Chocolate Mousse Bites

A couple of weeks ago I made some peppermint patties that, even if I do say so myself, turned out so much better than I thought they would.  So good in fact that I've had requests for more of them!!  So today my little kitchen is back in 'Willie Wonka' mode with chocolate flying in all directions (well, hopefully not, but you get the idea :o)

Aside from the patties though, I thought I'd add another candy.  I want to make up some candy tins for friends so I think having a little mix will be nice.  These bite sized chocolate mousse treats are creamy and similar to milky way bars, not quite as 'airy'; hopefully everyone else will like them, and they're very simple to make.

Chocolate Mousse Bites
64 treats

2 cups semi-sweet dark chocolate chips
2 cups milk chocolate chips
1 Litre tub of frozen Coolwhip, thawed
2 Tbs vegetable oil

• line an 8-inch square pan with wax paper (higher than the pan for easy removal) and set aside.
• in a medium bowl melt the 2 cups of dark chocolate chips in a microwave (in 20 second increments, stirring after each one), until smooth.
• using a hand held electric mixer beat the melted chocolate for about 30 seconds; add the thawed coolwhip and whisk until combined well and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes more.
• spread the chocolate mixture evenly into the prepared pan and place in a freezer for 45-60 minutes until firmed up slightly.
• remove the pan from the freezer, lift out the firmed up chocolate 'mousse' using the wax paper, and on a cutting board, cut into one-inch squares and place onto a cutting board or baking sheet lined with more wax paper.  
• return the squares to the freezer for another 30-40 minutes.
• just before the end of the second freezing time, melt the 2 cups of milk chocolate chips and vegetable oil in a microwave (20 seconds increments), until smooth.
• remove the squares from the freezer and using two forks dip each 'mousse' square into the melted chocolate and place onto wax paper until set completely.  Can be placed in the refrigerator to speed up this process.
• keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

 Chocolate Mousse Bites ingredients.

line an 8-inch pan with wax paper - if you cut it long so that it is higher than the sides, it's easier to remove the firm mousse from the pan.

after you melt the chocolate whisk it for about 30 seconds.

add the thawed coolwhip.

doesn't it look pretty as it's blending in :o)

level it off in the pan - it's really sticky at this stage.

once the mousse has been in the freezer (mine was in for just under an hour), cut it into 1-inch squares.  It's still a little sticky so they probably won't come out perfect squares - they'll still taste good though, even if they're a little misshapen :o)

melt the milk chocolate ready to coat the candies.

dip the 'squares' in the milk chocolate and place onto wax paper to dry completely.

mmmmm.....chocolate and more chocolate - it's a shame that my blood sugar rises just looking at them!!!

Potato Chips

mmmmmm....potato chips....mmmmmm.
Much to the regret of my waistline...and hips....and thighs....and, well every part of me, I LOVE potato chips.  Lots of different flavours, although I have to admit top of the list is a toss up between plain salted or salt and vinegar most of the time.  What I don't like about them, apart from the calories that is, is the price of them.  It wouldn't be so bad if the bags were full when you opened them, but more often than not you open that puffed bag and peer inside to a half empty cavern!!

At least by making them yourself you don't feel like you're being cheated by buying air!!! 
These are just a basic salted chip, but of course sprinkle over whatever flavouring you want from dried herbs or spices to even grated parmesan cheese - let your imagination go wild :o)

Potato Chips
makes as many as you want

Canola cooking spray
potatoes, unpeeled (preferably something like yukon gold)
salt

• preheat the oven to 375 F.
• for easy clean-up, line a couple of baking sheets with foil.
• spray each one lightly with cooking spray and using a piece of kitchen towel spread the oil evenly across the sheets, soaking up any excess.
• slice the potatoes to about 1/8 inch (either with a knife or if you have one, a mandolin), and place on the baking sheets in a single layer.
• spray lightly with a little more cooking spray and 'dab' with some kitchen towel to remove excess.
• bake for 20-30 minutes until browned and crispy - check at 20 minutes and remove any that have browned up quickly so they don't burn.
• gently place the hot potato chips on some kitchen towel and sprinkle with the salt while still warm.

 Potato Chip ingredients.

lightly spray the baking sheets with cooking spray.

layer the potato slices in a single layer.

while they're still hot, place onto kitchen towel and sprinkle with salt.

