Peanut Butter and Julie

Peanut Butter and Julie's Favorite Things for 2010 (and a holiday muffin recipe!)

It's not easy living in Oprah's shadow.  I mean, she gave her audience a cruise.  She gave her audience a car that won't even be available for another six months.  She brought her audience the Black Eyed Peas.  She brought them a holiday medley performed by Johnny Mathis and Josh Grobin at the same time.  And she fed them with macaroni and cheese, chicken pie, Williams-Sonoma croissants, and the world's biggest tin of popcorn.  Where was my granola you ask?  I was wondering the same thing.  I'm sure that my email invitation was lost in my spam folder.  Darn.  I was this close to fame and fortune.  I'd say "maybe next year," but as we all know, this is (sniff) Oprah's 25th, and her very last year as a talk show host.  I'm not sure I recall what life without Oprah was like.  I mean, I'm just slightly older than 25 as it is......

So perhaps the Fourth Annual Peanut Butter and Julie Favorite Things list isn't quite as expensive or as luxurious as that of Oprah's 25th, but what it lacks in terms of personal transportation, diamonds, and all-expenses paid vacations, it certainly makes up for in charm, affordability, and quality (Are you buying any of this?  Good.)

This year, as with year 1, year 2, and year 3, all of the items on the list are my own selections.  They have not been solicited by anyone or by any company.  While a few of the items are creations of my friends, they did not ask me to promote them.  I chose to promote them because I think that they are outstanding products, things that I would buy for my friends, my family (or myself!)

So, without further ado (drum roll), I give you Peanut Butter and Julie's Favorite Things for 2010!!

1. Whenever I go to Sephora, the beauty product superstore where I always feel like I am too old to be a customer, I tend to become completely overwhelmed by the sheer amount of products that they have on the shelves.  I've never been one to wear a lot of makeup, so I don't even know what half of the products are for.  Primer?  Dunno.  Facial highlighter? Not a clue.  If I don't walk in with a plan, I'll emerge an hour later empty-handed and extremely stressed out.  That's why I've started heading straight to the Philosophy section, my safe haven.  Here's the thing about me, oh marketers of America: Once I'm loyal to a brand, I'm loyal until I am given a seriously good reason to change brands.  I've been using Kiehl's products since I was about 18, and I've been using Philosophy products since they launched. I especially love Philosophy for their holiday food-themed scents, ones that are truly reminiscent of their titles:  Candy Cane, Have a Cherry Christmas, Peppermint Bark, Cinnamon Buns, Dreamy Tangerini.....the yummy list of flavors goes on and on.  Last year, while hiding from the overly agressive Sephora salesgirl behind the Philosophy rack, I tried a sample of the new, and very appropriately named, Melting Marshmallow body lotion.  While I don't know if it smells exactly like a marshmallow, this lotion truly melts into my skin, and in this desert climate, you have no idea what an important trait that is.  I quickly stocked up for the year.  This year, they've come out with an even better scent of the same lotion, called The Gingerbread Girl .  It hits the mark as far as aroma is concerned, with that same "melting" quality.  Yes, I smell like a walking bakery, and I'm OK with that.

2.  O.K., so Oprah totally stole this one from me, but I'm going to go ahead and forgive her because, well, she is Oprah after all.  Plus, it's her 25th season, so I completely understand if she is running out of ideas for her Favorite Things list, and she needs to look to people such as myself for assistance.  It's fine, O.  I'm here for you.  I may have mentioned once, or maybe one hundred times, that I am a sweet potato fanatic.  FAN. A. TIC.  With the exception of cheesecake, which I won't go anywhere near, simply put the words "Sweet Potato" on a product label, and you have my attention (and likely my money too.)  When I exhibited at the Fancy Food Show in New York this past June, I had a short amount of time to  peruse the aisles of the immense Javits Center and check out what the other exhibitors were peddling.  Many of the items on display were of the ho-hum-I've-seen-this-somewhere-before genre: truffled this, chipotle that, bittersweet chocolate thingamajigs.  I was about to give up and return to granolaland, when I passed by Low Country Produce's booth, and I sampled their Sweet Potato Butter.  In a word: yum.  It took almost all of my will-power to not slip a few display jars into my bag.  Perfect for toast, dinner rolls, or even by itself straight outta the jar, this smooth and sweet spread is lightly spiced with a hint of lemon juice, and it would make the perfect stocking stuffer for anyone who is sweet on sweet potatoes.

