Raise your hand if you have a coffee addiction!

Whoa! A heck load of you raised your hand. You know what, I used to be ashamed of my coffee habit, vowing every few months to go on some cleanse to nix it, but I’ve read the reviews and coffee is healthy for me (antioxidants, people).

There are actually nights where I go to bed looking forward to the next morning’s cup of coffee.  I’ve finally come to terms with my addiction and am no longer ashamed. In fact, I recently told myself that I was going to find new ways to implement it in food I love. First way? Mocha Popsicles! Shut up…yes, they’re so amazing. So amazing that on my way into work, I dripped one all over that oxford blue shirt you see in the picture.  (By the way, this is a very common occurence with me.) Thank heavens I use my trunk as a 2nd closet. I’m proud to say that I actually had ample choices to change into! Woo hoo!

Let’s talk popsicles…

They have super strong coffee in them. They have chocolate.  And sweetened condensed milk. Basically, these Mocha Popsicles have every awesome thing ever created.  Except cheese. But that’d just be weird.

Have you ever had Vietnamese Iced Coffee? It’s heavenly. Seriously.  This is basically a Vietnamese Iced Mocha…just frozen solid.

You could make these blindfolded–they’re that easy.  All you have to do is mix super strong brewed coffee (or espresso), sweetened condensed milk, a bit of Dutch processed cocoa powder and mix. I recommend that you do a little taste test and adjust accordingly.  If you want it more chocolately…add more chocolate; want more sweetness…add more condensed milk.  Cooking is fun!

And popsicle molds…umm…why are they made so cheaply? The dang piece of plastic snapped off and broke. Next time I’m thinking I’ll skip the tops and just use plain ol’ popsicle sticks. I’m also taking any recommendations on good popsicle molds…anyone?

Mocha Popsicles

Recipe adapted from David Lebovitz

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Makes 8 popsicles, depending on the size of your molds.

I made super strong coffee using my French press. I put 6 scoops of coffee with 3 cups of hot water and let it sit for 5 minutes.  It came out super strong and perfect.  Also, if you don’t have sweetened condensed milk, David says you could substitute using half & half or milk. I would just add a little at a time to taste.

2 cups (500ml) extra-strong coffee or espresso

2/3 cup (160ml) sweetened condensed milk

1 1/2 tablespoon of unsweetened dutch processed cocoa powder

Mix the coffee with the sweetened condensed milk. Add the tablespoon of cocoa powder. Taste, and add a bit more milk or chocolate powder, if desired. (A spoonful or two is fine, but any more and the popsicles won’t freeze as hard.)

Pour into popsicle molds and freeze until sold. Mine took about 8 hrs.  To loosen the popsicle out of its mold, hold under warm water until it slides out. Voila! Awesome Mocha Popsicles.

Dear Recession,

I hate you I dislike you. I think it’s time for you to go away now, don’t you think? Look! I made you oatmeal cookies…think of it as a parting gift of sorts. So leave…now. You’ve caused nothing but trouble ever since you arrived and everyone is sorta tired of your face.

And to all you people that caused this, you sort of make me sick. My friends can’t seem to fund their movies, or get money for their art projects.  A bunch of my favorite restaurants and boutiques have closed their doors, which in turn has lead to a whole bunch of people now working jobs they don’t like just to pay the rent (and that’s if they can even find a job) all ’cause of you. People have shed a lot of tears, families have broken up, and overall, you’ve just made life a whole lot harder for a whole lot of people.  Sooo…I’m thinking you owe us something, dontcha think?  I think you owe us some cookies…I mean, it’s really the least you could do.  It certainly won’t make us forget, but you know, we’ll call it an olive branch.  And since  I’m pretty confident you can afford it, I’m demanding you put some bacon in those cookies, and I think Valhorna chocolate chips are also in order (see below for example).

So dig into your bonus-filled pockets, put on a cute, little apron and get baking. You suuure do have a lot of cookies to bake.

xoxo,

Adrianna

Depression (or Recession) Era Oatmeal Cookies

This recipe was given to me by my dear friend, Tom. This was his Grandmother Nellie’s Oatmeal Cookie recipe that calls for bacon drippings rather than butter. I keep my bacon drippings in a mason jar in the fridge.  If you don’t save your bacon drippings, or you don’t want to use them, here’s a link to my favorite Oatmeal Cookie recipes that uses butter.  See! Everyone wins.

