Caramel Apples

We had apples and I saw a can of sweetened condensed milk in the pantry and I knew you could use that stuff to make candy, so I started looking on line for something easy.  I found this recipe, on the eaglebrand website and I adapted it a bit.
I would have to say, this is far easier (and yummier) than opening dozens of those little caramel candies!

12 medium, tart apples

12 wooden sticks

Crisco® Butter Flavor No-Stick Cooking Spray

1/2 cup butter

1 (14 oz.) can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk

1 cup corn syrup

2 cups firmly packed brown sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• WASH and dry apples. Remove stems. Insert wooden sticks into stem end of each apple. Line cookie sheet with wax paper. Coat with no-stick cooking spray.
• MELT butter in 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add sweetened condensed milk, corn syrup and brown sugar. Stir until blended. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to low.* Cook 15 to 20 minutes, stirring constantly, or until candy thermometer reaches 225°F. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla.
• DIP each apple into hot caramel, spooning caramel over apple to coat evenly. Allow excess caramel to drip off. Scrape bottom of apple on edge of pan. Place on wax paper. Chill 30 minutes. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.
• *Adjust heat as necessary to keep mixture at slow rolling boil. Stir constantly so that mixture does not stick to bottom of pan.

 

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Pasta Puttanesca

 From here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ellie-krieger/pasta-puttanesca-recipe/index.html
Ingredients

• 8 ounces whole-wheat thin spaghetti, vermicelli or angel hair
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/3 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 cup pitted chopped Spanish or Greek olives
• 2 tablespoons capers
• 1 teaspoon anchovy paste
• 1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
• 1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 (14-ounce) can diced tomatoes, preferably "no salt added"
• 3/4 cup chopped fresh arugula
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add pasta and cook according to the directions on the package.

While the pasta is cooking, heat the oil in a large skillet over a medium flame. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the parsley, olives, capers, anchovy paste, oregano and crushed red pepper to the skillet, and saute for 2 minutes more. Add the tomatoes and simmer for about 5 minutes. Stir in the arugula and simmer for 1 minute more, until the greens wilt slightly.
When the pasta is done, drain it and add it to the skillet, tossing it with the sauce to combine. Top with grated cheese.
Serves: 4; Calories: 321; Total Fat: 9.5 grams; Saturated Fat: 2 grams; Protein: 12 grams; Total carbohydrates: 50 grams; Sugar: 6 grams; Fiber: 8 grams; Cholesterol: 7 milligrams; Sodium: 678 milligrams

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Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies from Cook's Illustrated

Nate found these on Pinterest and they are awesome.  They take a while to make, and you must follow the recipe EXACTLY.  The browned butter give them a toffy lie flavor.  Delish.

Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yield: 16 cookies

From Cook's Illustrated

Make sure to use an non-coated skillet to brown the butter. If you use a coated pan you won't be able to tell when your butter has browned. The butter goes from brown to black pretty quickly (especially if you're trying to take pictures at the same time - the perils of food blogging!) so be careful.

The recipe calls for semi-sweet chocolate chips (or chunks), but I think I would have preferred bittersweet. Go with whichever you generally prefer. You can use light brown sugar, but the dark brown sugar gives it a deeper flavor and you can't argue with that. Either way, make sure the brown sugar is fresh and not dried out or your cookies will be drier.

If you're curious about what tweaks Cook's Illustrated made and how those changes affected the outcome, make sure to check out the original recipe page that shows the full rundown.

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour (8 3/4 ounces)
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 14 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 3/4 sticks)
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar (3 1/2 ounces)
• 3/4 cups packed dark brown sugar (5 1/4 ounces)
• 1 teaspoon table salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 1 1/4 cups semisweet (or bittersweet) chocolate chips or chunks
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts, toasted (optional)

Instructions

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees F. Line 2 large (18- by 12-inch) baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.
2. Heat 10 tablespoons butter in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat until melted, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking, swirling pan constantly until butter is dark golden brown and has nutty aroma, 1 to 3 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and, using heatproof spatula, transfer browned butter to large heatproof bowl. Stir remaining 4 tablespoons butter into hot butter until completely melted.
3. Add both sugars, salt, and vanilla to bowl with butter and whisk until fully incorporated. Add egg and yolk and whisk until mixture is smooth with no sugar lumps remaining, about 30 seconds. Let mixture stand 3 minutes, then whisk for 30 seconds. Repeat process of resting and whisking 2 more times until mixture is thick, smooth, and shiny. Using rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture until just combined, about 1 minute. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts (if using), giving dough final stir to ensure no flour pockets remain.
4. Divide dough into 16 portions, each about 3 tablespoons (or use #24 cookie scoop). Arrange 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets, 8 dough balls per sheet. (Smaller baking sheets can be used, but will require 3 batches.)
5. Bake cookies 1 tray at a time until cookies are golden brown and still puffy, and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft, 10 to 14 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack; cool cookies completely before serving.

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