3.  It never fails.  I walk into Target for my monthly supply of Crystal Lite and a box of aluminum foil, and I walk out with three packages of cute cupcake liners, a candle, mascara, a set of retro-looking plates, puppy biscuits, and about five t-shirts.  I buy almost all of my t-shirts at Target.  And why not?  Target makes fantastic t-shirts, and they're only about $7-$9 each.  Of course, when you purchase them by the truckload, that bargain price can really add up.  The marketing folks at Target have really figured out their target (get it?) customer (that would be me) too, because they come out with t-shirts for just about every holiday (I Heart Arbor Day!!) and trend.  Well, team Tar-jay, you might be interested to know that you now have some competition from the folks at  Food Tees, a brand of naturally sweet food-themed tees, tanks, and bags that I recently found on-line.  While the price runs a bit higher than your average Tar-Tee, I think that the increased cuteness quotient more than makes up for the difference. 

4. The specialty food community is onto me.  Clearly, word has gotten out that I love salt, because over the past decade an entire new industry has been created out of what used to be a fairly boring ingredient.  When I was growing up, our pantry contained one kind of salt: Morton's in the blue tube.  We occasionally had a box of kosher salt on hand, but it was never used for our table, and I think that we actually had that same box for my entire childhood.  As I glance over my shoulder into my kitchen, I see no fewer than eight options of various colors and crystal sizes for seasoning my food.  Not only do we now have sea salt, we have Pink Himalayan Sea Salt, not to be confused with Hawaiian Red Sea Salt or, my personal favorite, Smoked Sea Salt.  Last year, for Christmas, my mom (who happens to be married to a fellow salt-a-holic), gave me this Napa Style 5-Salt Box, from Michael Chiarello's store, Napa Style in, you guessed it, Napa Valley.  The wooden box contains five little square wells with lids, and it comes with five different salts: Sun-Dried Tomato, Citrus Rosemary, Roasted Garlic, Gray Salt, and the aforementioned Hawaiian Red.  I might have gone through those salts fairly quickly (suddenly, everything could use just a little sprinkle of salt), but fortunately I can just refill the box with my own variety of flavors.  This would make a great housewarming gift for the foodie who has everything.

5. One of my favorite traditions every holiday season is decorating the tree, even if I end up doing it on my own (Eric doesn't always get into the holidays quite like I do.  It's in my blood.)  My parents did a great job of saving all of the ornaments that I collected over the years, from an angel made out of a paper plate, who is slowly losing her glitter, which I made at the Pennington Presbyterian Church Christmas Bazaar one year, to a golden Snoopy ornament, engraved from my friend Amy in 1982.  I don't know if Martha Stewart would really approve of my tree-decorating skills.  I like to think of my technique as more freestyle than department store chic.  My tree is definitely over-crowded with ornaments, but there is no way that I am leaving any off, and there is always room for more, especially super-duper adorable ones (see photo).  I recently discovered that my friend, Linda Bibbo, is not only an extremely talented cook, but she also makes the most adorable Christmas ornaments, which she sells at various craft shows (or sells out!)  These hand-made, 4" glass ornaments sell for $18 each plus shipping, and they can be personalized on the back or at the bottom.  Linda doesn't currently have a web site (which makes these ornaments even more of a unique gift), but she can be contacted via email (which I can provide for you), and she can usually ship within 5 days or less.  Oh boy, oh boy!!  Another ornament for my tree!!  Eric will be so thrilled.

