Violet Liqueur

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Violets and Vodka

Since I posted a picture of some of my violets, steeping in vodka, I have received requests for directions on how to make violet liqueur. So here it is.

Violet liqueur is, in its most basic sense, a combination of violets and vodka, steeped together for several weeks, then strained and filtered. Once strained, the mixture is sweetened to taste with simple syrup.

Violet liqueur can just be sipped and enjoyed as is, but it is often used as an ingredient in cocktails.

I have made violet liqueur with the violets that grow in my yard. They are mostly white, with a small amount of purple color. The liqueur tastes great, but doesn’t have a lot of color. It comes out a light golden color. That is fine with me.

For this batch, I am using purple violets I got from a friend’s garden. The color will end up a light purple color. To make the color of your liqueur more purple, you can add a few raspberries or blackberries to the mix.

We need to talk about sweetening, too. A simple syrup is added to suit your taste. The recipe for simple syrup is at the end of this post. How sweet you make your liqueur determines whether it is a liqueur, or creme de violette. Lightly sweetened and it is violet liqueur. Double the amount of simple syrup and it is creme de violette. Strictly your choice and preference.

If you prefer to leave your violet mixture unsweetened, it is a violet eau du vie, which translates to violet water of life.

I use 1/2 cup of simple syrup for each cup of liqueur. Equal amounts of liqueur and syrup creates the creme de violette.

Violet Liqueur

1- 1 1/2 c. violet flowers, rinsed and drained

1 c. vodka

1″ piece vanilla bean, optional

a few fresh raspberries or blackberries, optional

1/2 c. simple syrup recipe follows

Combine violet flowers and vodka in a jar with vanilla bean and berries, if using. Screw on the lid and place the jar in a cool, dark place for at least 3 weeks for the flavors to combine. You can add more violets as you harvest them, if you don’t have enough at first. After a few weeks, strain out the flowers and other ingredients and discard them. Filter vodka mixture through coffee filters or several layers of cheesecloth to get it really clear. Sweeten to taste. Return to jar, seal and allow flavors to mellow another week. Enjoy!!

 

Simple Syrup

Simple syrup is made from 1 cup of sugar and ½ cup of water. Bring to a boil, then cool. You will have 1 cup of syrup. You can sweeten with honey, if you prefer. Watch when you substitute honey for sugar, as it is sweeter and stronger flavored. Add a small amount, let it sit for a day or so- and give it a taste. You can always add more sweetener later.

 

 

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Lilac Vinegar

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Lilac Blossoms Steeping in Vinegar

Since the lilacs are in bloom, I decided to preserve some of them and make lilac vinegar. As long as they are grown where chemicals haven’t been sprayed, lilacs blossoms are edible. The flavor is floral, with a touch of spice.

I use the lilac vinegar in salad dressings, marinades and in pickling. I also like to add a splash to soups or chili, to brighten them up.

To make lilac vinegar, just place clean lilac blossoms in a jar and cover with red wine vinegar.* Put a lid on the jar and store in a cupboard for 10 days or longer. Ideally, you want at least one cup of blossoms for every 2 cups of vinegar- to get enough lilac flavor into the vinegar. A one to one ratio- one cup blossoms, one cup vinegar, will give you an even more flavorful vinegar in the end.

When ready to use, strain out the blossoms and discard them. Pour the vinegar through a coffee filter to get out any remaining plant material.  You can transfer the lilac vinegar to a decorative bottle. It can be stored at room temperature but will hold its color longer if kept cool, even refrigerated.

* always use vinegar that is 5% acidity. You can use white wine vinegar, cider vinegar or whatever vinegar you like.

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“Melon Ball” Sorbets

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“Melon Ball” Sorbets

I remember making melon balls for fruit salad, when I was a kid. My mom showed me how. It always seemed like a special occasion when we made them. I will admit, I haven’t made melon balls in a long time, but I still like the way they look.

 

I used melon balls at the inspiration for this dish. Funny thing is- there isn’t any melon in them. I made three different sorbets- strawberry, mango and kiwi. Each one is meant to resemble a different melon.

They can be served alone and make a light, wonderful dessert. You can add a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream, if you like.  They can also be served with cake or cookies.  You can even add some to a glass of lemonade or a summer cocktail, just for fun.

