Salted Caramel Eggnog

On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me ...a glass of eggnog?

December is almost here and what a better way to celebrate than with the "12 days of Christmas Re-vamp" and the classic Christmas favourite, eggnog!

I ADORE eggnog. It is my absolute favourite yuletide treat! Sadly, England hasn't quite boarded the eggnog train yet and it's near impossible to find the stuff anywhere around here! So, it was time to buck up the courage and finally make my own.

I could literally drink vats of the stuff, but I was feeling frisky and wanted to try something a little experimental: salted caramel eggnog. Salted caramels seem to be the 'it' sweet at the moment and I wanted to embrace every aspect of its delectable taste. Call me crazy, but this is one of the most delicious recipes I have tasted in a while! And extremely simple, you will honestly never buy the carton stuff again!

Salted Caramel Eggnog
Makes approx. 4 1/2 cups

Ingredients
- 1 15 oz can of sweetened condensed milk
- 1 Tbsp butter
- 3 cups of milk, more or less depending on preference
- 1/2 tsp vanilla flavouring
- 1/4 tsp salt, more or less depending on preference
- 4 egg yolks
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg

Method

1. Separate eggs and place yolks in a bowl and whisk until very frothy and bubbly, set aside. 
2. In a saucepan, gently melt the tablespoon of butter. Add the vanilla and sweetened condensed milk and bring to a boil, stirring constantly until mixture has thickened and darkened in colour slightly. This is your caramel!
3. Slowly add milk to the caramel mixture, stirring constantly over medium heat until the caramel is combined with the milk and no hard bits remain. If you added the milk to fast and the caramel solidified, just bring to a boil and stir until they are visibly gone. 
4. Allow mixture to COOL to room temperature or it will scramble your eggs! When mixture is cool, add salt and nutmeg. Stir gently, but briskly into the frothy egg yolks

Serve with a sprinkling of sea salt and nutmeg on the top for that extra pop of flavour! And there you have it, salted caramel eggnog done! Holidays got you feeling frisky? Add a dash of bourbon, rum or brandy and let the cheer begin!

Stay jolly folks!

xo Jenn

Wintertime Warmer

Well folks it's a cold winter morning in England and I have a recipe that is absolutely perfect for taking off that chill! Morning after morning, I have been stuck in the same old cereal, toast, porridge routine, a cycle that is easily avoided with this little dandy.

This recipe uses quinoa as the base, so in addition to being delicious, it's also healthy! And guess what? There's only three ingredients--it's basically fail proof! Three simple ingredients that make for a luxurious morning treat!

Wintertime Warmer
Serves 1
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup quinoa, rinsed
- 1 medium ripe banana
- a sprinkling of nutmeg

Method

1. Rinse your quinoa! This step is important because it gets rid of any bitterness that will come out in cooking. Boil in a saucepan for approximately 10-15 minutes, or until a little white ring forms around the actually grain.
2. Mash the banana in a dish and add to the pot. Cook the quinoa and banana until the banana smells caramel-ish. This is where the magic happens and all those delicious natural sugars are released.
3. Pour into dish and sprinkle with nutmeg! 

Done! Wasn't that delightfully easy? 

Let me know feedback below! Until next time dandies, stay lovely!

xo Jenn

Spreading the Holiday Cheer!

As the cool winter weather rushes in I have the sudden urge to listen to rather folksy music, slap on the uggs and replace the rest of the items in my wardrobe with knitted versions of themselves. Perhaps it's the deep-seeded canuck in me that craves this cold (or as some would call 'bleak') winter weather. But there is something really magical about the winter season: the air is brisk, the kindness of humanity is at an all time high, and did I mention the FOOD?

This is the time of year that I tend to shine, or as some say (ie. my husband) go a bit looney-tunes in the 'spreading the holiday cheer' department. Fortunately he loves the season just as much as I do, so in a way it kind of compensates.

But let's get serious for a moment, that special feeling of sparkly rainbows dancing in your tummy is often a result of people adding that extra something (ie fat and sugar) to every holiday recipe. Some of my earliest and happiest childhood memories are baking shortbread cookies with my grandma: secretly eating little bits of raw cookie dough when the adults 'weren't looking,' the smell of maraschino cherries lingering in the air and the excitement that came with seeing those beauties come out of the oven all golden. So if you find yourself craving that spine-tingling, heart stopping pleasure center that is holiday food: look no further my friends, you have arrived. :)

So here's the pitch, I am going to do a series of recipes leading up to the holidays that are some of my absolute favorites: traditional recipes with a modern twist! Think for a moment, of butter tarts (a traditional favourite in my household); now imagine replacing the raisin-y bit with a pink sugar plum version of itself. o_0 Yes, I think this will be a wonderful holiday. These are definitely not your Granny's recipes so stay tuned for the festivities!

This will be known hence as the Twelve days of Christmas Bake-athon!!! I really want to hear what y`all have to think about all these as well, so please comment away! Feel free to send along requests or to share your favourite holiday recipes!

Until next time folks I will leave you with this:
What was your fondest memory of holiday baking when you were young?
Leave your answer in the comments!

xo Jenn