues the tradition. Each bag of tea ($24.99) contains about two ounces of loose leaf tea, or approximately 28 cups. Oh and I should tell you that no monkeys were harmed in the tea-picking.

The flavor is supposed to be amazing, but to be honest, I haven't tried it yet. What do you think, is this something you'd want to try?

Happy Hour: 2006 Affentaler Blue Monkey Riesling

partysugar — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 16:15:44 -0700

I used to be one of those people who avoided Rieslings because of their overly sweet nature. However, I have since learned, from bottles like this 2006 Affentaler Blue Monkey Riesling, that dry (not sweet) Rieslings are abundantly available.

Crisp and clean, this lush white was smooth and highly drinkable. With a tart, puckery finish and a fruity aroma, the wine was exceptional chilled and delicious paired with homemade pesto.

At only $14.99 the fun bottle, complete with embossed blue monkey, makes a wonderful hostess gift. What do you think of Riesling? Have you sipped a dry varietal?

Reader Recipe: Monkey Bread

YumSugar — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 15:00:28 -0700

I swooned when I came across Phasekitty's pictures of her mother's monkey bread. Eating this treat reminds me of hanging out with friends and family. There's nothing better than catching up on good conversation while picking apart pieces of the gooey bread. The best part? Licking the cinnamon sugar off your fingers.
Besides being a great breakfast, dessert, snack, and gift, monkey bread is great to make with kids. To get Phasekitty's family recipe, read more.

Submitted by TeamSugar member Phasekitty

Monkey Bread
My mom.

When I was young my mom and I used to make this together on special occasions like Christmas morning and my birthday. It's amazing and perfect for breakfast or dessert. I was inspired to make it after SPM posted Paula Deen's take on it recently. It's very basic and super easy to make.

Ingredients

4 cans refrigerated biscuits
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 sticks butter (3/4 cup) (extra stick of butter optional)
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cinnamon

You can also add nuts or raisins or anything really, but I like mine pure and simple.

Directions
Cast 'o characters

Grease a bundt pan well. Combine the white sugar and cinnamon in a ziploc bag. Open and separate your refrigerated biscuits and cut them into halves, then roll them into balls of dough. Put the dough balls in the bag of cinnamon and sugar and shake well to coat. Arrange them in layers around the bundt pan. If you're using any raisins or nuts, you can sprinkle them in between layers. If you have leftover cinnamon/sugar mix, set it aside. When you're done, they should look something similar to this:

I don't have a bundt pan, but I still suggest using one as more goo will be contained and won't spill out like a lot of mine did. No one likes wasted goo!

Put the brown sugar and butter in a small saucepan over medium to high heat. Stir until it's all incorporated, then let it boil for about a minute or so. Pour this ooey gooey liquid into your bundt pan all over them dough balls:

Right about now I'm wishing I had a bundt pan.

Toss it into the oven and bake it for about 35 minutes at 350 degrees.

Mmm, we're getting there....

Let cool for about 10 minutes, then flip it over onto a large plate. Let it sit flipped over for a few minutes to let all the ooey gooey goodness drip down. Now this part is optional, but if you like extra goo (and who doesn't like extra goo?) take that leftover cinnamon and sugar mix and put it into a saucepan with a stick of butter. Let it incorporate and boil for a minute or so and then pour it onto the final product.

Before the extra goo...

After extra goo...

I only used 1/2 a stick of butter for my extra goo and it didn't turn out as well - it carmelized a little bit on top - so don't be a doofus like me, toss that whole stick in there!

Oh man...

Pull apart with your fingers and chow down! This is really fun for kids. Careful, it's sticky!!

NOM!

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Happy Hour: Monkey's Lunch

YumSugar — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 16:00:17 -0700

I know what you're thinking: Why on earth is Yum drinking a banana-flavored cocktail with a ridiculous name? Well, sometimes a girl needs a silly, sugary drink - and sometimes a girl has a bunch of creme de banana left over from a bananas foster recipe. In search of a use for this odd liqueur, I headed to the Internet and found the Monkey's Lunch.

Though it may sound a bit off-putting, this drink was yummy enough that I drank the whole thing and would happily drink another. The banana flavor is very subtle, like a tropical twist on a White Russian. If it sounds a-peel-ing (sorry, couldn't resist), get the recipe when you read more.

Monkey's Lunch
Drinks Mixer

Ingredients

1 part creme de banana
1 part Kahlua
1 part milk

Directions
Pour alcohol over ice in a cocktail glass and add milk.

Note: For a bit of a twist, you could add a splash of Bailey's Irish Cream. This drink is also tasty as a "special" coffee. Just sugar your rim, add liquor, pour coffee, and add some whip.