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3/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cup dark brown sugar

1 egg

3/4 cup  bacon drippings at room temperature

2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups flour

4 pieces of bacon, fried and chopped (optional)

6 oz. of chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine the white sugar, brown sugar, egg and bacon drippings. Add the oats, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, flour  and mix well.  If you like, then gently fold in the bacon and chocolate chips.

Using your hands shape the dough into 1 1/2″ to 2″ cookies. Place on ungreased cookie sheets and bake for ten minutes or until done.

I have a distinct memory from my childhood of my mother and I buying a coconut with the intention of eating the flesh and coconut milk inside. However, we got it home and sort of looked at each other to see who would make the first move to open it. I assumed that since she was my mother she of course knew all the secrets of the universe and was utterly shocked to discover that neither she nor my step-dad knew what to do. My stepfather, who flew jet planes in Vietnam and assembled my bike on Christmas day, was stumped by this little brown ball in our shopping bag.

So, he went for the solution that is apparently obvious to every guy that is met with an obstacle: hit it really hard with a hammer. Which worked…sort of. We were able to salvage some of the coconut flesh from the pieces that scattered across our driveway, but there was no hope of saving any of the milk. It was a bittersweet day in kid-dom.

Nowadays coconut milk comes in a much more easily accessible packaging. It’s called a can. It’s awesome. Especially when you want to make things like chocolate coconut pudding. Remember when I made chocolate pudding with pomegranate and swore that I had found the best easy pudding recipe? Sorry Deb, but this is by far my new favorite. It was just as easy, but something about the coconut milk gave the pudding a slightly more depth of flavor, without adding in a strong coconut flavor.

And to anyone that doesn’t like the taste of coconut – first of all, I don’t understand you at all, but that’s another story. Second of all, don’t think of this as chocolate pudding with a coconut flavor, think of it as rich chocolate pudding that is made richer by the thick and sweet coconut milk, and I think you’ll be able to get past your bias. And if not, I’ll definitely eat your share.

Coconut Chocolate Pudding

Recipe adapted from Vanilla and Lace

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The original recipe calls for arrowroot powder. I’m not entirely sure what that is, but I’ll let you know when I find out. In the meantime, corn starch worked just fine.

1 14-ounce can of coconut milk (lite is fine), divided
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
dash of salt
1/4 cup cornstarch
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoons vanilla extract

Shake the can of coconut milk vigorously for a few seconds before opening. In a heavy saucepan bring 1 1/4 cups of the coconut milk, maple syrup, and the salt to a simmer over low heat.

While that is heating, in a seperate bowl whisk together the remaining coconut milk, corn starch, and cocoa powder. It will look like a smooth chocolate frosting.

When the coconut milk and maple syrup mixture has started simmering turn the heat down to low. Slowly add in the chocolate mixture while vigorously whisking it the whole time. Keep whisking until the pudding  thickens up a bit, about a minute.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and continue whisking while it is cooling for about a minute. Whisk in the chocolate chips and vanilla and keep stirring until the pudding is smooth. Transfer to a bowl  or bowls and place in a refrigerator to chill thoroughly. To prevent a skin from forming press plastic up against the surface of the pudding.

I firmly believe that the human population is broken up into two types: people who adore mayonnaise, or those that vehemently despise the stuff.  I, on the other hand, am a bit of a hybrid of those two people, like, if they had a kid, you would have me.  I love mayonnaise, but only if I don’t have to make it.  The minute I throw egg yolks and some oil in a blender and see the emulsification process, my stomach tightens and I’m coughing on my knees, and am physically unable to spread the stuff on a slice of bread. But if it comes pre-made, in a jar, with the label Hellman’s or Duke’s, I’m all about it.

For mayonnaise fans, it has the ability to make things taste exponentially better. It adds awesome flavor and moisture to all sorts of things. Got a Chick-fil-A sandwich that’s a little dry? Add mayo! Need a sweet dipping sauce for French fries? Take a cue from the French, and use some mayo! Wanna make the lightest, most moist chocolate cake ever? Yes, that’s right, add mayo!

