Joe just Loves this Chocolate

Do you like unsweetened dark chocolate? Joe does. When we were staying in Manta Joe found this unsweetened chocolate in Super Maxi. I think in the states it’s just called cacao – no sugar OR milk solids/fats added.

He would buy several bags and each evening he would sit and have just one of the disks.  It is not for me, unsweetened chocolate – can you say WHAT? That is for making brownies or hot chocolate but eating it straight from the bag?  Not for me!!  But Joe may have something here. All the news you hear about superfoods, chocolate is supposed to lower blood pressure, lower “bad” LDL cholesterol and lower the risk of heart disease. Another reason that dark chocolate is especially heart-healthy it has inflammation fighting properties, which reduce cardiovascular risk.  We do not know if that is true or not but Joe loves it and it really helps him from having other snacks after dinner.

While in Manta last week at the SuperMaxi I found a shelf full, I think I picked up 10 packages.  Joe will just love it and of course he will think I am the greatest for picking it up for him.

Vendor Part 10: Jimmy – Pan Man in the Morning, Sweet Treats Man in the Afternoons

Almost every morning early around 6:30 am Jimmy comes by on his bike carrying this mornings fresh-from-the-oven rolls. 10 cents apiece for a great start to your morning.

Then some afternoons he comes by, today it was around 3:30 pm, with that same basket filled this time with sweet treats.  These are 15 cents.

Some of today’s choices were chocolate sweet rolls, a lovely sandwich cookie with a dulce de leche filling, a corn type muffin, a filled sweet roll with what I think is guayaba (guava) filling.  We have our favorites but honestly any one of them will pacify the sweet tooth in all of us.

 

Vendor Part 9: Torta, Torta, Torta

Yet another vendor that comes around occasionally, delivers these beautiful chocolate or vanilla cakes.  They are probably a 6″ or 7″ cake for, you will not believe this, $1.50.  It is a really nice cake for $1.50. The chocolate one I purchased had a very thin white icing, it was not too sweet yet it really hit the spot for an afternoon snack. You can see it did not take us long to cut into it.

Cookie Baking – Christmas 2015

It would not seem like Christmas without just a few of our favorites – cookies and a Christmas tree. So last Monday I made all the batters for several types of cookies and Tuesday it was marathon baking.

On Monday I did sneak in a few batches of the bar cookies and baked the Black Bottom Cookie Bar and Triple Layer Cookie Bar.

I also made something I have never tried before. These are made with vanilla cookies on the bottom, covered in caramel, baked and then topped with chocolate chips sprinkled with chopped nuts.  Fast and easy and the kids will love them. All chocolaty and sweet.

Then I made Crane House Pumpkin Breads.

Here are some of the batters chilling in the refrigerator. These are the Cherry Nut Cookies in the foreground and the Italian Cookies in the background.

Here are the final cookie trays ready to go

It was a very Merry Christmas.

The Heaven That is a Magnum Ice Cream Bar

Oh if you have not had a Magnum Ice Cream Bar you are in for a treat. Joe and I just love the chocolate ice cream with chocolate & almond coating but we would be happy with the vanilla ice cream one as well. They do have a new Gold Magnum but unfortunately neither Joe or I like it as much.

Sorry we bought these on our way home from Viviana’s and the actual ice cream bar was eaten well before we made it to the house.

There are several ice cream companies in Ecuador, Pinguino, Gino’s and Topsy are the three we are familiar with. We like most of what they all sell, the big exception is the Gold Magnum, actually I don’t get it. What is it??? It is supposed to be caramel, but falls way short. I think what I like least about it is that when we bought them it meant giving up the chocolaty almond goodness that is our regular Magnum.  And at $1.30 now although relatively expensive as things go here, it’s a real culinary bargain! We usually buy them just down the street from our house, and usually on our way home. We sit on the little bench in front of the store watching the traffic go by (mostly foot traffic, occasional bike or motorcycle or cuadron, and less often an actual car or truck……).It’s a tough life, but someone has to live it.

Introducting Luis our Pan-Joven

This is the young man who has started to deliver pan in the mornings and again comes back around 4pm with beautiful dessert rolls and cookies. Yesterdays selection of sweets was coconut covered, jelly topped and some that even looked like cinnamon or chocolate rolls.

I am not sure what is going to happen when school starts next month because this young man should be on his way to school at the exact time he is delivering to our neighborhood.

He is a very hard-working young person. And we so much appreciate him and his family doing this for San Clemente.