 

6. Recently, I've come to terms with the fact that I don't have the shopping attention span or patience to call myself a TRUE fashionista.  Come to think of it, I'm probably a salesperson's dream.  I walk in, see a pair of shoes that I like, try them on, and buy them, usually in about 10-15 minutes.  I like to hit the malls early and on weekdays, so crowds aren't an issue.  Outlet shopping is my worst nightmare.  That said, I devour fashion magazines as if they were an 8-ounce cup of Golden Spoon Vanilla Malt frozen yogurt covered in rainbow jimmies, so I am aware of the trends.  I'm just too short on time to follow them all, so I need to pick just a few.  Eric is going to kill me for divulging this, but this past year we both became avid watchers of The Rachel Zoe Project  on Bravo.  I adore Rachel Zoe.  I want to be her friend.  Plus, I completely identify with her trials and tribulations from a woman business-owner's (and Starbucks addict's) perspective.  Although Eric doesn't necessarily get the whole fashion aspect of the show, I think that he identifies with Rachel's husband, Roger.  No, I don't force Eric to walk around indoors wearing a scarf and carrying a man-purse, but Eric sometimes looks at me when I am obsessing about all things culinary the same way that Roger looks at Rachel when she obsesses about Chanel.  Unlike Rachel, I don't own a lot of Chanel clothes. O.K., I own no Chanel clothes.  BUT, I do own Chanel......nail polish.  Every season, Chanel ingeniusly comes out with fantastic new limited edition colors that always sell out (anyone remember Vamp?)  I buy a few of these every year, although I opted to skip the army green color -- didn't really flatter my skin tone.  While, in true Chanel form, these polishes are pricier than normal polish, they are of great quality, and they are a fun, unique, and affordable gift for someone who enjoys fashion.   As Rachel would say, they are "major."  

7. I think that the world would be a better place if there were more chocolatiers, don't you agree?  I mean, how many times do you see someone biting into a decadent bittersweet chocolate-covered salted caramel with an unhappy expression on their face?  Never.  It's hardly rocket science.  Chocolate makes people happy.  Sure, the after-effects of not being able to squeeze into your skinny jeans might not be the ultimate joyous occasion, but skinny jeans are stupid anyhow, and they should all be burned.  So.......guess what?  I have a FRIEND who is a real live chocolatier.  A fantastic one too.  Jealous? It's kind of like knowing Willy Wonka, except she doesn't hang out with Oompa-Loompas (that I know of) or wear crazy hats.  I met Ruth Kendrick this year through a mutual Facebook friend, who knew that we both owned small gourmet food businesses.  After exchanging emails, Ruth and I decided to exchange products.  I sent her a sampler of my granola, and she sent me a HUGE sampler of her Chocolot Artisan Confections, her perfectly gorgeous, beautifully packaged, hand-crafted, rich, creamy, and irresistible truffles.  I'm usually pretty proud of my will-power, but it was completely shot after my first bite.  I ended up buying a bunch to put into holiday gift baskets.  Boy, am I going to be popular!!  My favorite flavor???  Definitely the Meyer Lemon....or the Fleur de Sel Caramel....or the Orange Cream....or the Praline.......(clearly I can't decide, so I may need to sample again.)

8.  I think that few people would argue the fact that bacon is everywhere these days.  Not only is bacon in your BLT for lunch, but it's also showing up in your Maple Bacon Cupcake for dessert.  In the past few years, I've seen bacon ice cream, bacon chocolate truffles, candied bacon caramel popcorn, bacon toffee, bacon mints (fail), and even bacon Jolly Ranchers (not really, just wanted to see if you're paying attention.)  I've read write-ups from supposed culinary trend experts who have proclaimed that the bacon trend is "so over", much like the cupcake or the ubiquitous slider.  Um, no.  It's not.  That's clearly the overdose of nitrates speaking.  Bacon will never be over, much like culottes will never be stylish.  I am fairly confident that I am not alone when I say that I especially love the combination of salty caramelized bacon with something that is particularly sweet, like the classic combination of pancakes and bacon drenched in maple syrup.  The other day, I was shopping at Whole Foods when I came upon a carefully crafted pyramid of Mo's Bacon Pancake Mix, the latest creation from those geniuses at Vosges chocolate.  First they came out with Mo's Bacon Bar, which I thought would be impossible to top.  Well they didn't exacty top it -- rather they broke it up into pieces and added it to pancake mix to create a perfect stocking stuffer or gift basket item.  I don't know who this Mo guy is, but I like his style. 