The mayonnaise in this cake actually replaces the vegetable oil that’s typically called for.  And it sorta makes sense if you think about it, since all mayo really is is egg, a little vinegar and oil.  And since this chocolate cake is so unusually light, I didn’t think twice about pairing it with chocolate frosting, which I typically would never do.

So to all you mayo haters, give mayo one more chance and make this cake. I think it deserves it.

{I loved, LOVED this icing.}

{Since I was transporting this cake to a party later on in the evening, I placed pieces of parchment paper in between the cake board and the cake, so when I was done icing the cake I could simply remove the pieces and have a clean cake board.}

{Messy parchment paper…}

{Clean cake board!}

{I show up to dinner parties with partially eaten cakes. Yep, I’m that girl.}

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake

Recipe from Bon Appétit Magazine

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Cake:

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate (do not exceed 61% cacao), chopped

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 3/4 cups boiling water

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup sugar

1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar

1 1/3 cups mayonnaise (do not use reduced-fat or fat-free)

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:

10 ounces bittersweet chocolate (do not exceed 61% cacao), chopped

1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

3 cups powdered sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Special equipment: Twi 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides

For cake:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides. Combine chopped chocolate and cocoa powder in medium metal bowl. Add 1 3/4 cups boiling water and whisk until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth.

Sift flour, baking soda, and baking powder into another medium bowl.Using electric mixer, beat both sugars and mayonnaise in large bowl until well blended, 2 to 3 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating until well blended after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Add flour mixture in 4 additions alternately with chocolate mixture in 3 additions, beating until blended after each addition and occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Divide batter among prepared cake pans (about 2 1/3 cups for each).

Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, 30 to 32 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on racks 20 minutes. Run small knife around sides of cakes to loosen. Carefully invert cakes onto racks and let cool completely.

For frosting:
Place chopped chocolate in medium metal bowl; set bowl over saucepan of simmering water and stir until chocolate is melted and smooth. Carefully remove bowl from over water; let melted chocolate cool until lukewarm, stirring occasionally.

Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth and creamy. Sift powdered sugar over butter and beat until well blended, about 2 minutes. Beat in vanilla. Add melted chocolate and beat until well blended and smooth, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl.

Place 1 cake layer on platter. Spread 3/4 cup frosting over top of cake layer to edges. Top with second cake layer; spread 3/4 cup frosting over. Spread remaining frosting decoratively over top and sides of cake. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome and let stand at room temperature.

Cut cake into wedges and serve.

I’ve been a really bad girlfriend. I mean, one of the bonuses to dating someone that likes to cook should be that you get to eat all your favorite foods all the time, right? Well…Chase likes BBQ and hotdogs and I don’t eat most meat, so… sorry babe. You sorta picked the wrong girl in that department.

But hey, I can bake, right? So Chase should always be able to enjoy  his favorite cake, right? Want to know how many times I have baked Chase’s all-time favorite cake?

Zero.

Not one time.

In fact, when Chase’s mom asked if he wanted his favorite cake as his groom’s cake, he said it had been so long since he’d eaten one that he wasn’t even sure he still liked it.

See, I told you. I’m a bad girlfriend.

Why haven’t I ever made him a cake, you ask? Is it because I’m just not a nice person? I really hope not. I think I’m a nice person. Do you think I’m nice? I hope so.

No, the real reason I’ve never made his favorite cake is because he loves Boston cream pie. And to me, Boston cream pie is scary. Really scary. It doesn’t even have icing, which is easy to make and super not-scary. Instead, it’s topped with a chocolate glaze and has a layer of vanilla pastry cream in the center. Chocolate glaze isn’t so bad, in fact, it might be easier to make than frosting. To make vanilla pastry cream however, you have to do things like temper eggs and whip up milk into a thick custard. There’s a lot that can go wrong, which is why I get nervous. Then I find myself standing over a hot stove, absolutely convinced that I’m going to have scrambled eggs instead of a smooth cream, and I become terrified. This is the effect that pastry cream has on me.

However, this weekend I finally put my big-girl panties on and baked a Boston cream pie.  I was anxious, trembling and perspiring just a little. But I did it. And it tastes amazing. So amazing in fact, that I believe a new condition of us getting married is that I have to bake this on a regular basis. Which I can handle now, and you can too.