This dessert is easy to make and a nice alternative to ice cream. Don’t get me wrong, I love ice cream, but sometimes I want something lighter. Nice for those who are lactose intolerant, too. Once made, you can have them on hand for dessert anytime.

 

 

Strawberry Vanilla Sorbet

2 c. fresh or frozen strawberries (allow frozen berries to thaw a little first)

1/4 c. sugar, or to taste

3 T. fresh lemon juice

1 t. vanilla

Place ingredients in food processor and process until smooth. Place in shallow pan and freeze. If you are using frozen berries re-freezing will take only about 1 hour. Up to 30 minutes before serving remove sorbet from freezer and allow to soften enough to break into chunks. Place in processor and blend again until very smooth. Return to freezer until needed.

Mango Honey Ginger Sorbet

2-3 large, ripe mangoes, seed and peeled

1/4 c. honey, or to taste

2-3 t. fresh grated ginger

Place ingredients in food processor and process until smooth. Place in shallow pan and freeze.  Up to 30 minutes before serving remove sorbet from freezer and allow to soften enough to break into chunks. Place in processor and blend again until very smooth. Return to freezer until needed. For an even smoother sorbet, you can blend it another time.

Kiwi Lime Sorbet

6 kiwi, peeled

juice of 1 lime

1/4 c. sugar, or to taste

Place ingredients in food processor and process until smooth. Place in shallow pan and freeze.  Up to 30 minutes before serving remove sorbet from freezer and allow to soften enough to break into chunks. Place in processor and blend again until very smooth. Return to freezer until needed.

 

To serve the sorbets, use a cookie scoop to make the “melon” balls. I made them as I was serving them, but you can also make the balls and return them to the freezer until ready to serve.

 

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Strawberry Ice Cream Cake Roll

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Strawberry Ice Cream Cake Roll

This is the perfect summer dessert. Fresh berries, a light, citrus scented cake and ice cream. What more could you want?

When you say cake roll, I think a lot of people first think of a pumpkin roll or Buche de Noel (yule log).

There are so many more desserts you can make with them. Cake rolls can be made in many flavors and they can be filled with custard, frosting, fruit, ice cream and more.

For this sponge cake roll, I used homemade strawberry ice cream to fill it, recipe follows. You could use store bought ice cream, if you prefer.

Start with the sponge cake roll recipe below, and use whatever flavor ice cream you like. You’ll need about a quart of ice cream- or a little more.

Once finished, you just wrap it up and pop the cake in the freezer until needed. Great to have on hand for summer parties and cook outs. You can decorate with fresh berries when serving. Blueberries would make this a fun red, white and blue dessert for Memorial Day or the 4th of July.

Sponge Cake Roll

This sponge cake roll can be filled with whipped cream or ice cream, or use your favorite filling.
5 eggs, separated
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2/3 cup cake flour*
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons melted butter
Beat egg yolks until thicken and lemon colored; gradually add 1/3 cup of the granulated sugar, the lemon juice and the lemon zest. Beat egg whites until almost stiff then gradually beat in the remaining 1/3 cup sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Fold yolk mixture into whites. Sift dry ingredients into a separate container; add to egg mixture, folding in carefully. Fold in melted butter. Pour batter into waxed paper-lined 10x15x1-inch jelly roll pan. Bake at 375° for 12 minutes. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar. Turn onto a clean kitchen towel which has been generously dusted with confectioners’ sugar. Trim edges, if necessary; roll cake up, towel and all, while still warm. Let cool completely. Unroll and fill with whipped cream or ice cream then re-roll cake. The trick is to let the ice cream soften up a few minutes before spreading it on the cake. But don’t wait too long. Rather than trying to let the ice cream get soft enough to spread I used a spatula to sort of cut slices of ice cream and place them on the cake.  Store ice cream cake roll in freezer until ready to slice and serve.

*If you don’t have cake flour you can make your own. Measure out a cup of all purpose flour, remove 2 tablespoons of flour and replace them with 2 tablespoons of cornstarch. For larger amounts place 7 cups of flour in a bowl and combine with 1 cup of cornstarch. Mix well or even sift together. Store in an airtight container.

 

Strawberry Ice Cream

2 c. chopped strawberries

1 c. sugar

1 T. vanilla

2 c. cream or  half and half or a combination. You can also use some milk or even almond or rice milk.

