Foodie Friday -- Key Lime Pie

I'm late again with this post, but I wanted to sample my offerings prior to posting the recipe.

And let me just say that this recipe is AWESOME!

It all started when I had a bag of limes from Sam's Club--I forgot why I bought such a huge bag, but I did--and they were starting to get old. Hubs suggested that I make Key Lime Pie. Normally, we eat at Red Rock Canyon Grill and share their Key Lime Pie, but I decided to try my hand at making a similar version. I found two online recipes, merged them into my interpretation, and added a twist in the crust that Red Rock does.

Voila! Here's the recipe. And for the record, making Key Lime Pie is very, very easy. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. It's a mess to make, but easy. Just saying.

NOTE: Though it’s called Key Lime Pie, no key limes were hurt during this process . . . regular large limes were. Do you realize key limes are about the size of a quarter/marble? Do you know how many you would have to cut and squeeze to get enough juice for 1 cup? I’ve used them before in other recipes, and they are not worth the work. Sorry, not happening.

 Key Lime Pie

Crust:
1 ½ cups graham crackers (@ 9-10 rectangles)
2 Tbls. sugar
4 Tbls. butter, melted
½ cup chopped pecans, toasted

Filling:
2 (14-oz) cans sweetened condensed milk (Eagle Brand)
1 cup fresh lime juice (@ 5 regular large limes)
Zest from one lime
2 large eggs

Chantilly Cream:
1 cup whipping cream
1-2 tsp. vanilla
2-3 Tbls powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

For Crust:
Place pecans in oven until lightly toasted, about 5 minutes.
In food processor, grind graham crackers into crumbs, pour into bowl and measure 1 ½ cups back into food processor. Add sugar, melted butter and pecans. Mix well. Pecans should be chopped small, but still visible. Press mixture into 10-inch round tart pan with 1-inch sides, place on baking sheet and bake until brown, about 12-15 minutes.

For Filling:
Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.
Zest one lime into large bowl, mix in eggs and sweetened condensed milk, and then whisk lime juice into mixture. Pour filling into cooled crust. Bake for 15 minutes. Cool about 30 minutes on wire rack and refrigerate at least 2 hours. Make Chantilly cream when ready to serve.

For Chantilly Cream:
Beat whipping cream until thickened, add powdered sugar and vanilla. Mix well, taste for flavor. Keep beating until stiff peaks form.

Hints & Suggestions:

·       Toasting pecans brings out another level of flavor. Keep an eye on them while toasting. DO NOT BURN.

·       I always overestimate graham crackers when I grind them, which is why I have this extra step to measure the ground crumbs and return them to the processor.

·       The crust mixture is crumbly. If you want it to stick together a little better, add 1-2 Tbls extra melted butter. Don’t overdo the butter, since the filling holds the crust together when it bakes. Trust me on this.

·       Press the crumbs along the tart edges first to get a nice layer. If it’s too thick in a spot, just lightly rub the crumbs away until desired thickness. Use a flat glass bottom to press bottom crust into pan.

·       I put the tart pan on a cookie sheet because I’ve been known to push the removable bottom out of the tart pan when I take the crust out of the oven. I didn’t want to redo the crust.

·       Filling will come to the very top of the crust. It will look like it will overflow. It doesn’t. *whew*

·       The center of filling should not jiggle when you take it out of the oven.  

·       Stiff peaks are formed are when you pull the beaters out of the cream and they leave little points on the beaters. Overbeating will result in a butter mixture. Not a bad thing, mind you, but not what you want here.

And that's it for today, Peeps!

Tomorrow, I'll post the pot roast I made. It was wonderful, too!

Today the family and I are walking in For The Cure JDRF. It's late notice, but if you want to donate to the Commandos for the Cure at Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

Making Caramel

As you all know, I've been making candy again--caramel to be precise.

I've been haunting the Internet looking for good recipes, copying and printing them only to change them around and make them my own by not bothering to *measure* anything.

I made two whiskey caramels. The first one I actually followed the recipe. The second one I didn't. Guess which one was the winner in my family . . . yeah, the second one. It's called Devil's Cut Caramel, and there's a story behind this.

I wandered into the liquor store last week to restock my Jack Daniels Black Label whiskey. It was slow and I started chatting with the owner. I'd talked to him quite a bit before Christmas and he knew I used liquor to make my fillings. Anyhoo, one question led to another and he was telling me the story of the Devil's Cut whiskey (Jim Beam). When one makes wine or other alcohol, you lose a little bit of the product every time you have to transfer it (the dead yeast and other solids fall out of solution during fermentation)--this is called the Angel's Cut. But the Devil's cut is when the distillers reuse whiskey barrels to pull the flavors out of the used oak to infuse the new blend. 

