Shana's Meal Blog

Best. Caramels. Ever.

2011-12-17T09:38:00.000-08:00

I haven't been blogging much as we've been trying to make do with cheaper suppers, but I feel the urge to shout from the rooftops: THESE ARE THE BEST CARAMELS I HAVE EVER EATEN.

We have a tradition of visiting a local orchard every fall who makes the best orchard. We talk about these caramels all year. The caramels I made last night exceed the legendary caramels by far.

I used this recipe: http://www.giverslog.com/?p=3168, by AmberLee. It's titled, HOMEMADE CARAMEL, my failproof recipe.

I used: 1 cup butter, unsalted
1 cup light corn syrup (11.5 oz)
1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
2 1/4 cup brown sugar (14.5 oz.)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

On low heat, I very slowly melted the butter.

I added in the brown sugar. It was OK to plop the sugar in, but I did make sure to stir it quickly.

I kept the heat low for over twenty minutes while I stirred. I slowly added in the corn syrup and sweetened milk.

AmberLee makes a point of testing her thermometer. I confess: I had a hard time telling when my water was boiling (is it this bubble? is it now?). I just followed my thermometer's gauge. I used a candy thermometer that had a line at HARD BALL.

I very slowly raised the temperature and stirred continuously. It did take about 30 minutes, AmberLee recommends. At HARD BALL (244F), I took the bubbling caramel off the heat and quickly added vanilla extract. I kept stirring.

I had an 8*8 pyrex pan lined with wax paper, but worried that it would be too thick. We quickly lined a cookie sheet and I split the batch.

This caramel is soft, chewy and a blast of sugar. An amazing blast of deep sweetness.

BEST. CARAMELS. EVER

Thanksgiving

2011-11-22T10:24:00.000-08:00

Ham
Garlic smashed potatoes (Sunset p. 568)
Green bean casserole
Rolls
Stuffing (crockpot)
Pumpkin pie
Peach pie
Cranberry upside down cake

Pho (crockpot)
Ham jumbalaya
Pizza

Week of November 11, 2011

2011-11-11T18:10:00.000-08:00

Sausage and bean stew
Meatloaf
Chicken parm
Pizza
Falafels

Week of Oct 30, 2011

2011-10-30T08:35:00.000-07:00

Roasted chicken
Chicken enchilada
Shepherd's pie
Corn chowder in a bread bowl
Bean burritos

Week of August 22, 2011

2011-10-21T10:53:00.000-07:00

Butternut squash pasta
Meatloaf
Lasagna (crockpot)
Pesto pizza
Beef barley vegetable soup
Beef and broccoli

Week of October 14, 2011

2011-10-14T10:42:00.000-07:00

Tater tot casserole
Chicken rotisserie (crockpot)
Chicken tacos
Falafel parmasean
Spaghetti bolognese with hidden vegetables
Beef barley veggie soup

October fall festival:

Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies
apple pie
apple ciderhttp://www.mahalo.com/how-to-make-apple-cider/
Pumpkin spice latte (crockpot)

Week of August 10, 2011

2011-10-09T19:30:00.000-07:00

Beef and biscuit stew
Sausage and kale soup
Mushroom herbed chicken
Beer braised beef
Bacon chedder bubble bread

Pumpkin spice coffee

Week of Oct 1, 2011

2011-10-01T14:58:00.000-07:00

Brisket
potato kugel
challah
apple honey cake

Nachos Americano
Taco beef bowls
Turkey burgers
Burritos

yogurt
mozzarella

Week of September 23, 2011

2011-09-23T09:22:00.000-07:00

Chicken Parmesean
Pesto spinach lasagna (crockpot)
Ratatouille (crockpot)
Pesto focaccia pizza
Spanish spaghetti with olives
Pork chop with tomato chutney
Split pea soup (crockpot)

Mozzarella cheese
Yogurt

Week of September 10, 2011

2011-09-09T20:14:00.000-07:00

Chili
Green chile chicken (crockpot)
Rotisserie chicken (crockpot)
Chicken sandwiches
Chili dogs
Chicken Masala

Vanilla yogurt cheesecake

Homemade ricemilk

2011-09-02T19:45:00.001-07:00

In my never-ending quest to trim our food budget, I've turned my attention to ricemilk. We spend $5 per week on rice or almond milk, due to my younger daughter's dairy allergies. It adds up.

I came across a recipe for homemade ricemilk and thought, "I can do that!"

I used this recipe. I do not necessarily agree with the political sentiment of the blog, but I like how easy the recipe is.

I mixed two cups of brown rice and sixteen cups of water in a large pot. After bringing it to a boil, I let it simmer for three hours. For taste, I added 5 teaspoons-ish of salt and 1/2 cup of maple syrup. I ladled the mixture, spoonful by spoonful into a blender and cut it 50:50 with water. The ricemilk is stored in large mason jars.

My daughters don't like the milk as much as they like store-bought milk, but they will drink it and eat it in cereal. I could add more syrup, but I'd like to wean them off the sweet taste. I like it because we've saved a ton of money this way.

My next experiment will be making ricemilk in the crockpot, so I don't have to babysit the stove. Stay tuned!