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Capers: Love Them or Hate Them?

partysugar — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 04:00:56 -0800

When I was little, one of my favorite dishes was my grandmother's pork tenderloin in caper sauce. To get me to eat the capers, she called them "monkey eyes." I didn't realize they were too small to actually be eyes, but her scheming worked because I loved eating them. Since then, I've always enjoyed capers. However, I know they're a strong flavor not liked by all. How do you feel about them?

Mouth-Watering Memories

YumSugar — Wed, 20 Dec 2006 11:08:48 -0800

One of the things that I love about food is its ability to capture a moment in time. A taste, a smell, a dish can all bring back extra special memories. When I savor paella and manchego cheese it reminds of when I lived in Spain. When I smell barbecued chicken visions of summer and my father by the grill come to mind. When I eat brownies from a Betty Crocker box it reminds me of fourth grade and jungle gym playgrounds. When I miss my deceased grandmother Nan, I think of her most famous recipe, pork cutlets with monkey eyes. She told me that capers were monkey's eyes and I, forever shamefully gullible, believed her. Recently I found the recipe, in her handwriting, and gave it a try. It tasted better than I remembered! To make Nan's pork with monkey eyes, tell me about your fond food memories or share your grandmother's secret recipes join my new group Mouth-Watering Memories.

Top Chef 3.7 - Guilty Pleasures Recap

YumSugar — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 11:27:26 -0700

Last night's Top Chef took us from nine cheftestants to eight. But before there was an elimination, there was a quickfire challenge and some more can't-get-along gang action.

The episode starts off with some behind the scenes action. Joey's departure has made people sad, and Dale and Sara N. have built a new friendship. After a few minutes of watching them behave like real people, we're whisked off to the kitchen for an elimination challenge. This time the guest judge is Chef Govind Armstrong and the product they're hawking is Coldstone Creamery. To find out what happened next, read more

Once greeted, the chefs are given 45 minutes to make their own original mixes to blend in to Coldstone's Sweet Cream Ice Cream. Surprisingly Hung says that he loves Coldstone - I was nearly floored I really thought it would be something else for him to hate on. He does however, hate on regular ingredients saying that, "Any monkey can make berries." And since he's apparently not a monkey, he's decided to go with cauliflower, tempura flakes and a bunch of other wild things. And as much as I love wild creations, even I had to wonder what on earth was he thinking. How is someone going to love cauliflower over macerated berries or peach cobbler? Same thought applies to Casey who decided to use Sriracha. Yes, she put hot sauce in ice cream... In the end it was Dale with a peach cobbler type concoction who won the challenge.

After the quickfire Padma tells them that they get to go out for a night on the town. Excited, they all head back to the dorms and get all gussied up for the event. However when they arrive at their destination they realize UH OH! It's not a night on the town, it's a night in a roach coach! The eight remaining contestants - Dale, as winner of the quickfire, got to sit out and enjoy a nice meal with Chef Armstrong - divide into two teams and are asked to make late-night food for drunken party-goers.

The teams are Hung, Sara M., Brian and Tre versus Sara N., CJ, Howie and Casey. Once again, I felt sorry for the folks paired with Howie. He keeps getting called a bulldog, and don't you think it's because he looks a bit like one?

The time is 10pm and they have 15 minutes to explore the kitchen, create a menu and then go shopping. $300 dollars and 30 minutes at the grocery store later, the teams arrive back at their coaches at 12:12. The first customers show up at 1:46am. At this point tensions are high, Howie's team is not getting along, Sara N. wants to put ice in a milkshake - um, seriously??? - and when Chef Tom shows up to order his food his mini-hamburger takes an eternity to arrive. Meanwhile, on the other team, the crowd is pumped and happy. Brian has set up a raw bar outside and is really working the crowd. It's clear that their truck is more successful, but apparently it also tastes the best as well.

At the judges table Brian's team is rewarded for being so efficient and communicative. Tre wins the platinum club card and an autographed book (pretty weak compared to last week's Trip to Italy) with his take on Bacon Wrapped Shrimp and Cheese Grits. However, I must point out that even Ted Allen noted, "If you want to make people happy, give them bacon."

Of course if this team is the winning team, then it means that, once again, Howie's team is the losing team. At the judge's table, things get nasty between Sara N. and Howie. Also, Sara said she felt demoralized having to wear the clothes she had on in the kitchen - to which I say, seriously? Didn't you choose to wear that??? She and Howie bicker all the way back to the waiting area when finally Sara is asked to pack her knives and go. I wasn't fully surprised, the editing made it pretty obvious to me - especially showing her bonding with Dale - however I did really like her departing quote. As she left she said, "There's a fine line between being competitive and being an a**hole." I guess we all know who she was talking about!