Lemon Cheesecake (alternative base)

Okay, I know yesterday I said that I was going to make my lemon cheesecake with a raspberry 'swirl' through the middle of it - well, change of plans.  We ended up with lemon cheesecake covered with warm raspberry sauce.  Not because it wouldn't of tasted AWESOME with the swirl, or looked fabulous, but mainly because I completely forgot to add it!!!  I just carried on making the cheesecake as I usually do and it wasn't until it was already half way through cooking that I remembered - oh well, maybe next time :o)

I did make a few differences this time though, which is why I decided to include this little updated post.  Instead of making two cheesecakes as I usually do, I went with one 'tall' dessert instead, so it ended up baking for about an extra 10-15 minutes (50-55 minutes).  I also changed the base from my usual digestive biscuit base and this time used Oreo cookies - this just might now be my 'usual' base - it was delicious!!!

So anyway, I won't bother with the whole recipe again here, just some photos for the base, but you can get my original recipe for lemon cheesecake here.

I used my Magic Bullet to make the Oreo crumbs but use whatever works for you.

I found that a whole pack of Oreos along with the regular amount of butter from my original recipe is a good mix.

as I mentioned, I only made one cheesecake this time, so the base was a little thicker - so I baked it for 15 minutes this time.

It was so tall it started to come over the top of the pan!!!

with the added raspberry sauce (sorry, by the time I thought of taking a photo including the sauce, most of it was already eaten :o), and the chocolate base, this was delicious!!!

Raspberry Sauce

We have very dear friends of ours coming around on Tuesday for a little Christmas get together so tomorrow I'm going to make my lemon cheesecake, but I've decided this time to 'jazz' it up a little by adding a swirl of homemade raspberry sauce through it.  I'm hoping it works - fingers crossed.
If it doesn't work I know I'll have enough sauce left over to drizzle over the french vanilla ice cream I have in the freezer so I have a backup plan - it's always a good idea. :o)

Raspberry Sauce
about 1 1/2 to 2 cups

2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbs orange juice
2 Tbs cornstarch
1 cup cold water

• combine the raspberries, sugar and orange juice in a saucepan.
• whisk the cornstarch into the cold water until dissolved and smooth; add to the raspberries and bring to a boil.
• reduce heat slightly and simmer for 5 minutes, stirring constantly until thickened (the sauce will thicken further while cooling).
• into a bowl, strain the sauce through a fine mesh sieve to remove the seeds.
• the sauce can be served warm or cold; it will keep in the refrigerator for a couple of weeks.

 Raspberry Sauce ingredients.

whisk the cornstarch into the water until dissolved, and put the raspberries, sugar and orange juice into a saucepan.

pour the water and cornstarch over the raspberries.

bring to the boil and reduce heat.

simmer for 5 minutes, stirring constantly - just look at that beautiful ruby red colour.

strain through a fine mesh sieve to remove the seeds.

it's still warm but you can already see how it coats the back of the spoon - it will get even thicker as it cools down.

it was so delicious that we decided to have a little of the still warm sauce over that vanilla ice cream I mentioned.  Yummy!!!!

Christmas Day Roast Dinner

I apologies in advance that you're not going to get my usual ingredients, instructions and step by step photos for this post - quite frankly there was just so much going on in my little kitchen today that I would of probably ended up putting my camera down somewhere and roasting it with the potatoes!!!  So instead it's going to be a very short post just letting you know what we had (because honestly I was very proud of myself this year - my roast potatoes and yorkshire puddings especially came out just about 'perfect' and I promise that one day soon I will cook them again to let you know what perfection tastes like :o)

Our bellies were full of:
roast turkey
'perfect' roast potatoes
maple roasted parsnips and baby carrots
brussel sprouts in butter sauce
sage and onion bread stuffing
HUGE 'perfect' yorkshire puddings (best I've ever made!)
and of course.......turkey gravy

After the delicious breakfast that we'd had of eggs benedict my original plan to have a lunch-time Christmas meal was delayed (still too full of buttery hollandaise sauce) so we ended up having it at about 4 pm - luckily it was just Dean and I so we could have it whenever we wanted it :o)

I told you my yorkshire's were HUGE - take my word for it, underneath that behemoth in the middle of the plate there is turkey, parsnips and carrots too :o)

x  MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL  x

Eggs Benedict

Happy Holidays
Merry Christmas
Joyous Kwanzaa
Season's Greetings
Happy Hanukkah (okay, I think I'm late with that one this year!)
Joyeux Noel
Feliz Navidad
Mele Kalikimaka
.....and all the others..... :o)

Well, here we are - it's Christmas Day.  Thoughts and good wishes are sent out to family and friends, near and far.  Gifts from Santa have been opened and appreciated (hopefully you were all good this year :o).  A day long 'The Big Bang Theory' marathon has begun on the Comedy channel.  The cats have played with their new toys, stuffed their faces with treats and are now in a comatosed state in separate rooms (nothing new there then!).  Hubby and various other online warriors are saving the cyber world via his latest xBox game.....and our bellies are full from my Christmas Day breakfast of eggs benedict.  Roll on the turkey and stuffing...

