Cranberry Nut Bark

This is a quick and easy recipe to make a rich, yummy candy for your sweetie pie - or yourself.  This recipe is made easier by using the microwave to melt the chocolate chips.

Cranberry Nut Bark


1/2 Cup Dried Cranberries
1 Cup Chopped Walnuts
2 Cups Semisweet Chocolate Chips

Line an 8x8 pan with foil.


Place the chips in a medium sized microwaveable bowl.  Cook on high for no more than 30 seconds at a time in microwave.  Remove and stir.  Repeat until the chocolate is all melted and smooth.  It took my microwave 1:30 but the times will be different machines.

Stir in the cranberries and walnuts. 

Spread evenly into the prepared pan.  

Sprinkle with additional nuts, if desired.

Place into the refrigerator for 20 minutes.  Break apart into chunks when hardened.  Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

New Brew Thursday - Samuel Smith Organic Chocolate Stout

I've gained a bit of notoriety at the store where I normally shop for my beer.  They have an amazing selection of craft brews and I can usually count on them for a beer that I am specifically trying to find.

Almost every time I go in there I have a list of beers I’m looking for.  The staff is extremely helpful, fairly knowledgeable and never fail to ask if there’s anything they can help me find.

The recognition comes into play quite nicely.  I am greeted and suggestions are offered as to my particular tastes.  It’s pretty cool and I ofteb find a gem that I may not have chosen for myself.

Take, for instance, last week when I was making a beer run.  I had a couple ideas of what I wanted but nothing set in stone.  As soon as I walked in the door, I was recognized and the greeter suggested Samuel Smith’s Organic Chocolate Stout.

I’m not a huge stout lover but my husband is and my prior experience with Samuel Smith beer has been good so I grabbed a bottle.

I popped it open for “dessert” . . . and all I can say about this beer is WOW”!  This stout  is one of the most remarkable beers I've ever had.  Amazing.

It pours dark as night with a thick taupe head.  It is perfectly effervescent . . . light and smooth and creamy.  The taste . . . WOWZERS! . . . it’s like drinking lightly carbonated dark chocolate.  Really . . . that’s it . . . like alcohol laced liquid devil’s food cake.

 

O . . . M . . . G . . . YUM!

Forget the whole organic thing . . . unless that's important to you . . . this beer is nothing short of awesome.

If you like beer and you like chocolate and you’re looking for a new beer to try, move this to the top of your list.  I promise you will not be disappointed. 

For more information go to Samuel Smith's website.

Cranberry Walnut Brownies

Cranberry Walnut Brownies

1 1/3 C. Unbleached Flour

1 Tsp. Baking Powder

1/2 Teaspoon Salt

1/2 C Dried Cranberries

1 Cup Chopped Walnuts

1 Cup White Chocolate Chips

1 Cup Butter, Room Temperature

1 Cup Cocoa Powder

1 3/4 C. White Sugar

4 Eggs

2 Tsp. Vanilla

Preheat oven to 350º F.  Butter an 8 x 8 baking pan.

In a bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

In a large mixing bowl cream together softened butter and cocoa.  Mix in the sugar, eggs and vanilla.  

Slowly add the dry ingredients.  Fold in cranberries, walnuts and chips.  

Pour into the baking dish, and spread until even.  Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean, or the brownies start to pull away from the edges of the pan.  

Remove from oven and cool for 15 minutes.  Sprinkly with confectioner's sugar, if desired.

Print Recipe

New Brew Thursday - Double Tap . . . Saranac Caramel Porter and Harpoon Chocolate Stout

Since I started writing reviews for the new beers that I drink I've notice an ever increasing awareness of the complexities of the flavors of different beers and a growing appreciation for styles of beer that I never truly enjoyed before.






Take porters and stouts for example.  I always considered them heavy beers with strong flavor.  This is true and yet it's not.  They certainly can drink like a meal but they can also spin an intricate web of subtle flavors that combine to make for a truly pleasurable drinking experience.




Saranac Caramel Porter . . . brewed by Matt Brewing Company is just a such a beer.  This 127 year old brewery located in the heart of the Adirondacks created a perfectly delicious porter.  





The caramel aroma and flavor are unmistakable and, yet, it is not an overly sweet beer.  Due to it's low carbonation, it pours with a light frothy head that dissipates quickly.  It has a soft mouth feel . . . very smooth.  Along with the caramel, there is a roasted malt flavor that finished slightly bitter . . . a nice balance of complex flavors.

A medium-ish alcohol content . . . 5.4% ABV . . . makes this a nice beer that you can enjoy a few over a couple hours and not be slammed.


All-in-all a very good beer.  Two-thumbs up!


Check out their other beers on the website or visit them on Facebook.

A stout that follows along the same lines is Harpoon Chocolate Stout.  You open that bottle and your pouring chocolate beer . . . dark chocolate beer.  Slightly sweet and a little bitter . . . a delight to be sure.

