Pumpkin Seed Brittle

This is a fantastic treat for Halloween. I wish I could say that it was a great way to use up all those seeds you scooped out of your pumpkin when you were making your jack-o-lantern, but I can't. Because unless you're willing to hull all your seeds by hand, you need to buy them already hulled. So go ahead and toast your pumpkin seeds and eat those as a snack while you make a batch of this addictive confection. Move over peanuts.

PUMPKIN SEED BRITTLE

Makes 12 servings (as part of tapas buffet)

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt

3/4 cup (4 oz.) green, hulled pumpkin seeds (also known as pepitas), raw—not toasted

______________________________________________________________________

1.      Put a 24- by 12-inch sheet of parchment on a work surface and anchor corners with pieces of tape. Or you can use a silpat if breaking the brittle instead of cutting (omit the tape). Have a second sheet of parchment ready.

2.      Bring sugar, water, and sea salt to a boil in a 2-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Cook mixture, without stirring, washing down any sugar crystals from side of pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water, until syrup registers 238° F. (soft-ball stage) on thermometer, 10 to 12 minutes (sugar syrup will be colorless).

3.      Remove sugar syrup from heat and stir in seeds with a wooden or silicone spoon, then continue stirring until syrup crystallizes, 3 to 4 minutes.

4.      Return pan to moderate heat and cook, stirring constantly, until sugar melts completely, (sugar will continue to dry and become grainy before melting) and turns a deep caramel color, about 15 minutes or more (seeds will be toasted).

5.      Carefully pour hot caramel mixture onto parchment and carefully cover with another sheet. Immediately roll out (between sheets of parchment) as thinly as possible with a rolling pin, pressing firmly. Remove top sheet of parchment and immediately cut brittle into pieces with a heavy knife or pizza wheel.

6.      Cool brittle completely, then peel paper from bottom. (Alternately, break brittle into pieces once cool.) Brittle can be made 2 weeks ahead and kept, layers separated by wax paper, in an airtight container.

from Gourmet, January 2005 (procedure slightly tweaked)

hulled pumpkin seeds (also known as pepitas)

sugar, water and salt cooking

My sugar syrup wasn't colorless because I used evaporated
cane sugar (which is browner than regular sugar).

approaching 238° F.

adding the pumpkin seeds

stirring

So far it looks normal, but as you'll see, it
starts to really dry out, the more you heat/stir.

getting bubbly

Okay, now you're starting to wonder
why it's getting thicker and weird.

Now it's so thick you're thinking you've
screwed up and it's not going to work.

Now you're cursing at your pan because
you're convinced after all this stirring that
you'll have nothing to show for it.

And now it looks like sand and you're realizing you can't
even throw this stuff away until it cools off, so you
might as well keep stirring and pray for a miracle.

Hallelujah...it's starting to melt again!

miracles do happen

ready to pour

I used a silpat (silicone mat) because I was
planning on breaking my brittle, not cutting
it (you don't want to slash your silpat).

spread out and ready to roll

FYI: this is a double batch.

rolling out with a piece of parchment on top

cooled and parchment removed

pumpkin seed brittle

.

Molasses Sponge Candy

Today is Bloatal Recall's one year anniversary. Which means one thing...I stuck with something long enough to officially call it a hobby. I've always wanted one of those, other than eating and watching tv (really I'm more of an expert at those by now). And even though I do this mainly to remember recipes and amuse myself, it's way more fun knowing you're out there reading (and sometimes cooking) along. I don't consider myself a writer or a chef, so I'm somewhat surprised (and definitely delighted) that you're enjoying my blog along with me. So I want to thank you for all the support/kind words. Now on to the candy.

When I was a kid, there was a homemade chocolate store on the way to my grandmother's house. It was a tradition to stop there and buy an assortment. Looking back, it was obviously more for us than an actual gift for my grandmother (although we carried out the charade and dutifully handed her the box upon our arrival). But the second that lid was open, the jig was up. We pounced on that box fast and hard (like a lion taking down a gazelle). If you happened to be in the bathroom, you'd be lucky if there was one of those fruity gel ones left (not that you'd be foolish enough to go to the bathroom). My hands down favorite was always the molasses sponge. Their version was dipped in chocolate, but I could tell from the shape/design exactly which one it was and always made a beeline straight for it. Since I don't live near a homemade chocolate store now (a good thing), I was excited to make these at home. They're scrumptious, even without the chocolate, so I didn't dip them (this time).

 

MOLASSES SPONGE CANDY
Makes about 1 lb.

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/3 cup water

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 cup mild molasses

2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1.        Line bottom and sides of a 13- by 9-inch baking pan with foil, then butter foil.

2.        Bring sugar, water, butter, and cream of tartar to a boil in a deep 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then wash down any sugar crystals with a pastry brush dipped in cold water. Boil without stirring until syrup registers 265° F. (hard-ball stage) on a candy thermometer, about 10 minutes.

3.        Add molasses (don't stir) and continue to boil undisturbed until syrup registers 295° F. (hard-crack stage), 4 to 5 minutes.

4.        Remove pan from heat and sift baking soda over syrup, then whisk to incorporate. (Use caution: mixture will bubble vigorously.)

5.        Immediately pour syrup into lined baking pan and cool completely. Lift candy in foil from pan, then discard foil and break into pieces.