Boston Cream Pie

Adapted from Cooking Light: Five Star Recipes

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Given that the recipe is from Cooking Light, I had to make a few adjustments, like using butter instead of margarine. Basically though, this is the same recipe, and it sort of shocks me that a publication with “light” in the title would claim this, because it tastes nothing short of decadent.

Cake
3 tablespoons butter
½ cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk
1 ½ cups sifted cake flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
¾ cup milk
2 large egg whites
3 tablespoons sugar

Vanilla Pastry Cream
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/3  cup sugar
2 ½ tablespoons cornstarch
1 ¼ cups milk
1 tablespoon butter
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

Chocolate Glaze
1/3 cup semis-sweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon maple syrup
2  tablespoons water
1 teaspoon butter

To make the Vanilla Pastry Cream: Combine sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan. Gradually add milk to saucepan, whisking until blended. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Stirring constantly, cook for 1 minute or until mixture just begins to thicken. Remove from heat. Gradually stir one-fourth of hot milk mixture into egg – this will temper the egg and prevent it from scrambling. Once mixed together, add egg mixture back to remaining milk mixture, stirring constantly. Cook over medium heat 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla and butter. Pour mixture into a bowl; place plastic wrap on surface, and chill for at least 1 hour or overnight.

To make the Chocolate Glaze: Combine all ingredients in the top of a double boiler. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until chocolate is melted. Allow to cool slightly before pouring over cake.

Meanwhile, Butter the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan. Dust with flour and set aside.

Beat 1/2 cup sugar and margarine in a medium bowl at medium speed of a mixer until well-blended. Add vanilla and egg yolk, and beat well. In a separate bowl, sift together cups flour, baking powder, and salt. Add flour mixture to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Set aside.

Beat egg whites at high speed until foamy. Gradually add 3 tablespoons sugar, beating eggs until stiff peaks form. Gently stir one-fourth of egg white mixture into batter. Gently fold in remaining egg white mixture. Pour into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pan. Allow to cool completely either on the rack or in a refrigerator.

Split cake in half horizontally using a serrated knife; place bottom layer, cut side up, on a serving plate. Spread vanilla pastry cream evenly over bottom layer; top with remaining cake layer. Spread chocolate glaze evenly over top. Chill 1 hour or until glaze is set.

As of late, when I see pregnant women walking down the street—you know the ones that look like they could give birth any day now—I get scared for them.  All the pain! All the agonizing pain! The other day I was at the salon and telling this woman about my new observation and she told me giving birth feels like your hips are breaking. Whaaaaa? Hips breaking? No thank you! Suuuure, you get a pint-size pile of cuteness that I’m sure makes it all seem worth it, but man, can we talk about the pain again?

The idea of one day having a child growing inside me kinda blows my mind. Seriously. Like having this thing just growing and growing inside me.  It’s a bit alien-esque, if you ask me.  And it’s like so reliant on you.  It’s kinda selfless…yep, women are selflesss, especially when it comes to this. I know we don’t’ have much of a choice, but seriously, we’re selfless.

Another thing I’m not ready to deal with? Giving things up: coffee, sushi, wine (the thought of it now just made my lip quiver), and chocolate mousse.  I plan on kindly reminding my future child, when they’re throwing a fit that I won’t give them a cell phone at the ripe age of 4 (I imagine that by the time I have a child, kids will be asking for cell phones upon entering the world), of all the things I gave up; specifically this Salted Caramel Chocolate Mousse.

This isn’t your 1992-Sizzler, ubiquitous chocolate mousse.  Nope.  This stuff is different—it’s sophisticated.  It has an air about it.  I mean, if I were salted caramel, I’d have an air about me too.  Wouldn’t you? The stuff is sexy, in like a Jackie-O type of way.  The hint of saltiness with the gooeyness of the caramel, and bitterness from the dark chocolate all play against each other so well.  And since it’s mousse, that means it’s light, fluffy and airy with a surprise thickness due to the caramel.  It’s quite lovely.  And much easier than your typical chocolate mousse.  Meaning, it doesn’t require seven bowls and moments of utter panic. It’s simply perfect.

And say, you’re reading this and you happen to be pregnant, I say skip folding in the egg whites.  You’ll have an awesome pudding-esque caramel, chocolate concoction on your hands.  I think you should do it, you know, to celebrate your selflessness and stuff.