9. There are certain baking classics, such as chocolate chip cookies, brownies, and blueberry muffins, for which I am determined to discover "the best" recipe, at least in my opinion.  I am 100% satisfied that I have found the ultimate recipe for two of those three items.  The chocolate chip cookie is still a challenge.  Cakey?  Crisp?  Nuts?  Chunks or Chips?  Oh well, I suppose that I am willing to sacrifice continual testing and sampling, all in the name of research of course :)  Another recipe for which I constantly get positive feedback is my sugar cookie recipe.  Ever since I created this combination about six years ago, it has become my standard for decorated cookies throughout the year.  Confession time:  Whenever I have posted this recipe on my blog in the past, I might have made one little change in the ingredient list.....but I had a perfectly good reason for doing this: my secret ingredient isn't exactly a shelf staple. Whenever I prepare these cookies, I use a special flavoring ingredient that I discovered in the King Arthur's Catalog: Fiori di Sicilia (I think that this means something like "Flowers of Sicily" -- anyone??)  Just a smidgen of this fragrant extract added to cookie dough or cake batter yields a vanilla-orangey scent and flavor that will truly set your baked goods apart.  If I happen to be out of Fiori di Sicilia, I'll usually substitute some orange zest and extra vanilla extract, but it's never quite the same.  So, that's my secret.  Merry Christmas.

10.This is another one of my favorite things that happens to also be a creation of one of my friends.  Hey, what can I say?  I have talented friends, and I'm not afraid to brag about them.  I've mentioned in the past that I occasionally participate in cooking/recipe competitions, a hobby that has allowed me to meet some wonderful friends (who don't think that I'm weird for sitting around and discussing food for hours on end.)  A few weeks ago, I competed in (and won!) the Aetna Healthy Food Fight which took place in L.A.  Our challenge was to prepare an entire healthy Thanksgiving feast, using a limited list of ingredients, in 90 minutes.  Oh yeah, and the judge?  Bobby Flay.  The Iron Chef himself.  No pressure there.  One of the other competitors, Camilla Saulsbury, is someone that I have been friendy with via email and Facebook, but we had never actually met in person.  Not only has Camilla set the bar for cooking contest success -- she has won just about every major competition there is -- but she is a Phd-carrying successful cookbook author, fitness instructor, blogger, former professor, mom, and wife.  Oh yeah, and she's gorgeous......and nice........and humble.......and funny (I know that you wanted me to say that she was mean or snobby or something, but sorry, you simply can't hate her.)  Anyhow, Camilla and I were both flying solo during our stay in L.A., since both of our husbands had to work, so we essentially became each other's "plus ones."  We had a fantastic time eating our way through the menu at Mario Batali's Osteria Mozza and working out next to Fabio of I Can't Believe It's Not Butter fame at the gym (I have to say, he looks pretty good in person.)  When Camilla announced the title of her newest cookbook last year, I felt like it had been written just for me:  750 Best Muffin Recipes .  No, I didn't accidentally add a zero to the number.  That's 7.5.0.  As in, a new recipe every day for over two years.  As in, about $.03 per recipe.  Sounds like a good deal to me!  I love a well-crafted, moist on the inside, but slightly crisp on the outside muffin, and from the recipes that I have tried so far, I will be very happy baking my way through this book.  Muffins for breakfast, savory muffins, gluten-free, international, vegan.....they're all inside, and then some.  Here is a yummy recipe from the book that I whipped up yesterday, perfect for the holidays:

Camilla's Peppermint Chocolate Chunk Muffins (from 750 Best Muffin Recipes)

Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

1 teaspoon peppermint extract

3/4 cup sour cream

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chunks

1/3 cup coarsely crushed red and white striped peppermint candies

Preheat the oven to 375F degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.  In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, butter, and peppermint extract until well blended.  Whisk in the sour cream until blended. 

Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just blended.  Gently fold in the chocolate.  Divide the batter equally among the prepared muffin cups.  Sprinkle with candies.

Bake in preheated oven for 18-22 minutes or until tops are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center emerges clean.  Let cool in pan on a wire rack for 3 minutes, then transfer to the rack to cool.

 

O.K., folks!!  That's all that I've got.  I'm exhausted.  Time for a nap.  Happy holiday shopping!!

Flaky Homemade Pop-Tarts

What ever happened to Saturday morning cartoons?  I mean, I know that there are technically still cartoons on T.V. every Saturday morning, but what happened to the good ones?  O.K., so some might respond to my query as follows: "Uh, Julie?  Hate to break it to you, but you're a just a little bit out of the cartoon target market age range.  Today's cartoons are probably just as good as the ones that you watched as a kid."

Good point, but........no.  They're not.  Sorry.  Not even close.

Now, just to clarify, I don't have a habit of evaluating cartoons on Saturday mornings, but sometimes I'm in a position where they are just the next thing on after the morning news, and for whatever reason I can't change the channel.  Really.  Like....say I'm in the middle of a big granola-making-marathon, or I might be on the treadmill without the remote.  These types of situations happen often enough for me to know that today's cartoons (with the possible exception of SpongeBob) don't hold a candle to the ones that I grew up with.

I feel lucky that my cartoon-watching era occurred during the 80s, when my Saturday mornings were a 2-3 hour special event before ice-skating practice, piano lessons, and slumber parties.  My brother and I would sit on the carpet, usually too close to the T.V., until my mom would make us scoot back  "You're going to hurt your eyes!"  Breakfast would be a bowl of whatever cereal had the best prize (I was a sucker for temporary tattoos), an Entenmann's chocolate donut, or a Pop-Tart.  Apparently, healthy egg-white-whole-grain-and-oatmeal breakfasts weren't yet all the rage in the 80s.

My favorite cartoon was The Smurfs.  Smurfette, Papa Smurf, and Jokey Smurf made being blue cool long before Avatar hit the silver screen.  That cartoon was, for lack of a better description, super smurfy.  Incidentally, I now have the Smurf theme song ("La-laaaa-la-la-la-la....) going through my head.  Darn.  I heard that they are making a Smurf movie, using live actors?  Hmmm....  Not sure how I feel about Katy Perry as Smurfette.  We shall see.  Remember The Snorks?  That premise was basically The Smurfs underwater.  Also, an enjoyable cartoon, but it didn't last quite as long. 

Looney Tunes, Wile E. Coyote & Roadrunner, and The Superfriends were also favorites in our house.  How can you forget "Wonder Twin powers, activate!"  "Form of, an eagle!"  "Shape of, water!"??  Classic.  And that poor, poor, wacky Wile E. Coyote.  Will he never stop ordering faulty products from Acme?  True, every single episode was essentially the same basic formula (Roadrunner outsmarts Coyote), but it was  a brilliant one that worked, week after week after week. 

Of course, I simply cannot discuss Saturday morning cartoons without giving a nod to Schoolhouse Rock! It was an incredibly smart concept, tricking kids into learning history and grammar through cartoons and catchy songs on a Saturday morning:

I'm just a bill.
Yes, I'm only a bill.
And I'm sitting here on Capitol Hill.
 
Apparently I'm not the only fan.  Check out this web site dedicated to songs such as "Conjunction Junction", "Electricity", and the oh-so-fun-to-say "Lolly, Lolly, Lolly Get Your Adverbs Here".

Just as my taste in T.V. has evolved, so has my taste in breakfast treats.  I can't remember the last time that I bought boxed anything without heavily scrutinizing the ingredient list first for words that I can't pronounce.  I know.  No fun.  I used to really love the store-bough Pop-Tarts and Toaster Strudels, but now they just taste, well, store-bought. 