Chocolate Brownies

I was on Facebook yesterday morning when I came across this post by my cousin Steve Kowalczyk. I don’t think Steve likes to cook or bake but I think he likes eating brownies so I decided to try the recipe.

Below is the actual post:

Never buy boxed brownie mix again!   Follow the recipe below and make brownies for approximately .30 a mix!  Be sure to save this by clicking “SHARE”! You will be able to find it on your own timeline later! So simple, so easy. Not just frugal but cuts out the unknown ingredients. 1 Cup Sugar, 1/2 Cup All-Purpose Flour, 1/3 Cup Cocoa, 1/4 tsp Salt, 1/4 tsp Baking Powder. At Baking Time Add: 2 Eggs, 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil, 1 teaspoon Vanilla. Bake @ 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes in an 8×8 or 9×9 pan.  OR use the amazing Pampered Chef brownie pan and bake it in much less time – depends on your oven, check after 12-15 minutes of baking and remove when brownies are done! Put mix in plastic bags or mason jars.
LOVE THIS TIP and want to hear more?  Be sure to LIKE my page so get some fabulous recipes, cooking tips and super secret FAN SALES!  Also visit my website at www.pamperedchef.biz/rachaeloSee More

I was confident that if Steve posted it on his timeline that it must be good and it is. And I made three batches of the dry ingredients and stored two of them in one of my new jars.

Of course I needed to change the recipe a little so below is my recipe.

Chocolate Brownies

• 1 Cup Sugar
• 1/2 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 1/3 Cup Cocoa
• 1/4 tsp Salt
• 1/4 tsp Baking Powder

the following can be added with the wet ingredients:

• 1/2 Cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts)
• 1/4 Cup chocolate buttons or chips or chunks
• 1/4 Cup desiccated coconut

At Baking Time Add:

• 2 Eggs
• 1/2 Cup Vegetable Oil
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla.

Bake @ 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes in an 8×8 or 9×9 pan. Remove when brownies are done!

Put dry mix in plastic bags or mason jars.

Thanks Steve it is a very easy recipe, it came out moist and chewy and was a hit with Joe and our friends Libby and David.

Extremely delicious!

Our 1st Christmas in San Clemente

Today a group of expats gathered at the home of Mary and Lou Defrain for a lovely Christmas feast hosted by Mary and John McDonald and Mary and Lou Defrain.  What a special affair it was.

When I spoke to my brother John and sister Linda in Pennsylvania this morning they had gotten a light coating of snow but it was bright and beautiful looking out onto my brother John’s patio, what did we ever do before SKYPE and an IPad.  Here we had the sun shining, the breeze was blowing off the ocean and the temperature was in the  80’s. Just perfect for an outdoor gathering.

Upon our arrival Lou offered to make us a drink and then we would be on our own for the next. He had a beautiful bar set up with a great looking rum punch that looked to pack a heck of a punch, red and white wines, a selection of liquors and mixers of your choice. Out on the deck we found a huge trashcan filled with ice and beer…an ice cold Pilsener, that hit the spot for Joe and I.

A beautiful platter of sliced salami and several different cheeses with crackers was set out to whet our appetites.

Then we were invited into the house to find the entire counter filled with delectable treats. After a beautiful blessing over the food given by John McDonald we found a veritable feast including beautiful roasted turkey along side smoked tenderloin of pork. Let the feasting begin as you followed the counter to the end you found a variety of salads, my favorites were the broccoli and the linguine, well maybe you will need to fit in the cole-slaw and the quinoa OH I just can’t make up my mind, they were all fantastic.

After most of us needed to unbutton that top button on our pants, well maybe that was just me, desserts were set out. Again, they looked fabulous and I did try a few, like the fruit kabobs, oh my, and the lemon squares…we sure do have some wonderful chefs here in San Clemente. This also was a very difficult decision because everything looked so wonderful and well I couldn’t fit too much more at that point.

The conversations covered a multitude of topics and all seemed entertained just visiting with this eclectic group of people.

It was a wonderful afternoon visiting with friends, meeting new friends and just having a great time.

It is very difficult especially this time of year to be so far away from family, I want to take this opportunity to thank Mary and Lou and Mary and John for making all of us Expats feel like we were with family. Thank you for opening up your home and your hearts to give all the Expat community in San Clemente and San Jacinto a very Merry Christmas indeed. And Jackie – great picnic table!