Salted Caramel Chocolate Mousse

Recipe by Trish Deseine via The Wednesday Chef

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Yields 6 servings

This recipe was originally made with milk chocolate, but after a little consideration I decided a more complex, bitter chocolate would be great to off-set the sweetness of the caramel and saltiness added by, well, the salt.  And I think I nailed it.

½ cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup plus 1 ½ tablespoons heavy whipping cream

2 ½ tablespoons good-quality salted butter, room temperature (I used unsalted and then added 1/4 of a teaspoon of salt)

7 ounces bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped

3 eggs, separated.

Combine the sugar and 2 tablespoons water in a medium saucepan. Do not stir. Cook over medium-high heat to a dark caramel, swirling as it begins to brown to distribute the sugar.  While the sugar and water are going at it, heat up the cream in a saucepan or microwave just until warm.

Take off the heat and deglaze and add your room temperature butter.  Add your warmed cream and whisk vigorously.  Add the chocolate, wait for a minute or two for it to melt and mix until smooth. I was a little nervous about adding the egg yolks to the hot chocolate mixture so I waited a few minutes for it to cool.  Then I added a little bit of warm chocolate to the egg yolks and stirred it around a bit just to bring the eggs to a warmer temperature and then added them to the chocolate mixture. Mix in the egg yolks.

Whisk the egg whites until they form firm peaks and then fold into the chocolate mixture. Top with cracked salt and then divide between 6 4-ounce ramekins and chill for at least 6 hours.

Can I tell you something? I’ve cheated before. It happened when I was in 5th grade and taking a social studies test. I didn’t know the capitol of South Dakota, or what its major exports were, and so… I cheated. And then after school I broke down crying in front of my mom; I’m really not that good at keeping these kinds of secrets. So yeah, based on past experience I didn’t really think cheating was going to be a good thing. However, this time there were no tears and I wasn’t grounded from watching TV for two weeks. Instead, there was fudge. Lots and lots of awesome fudge.

Until now, I had never made fudge. The reason I have never made fudge before is because I thought it was difficult and involved scary and unknown objects like candy thermometers. Whenever I see a recipe that mentions a candy thermometer, I turn the page as quickly as I can. Seriously, things like that make me nervous. However, this was easy, easy fudge. By easy, I mean it took less than 30 minutes and only 5 ingredients. There were no thermometers of any kind involved. I took it to a party and everyone went on and on about how they couldn’t believe I made fudge for them, and I sort of felt like a cheater, knowing I didn’t really spend as much time or effort on this as they all thought. I guess sometimes cheating can be a delicious thing to do.

Chocolate Cinnamon Fudge

Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis

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Okay, I know I’m on a bit of a Giada kick, but you’re gonna thank me when you try this. If you’re not a big fan of cinnamon just leave it out. If you really love nuts in your fudge, just add 1 cup of chopped nuts at the end right before you pour it in the pan.

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 pound (about 2 cups) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces, at room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan

Butter the bottom and sides of an 8 by 8-inch baking pan. Line the pan with a sheet of parchment paper, allowing a couple inches of parchment paper to hang over the side.

In a medium glass or stainless steel bowl, combine the condensed milk, cinnamon, and vanilla. Stir in the chocolate chips and butter. Put the bowl on a saucepan of barely simmering water and stir until the chocolate chips have melted and the mixture is smooth, about 6-8 minutes. (add nuts at this point if you like them) Using a spatula, scrape the mixture into the buttered pan and smooth the top. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours until firm.

Holding the edges of the parchment paper that are hung over the pan, life the fudge out of the pan and onto a cutting board. Peel off the parchment paper and cut the fudge into 1-inch pieces. Store refrigerated in an airtight container or freeze, if you don’t eat all of it while standing in the kitchen.