Additional sugar to taste

Place strawberries, vanilla  and sugar in saucepan and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and chill. Combine chilled berry mixture with cream. Add additional sugar if you like. Remember that once it is frozen the ice cream will not taste as sweet so make this mixture a little sweeter than you want the final product to be. How much sugar you add varies with personal taste, and how sweet the berries are. Place in an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer’s directions. Once finished put in an air- tight container and place in freezer. Makes about 1 quart.

 

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Honey Ginger Mango Sorbet

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Honey Ginger Mango Sorbet

Sorbet is a great dessert for warm weather.  When I saw Champagne mangoes on sale the other day, I knew I wanted to turn them into sorbet. I also picked up a fresh piece of ginger root, and decided to add some to the sorbet, along with some honey for extra sweetness. The flavors worked great together.

The secret to a creamy sorbet is pureeing the mixture twice. Once with the fresh fruit, then again once the mixture has frozen. Once pureed the second time, you can put your sorbet back in the freezer until ready to serve. It is a nice dessert to have on hand.

Sorbet can be served on its own, with cookies, cake or fresh fruit. You can also add a scoop of sorbet to your favorite Summer cocktail.

I like to keep several different sorbets on hand, so my guests can mix and match. Making a fresh fruit sorbet is also a way of saving seasonal fruits for use throughout the year.

Here is the recipe for the mango sorbet. You might want to add a little more, or less, honey to suit your own taste. Once frozen, the sorbet will not taste as sweet. The sweetness of the mangoes will also determine how much honey you add to your sorbet.

 

Honey Ginger Mango Sorbet

 

6 ripe mangoes

½ c. honey

1 T. fresh grated ginger

 

Remove peel and pits from mangoes. Puree the mangoes and add the honey and ginger. Freeze. After the mixture is frozen, place mango puree in a food processor and mix again until creamy. Serve, or place back in freezer until ready to serve. Makes about 1 quart.

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Strawberries and Cream Bread

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Strawberries and Cream Bread

I have posted this recipe before, but have been getting requests for it, so I thought it was worth sharing again. Since strawberries are in season, it seemed like the right time to post this recipe.

This is one of my favorite quick breads. The bread is tender and full of the sweet taste of fresh strawberries.

The batter will be very thick- don’t worry- it is supposed to be that way. When it cooks, the juices from the fresh berries keeps it moist. I always end up making a double batch, one loaf to eat fresh and one to give as a gift, or freeze.

This bread is fine just the way it is for dessert, or you can top slices with ice cream, whipped cream or some melted chocolate.

 

Strawberries and Cream Bread

1 ¾ c. flour

½ t. baking powder

½ t. baking soda

½ t. salt

½ t. each  cinnamon and nutmeg

½ c. butter, at room temperature

¾ c. sugar

2 eggs, room temperature

½ c. sour cream, room temperature

1 t. vanilla

1 c. fresh strawberries, coarsely chopped*

¾ c. chopped nuts, optional

 

Grease an 8×4 inch loaf pan and preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl combine dry ingredients. Set aside. In small bowl beat butter until creamy. Add sugar and beat 1 minute. Beat in eggs one at a time. Beat in sour cream and vanilla. Stir in flour mixture until just moistened. Fold in strawberries and nuts and place batter in prepared pan. Bake 60-65 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let stand in pan 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool on wire rack. Makes 1 loaf. Freezes well.

*  frozen berries are not recommended in this bread.

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Butterscotch Sauce

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Butterscotch Sauce over Ice Cream

I was talking to some friends about ice cream sundaes and our favorite toppings. I had mentioned how much I loved a hot fudge sundae. My friend Jill said that she loved butterscotch sauce. I had to agree. I love a butterscotch sauce, too.

I had made butterscotch sauce before, but not in a very long time. I found my old recipe and made it. I thought it could be better, so I played around and tweaked it a little. The end result is bliss. Creamy, sweet, smooth and buttery with just a hint of saltiness.

This sauce is a great topper for ice cream, but is also a tasty sauce for cakes, and fresh fruit.

It is really easy to make, which is a nice bonus. Start to finish, this sauce can be done in about 10 minutes. No special equipment needed, either.

I used a heavy bottomed pan, which worked great. I didn’t want my sauce to scorch while cooking. I think I might have stirred it once, just to be safe.