I was flipping through my new favorite baking book, Flour, by Joanne Chang, and I was so, so excited to find a recipe for her homemade pop-tarts.  The resulting pastry is more of a cross between a traditional Pop-Tart and a Toaster Strudel, because the outside is much flakier than the cookie-like texture of a Pop-Tart.  That said, Joanne's pastry recipe is ten-thousand times better than any Toaster Strudel that I've ever had.  I've always struggled a bit with achieving truly light and flaky pie crusts, but clearly I've been using the wrong recipes. 

I tweaked Joanne's recipe just a bit, but it's still pretty close to the one in her cookbook, and the technique is the same.  Warning:  These treats are super-rich and buttery, so maybe go outside for a run after enjoying one on Saturday morning.  There's nothing good on T.V. anyhow :)  Here are my extra tips for making these better-than-the-boxed-version breakfast treats:

• Once the pastry dough has been prepared, it can be wrapped tightly and refrigerated for up to four days or frozen for up to one month.
• Try to use the best butter that you can find for this recipe.  The quality really comes through in the flavor of the pastry.  Challenge makes a good unsalted butter that's not over-the-top expensive.
• Filling ideas for these treats are limited only to what you have in your pantry: bittersweet chocolate and marshmallows, jams and preserves, peanut butter and jelly, diced bananas and chopped pecans, pumpkin butter.......be creative :)
• If you prefer to serve the pop-tarts warm, feel free to either omit the glaze, or you can glaze them sooner after removing them from the oven.  The glaze won't set as well, and they might be a bit messier, but they will still taste yummy!  You can also reheat the glazed pot-tarts in a 300F degree oven for 8-10 minutes until warm. 
• Don't become frustrated if the pop-tarts don't look pretty during the assembly process.  Mine didn't!  One thing that I did to dress them up a bit was use the excess pastry dough (from the trimmings) to cut out small shapes to place on top.  Just brush the top of the pastry with some of the beaten egg and adhere the cut-out to the top.

Flaky Homemade Pop-Tarts

Makes 8 pop-tarts

For the flaky pastry (Pate Brisee):

2 cups flour, plus more for dusting

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup good quality cold unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-sized pieces

2 egg yolks

3 tablespoons whole milk

For the Apple-Cinnamon filling:

2 tablespoons butter

2 medium apples (recommend Granny Smith or Honeycrisp), cored and thinly sliced

1/2 cup golden brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup flour

Assembly:

1 egg, lightly beaten

For the glaze:

1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

3-4 tablespoons whole milk or water

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

Prepare the flaky pastry: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the flour, sugar, and salt on low speed until combined.  Scatter the butter pieces over the top of the flour mixture and mix on low speed until lumps of butter the size of pecans are seen throughout, about 1 1/2 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the milk until blended.  Add this mixture to the mixing bowl and mix on low speed for about 30 seconds, until the dough just barely comes together.  Dump the dough out onto a very lightly floured work surface and gather it into a tight mound.  Using the palm of your hand and starting on one side of the mound, smear the dough bit by bit, starting at the top and then sliding your palm down the side and along the work surface, until most of the butter chunks are smeared into the dough and the dough comes together.  When finished, you should have a "cohesive dough with streaks of butter" (Joanne's words exactly!)

Gather the dough together and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, pressing it down to flatten to a 1-inch thick disk.  Refrigerate the dough for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Prepare the Apple-Cinnamon filling:  In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium high heat.  Add the apples and saute for 2-3 minutes, until they start to soften.  Add the sugar and the cinnamon and saute for 3 minutes more.  Remove the mixture from the heat and transfer it to a bowl to cool slightly.  Mix in the egg and flour and allow to cool completely.

