December 2013 - Chewsy Lovers

The Honey Hostess: Cranberry Apple Jelly

December 11, 2013 3 Comments

Hi Chewsies!

My cousin, {{The Lady}} has been trying to wrangle me into writing a post about canning for months now, so here it goes. =)

I make up a lot of my recipes (once you have this canning thing down, you will too) BUT ’tis the season for giving homemade canned goods as presents, and there are some staple recipes I like to use. Simply Recipes has an amazing apple butter recipe I use all the time and for the first time, I’m trying out Food In Jars cranberry apple jelly recipe.

Now here’s the secret people who can don’t want you to know…Canning is REALLY easy! Once you get the basics down, you just rinse and repeat for all of your other recipes. “And what are you basics?” you may ask.

Here they are: first, sterilize your jars. Wash them out with hot soapy water, rinse, and put them in an 200 degree oven until you’re ready to use them. Take your jar lids and sterilize them in boiling water. Make your jam (more on that below). The key to a good jam is pectin; pectin is your best friend. I try to stick with fruits that have a lot of pectin naturally (apples, cranberries, grapes) to avoid having to add the artificial kind later. Then comes the canning. You can buy a Ball Canning Discovery Kit if you’ve never done this before. The things to remember with canning are that the jars do not touch the bottom of the pot you’re boiling them in, there needs to be an inch of water over the top of each jar as it boils for 10 minutes, and finally, when the jar cools and you press down on the center of the lid, you know you did it right if the top does not move.

So I made some alterations to the cranberry apple jelly recipe, as you can see below. I doubled the water in the recipe because I wanted the final product to have to be more smooth (which means it just has to cook down a little longer) and I added orange and spices. I chose orange versus two lemons because cranberries are tangy enough, I wanted to keep the citrus flavor without making it too tart.

Cranberry Apple Jelly

Ingredients
8 cups of peeled and diced apple (approximately 5-6 large apples, 1/2 inch dice. Use a softer apple like a Golden Delicious. Firm apples won’t cook down as well.)
4 cups of whole cranberries
6 cups sugar
2 cups water
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 orange, zested and juiced
1/4 tsp of cloves
1/4 tsp of allspice

Instructions:

Combine all of the ingredients in a large pot (use a big one, this jam will bubble) over high heat. Bring to a boil, skimming off the foam that develops on the top of the fruit.

Cook for 20-30 minutes, until the cranberries pop and the apples soften.

Stir constantly so that the mixture doesn’t burn or stick to the bottom of the pot.

Ladle into prepared jars (you can do this while it’s still hot), wipe rims, apply lids and process in a for 10 minutes.

And that’s it folks! You’ve canned! Label those bad boys, tie them up with a bow, and put them under the tree or into the mail. IT’S HANDLED!!

CHEWS gifts made with love this season! Merry Christmas and Happy Canning!

M.W.A.H.,

The Honey Hostess

Nicole is an education policy worker by day, crafter, baker, and undercover homemaker by night. When she is not walking around D.C. in her Olivia Pope-esque coats handling things, she is in her kitchen covered in flour, after rolling, kneading, or canning delectable goodies.

Dijon-Ranch Club Wraps

December 3, 2013 Leave a Comment

Buckaroo is the wrap king. He will put anything in a wrap…and I mean anything! I usually don’t have the pleasure of making my honey lunch during the week, but today he was home. So I made something I knew he would love. His exact words were, “Mm!!!! SDR babe. S-D-R.” That’s Buckaroo lingo for SIMPLE DONE RIGHT. Many people think that going to culinary school makes you a food snob, (and I guess for some it does) but we just really like simple food that’s well executed. Simple and delicious is The Chewsy Way!

There isn’t an art to making a good sandwich. You need a base (bread, tortilla, etc.), fillers (meat and/or veggies), and a spread (a relish, mayo, vinagrette, salsa, etc.) You can get as creative as you want with sandwiches and chances are you already have everything in your kitchen to make a really good one!!

Dijon-Ranch Club Wraps
(Makes 4 Wraps)

1 lb. Cooked Chicken Breast, shredded or cubed
3 slices of Cooked Bacon Crumbled
8 slices of Tomato
1 c. Lettuce, shredded
1/4 of Red Onion, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp. Spicy Dijon Mustard
2 Tbsp. Ranch Dressing
4 10in. Flour Tortillas

Place the chicken and bacon in the middle of the tortilla. Top with veggies. Mix the ranch dressing and dijon mustard in a small bowl, until combined. Give it about two shakes or turns of black pepper, and drizzle on the meat and veggies. Roll the wrap up tightly over the filling, tuck the ends in, and turn the roll once more to to close. Cut in half, and enjoy!

Simple. Delicious. M.W.A.H. The Chewsy Way.

What are your favorite sandwich “fixings”?

Breakfast Bread Pudding Squares

December 2, 2013 7 Comments

I wish I could tell you some fancy story about how this recipe came about, but I just don’t have one. I REALLY wanted to make french toast yesterday for breakfast, but I was feeling lazy. Standing there watching and flipping, just was not how I wanted to spend my morning. So I took all of my ingredients that I normally would use for French Toast and decided to pop it in the oven. It turned out AWESOME, so I felt compelled to share. CHEWS love…sharing is caring!