Can store, layered between wax paper in an airtight container, for 1 month.

from Gourmet, April 2002

sugar, water, butter and cream of tartar

molasses added

baking soda added

cooled; breaking into pieces

molasses sponge close up

These should be crunchy, not spongy (they just
look like a sponge), so it's best to make them on a
cool day (if it's too humid, they will get chewy).

.

Fleur de Sel Caramels

You know how sometimes you try a new recipe and you love it so incredibly much that you find yourself totally preoccupied with it and dreaming up scenarios in which you can make it again soon (like within the next day)? Well that's me and these salted caramels. I made them on Saturday and brought them to a party. I had only a few leftover, but ran out on Monday and haven't stopped fantasizing about them since. I know that was only two days ago, but it feels like way longer. I can't justify making these just to have around the house (that's way too dangerous), so now I find myself itching for any excuse to whip up a fresh batch (this would be an ideal time to invite me over).

FLEUR DE SEL CARAMELS

Yield: 40-50

1 cup heavy cream

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1 teaspoon fleur de sel*, plus more for sprinkling

1 1/2 cups sugar

1/4 cup brown rice syrup (or light corn syrup)

1/4 cup water

*available at finer supermarkets and specialty foods shops and online

1.      Line bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, then lightly oil parchment.

2.      Bring cream, butter, and fleur de sel to a boil in a small saucepan, then remove from heat and set aside.

3.      Boil sugar, brown rice syrup, and water in a 3- to 4-quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Boil, without stirring but gently swirling pan, until mixture is a light golden caramel, about 8-10 minutes.

4.      Carefully stir in cream mixture (mixture will bubble up) and simmer, stirring frequently, until caramel registers 250° F. on thermometer, 10 to 15 minutes. Pour into baking pan, sprinkle lightly with fleur de sel and cool for 2 hours.

5.      Cut into 1-inch pieces, then wrap each piece in a 4-inch square of wax paper, twisting 2 ends to close.

slightly adapted from Gourmet, October 2004 

Fleur de sel (flower of salt) is a flaky French sea salt.
If you can't find any, you can substitute another coarse sea
salt (or kosher salt), but you might not want to sprinkle it
over the top of the caramels too (it's just not as delicate).

cream, butter and fleur de sel

adding brown rice syrup to the sugar

The original recipe called for corn syrup. If you use
brown rice syrup, it's definitely a little harder to tell
when it turns golden brown (because obviously, it's starting
out kind of golden brown). So I estimated and cooked
it for roughly 8-10 minutes.

golden brown (but it already was)

cream mixture added, bubbling up towards 250° F.

poured into prepared pan

I sprinkled some fleur de sel on top too because I like that
little extra shot of saltiness and the tiny bit of crunch it adds.

cutting the caramels

I removed the entire block from the pan,
peeled off the parchment and then cut them.

I wouldn't make them larger than 1-inch (it's just a little too much;
the caramel kind of takes over your whole mouth, and then you can't
talk for like 5 minutes). Something between 3/4-inch and 1-inch
is probably perfect. When I made these, I ended up with 49.

wrapping a caramel

I didn't have any pre-cut wax paper...I just tore off
pieces from a roll (they don't need to be exactly 4" x 4").

wrapped fleur de sel caramel

.

Candied Orange Peel

I was trying to find candied orange peel at the store recently and then it hit me, just make it. It's easy. This is great for chopping and using in cookies, breads, cakes or pastries. It's also really nice dipped in chocolate (I've seen people give it as gifts). The sweetness with just a hint of bitterness (depending on the orange) is really delicious. Plus it works with lemons and other citrus fruit too.

CANDIED ORANGE PEEL

Makes about 2 cups

2 large oranges (preferably organic), 1/4 inch of top and bottom cut off

2 cups sugar

2 cups water

1 cup superfine sugar

1.       Cut peel on each orange into 4 vertical segments. Remove each segment (including white pith) in 1 piece. Cut peel into 1/4-inch-wide strips. 

2.       Cook orange strips in large pot of boiling water for 15 minutes; drain and rinse. Repeat two more times (blanching helps remove some of the bitterness).

3.       Bring 2 cups sugar and 2 cups water to boil in medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add peel. Return to boil. Reduce heat; simmer until peel is very soft, about 45 minutes. Drain.

4.       Toss peel and 1 cup superfine sugar on rimmed baking sheet, separating strips. Lift peel from sugar; transfer to sheet of foil. Let stand until coating is dry, 1 to 2 days. Can be made ahead; wrap and freeze for up to 2 months.

adapted from Bon Appétit, December 2008 by Damon Lee Fowler

oranges with tops and bottoms cut off

oranges cut into quarters

I used a melon baller to remove even more of the pith
(peeling the orange with a vegetable peeler in the
first place would probably also work).

This is totally optional--if you like your orange peel
with that chewy, sort of jelly-like layer, just skip it
(although you might want to blanch it one more time
to help remove even more of the bitterness).

pith scraped off

orange peels in boiling water
I forgot to cut them into strips before, so I did it after.

I ended up using only one orange (my daughter wanted the other one
for a snack and I didn't need that much candied orange peel anyway).

strips in sugar syrup
(It looks brown because I used evaporated cane sugar.)

candied orange peel draining

After I watched the orange sugar syrup swirl down the
drain, it occurred to me that it might be nice to save it
and use it to sweeten something else, like maybe lemonade,
iced tea or sorbet. Oh well (classic).

about to roll around in the superfine sugar

coated with sugar

.