Assemble and bake the pop-tarts:  Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.  Remove the pastry dough from the refrigerator and divide it into two equal pieces.  On a lightly floured work surface, roll each piece into a 14X11-inch rectangle.  Using a paring knife, lightly score one rectangle into two rows of four equal pieces (about 3 1/2 by 5 1/2 inches each.)  Brush the surface of the scored rectangle with the egg.

Place about 2 tablespoons of the Apple-Cinnamon filling (or your filling of choice) in a mound in the center of each scored rectangle.  Carefully place the second large rectangle of dough directly on top of the first, pressing around the sides of each mound of filling to adhere.  Using a knife or a fluted roller, cut the dough into 8 rectangles.  Transfer the rectangles to the prepared baking sheet, spacing about 1-inch apart.

Bake the pop-tarts for 30-35 minutes, until the tops are golden brown.  Allow the pastries to cool for 15 minutes on a wire rack.** (See note above about options here!)

Prepare the glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together the confectioner's sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and enough milk to make a smooth and pourable glaze.  When the pastries have cooled, drizzle or brush the tops with the glaze.  Allow the glaze to stand for 10 minutes to set (or just eat them right away, like I did!)

 

Spiced Sweet Potato Ice Cream Pie

I've said it once.  Actually, I've probably said it about 1000 times, but that's not going to stop me from saying it again:  I love sweet potatoes. 

I've never been a huge fan of white potatoes themselves.  I know;  that's very un-American.  Baked potatoes don't thrill me, and I'm rarely tempted by french fries.  Luckily, Eric consumes enough of those to fulfill my quota.  And mashed potatoes?  The majority that I've tasted are just blah.  There was this one restaurant that we went to, which served a sort of mashed potato "tasting" with your entrees, including lobster mashed potatoes and truffle mashed potatoes.  I'll admit that those versions were pretty darn outstanding.  But let's face it:  You can add lobster and truffles to just about anything and make it outstanding.  In that situation it wasn't really about the potatoes, now was it?

My first memories of sweet potatoes are probably similar to those of most people, ones that involve Thanksgiving dinner.  My mom would always make candied sweet potatoes, using the canned version in syrup, cinnamon, brown sugar, butter, and I think raisins (Mom, am I right?)  The tops of the potatoes would get nice and caramelized in the oven, and this super sweet dish was the perfect foil to her savory gravy, turkey, and stuffing (and it tasted even better the next day.)  Since my dad and brother never indulged in orange food, other than Doritos, I could have as much as I wanted.

When I started to become a bit of a health nut, and my taste buds became less sugar-dependent, I started to realize that sweet potatoes didn't necessarily need to be doused in sugar, syrup, and more sugar to be delicious.  They were, after all, SWEET potatoes, right?  Sometimes for dinner, I'll just roast up a red-skinned variety and top it with the tiniest amount of butter, cinnamon, and maple syrup:  heaven.  The same applies for the very similar tasting, but even lower calorie butternut squash.  I consume these two vegetables on such a regular basis, it's a wonder that my skin hasn't turned a spray-tanned Snooki shade of orange by now.

Sweet potatoes and butternut squash are a great substitute for pumpkin in most recipes, and I'm always trying to think of new ways to incorporate them into my cooking and baking.  While using fresh pumpkin puree might be the only way that Martha Stewart rolls, it's a huge pain in the butt to make, and it's not attainable year-round.  Fresh sweet potato puree is ten times easier, so that is what I like to use in muffins, pies, pancakes, etc.

I believe that I've also mentioned about 1000 times that I'm not a huge dessert person.  Obviously, there's nothing that I love more than creating desserts.  I just like to give them away, probably because I find it much more gratifying to watch others enjoy something that I've made.  Ice cream is the exception, especially the fresh or homemade variety.  If a restaurant dessert menu offers a tasting of exotic ice creams and sorbets, it's hard for me to turn that down.  When Eric and I were in Jackson Hole this summer, I must have dragged him to the town square ice cream shop every other day to get a scoop of their local huckleberry ice cream.  I could never work in an ice cream shop.