If you feel so inclined, by all means make your hollandaise sauce the longer, more labour intensive way of whisking until your arms feel like wet noodles, but this blender method is soooo much easier, and if the empty plates are any indication, just as good :o) 

Eggs Benedict
serves 2 (hungry people on Christmas morning)

2 english muffins
4 slices canadian back bacon
4 large eggs

hollandaise sauce
3 egg yolks
1 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp dry mustard powder
1/4 tsp salt
pinch cayenne pepper
1/2 cup butter

• starting with the hollandaise sauce, in a blender add the egg yolks, lemon juice, mustard, salt and cayenne pepper; blend on high for 1 minute until slightly frothy and lighter in colour.
• melt the butter until hot but not boiling, either in a small saucepan on the stove top or as I did, in the microwave.
• with the blender on the lowest setting, slowly pour in the hot butter and watch the sauce thicken (the sauce should stay warm enough until everything else is ready but if you're concerned you can place the blender container in a bowl of hot water to keep it warm and give it another very quick blend before serving.)
• meanwhile, split the muffins and pop them in a toaster (or under a broiler) to toast.
• in a frying pan sprayed with a little non-stick cooking spray, fry the bacon until cooked.
• either using a 4 pan egg poacher (I have one that my Mum bought me :o), or whichever method you like, poach your eggs to your own preferred 'doneness' - we like ours runny for eggs benedict.
• assemble the eggs benedict;  english muffin, slice of bacon, poached egg, hollandaise sauce and sprinkle with a little black or cayenne pepper.
• we only wanted the eggs benedict today, but if we're really hungry (or usually if we're out at a restaurant and someone else is cooking we might have some pan fried potatoes alongside :o)

 Eggs Benedict ingredients.

 put all the hollandaise sauce ingredients, except the hot butter, into a blender.

blend on high power for a minute until light in colour and slightly frothy.

frying off the canadian back bacon - mmmmmmm.

this is part of my 4 pan egg poacher (the frying pan part is on the stove top heating up).

start assembling - toasted muffins...

(as a side note, don't you just LOVE our beautiful daisy plates :o)

yummy bacon...

poached eggs...

slather with creamy, buttery hollandaise sauce and sprinkle with pepper.

delicious!!!

Nachos

Christmas Eve is definitely the time for a quick and easy dinner.  Hubby worked today and I wasn't entirely sure what time he would be home, so I wanted something that I could throw together without too much effort but that was warm and filling - it's done nothing but pour with rain for the last 3 or 4 days so we're all feeling decidedly damp at the moment, and who doesn't like nachos?  As usual I made a huge batch, and froze the remainder of the beef mixture in a couple of servings each for other times.

Nachos

1 kg ground beef
1 (430ml) jar of salsa
1 (127ml) can of chopped green chillies
a couple of splashes of Tabasco sauce
pinch of salt and pepper
bag of your favourite tortilla chips
grated cheese (I cheated and bought a pre-grated Taco/Nacho blend)
sour cream (to serve)

• in a large skillet over medium to high heat, fry the ground beef until no longer pink.
• add the salsa, green chillies and Tabasco sauce; mix together.
• turn heat down slightly and simmer for 10-15 minutes until liquid has reduced; taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, add more Tabasco if desired.
• on a large plate arrange a layer of tortilla chips.
• top with a couple of large spoonfuls of the beef mixture, followed by some grated cheese (to own personal preference).
• follow with another tortilla, beef and cheese layer.
• microwave the nachos in the microwave for a couple of minutes to melt the cheese and enjoy :)

 Nachos ingredients

even if you use extra lean ground beef (like I did) you won't need any extra oil, you'll get enough from the beef.

add the salsa and green chillies once the beef is no longer pink.

simmer for about 10-15 minutes to reduce the liquid and thicken; it will also darken slightly.

start with a layer of tortilla chips on the plate.

add a layer of the beef mixture.

then some grated cheese.

carry on making as many layers as you want (we just had two of everything)

pop in a microwave for a couple of minutes just to melt the cheese.

finally grab a big serving in a bowl, have lots of napkins on hand, and enjoy!! :o)