I had to try it.

When I got home, I made the whiskey caramel. Mmmmm. Good stuff. New recipe is a winner.

But this a talk about whiskey and I managed to get off track. Grrrr . . . doncha hate it when I do that?!

Basically caramel is burned sugar.

 *Be very, very careful when working with sugar! It sticks to skin and has to melt off with water. Do NOT try to pull it off!* Yes, I have the scar to prove it!

In a pan you put sugar and water, dissolving the sugar and then boiling it on low until the bubbles become tiny. Many recipes tell you to wet a brush and brush down the sides to prevent crystallization. Don't waste your time. Swirl the contents occasionally. Now this is the tricky part--don't walk away.
When the sugar water thickens slightly (coats the back of a spoon), it becomes a simple syrup, which is used in many recipes especially mixed drinks. Keep cooking the caramel and the color starts to change from a light tan to a dark amber. This is the critical time. If it goes too long, you've burnt it and have to start over again. Keep swirling and looking at your color with a bright light. When it hits the color you want add cream, butter and whatever else you need for your recipe. When you add the cream and other ingredients, it will solidify, but keep on swirling/stirring as it will remelt the solid sugar caramel. Just don't scrape the sides! (this is where the crystals will bite you in the butt!). Taste to check your flavors. And there you have a basic caramel to use in nut tarts or as a sauce for bread pudding.

BUT making caramel is also a technique.

To get the yummy hard caramels, you have to go a step further. The mixture MUST cook until it reaches the 'Hard Ball' stage on a candy thermometer 250-266 degrees F.  If a dollop of candy is cooled in water, then it can be depressed slightly when pressed between your fingers. Again, patience is a virtue because this tends to be a slow process, but once the liquids cook out enough, then it quickly reaches temperature. Once it reaches the correct temperature, the mixture is poured in a prepared pan (9 x 9, foil lined, sprayed with cooking spray for quick release), and cooled.

Some of my caramels (Grand Marnier, Chambord, Bananas Foster) aren't 'true' caramels, but they still have the wonderful mouth feel when you bite down and 'strings' apart. Plus once you coat them in chocolate, who really cares? I know I don't.

If you want me to stop talking candy, then you'll have to tell me . . . but then again, it's my blog and I'll do whatever I want. :-)

I WILL BE DONATING FIVE ONE-POUND BOXES OF MY CANDY TO BRENDA NOVAK'S FOR THE CURE AUCTION. Sorry, but I will only be able to send it to auction winners in the Continental United States. The cost to ship it, plus the heat will make it impossible for me to ship it anywhere else.

Later, Peeps

Experimenting with Caramel

Sooo . . . I've been experimenting with making caramel fillings. Well, one actually. The sea salt recipe was such a success that I wanted to try different flavors for caramel.

I love caramel, its rich, buttery goodness with each bite. The stiffness of it before it gives way, leaving impressions of your teeth in it. The way the chocolate covering enhances the flavor of the caramel. Ahhhhh . . .

Okay, I just love candy.

AND making it, so I thought I'd experiment with other flavors. The first one on my list was--Whiskey! I love the earthiness of a good Tennessee whiskey that I thought I'd try to incorporate the flavor into a caramel. The first batch didn't have the deep flavor that I was looking for--and I used nearly two cups of the stuff. Part of the problem is that alcohol tends to hit the sinuses with its essence which adds another level of enjoyment to the experience. Well, the alcohol cooks out, and no, I'm not about to add it after the fact. 

The texture was a little softer than I wanted, I was shooting for a stiffer caramel that could hold up to being cut and dipped, but it was incredibility smooth and buttery with just a hint of flavor. Once it is dipped, it will be harder to detect that flavor. I'll just have to figure out a way to concentrate the flavor. Once I figure out the recipe, then I can try other caramel flavors. I still like the idea of rum caramel, bananas foster, and cinnamon. Any other flavors you might be interested in me trying to make?

Oh, you want to know what brought on this fit of madness?

A few years ago, Brenda Novak's youngest son was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. She started a crusade to fight the disease and to provide money for much needed research, so she started an online auction that warped into For the Cure. With the exception of last year, I have donated a crocheted afghan--and I probably will crochet one again this year--but since I make 'artisan' candy, I thought I might donate a few boxes. I do have a few concerns about this, so it might not happen.

Yeah, I know it's a little

Anyhoo--I thought I'd experiment anyway . . . I have to get ready for candy season next year, right?