So what did you think of the episode? What were your fave parts? Did you think it was totally unfair of them to let the cheftestants get all dolled up? Or do you think they should have seen that coming? Will Brian ever cook something that's not seafood? And why did Howie choose not-quite-Cuban sandwiches in Miami??

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Summer of Sandwiches: Strawberry & Banana Ice Cream and Nilla Wafers

YumSugar — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 12:01:31 -0700

When I was a kid, one of my favorite desserts was banana pudding with Nilla Wafers. My mom used to make it often, and my siblings and I would chow down on it like there was no tomorrow. I haven't had it in years, but recently someone mentioned Nilla Wafers to me, and they've been on my brain ever since.

So naturally, when it came time to make this week's ice cream sandwiches, Nilla wafers were my first choice. Originally I wanted to make my own banana ice cream, however my ice cream maker wasn't ready. So I picked up a pint of the next best thing - Ben & Jerry's Chunky Monkey - and headed over to my sister's house.

While there I decided that her strawberry ice cream looked great too, and that a slice of banana would be a nice touch - cut yours thinner than mine so the sandwiches stay bite-sized. The Nilla Wafers were smaller than I remembered them, so I ended up using a melon baller to scoop the ice cream out. I then created a little assembly line - wafer, ice cream dollop, banana, ice cream scoop, wafer - in order to make a bunch to enjoy at once. I then stuck them in the freezer and counted down until dessert time. They made perfect appetizer sized sandwiches, and would make great desserts for a party.

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For The Love Of Ice Cream Roundup

YumSugar — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 07:01:38 -0700

Well everyone, it looks like we do indeed all scream for ice scream! I am so impressed, when I asked you all to submit your own ice cream post, I was not expecting such a great turnout - there were 26 entries! They ranged from adult ice cream sodas to watermelon bombs and everything in between. One of my personal favorites even has a video to accompany it.

Entries #1 & #2
Our first two entries come from TeamSugar members beamer1 and crispet1. For this challenge they've put their minds together and have come up with a mango frappe and a scoop of mango ice cream with sticky rice. They both sound amazing, I'm not sure which one I would choose!

Entries #3 & 4
TeamSugar member sumnboutme wants to make sure we know about Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream with flavors like Thai Chili, Salty Caramel and Goat Cheese with Balsamic Cherries, how can you go wrong?! Sumnboutme also wants to make sure we check out her recipe for a Lemon Fog Martini - vodka, triple sec, lemon sorbet, sign me up!

Entry #5
The next entry comes from Curious Alice. She has a whole batch of ice cream tips including, great definitions, how to make your own ice cream, and a review of several machines.

Entry #6
Pam of Project Foodie reminds us all that no matter where you are in life, ice cream is always a first love.

Entry #7
J in Walnut Creek has a great story about how when she was a child, she and her pal stole ice cream, dropped it on the floor and ate it anyway. Loved it!

Entry #8
It's as if TS member luvbriere is trying to melt my heart. What could be better than an orange custard ice cream? How about and orange custard that is mixed with chocolate chips and caramel & chocolate swirls.

Entry #9
All the way from Turkey we have Cenk at Cafe Fernando with amazing sounding Gianduja Gelato. Oh and did I mention it was an ice cream sandwich too?

To check out the rest of the spectacular ice cream roundup (and believe me, it's worth it, you guys were awesome), read more

Entry #10
Paula wanted to let us know about the best ginger ice cream ever. It's so good she suggests you eat it naked, as in plain!

Entry #11
Kat from Berkeley based KungFoodie, wrote in to tell us about her Honey Sweet Frozen Peach Yogurt. Anytime yogurt can be described as XXX sounds fab to me!

Entry #12
PartySugar's gonna drool when she sees this dulce de leche & nougat ice cream that Rachel dreamed up.

Entry #13
Mercedes in New York sends us two classic Italian deserts in one with a tiramisu ice cream. Plus, she's got an ice cream project up her sleeve for the month of August!

Entry #14
Anne sends this Irish Coffee Ice Cream Cake all the way from Sweden! The best part? You don't even need an ice cream maker!

Entry #15
My French is a little rusty, but Edith sent in this lovely white chocolate ice cream with dark chocolate chunks proving that great food transcends languages.

Entry #16
Jason of YuzuMura sends this intriguing recip for pistachio saffron kulfi. I can't wait to try it!

Entry #17
My pal Meeta at What's For Lunch, Honey? brings us this show-stopping, beautiful, don't settle for second best cherry semifreddo cake.

Entry #18
Ulrike writes in all the way from Nothern Germany just to share choclate ice cream. If you're not a fan of chocolate, there's always marzipan, honey lavender, tarragon and more!

Entry #19
TeamSugar member mellafe would love to share her favorite drink Cafe Helado. Coffee powder, milk, vanilla ice cream and whipped cream? Yum!