The sauce will thicken when it cools down. Thickens even more once stored in the fridge. It is best served warmed up a little or at room temp.

So here is my butterscotch sauce recipe. Thanks Jill, for the inspiration.

 

 

Butterscotch Sauce

 

6 T. butter

½ c. half and half

½ c. brown sugar

1 t. molasses*

½ -1 teaspoon salt

1 t. vanilla

 

Melt butter in a heavy bottomed pan. Add remaining ingredients, except vanilla, to the pan. Stir to mix well, then bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil 5 minutes.  After 5 minutes, remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Store in fridge and warm a little before using. Makes about a cup of sauce. Keeps for weeks in the fridge, but you’ll eat it long before that.

*The addition of a little molasses was because my original recipe called for dark brown sugar. I only had light brown sugar. I liked the flavor that extra molasses added to the finished sauce. Feel free to omit the extra molasses, or add a pinch more, depending on how dark you want your finished sauce.

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Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes

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Ice Cream Cone Cupcake

This might look like an ice cream cone, but it isn’t. It is a cupcake!! The batter is baked inside ice cream cones, then decorated to look like ice cream cones. I used  from scratch recipes for both the cupcake batter and the frosting, but feel free to use what ever recipe you like.

Because you use more frosting than you might normally use for more traditional cupcakes, make sure to have extra. I chose the recipe I did because it makes plenty of frosting. I did not tint my frosting, but you can, if you like.

These are fun for kids to make. You can let them decorate their own “cone”. For a kid’s party you can even have a couple of different cupcake flavors and frostings to pick from- and some assorted toppings, like cherries, tiny candies and assorted sprinkles.

Once you frost the cupcakes, they become a little top heavy. I find setting them together, letting them touch each other a little, helps to keep them form tipping over.

Sometimes, some of the batter drips over the edge of the cone when baking. Just pretend some of the “ice cream” has melted and cover drips with frosting.

Here are the recipes I used, with the directions for baking the cupcakes.

 

Chocolate  “Ice Cream Cone” Cupcakes

4 oz. semisweet chocolate

1 cup butter

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 3/4 cups sugar

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

24 flat bottomed ice cream cones

 

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  In the top of a double boiler, combine chocolate and butter. Heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture is melted and smooth. Remove from heat and allow to cool to lukewarm.

Sift flour and sugar together into a large bowl. With mixer on low speed, beat in eggs one at a time. Stir in chocolate mixture and vanilla. Place 24 cones in muffin tins to hold them up and fill 2/3 full with batter. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until cupcakes puff to top of cones. Test with a toothpick. Cool and frost to look like ice cream. Decorate with sprinkles. Makes about 24.

 

Super Fluffy Frosting

1½ cup butter

1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract

1½ lbs. confectioners’ sugar –

1/8 teaspoon salt

3 T. milk

In a mixer, combine the  butter, vanilla and 1 tablespoon milk. Add the sugar and salt, beat until well mixed. Add a tablespoon or two more of milk, if needed. Turn mixer to the highest speed and beat for 15 minutes.

 

Cones filled, and ready to bake

Fresh out of the oven

Ready for the party

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King Cake

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King Cake

If you are planning a Mardi Gras party, you will want a King Cake. King Cakes are a long-standing tradition in New Orleans at Mardi Gras. A small plastic baby is often hidden in the cake, although you can use a bean or even a whole pecan or almond.

Tradition has it that the guest who finds the “surprise” in their piece will host next year’s party. Be careful to warn guest so they don’t break a tooth or swallow the “prize”.  You can also use the whole nuts inside the cake and just set the baby on top of the cake when serving.

The “cake” is really a sweet cinnamon swirl bread.  The yeast dough is rolled out, spread with butter and cinnamon sugar, and rolled up. Then the dough is shaped into an oval shape.

After it is baked, the king cake is decorated with colorful frostings, sugars or both. Traditionally the colors used are yellow, green and purple, but, hey it’s your cake have fun with it.

If you want just the sugars, and no frosting, then brush the king cake with a beaten egg before baking and sprinkle with the sugar then. Otherwise, you’ll decorate the cake once baked and cooled.