Making Fudge the Martha Stewart Way

I admit I must have been a bit bored! How can that be?  To take on making fudge and of all recipes Martha Stewart’s that calls for fudge pulling!  What the heck is fudge pulling? I had never heard of such a thing in all my years. But here it was when I looked up Chocolate Fudge using heavy cream and found this recipe (my other recipes call for milk and what we usually have in the fridge is cream so……).

http://www.yummly.com/recipe/external/Chocolate-Fudge-Martha-Stewart_1

You will need a clean work surface, such as a marble slab or buttered baking sheet, on which to pull the fudge.

                          Martha Stewart Living             

• Yield Makes about 3 pounds

Ingredients

•                     4 1/2 cups sugar
•                     1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
•                     1 1/2 cups heavy cream
•                     1/2 cup (one stick) unsalted butter, plus more for fingertips
•                     3 tablespoons light corn syrup (a substitute for corn syrup is honey)
•                     1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
•                     1 1/2 cups chopped nuts, such as pecans or almonds (optional)

Directions

1.                     Line an eight-inch square baking pan with wax paper. In a heavy medium saucepan, whisk together sugar and cocoa. Add cream, butter, and corn syrup; cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until bubbling around the edges, about five minutes.
2.                     Continue cooking, without stirring, until mixture reaches the soft-ball stage on a candy thermometer (238 degrees to 240 degrees), 12 to 15 minutes; wash down sides of pan with a pastry brush dipped in water to prevent crystals from forming.
3.                    Remove pan from heat; let mixture rest in pan, undisturbed, until it has cooled to 160 degrees, about 40 minutes.
4.                     When temperature reaches 160 degrees, quickly pour fudge onto surface, using a rubber spatula to gently empty pan while holding pan very close to surface to prevent spattering. Spoon vanilla extract over fudge; let cool until fudge is almost at room temperature, about 15 minutes.
5.                    Using a long offset spatula, being pulling fudge in a figure-eight motion, moving from the bottom right, then up and over to the top left, before pulling back down to the right. Repeat, moving from the bottom left, then up and over to the top right, before pulling back down, pushing fudge onto itself.
6.                     Continue in this manner until you see a sudden change in appearance of fudge, from glossy to matte, 12 to 15 minutes. Sprinkle with chopped nuts, if desired, and stir well to combine.
7.                     Spread fudge onto a wax-paper-lined baking sheet; flatten with lightly buttered fingertips. Cover with wax paper; let stand at room temperature until set, at least four hours or overnight. Cut into squares before serving.

I made one minor mistake and continued to stir after it started to bubble – it may have made my recipe a bit crumbly. Don’t make the same mistake.

Here is my technique in pulling the fudge on the counter. I do not own an offset spatula so I used a wide paint scraper and it worked beautifully.

Like I said it is a bit crumbly but excellent flavor and like so many other fudge recipes I have tasted this does not have any crunchy bits of sugar in it, making it very creamy and delicious. This was the test to see if I am going to make it for Christmas, it looks like I will if I can get more almonds for the recipe.

Triple Layer Cookie Bars

I have a list of favorite cookie recipes that I’ve made for years.  This one is really nice because it does not require a huge amount of work or time making individual cookies. Made in a baking pan and cut into individual bars,  it’s a very rich cookie. Don’t cut the pieces big – a two to three bite cookie is the best size.

Triple Layer Cookie Bar

• 1/2 C butter
• 1  1/2 C Chocolate Animal Cookies
• 1  –  7 oz. package of flaked coconut – Coco Rallado
• 1  –  14 oz. can of condensed milk
• 1  –  12 oz. bar of Superior Chocolate
• 1/2 C creamy peanut butter – mani

Grease a 9 x 13 pan and dust with coco powder.  Melt butter and mix with the crumbled cookies and press into bottom – if the crumbs are not coated with butter add a few more spoonfuls to make them stick together.  Sprinkle the coconut evenly over the crumbs and press into cookie base. Pour the condensed milk over all to cover evenly.

Bake in a 325 f or 170 c –  (I make it a bit higher) for about 25 minutes or until the edges are a golden brown.  Let stand to cool 5 minutes.

While crust is cooling, in a sauce pan melt the chocolate and peanut butter together and pour over the cookie base to cover.  Let cool completely.

From top left – Fresh Peanut Butter (Mani), Chocolate Animal Cookies (Galletas), Superior Chocolate Bar, Coconut (Coco Rallado) and Condensed Milk.

Everyone who love chocolate loves this cookie bar, it will go fast so hide a few for yourself!