]]> http://www.acozykitchen.com/chocolate-cinnamon-fudge/feed/ 5 http://www.acozykitchen.com/chocolate-pudding-with-pomegranate/ http://www.acozykitchen.com/chocolate-pudding-with-pomegranate/#comments Wed, 06 Jan 2010 22:19:47 +0000 Caroline http://www.acozykitchen.com/?p=2188

Well, this recipe comes with some good news and some bad news. The good news is that I learned how to make easy homemade pudding, something that is probably going to be common fixture in my home from now on. The bad news is that as excited as I was to incorporate pomegranate, it didn’t really live up to the hype I had in my mind.  Don’t get me wrong, this was incredibly delicious, and anyone that turns their nose up at it is probably not someone I want to be friends with for much longer. But I feel that whenever something has “pomegranate” in the title, it should transcend any normal expectations you might have.

For example, if I order a pomegranate martini instead of my usual Cosmopolitan, I expect to take a sip and to be assured that my decision to deviate from the status quo was the correct one. So, although I think you should definitely file away this pudding recipe and use it often, I’m not going to be adamant that it needs the pomegranate to give you the best experience. Instead, I’m giving you options of things to try, and if you do find something that is simply amazing, I expect a full report back.

Instead of the pomegranate juice, you could substitute:

• Vanilla Extract – for standard chocolate pudding, this is what the original recipe calls for
• Frangelico – if you want more of a Nutella experience by adding hazelnut flavoring to the chocolate
• Amaretto – for a chocolate-almond mixture
• Cointreau – if you love chocolate oranges as much as I do

Happy tasting!

Chocolate Pudding with Pomegranate

Pudding recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen

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This recipe is so simple and easy that you’ll never go back to the box stuff again, especially once you taste the difference. (Deb, seriously, THANK YOU) The original called for only 1 teaspoon of vanilla and I substituted 1 tablespoon of POM juice. If you decide to try another flavor, start with 1 teaspoon and add more from there.

1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 cups whole milk
6 ounces good-quality semi-sweet chocolate (don’t skimp here)
1 tablespoon pomegranate juice (or 1 teaspoon of other flavoring)

In a double boiler, combine the cornstarch, sugar and salt. Slowly whisk in the milk, scraping the bottom and sides with a heatproof spatula to incorporate the dry ingredients. Place over gently simmering water and stir with a whisk, occasionally scraping the bottom and sides with the spatula to prevent lumps from forming. After 15 to 20 minutes, when the mixture has thickened and coats the back of the spoon, add the chocolate chips. Continue stirring for about 2 to 4 minutes, or until the pudding is smooth and thickened (remember it will thicken even more once it sets up). Remove from the heat and stir in the pomegranate juice.

Strain through a fine-mesh strainer to remove any lumps. (I actually skipped this and it turned out fine, although there were a couple tiny lumps in the pudding.) Pour the pudding individual serving dishes.

If you like pudding skin, put plastic wrap over top of the pudding dishes without it touching the actuall pudding. If you dislike pudding skin, place plastic wrap on top of the pudding and smooth it gently against the surface before refrigerating. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and then dig in. It can also last for up to 3 days, but why on earth would you wait that long?

Pomegranate Whipped Cream

This wasn’t as exciting as I thought it was going to be. I was hoping for a bright pink whipped cream to top the pudding with, but in order to get enough of the POM juice in the cream to make it red, the mixture became too watery to set up a true whipped cream. The flavor was great actually, so if you want that red/pink look I would just cheat and add a drop of food coloring, or just enjoy your tasty white whipped cream.

½ cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons pomegranate juice
1 tablespoon sugar

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and beat on high with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Serve on top of your pudding and enjoy!

Uhohhh! It’s a few days before Christmas and I haven’t done a lick of Christmas shopping. I guess you could say I’ve been distracted doing other random things, like sleeping for 14 hrs straight…and watching past seasons of Top Chef…and, uh, watching episode after episode of Avec Eric (which by the way, if you haven’t watched you’re totally missing out).  I essentially have had better things to do then gear up and go to the wretched mall.  And since I’ve waited so long, I can’t order anything online without being penalized by high shipping costs, but still I’m not too worried.  I have a feeling I’ll just make myself some pancakes and this hot chocolate and my problems will go away.

And plus, here at A Cozy Kitchen we’ve been busy doing other “life” stuff…like getting proposed to. Yep, you’ve heard right. Just nights ago Chase got on one knee and asked his lady, Caroline, to marry him.  It’s pretty exciting stuff and I’m totally psyched to plan a wedding cake, if not make it myself, which I’m secretly scared to do. One thing Caroline and I have talked about, of course, is the cake…and we’re both leaning toward a red velvet cake with a butter cream frosting. So in lieu of my Caroline becoming an honest woman, I bring you the liquid, winter version of her future cake: Red Velvet Hot Chocolate with Cream Cheese Whipped Cream!