King Cake

1/4 c. butter

16 oz. container sour cream

1/3 c. sugar

1 t. salt

2 packages active dry yeast

1 T. sugar

1/2 c. warm water

2 eggs

6 /2 c. flour

1/2 c. white sugar

1 1/2 t. cinnamon

1/3 c. butter, softened

Colored sugars and frostings (recipes follow)

Heat together the first 4 ingredient to about 100 degrees. Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water in large bowl and let stand 5 minutes. Add butter mixture, eggs and 2 cups of the flour. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed and gradually work in enough flour to form a soft dough. Knead until smooth and elastic, about ten minutes. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning to grease top and cover. Allow to rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Stir together 1/2 c. sugar with cinnamon and set aside. Punch dough down and divide in half. Roll out one piece of dough into a 28×10-inch rectangle. Spread dough with half of the butter and sprinkle with half of the sugar mixture. Starting at long end roll up jelly roll fashion and pinch seam to seal. Shape dough into an oval shape and pinch ends together. Place seam side down on a greased baking sheet. Repeat with remaining piece of dough except remember to add the toy baby, nut or bean if you want the “surprise”. Cover and let rise about 20 minutes. Bake in a preheated 375-degree oven for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool before decorating with tinted frostings and colored sugars. Makes 2, serving 24.

Frostings

3 c. powdered sugar

3 T. melted butter

3 t. milk

1/2 t. vanilla

Green, yellow, red and blue food coloring

Combine sugar and butter and add enough milk to make the glaze a drizzling consistency. Add vanilla and divide mixture in three small bowls. Tint one bowl yellow, one green and one purple, using both the red and blue food coloring. I often don’t bother to tint the frostings, but rely on the tinted sugars for color.

 

Tinted sugars

1 1/2 c. granulated sugar

Food coloring

Place 1/2 c. sugar in each of three small bags and add a couple of drops of food coloring to each. One use yellow, one green and one both the red and blue for purple. Shake the bags to distribute the color. You should only need a couple of drops of each.

 

Decorate the cake by making bands of the colored frostings and then sprinkling on the sugars.

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Scrooge 2.0

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I was thinking the other day, about how popular the story, A Christmas Carol, still is today. Charles Dickens first published the story in 1843. Dozens of versions of the story have been made into movies.

When someone is called a Scrooge, we certainly know what they mean. It isn’t good.

But, if you think about it, it is kind of unfair to old Ebenezer.

He was an awful person. Stingy, cold and uncaring. But he changed. Isn’t that the whole point of the story?  In Scrooge’s case it took three ghosts to wake him up. The point is, he woke up, before it was too late.

So I think we all have the chance to choose which Scrooge we want to be. We can be the first Scrooge, who makes poor Bob Crachit work long hours, for little pay, and cares more about money than people. It is a pretty lonely life.

Or we can be the second Scrooge. Scrooge 2.0, if you like. This is the guy who learns to love again. He learns to care and to find a generosity of spirit. According to the story, he lived the rest of his life that way. Better late, than never.

So what makes someone the new and improved version of Scrooge?

Well, the obvious stuff is to be generous. Which does not have to mean giving money to people. You don’t have to give money away. Heck, you might not have money to spare. But if you can afford too, sharing some of it is a nice thing to do.

It is about being generous in spirit, though. Spending time with someone who needs the company.

It could mean donating your time to a charity, or just helping out a friend.

It means trying to accept people who think differently than you. This one can be hard- trust me.

It means not assuming people are poor because they are lazy. There are lots of reasons folks may be down on their luck.

It means being more patient.  This is one I need to work on- especially in traffic!!

It means treating people with love, rather than hate.

It means trying to find value in people- even if it isn’t always obvious.

It means being a little less judgemental.

Be nice to kids.

Be nice to animals.

It means loving yourself. You deserve to be loved.

 

I know there are plenty of the old Scrooges out there. Call me an optimist, I think a lot more people are like the new Scrooge. The Scrooge who knows what really matters in life. Most of those people didn’t have to be visited by three ghosts to figure that out, either.

I am also not sure we can change other people to be more caring and loving, at least not as easily as Dickens did. Dickens had three ghosts to help him out, after all.  But we can work on ourselves. In the end, only we are responsible for how we treat other people.

Wouldn’t it be nice to be in the post- dream Scrooge world? Surrounded by people who open their hearts to others, people who give, not for recognition, but just because it is the right thing to do.

I know those people are out there. I know a lot of them. I am blessed to have a lot of people like that in my life. I hope you are, too.

 

Happy Holidays.

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