I used a non stick brownie tin to make the square servings. The cool thing is, I can freeze them in a ziploc bag, pop a few out and nuke them for a quick breakfast during the week! They also would make a nicer, more “guest friendly” presentation (than a full pan people have to scoop out of) if you are hosting a special brunch or breakfast.

Breakfast Bread Pudding Squares
(Makes 12 Squares)
3 Eggs
1/2 c. Brown Sugar
2 c. Heavy Cream
1 Tbsp. Vanilla
1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
8 slices of Honey Wheat Bread, cubed

Preheat the oven to 350. Whisk eggs and brown sugar together in a clean bowl. You should see air bubbles from the whisk. This is going to make your pudding so light and fluffy!

Then add in heavy cream, vanilla, and cinnamon. Whisk well.

Add your bread to the cream mixture and toss the bread in the custard with your hands. Make sure all of the bread is covered in the mixture. The bread will get soggy and start to fall apart. That’s cool. You want that.

Scoop the bread mixture out evenly into each square.

**ATTENTION** This is a crucial step. Don’t miss it. Place your brownie/muffin pan on a flat sheet pan and put in the middle rack of the oven. Don’t close the oven. Get a cup of water and pour ONTO THE SHEET PAN until the bottom of the squares are covered. Do NOT pour the water IN your pudding. You want the water to come up just before the rim of the sheet pan. This is called a water bath.

Look at you CHEWSing to learn a lil’ something today!

Let it bake for 25-30 minutes. Insert a toothpick to see if it’s done. If it comes out clean you are ready to go! Take out one pan at a time. Let cool for 10 minutes. Pop those suckers out, drizzle a little maple syrup on them (although they are SUPER tasty without it) and get ready to be blown away!

By now you know how we roll at Chewsy Lovers, simple and delicious! M.W.A.H.! (Making Whet Appetites Happen)! Follow us on Pinterest, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, all !

M.W.A.H.,

The Lady

What’s your favorite dessert for breakfast? A slice of pie with coffee?

Granny’s Sweet Potato Pie…kind of

December 1, 2013 Leave a Comment

This Thanksgiving I was blessed to not have to cook a full spread of “delectables”. We usually do not celebrate Thanksgiving in the potluck manner, but we decided to do it a little different this year and it worked out perfectly! It took alot of pressure off my aunt (the hostess) and us also. Buckaroo was tasked with preparing a {{Roast Beast}}.<----We love The Grinch, I couldn't help myself.

FOLLOW US on Instagram @ChewsyLovers if you didn’t catch that Roast Beast action…

I was tasked to make Sweet Potato Pie. Now under natural,normal circumstances I would have been bogged down in spirit by this daunting task. It’s not that I don’t know how to make them, but when I think about boiling potatoes, peeling them, being up to my elbows in flour, and obsessing about rolling out and crimping the most perfect buttery, flaky pie dough…I get overwhelmed!! “Ain’t nobody got time for that”!!!!

So after analyzing my recipe, I decided I could take a few shortcuts. This recipe had been passed down through my family from my grandmother, from her grandmother. My mom, aunts, grandmother, and cousins all make it in our various parts of the country every year because it’s tried and true. There are slight variations, for example some of them use vanilla, I don’t. Some of them only use two eggs, I use three. Some of them peel potatoes, but I already told you what I ain’t got time for ——> THAT. So this is my version.

Now ^^^^ so you don’t forget, and so your friends can find this easy deliciousness…unless you’re a hater and want it all for yourself. Whichever you CHEWS, we’re cool with.

Granny’s Sweet Potato Pie…kind of
(Makes two 8-inch pies)

Ingredients:
1 stick of unsalted butter, softened
2 cups of Granulated Sugar
1 40oz can Sweet Potatoes, drained (or 4 large Sweet potatoes, boiled, cooled,and peeled if you must)
3 eggs
1 12oz can of Evaporated Milk
1 tsp. Ground Nutmeg
1/2 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
2 Ready Made 8in Pie Shells (frozen section)

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Position oven rack to the middle for even cooking.

2.In a clean bowl, cream butter and sugar together with a mixer until smooth. Add potatoes and mix until smooth.

3. Slowly add one egg at a time, combining well after each one. Add milk and spices and mix until combined.

4.Pour into both unbaked pie shells, distributing evenly. Place pies on the middle rack and bake for one hour.

It will be a lovely dark orange and the crust golden brown!! You can insert and clean knife or toothpick in the center to see if its done. Ovens’ true temperatures vary, but it shouldn’t need more than 60 minutes.

All I have to say about this pie is, I made two to take to dinner. I saw the family eat one, and by the time we were cleaning everything up, the other pie had miraculously DISAPPEARED…THE…WHOLE…PIE…I have a family member somewhere right now, who is reading this, and laughing probably partaking in this delicious pie with a cup of joe. Shame on you!

CHEWS to keep it simple and delicious this holiday! You have enough going on through the hustle and bustle of it all. This Sweet Potato Pie is dedicated to those who want homemade taste without breaking a sweat! Your secret is safe with us. We won’t tell granny if you won’t. Give us a TWEET @ if you’re going to try it for your family.

M.W.A.H.,

The Lady

Check out our post on Apps for keeping your recipes and meal plans in order to breeze through the holidays!! Pepperplate is our app of choice. What’s yours?