After a humongous Thanksgiving dinner, I tend to decline dessert.  I might take a bite off of someone else's plate, just to taste, but a heavy piece of custard or fruit-filled pie is usually not even a little bit tempting.  I love the idea of serving an ice cream pie though.  It's essentially a scoop of ice cream in a thin cookie crust (in this case gingersnap), and it seems like a much more refreshing option than some other alternatives. Plus, you can use the leftover ice cream and cookies to make fun mini sandwiches for the kids...or adults who should be seated at the kids table.

I love to play around with my ice cream maker.  I have a really inexpensive version, and it has never  failed me.  This is my first attempt at sweet potato ice cream, and I was really thrilled with the results.  You can definitely omit the spiced pecans, but I think that they add some great texture and flavor.  Here are my extra tips for making this cool and sweet post-Thanksgiving dinner treat:

• Here's a great bonus ideas for a fun kids dessert: Use leftover ice cream, gingersnaps, and chopped nuts to create some fun mini Sweet Potato Gingersnap Ice Cream Sandwiches.  You can also roll the outsides of the sandwiches in sprinkles, coconut, mini chocolate chips, etc.
• The ice cream pie can be prepared up to one week in advance.  Wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and freeze.  Allow the pie to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before cutting and serving to guests.
• While you can definitely mash the baked sweet potato flesh to make a puree, I have found that a much better method is to actually puree it in a food processor, as this yields a much smoother outcome -- more suitable for an ice cream base.
• Instead of using a combination of whole milk and cream, you may use all half and half (or even al heavy cream if you want a REALLY rich ice cream.)

Spiced Sweet Potato Ice Cream Pie

Serves 8-10 (with leftover ice cream for ice cream sandwiches!)

For the ice cream:

3 medium red-skinned sweet potatoes

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

2 cups whole milk

1 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

For the spiced pecans:

1 egg white

1 tablespoon water

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 cups pecan halves

For the crust:

2 cups finely crushed gingersnaps

2 tablespoons sugar

6 tablespoons butter, melted

Prepare the ice cream base:  Preheat the oven to 425F degrees.  Prick the sweet potatoes several times with the tines of a fork and wrap them in foil.  Bake for one hour or until soft.  When cool enough to handle, peel and then puree the potatoes in a food processor (or mash the potatoes.)  Measure out 1 3/4 cups puree.

In a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, egg yolks, and maple syrup.  Place the milk in a medium saucepan set over medium heat; bring to a simmer.  Slowly add the hot milk to the egg mixture, whisking constantly so that you won’t scramble the eggs.  Return the mixture to the saucepan set over low heat.  Stir the mixture with a wooden spoon until it thickens to a custard consistency, 8-10 minutes.  Remove the pan from the heat and mix in the potato puree.  Mix in the cream and vanilla.  Transfer the custard to a bowl, cover, and chill until very cold (at least 3 hours.)

Prepare the praline pecans:  Keep the oven at 325F degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with nonstick baking spray.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg white and water until foamy.  Whisk in the brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.  Add the pecans, and toss the mixture until the nuts are evenly coated.  Spread the pecans in an even layer onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown and fragrant.  Cool completely.  Reserve 15-20 pecan halves for garnish, and coarsely chop the remaining pecans.

Prepare the gingersnap crust:  Preheat the oven to 325F degrees.  In a medium bowl, stir together the gingersnap crumbs, sugar, and butter until the mixture is evenly moistened.  Press the mixture into the bottom and sides of a 9-inch glass pie plate.  Bake for 8-10 minutes or until set.  Cool completely.

Prepare the ice cream:  Transfer the chilled custard to your ice cream maker, and prepare according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  Five minutes before the ice cream is ready, add 1 ½ cups of the chopped praline pecans to the machine.  When the ice cream is ready, transfer it to the gingersnap crust, smoothing the top (there will be ice cream left over.)  Arrange the reserved pecan halves decoratively on top.  Cover the dish and freeze for 2 hours, until firm enough to slice.

Garnish the pie slices with lightly whipped cream or caramel sauce (optional).