Entry #20
Gabi from The Feast Within has graced us with a spiced Ibarra Mexican chocolate ice cream. Delish!

Entry #21
TeamSugar member radarkitty sends us this great tale about ice cream, baseball and a famous old man.

Entry #22
WildHeavenFarm tempts our palates with something she calls Dirty Monkey Ice Cream. There isn't a photo to accompany it because it was devoured before one could be taken!

Entry #23
Who says ice cream soda has to be for kids? Not davie_k, she suggests adding a shot of vodka to an ice cream soda for a nice grown-up twist.

Entry #24
Why stop at vodka? Our own SweetPeasMom continues the adult ice cream trend with her Pina Colada Smoothie. Ice cream and rum!!! Seriously do I need to say anything else?!

Entry #25
And finally our last entry comes from lickety split who decided to make the beautiful watermelon bombe. Check out the video below:

Entry #26
Update: This one went missing in my inbox, but you guys can not miss out on it. Brooke from Colorado sends us a simple recipe for an amazingly simple, extremly sniful fabulous ice cream cake. I'm going to have to make this one sometime!

Thanks again to everyone who sent in their submissions! If you still haven't had your fill of ice cream, don't forget that we're still creating new ice cream sandwiches each week!

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Hell's Kitchen - 3.1 Recap

partysugar — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 10:50:18 -0700

Last night Fox aired the third season premiere of "Hell's Kitchen", hot shot British chef Gordon Ramsay's reality show. It was my first experience with Hell's Kitchen and what a memorable, yet traumatizing, experience it was. Why anyone in their right mind would volunteer to go into Hell's Kitchen is beyond me. You couldn't pay me in Dior handbags to put up with the condescending, rude, and completely disrespectful behavior and attitude of Ramsay. Sure he is a world renowned chef with Michelin stars and acclaimed restaurants, but in my opinion, no amount of fame, fortune, or success should grant you the right to poorly treat, profusely curse, and yell at people you hardly know. This of course, is the entire premise behind Hell's Kitchen. Twelve contestants have joined Ramsay in the kitchen for a chance to be the head chef at a new Italian restaurant in Green Valley Ranch Resort and Spa in Vegas. Unlike Top Chef or the Next Food Network Star, in this competition the contestants have to cook in a real kitchen for real people. To see my thoughts on last night's episode - including my top 5 favorite Ramsay quotes - just, read more

The show begins with Lord of The Rings type music, a voice over, and the contestants being driven to the kitchen in large black SUVs. The 12 competitors, equal parts male and female, are greeted upon arrival by the restaurant's maitre'd, Jean Philippe - whose accent sounds oddly fake to me. Ramsay appears on a balcony like the Wicked Witch of The West and orders the crew into the kitchen requesting them to prepare a signature dish or as Ramsay says, "you on a plate". Time's up and Ramsay lavishly opens one platter after another asking the creator of the dish to kindly step forward and explain their dish. He hates all but two or three of the dishes; giving compliments to the attractive, long haired Melissa and to Eddie, the guy with a growth-stunting kidney disease (why do reality shows always have a token odd contestant???).

Next they are separated into two teams, the boys versus the girls, and are told that they will cook in the restaurant's kitchen on opening night. An hour goes by and neither team can get an appetizer ready, the girl's fail miserably to fry an egg and the boys' pasta, according to Ramsay, "tastes like gnat's piss." Brad takes the lead for the boys and things look up as they start to crank out 29 of their 50 appetizers. Julia, the short order cook, has a breakdown because the girls ignore her and don't let her attempt to fry an egg. Aaron, the big Asian cowboy, cracks and starts to cry after he can't temper eggs for ice cream and has cooked the chicken until it is dry and inedible. In the end the boy's run out of chicken and lettuce, and the girl's never catch their stride. Ramsay shuts Hell's Kitchen down and the customers leave angry, unfed, and hungry.

Ramsay declares the girl's as the night's losers, although both teams performed poorly. Melissa is asked to nominate two members of her team for elimination. She nominates Tiffany, the girl who couldn't fry an egg if her life depended on it, and Joanna, the feisty African-American girl who picked a fight with just about everyone but Ramsay. In the end Tiffany was justly eliminated.

In case you missed it here are my top 5 favorite Ramsay quotes from this episode (I recommend reading them aloud in a growling tone with a British accent):

"Where's your horse? I've never met an Asian cowboy... you are one chunky monkey, aren't you? How big are your f**king fingers?"
"Your pasta is like glue."
"Sir, would you mind wiping the snot off of your face before we have chicken and snot?"
"Ladies I've never seen girls b*tch so much... it was just evil and twisted hell's b*tches!"
"Touch that egg! It's like a plastic silicone implant!"

Finally, does anyone know where I can find a recipe for chicken fried chicken penne???