'Tis the Season!

I just made my first batch of eggnog in my own little house. With my brand new KitchenAid hand mixer just like Mom's.  (Although it's SO much easier with a stand mixer and hand mixer.)

As usual, the recipe was a smashup- this time the sources of inspiration were Alton Brown's recipe and this one, called Diamond Eggnog.  Last year A lot of R&D went into this recipe... but even the batches we didn't love were still FAR better than that stuff they peddle at the supermarket.

Based on my own experiments, I know it's easy to tweak any eggnog recipe to suit your own taste, and plan to continue tweaking this one. I am definitely going to cut the amount of sugar, as I've cut WAY back on my sugar intake since last year and I now find this recipe ridiculously sweet.  (UPDATE: I'm through tweaking, now!) The other day a coworker and I googled lactose free eggnog recipes and they actually sounded yummy as well. Mmmmm, coconut cream...

*Laughs*

Yes- I have, indeed, read the ingredients list in my own recipe.

Watch this space... you never know what I'll end up doing...

Eggnog
Ingredients:
4 eggs, separated
2 tablespoons sugar, plus 1 additional tablespoon
1 pint whole milk
1/2 pint heavy cream
1 can sweetened condensed milk
4 1/2 ounces Myer’s Dark Rum
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 teaspoon freshly ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, plus more for serving

Directions:
In a stand mixer (or large bowl and hand mixer), beat the egg yolks 5-10 minutes until they thicken and lighten in color.

Gradually add the 2 tablespoons sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved.

Slowly add the milk, cream, sweetened condensed milk, rum, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Stir to combine.

In a separate medium bowl, beat the egg whites with a mixer until soft peaks form.  While the mixer is running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. (About 12 minutes.)

Whisk the egg whites into the mixture. Chill and serve.

Whisk again before serving and top each portion with freshly grated nutmeg.

Yield: approximately one half gallon

The magically delicious stuffed date recipe!

Yesterday I decided, since I clearly didn't already have enough going on, to make stuffed dates for a party I attended last night.  I posted about these elsewhere a while ago, but I never actually wrote up the recipe that came closest to those at Firefly in Las Vegas, the dish that started this whole obsession.

Basically, I altered this recipe to suit since I'm not naturally gifted in the culinary arts.

Bacon Wrapped Dates stuffed with bleu cheese and almonds, with a red wine reduction

1 pound bacon, cut in half lengthwise
1 pound Large Medjool dates, pitted
Whole almonds (I most often use whole raw almonds)
4 ounces bleu cheese, crumbled (I used a raw goat milk Roquefort- it was pretty and smelled like heaven... but am ridiculously inconsistent when selecting cheese for this recipe)

Preheat oven to 400°
Cut length wise slits into dates, remove pits and add almond and bleu cheese
Pinch closed
Wrap with half-slice of bacon and secure with a toothpick (which has been soaked in water)
Place seam side down on a wire rack inside a large parchment paper-lined casserole dish or cake pan
Bake 30-40 minutes, until bacon is crisp. If you don't have a wire rack, they may be cooked directly on parchment, but turn dates over after 20 minutes

May be served warm or at room temperature.

Also, since Firefly's stuffed dates are served in a red wine reduction (and I find them to be a bit "less than" without it):

The red wine reduction I made is really simple:
I use 2 cups of whatever red I have available (this time I used an Argentinian Malbec, because it's my red of the moment and always on hand) and reduce it down to about 3 ounces.

I place the dates on a platter deep enough to contain the liquid, drizzle them with the red wine reduction and crumble additional bleu cheese over them for serving. So, so yum. 

Smelling good

 I tried two new cleaning product recipes this weekend and the house smells wonderful.

Carpet Freshener (I merely reduced the amounts given in tipnut's recipe, because my house is tiny and I only have a few area rugs over hardwood):

2 cups baking soda
1 cups dried lavender buds/flowers*
1/3 cup cornstarch

Directions:
Mix well and store in an airtight plastic container. Set aside for a couple days before using. Sprinkle generously on carpet and let sit for one hour before vacuuming.

*Instead of using dried herbs, you can substitute essential oils, experiment with amounts for best results. Make sure to mix it in the recipe thoroughly and let sit for a few days before using.

When restocking the baking soda, in addition to the gianormous box I also picked up an Arm & Hammer Soda Shaker which is brilliant for dispensing this stuff!




The other recipe came about from bits and pieces from a whole lot of recipes all over the 'net and went with:

Air/Linen Freshener Spray:

1 cup distilled water
1/2 cup ridiculously cheap vodka or witch hazel (I've discovered I prefer the latter, as it lacks that bottom note of "panhandler")
15 drops eucalyptus essential oil
15 drops lavender essential oil
15 drops grapefruit essential oil

Combine all ingredients in a spray bottle.  Allow to sit a few hours before using.  Shake bottle well to mix contents prior to each use.

In which our heroine battles a leaky faucet

I sorta had to. The cold water at the faucet in the bathroom has been doing some bizarro stuff - not just dripping but spontaneously slowly running at random times and could only be stopped at the shut-off valve under the vanity.  The work-around was a pain, but effectively motivational.

And the shower head had a slow drip.  Last time Dad visited, he stopped the drip at the faucet in the tub.  I've since noticed this leak while standing on the side of the tub to remove some tape gunk left behind from recent painting.  I didn't even realize my head was under the shower head... until...

So, I educated myself.  I have little to no interest in plumbing, so it wasn't by any means a fun adventure. And after helping hook up the gas stove and being near by during the frustrating bathroom sink plumbing experience, I actually dreaded it.

I HAD NO IDEA that to repair a leaky faucet, usually all you have to do is replace a washer (or o-ring, depending on the faucet style).  Of course, getting to it and putting everything back together again isn't quite so simple (even for DIY inclined, tool lovin' chicks like me).

I also learned a handy trick for protecting finishes from your tools- wrap tape around your wrenches.  Brilliant!  Much easier to see what's going on than my old "throw a washcloth around the shiny stuff" method.

And today, well, I love the shiny teapot style faucet and my vanity with drawers a little less than I did before.  BUT *today* the faucet isn't leaking. 

I need to run out for the washer needed for the shower head that's been soaking in vinegar all night.  It's totally worth it to clean all this stuff while it's dismantled- it's MUCH easier! 

And productivity begets more productivity- I also braved the attic (sorta- I went halfway up and poked the boxes down with the mop) and am a few steps further along in getting the guest room whipped into shape.  AND I came up with an idea for window treatments that will be FANTASTIC and relatively inexpensive since I have almost everything on hand.  YAY!

It's nice in the midst of all this butchy sense of accomplishment to have silly little reminders that I am, indeed, a girl. :)

Two things that are brilliant

1. Those Scandanavians are so clever and I adore them for it.  I don't know how I lived without Ikea's STABIL pot strainer.  (Well, I do.  I made a mess.)
2. My love of Quickie isn't so consistent because they change their products so often it's hard or impossible to find refills... and not very green_ly left with a useless mop as a result. And while this isn't the exact model I have (the refill will fit mine), and the irony that they've declared it "green" isn't lost on me, I present the microfiber hardwood floor mop. I love the large head and how swivel-y it is, and that the elasticized microfiber cover is washable and reusable.  I am a bit more hopeful about the company's greener focus, at least.  They do have a lot of new products made of bamboo, recycled materials and microfiber.  I'm curious to see how this progresses, and plan to watch the styles' longevity. Quickie products are usually found at DIY/hardware stores.