Week of September 2, 2011

2011-09-02T19:45:00.000-07:00

Green chile chicken (crockpot)
Tater tot casserole
General tso's chicken
Pita, falafel, cucumber sauce
Fried lentil balls
Grilling

Week of August 26, 2011

2011-08-26T14:19:00.000-07:00

Pesto stuffed shells
Smoked sausage and bean stew (crockpot)
Farfalle with beef ragu, ricott and mint
Meatloaf
Bean burritos

Spicy pickled carrots

Homemade ricotta cheese

2011-08-21T11:48:00.000-07:00

I've started looking into making homemade cheese. We originally eliminated cheese and other dairy products from our diet due to my youngest's food allergy. Now, she is older and I am again craving the dairy.

We are also looking into trimming our food budget. We currently spend at least $25 a week on dairy products, excluding milk. I'd like to see if we can decrease that amount.

I started my experimentation with ricotta. It's a soft cheese that doesn't require enzymes, thus eliminating a need to purchase additional ingredients.

I doubled the Smitten Kitchen's recipe and this was the result:

IT WAS AMAZING!! More after the jump ...

In a medium saucepan, I mixed:

7 cups of whole milk (pasteurized, not ultra-pasteurized)
1 cups of cream
1 teaspoon of salt

(Keep in mind, those quantities are doubled from the original recipe.)

I brought the milk slowly to 190F, keeping a watch with my thermometer.

I removed the pan from heat, added 7 tablespoons of lemon juice and let it sit for 5 minutes

After 5 minutes, I poured the pan over cheese-lined colander. The colander sat on a large soup pot, to catch the whey. The mixture sat on cheesecloth for two hours.

I added chopped leek (from the garden) and let it sit in the fridge.

This cheese was flavorful. As the cheese sat for a few days, it took on a great flavor from the leeks. The cheese was slightly runnier than I would have liked, but it tasted great on dipped homemade bread. I really wish my elder daughter would have dug in. This would be an easy, nutritious snack. But, she was put off by the taste.

Still, I consider it a success! I may make it again and have her give it another try. Now, on to homemade mozzarella.

Week of August 20, 2011

2011-08-19T18:06:00.000-07:00

Rotisserie chicken (crockpot)
Chicken pot pie
Balsamic pulled pork sliders (crock pot)
Chipotle bean burritos
Pasta with stewed tomatoes
Homemade pizza with homemade sauce and cheese

Chicken stock
Greek yogurt (crockpot)

Week of August 14, 2011

2011-08-14T14:47:00.000-07:00

Thai turkey burgers (leftover from last week)
Veggie quiche with greens fresh from the garden
Punjabi eggplant with potatoes (leftover from last week)
Chili
Homemade pizza with homemade sauce
Baked falafel with cucumber sauce

Homemade cheese
ricemilk
basil cookies

Week of August 6

2011-08-06T20:36:00.000-07:00

Thai turkey burgers
Sloppy Joe's
Pho
Spinach and feta quiche
Punjabi eggplant with potatoes (crockpot)

Rice milk

Week of July 26, 2011

2011-07-25T17:44:00.000-07:00

Thai turkey burgers
Pork chops with sticky soy glaze
Bean and veggie stew
Tacos

Week of July 20, 2011

2011-07-19T20:04:00.000-07:00

Pizza soup (crockpot)
Pork sandwiches with slaw
Noodles with roast pork
Homemade Pizza with homemade pizza sauce

Broccoli and cheddar mini quiche
Oatmeal bread
Carmelized beets with garlic

Week of July 11, 2011

2011-07-10T19:35:00.000-07:00

Skillet lasagna
Salsa chicken and black bean soup (crockpot)
Roasted cauliflower with garlic bread
Caramel pork
Chickpea and sweet potato curry
Beef empanadas
Chicken Fajita wraps

Rhubarb chutney

Mojitos

Week of July 3, 2011

2011-07-02T19:34:00.000-07:00

Grilled pork chop with two melon salad
Watermelon gazpacho
Tuscan pasta dinner
Pork and sweet potato enchilada

Watermelon margarita

Week of June 27, 2011

2011-06-27T17:22:00.000-07:00

Beef and cabbage (crockpot)
Sloppy Joe's
Beans and rice (crockpot)
Honey lentils (crockpot)
Homemade pizza rolls with white beans, garlic, sundried tomato and spinach (quick & easy cookbook)
Pasta with chickpeas and garlic sauce

Saltine toffee candy

Week of June 22, 2011

2011-06-21T20:14:00.000-07:00

Beans and rice (crockpot)
Beef and cabbage (crockpot)
Shepherd's pie
Chicken scaloppine with sugar snap peas and asparagus

Week of June 12, 2011

2011-06-12T19:20:00.000-07:00

Apricot dijon pork chops
Cabbage roll casserole (crockpot)
Thai green basil curry with chicken, asparagus and spinach
Beef and barley soup (crockpot)

Week of June 7, 2011

2011-06-06T20:28:00.000-07:00

Gazpacho with garlic bread
Pasta Primavera
Chile Verde (crockpot)
Tacos

Butterscotch no bake cookies