Red Velvet Hot Chocolate w/Cream Cheese Whipped Cream

Serves 4

For the hot chocolate:

4 cups of milk

splash of water

3/4 cups of premium semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli)

1 teaspoon of red food coloring paste (I ended up finding it at Michael’s in the cake decorating aisle)

For the whipped cream:

1 cup of heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon of sugar

1 teaspoon of whipped cream cheese

In a medium mixing bowl or a stand-up mixer, pour in heavy whipping cream and sugar.  Whip on medium with the whisk attachment for 2-3 minutes.  Just before it peaks, add the teaspoon of whipped cream cheese and whisk for another 2 minutes. Taste the whipped cream and add more cream cheese to taste. If you like it more tart, I’d say add another 1/2 teaspoon, just be careful to not over whip or you’ll have butter on your hands in no time.

In a medium saucepan, heat the milk over medium heat.  Add a splash of water and the chocolate chips, constantly stirring gently .  When almost melted, add the red food coloring paste and stir some more.  The color should be a deep red, similar to the picture above.  When the chocolate chips are all melted, pour the hot chocolate in four mugs and top with the whipped cream.

It’s December.  Are you panicking yet?  A lot of people I know are.  December, for many people, means a long list of parties to juggle, decorating, wearing uncomfortable, sparkly holiday dresses, gifts to buy for family, trips to plan, all while still tending to normal life stuff.  And despite all of these things, we still LOVE the holidays. In leiu of your stress, I present you with a gift; think of it as a stress-free Holiday gift from me to you: Chocolate Popcorn with Sea Salt.

It’s my dear friend Johnna‘s snack of choice to make at dinner parties, and she, by far, is the best dinner party thrower I’ve met. Why is she so good ? Well for starters she makes this and puts it out as people pour in.  It’s the perfect distractor while last minute scrambling is done in the kitchen.

I never get sick of the chocolate and salt combo.  They were created to live together, share a life together, and the crunchiness and fluffiness of the popcorn is a perfect way for their union to be on display.  Please make this.  If not for yourself, make it for others.  Perhaps as a gift. You know all of those random gifts you get your kids’ bus driver, your hair dresser, the post man, etc.  Well scratch the expensive chocolates or cheap chocolates you buy in bulk from Costco.  Save yourself some money, make this and package it in a cute container.  They’ll love it more, mainly because you made it…and with that extra money, go buy yourself a uncomfortable comfortable, sparkly holiday dress.

Chocolate Popcorn with Sea Salt

Recipe from Johnna Lynn

1 tablespoon of vegetable oil (I used grapeseed)
1 cup of popcorn (kernels, un-popped)
2 tablespoons of unsalted butter
12 oz of  chocolate chips of your choice (I used semi-sweet chocolate chips)
Splash of milk or half & half (I used half & half since that’s all I had)
2 tablespoons of sea salt (or until taste)

In a medium saucepan pour the tablespoon of oil and heat over medium heat. When oil is hot, throw in popcorn.  Make sure all of the kernels are touching the bottom of the pan.  Cover the pan and wait until you hear kernels start to pop.  Once they start, grab the pan with one hand and grab an oven mitt or towel and hold down the lid.  Pick up the pan and start to shake until all for a few moments.  Return pan to the stove and repeat a few times. It takes some coordination, but it’s way easy and this way you won’t have any unpopped kernels and the popcorn won’t be burnt.

When the popcorn is done, turn off the heat and set aside.  In a double boiler, or just a glass mixing bowl over boiling water, throw in the butter, chocolate chips and splash of milk or cream.  Stir until melted.

Pour the popcorn in a mixing bowl and add the melted chocolate.  Grab a wooden spoon and gently stir in the chocolate, ensuring that all of it is covered in chocolate.  Then spread the chocolate popcorn out on a baking sheet or baking mat and sprinkle, liberally with sea salt or kosher salt.

Let it sit for 3-4 hrs or until dry and then put in airtight container until ready to serve.