This yummy stout is brewed by Harpoon Brewery which has plants located in Boston Massachusetts and Windsor, Vermont.  

What makes this beer so chocolatey?  According to Harpoon it is brewed with an abundance of chocolate malt and a touch of chocolate. Enough said.  

It pours a dark rich brown . . . almost black . . . with a light brown head.  Chocolate, of course, is the primary flavor but there are hints of nuts and coffee, as well.  Not particularly sweet and finishes bitter with very little hoppiness.

This stout a got a nice mouth feel and is not overly carbonated.  It feels and tastes just right, in my estimation.  A beer to be savored and enjoyed . . . I think its a good curl-up-with-a-good-book beer or to be shared while relaxing good friends.

Just try to stop at just one.  Very drinkable at 5.9% alcohol by volume.

Cheers!

Check out their other beers on the website or visit them on Facebook.

After all, a girl is... well, a girl. It's nice to be told you're successful at it.

Hubby and I went to a social gathering this weekend for bloggers in my region.  Most of them are men, most them blog about guns, politics and the like.





I'm not opposed to any of those things . . . I just choose not to blog about them.  During the course of dinner, beer and conversation, our "social director" commented that I have a "chick" blog.  Wha . . . what?? Me?  A girlie blog?



Sure, I'm a girl  . . . but still . . . 

I hadn't ever considered it.  But now that he mentioned it, it's kind of bothering me.  I ain't no girlie-girl.  I didn't think I was writing about womanly thingie-doodles or even feminine what-cha-ma-call-its.


What's my blog about?  Stuff . . . by me . . . a chick.  Sure, I almost always include a recipe or some sort of crafty thing or something, but I just write about stuff.  I don't consider it girl stuff . . . I kind of think it's gender neutral.  If I wanted to write about girl stuff I'd be writing about stuff like this or even this (proceed to links if you're man enough).


Why is it bothering me?  I don't know.  I just . . . don't . . .  know.


Chocolate will make me feel better!


That is all.

Chocolate Mousse

4 1/2 Ounces Bittersweet Chocolate, Finely Chopped

2 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter, Diced

2 Tablespoons Espresso or Very Strong Coffee 

1 Cup Cold Heavy Cream

3 Large Eggs, Separated

1 Tablespoon Sugar

Whip the cream to soft peaks, then refrigerate.

Combine the chocolate, butter, and espresso in the top of a double boiler over hot, but not simmering, water, stirring frequently until smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool until the chocolate is just slightly warmer than body temperature. To test, dab some chocolate on your bottom lip. It should feel warm. If it is too cool, the mixture will seize when the other ingredients are added.

Once the melted chocolate has cooled slightly, whip the egg whites in a medium bowl until they are foamy and beginning to hold a shape. Sprinkle in the sugar and beat until soft peaks form.

When the chocolate has reached the proper temperature, stir in the yolks. Gently stir in about one-third of the whipped cream. Fold in half the whites just until incorporated, then fold in the remaining whites, and finally the remaining whipped cream.

Spoon or pipe the mousse into a serving bowl or individual dishes. If you wish, layer in fresh raspberries and whipped cream. Refrigerate for at least 8 hours. (The mousse can be refrigerated for up to a day.)

Serves 5-8, depending on the size of the servings.

After all, a girl is... well, a girl. It's nice to be told you're successful at it.


Rita Hayworth

Awareness without action is worthless

One of my weekend pleasures is watching old movies . . . old like from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s.  I like to plop myself down on the couch with a ball of yarn and a crochet hook or knitting needles, watch the classics and just chill.

I don’t know if those movies depict how people really interacted or spoke but it’s good clean fun.  Sometimes the dialogue includes a word that gets stuck in my head, a word that isn’t used in modern everyday conversation.  It dig, dig, digs.  Eventually, I make the effort to check it out. 

One word that comes to mind is ‘picayune’.  I heard it in the movie Mr. Skeffington from 1944 starring Bette Davis and Claude Rains.  Bette was nominated for an Oscar for her performance.  But that’s neither here nor there . . . the point is that that silly word is now stuck in my brain and I’m here to purge it.

This is what I found out about picayune . . .

Used up until the mid-1800’s, a picayune was a small Spanish coin, worth half a real . . . about six cents.  Interestingly, the word is actually derived from a French word meaning ‘small coin’.

Eventually, a ‘picayune’ came to mean something that is piddling or worthless.

So there you have it.

Furnishing gratification of the senses

Do you remember Max Headroom?  No, I don’t mean the overhead signs warning of low over passes.  I’m talk about THE Max Headroom!

He was basically a head in a box . . . with very little head room.  If you don’t remember him, he was a pseudo-computer generated image . . . he was never really computer generated . . . in the days way before the World Wide Web and cyberstuff. 

 

Interestingly enough, despite the fact that the current technology of the 80’s wasn’t anywhere nearly as advanced as what the television show depicted, it was a remarkably accurate representation of what was to come.

 

Perhaps Max saw a little further than "20 minutes into the future".  Does any of this sound familiar?

Webcams . . . computer controlled cameras . . . long before such a thing was a reality.

  

Artificial intelligence . . . much like Max  . . . assisting in the use of computer software.  You know, like Clippy.

Gotomeeting and Netmeeting . . . who would have imagined such a thing was possible 30 years ago? 

Web polls . . . you see them every day on websites from Facebook to FoxNews.

Flash Advertsing . . . called BlipVerts in Max-speech.  You know those annoying ads that pop up all over the place while your browsing the internet?  Yeah, those things.

The show even portrayed such computer maladies as computer viruses and hijacking.  In fact, one episode showed Max invading an enemy's computer network with an image of a wooden Trojan horse!   

The show even went further by building “firewalls” to protect Max’s systems.  

I think it's interesting that the show predicted so much technology hardly conceived of at the time.  Even cooler that he looked computer generated when it was a live actor  . . . Matt Frewer . . . with a head piece.

CARNATION® Famous Fudge

1 1/2 Cups Granulated Sugar

2/3 Cup (5 Fl.-Oz. Can) Nestlé® Carnation® Evaporated Milk

2 Tablespoons Butter Or Margarine

1/4 Teaspoon Salt

2 Cups Miniature Marshmallows

1 1/2 Cups (9 Oz.) Nestlé® Toll House® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels

1/2 Cup Chopped Pecans Or Walnuts (Optional)

1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

Line a 8-inch-square pan with foil.

Combine sugar, evaporated milk, butter and salt in medium, heavy-duty saucepan. Bring to a full rolling boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil, stirring constantly, for 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Stir in marshmallows, morsels, nuts and vanilla extract. Stir vigorously for 1 minute or until marshmallows are melted. Pour into prepared baking pan; refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm. Lift from pan; remove foil. Cut into 48 pieces.

Quick, easy, yummly!

Mary, you're a fine girl

Back when hubby and I were first dating he was living in New Jersey.  The Garden State has its fair share of weirdness, from the New Jersey Devil which is said to haunt the Pine Barrens of the southern part of the state to the Gates of Hell which are supposedly located in Clifton.

One such strange place is near the Raritan River in New Brunswick. Located in the parking lot of a strip mall. . . imagine that, a strip mall in New Jersey!   Anyhoo, located in the middle of this parking lot is a small family graveyard.  The cemetery is about 6 feet above ground and is shored up by a retaining wall.  The weirdness continues when you consider that if the bodies are buried six feet down they would still be above ground.

Most people are familiar with the 1972 hit "Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)" by Looking Glass.  The lyrics tell the story of a barmaid in a port town. She is courted by many sailors, but her heart belongs to only one man.  Her true love is a sailor and his first love is the sea.  She waits for him wearing a braided silver chain with a locket that bears his name.  It has been suggested that the song was inspired by the real life story of Mary Ellis, whose grave resides in that very same cemetery.  It’s a distinct possibility considering that Looking Glass is from New Brunswick, New Jersey.

Mary Ellis came to New Brunswick in the 1790's to stay with her younger sister.  There she met and fell in love with a man who was a sea captain, and former Revolutionary War officer. The Captain sailed down the Raritan and out to sea one day, vowing that when he returned he and Mary would be wed. He even left her his beloved horse to look after in his absence.

Every day thereafter, Mary would ride his horse from her sister's house to the banks of the river to eagerly await a glimpse of her lover's returning ship.

Over nearly 15 years after her beloved had sailed off into the sunset, Mary purchased a parcel of farmland overlooking the river from which she would maintain her daily vigil. Mary died there fourteen years later in 1827, still faithfully anticipating her captain's return. She was buried on the property, along with her sister, some other family members, and according to local lore, the captain's horse.

The property eventually fell into ruin but the little cemetery was maintained by her descendents from time to time but it was often so overgrown that one could park right next to the grave without even realizing that there were graves nearby.

Eventually, the site was redeveloped and the retaining wall was built.  

Hubby took me to see the graveyard and it is surely something odd to see.  But cool in a bizarre kind of way.

Chocolate Mocha Cake in a Mug

•           2 Tbsp Flour

•           3 Tbsp Sugar

•           2 Tbsp Cocoa Powder

•           1 Egg

•           2 Tbsp Milk

•           2 Tbs Oil

•           3 Tbsp Chocolate Chips, Semi Sweet

•           1 Tbsp Instant Coffee

•           Dash Of Vanilla

•           Hot Fudge Sauce

•           Ice Cream, Optional

Add flour, sugar and cocoa to a large, microwavable mug.

Add egg and mix. 

Add milk and oil and mix.

Add coffee and chips and stir.

Add vanilla and stir well, making sure there are no lumps and all dry ingredients are well incorporated.

Place in microwave for 2 minutes on high.

Add warm chocolate sauce then top with ice cream.