A mishap, a reprieve and gluten.

I tend to go through laptops rather quickly--too quickly! Unfortunately I spilled a lovely cup of coffee on the keyboard of my latest victim and of course it quickly went bye bye, along with thousands of photos--some published on this blog and others in que.............Pffffffffffffft! Yes, yes I did backup about 50% of the files and I have since received a lovely new one but am still so bummed thinking about all those lost files. 

I've been taking the down time to get my garden prepared for Spring and Summer. Preparing the garden is quite the chore! Weeding, tree trimming, ivy removal and preparing the vegetable beds with a new lot of compost, blood meal and other vital nutrients to revitalize the soil. This year I planted all the usual suspects: corn, brussel sprouts, carrots, heirloom tomatoes, a rainbow of potatoes, zucchini, bell and hot peppers, butternut and acorn squash, celery, lettuces, onions, beans and radishes. It's always a challenge trying to fit these veggies into my backyard so I have taken to planting some in the front! 

Another bummer for me is trying to figure out a new name for this blog. Apparently there is already a Naughty Chef and she is quite famous on the East Coast. I had googled "Naughty Chef" when I had first created this blog and was pleased with the non-results. Recently I googled it again and low and behold there she was. Change is good right? Once I load my software programs onto this laptop I'll be happily posting about the garden and of course food. 

Ohhhhhhhhhh one more important note: We think Mighty Moe is allergic to Gluten! My life is over as I know it. I've been experimenting with Gluten Free flours and recipes--certainly not the end of the world but it does make things a bit more challenging. Fortunately most Asian dishes are Gluten free already.  I'd love to hear from those of you who have gone gluten free as to the recipes you've developed or found and also about if you've noticed a change in your physical well being. 

That's all for now folks. Have a wonderful day and thanks for checking in on me!

The difference between English Toffee & Buttercrunch.

Before I attempt to clear up the confusion between Toffee & Buttercrunch, I'd like to wish everyone a prosperous and Happy New Year! 

Two turkeys, two hams and numerous holiday side dishes and dirty dishes later I'm happy to be posting recipes again. Each holiday I like to make a few homemade gifts in the form of candy and/or cookies, this year I kept it simple and settled on toffee and buttercrunch. Such an easy, rich buttery recipe yielding lots of yums and requests for more.  Mighty Moe's coworkers wife requested the recipe and I'm happy to share. 

Now whats the lowdown? Traditional English Toffee is made from brown sugar vs. Buttercrunchs' white granulated sugar. Traditional English Toffee doesn't contain nuts, just a nice topping of rich chocolate. Buttercrunch is much more casual and usually made with a plethora of nuts and other flavorings like flavored extract, coconut, dried fruit etc. 

I made 2 different batches of "Americanized Toffee" (meaning I used brown sugar but still added nuts and other flavorings) Dark Chocolate Almond and Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter. I also made a batch each of Milk Chocolate Almond Joy Buttercrunch and White & Milk Chocolate Almond Buttercrunch.

I have to say I do prefer using the brown sugar. The white sugar Buttercrunch tends to stick to teeth alot more then the brown sugar does. I also noticed a happy accident--if you heat the brown sugar up more than 300 degrees it has a slightly smoky chicory taste. . . I sense a bacon toffee experiment coming soon. 

Here are recipes for the 4 varieties I made, each yielding 2 pounds of goodness.

Dark Chocolate Almond Toffee Ingredients:

2 Cups Butter (not margarine)

1 Cup Chopped Almonds

2 Cups Dark Chocolate

2 Cups Light Brown Sugar (packed)

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt (depends on your own taste)

Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Toffee Ingredients:

2 Cups Butter

1 recipe of reeses peanut butter filling. (recipe is: heat 1/2 Cup Peanut Butter in microwave bowl for 40 seconds then mix in about 1/2 cup of powered sugar. Add more sugar per your taste).  

1 Cup Dark Chocolate

2 Cups Light Brown Sugar

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt (depends on your own taste)

Milk Chocolate Almond Joy Buttercrunch Ingredients:

2 Cups Butter

1 Cup Chopped Almonds

2 Cups Milk Chocolate 

2 Cups Granulated Sugar

2/3 Cup Flaked Coconut

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt (depends on your own taste)

White & Milk Chocolate Almond Swirl Ingredients:

2 Cups Butter

1 Cup Chopped Almonds

1 Cup Milk Chocolate

1 Cup White Chocolate

2 Cups Granulated Sugar

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt (depends on your own taste)

Directions:

For fool proof melting purposes, chop up the Chocolate chips or chunks in a food processor. 

Remove chopped chips and transfer to bowl. Wash and dry the food processor basin and add the almonds, pulsing until the almonds are small chunks. Remove nuts and spread on baking tray. Place into preheated 350 degree oven and roast until lightly toasted, approximately 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat. 

Prepare your cookie tray by lightly buttering and set aside (some people prefer lining their tray with wax paper but the butter works fine for me). 

In a saucepot (I use a non-stick pot with a wooden spoon to make clean up easier) on medium high heat, add butter, salt and sugar (brown or granulated depending on if you're making Toffee or Buttercrunch). Bring to a boil while stirring consistency (you don't have to be constant but consistent so it doesn't burn).

The mixture will start forming larger and larger "boils" the hotter it gets. Using a candy therometer check the temperature after 15 minutes. I like a soft crack and heat my mixture up to about 285 to 290 degrees. For hard candy crack heat until it reaches 310 degrees. Once it reaches your desired temperature immediately remove pan from heat and pour hot mixture onto prepared tray. 

Quickly sprinkle the chocolate evenly over the hot yummy ooze. If you're making white & milk chocolate swirl, place the white chips on first and spread. Then sprinkle milk chocolate chunks in smaller patches and let melt. Swirl the darker chocolate through the white chocolate to make a nice pattern. Use the same technique for the peanut butter and chocolate combination. Let sit for about 5 minutes to allow the chocolate to melt. 

Spread the melted chocolate. 

Add nuts, coconut or other enhancements. Place into fridge for at least 1 1/2 hours. 

To "crack" remove cooled tray from fridge and using the corner of a counter place tray onto counter surface, hang half of the tray over the edge and gently pressed bottom of tray over corner to break up the candy. After you've placed a nice wedge on a dessert plate for yourself, place the rest into airtight containers or gift packaging and store in fridge. 

Check back for Bacon Toffee and Chicory Coffee Toffee recipes! 

Hello Readers, just like the holidays, I'm back!

It's been awhile since I blogged and I wanted to let you all know I'm here and still cooking. I haven't fallen off the face of this lovely earth nor gone on a dreaded diet. Life has been a bit chaotic and things are not winding down!  :)

It's beautiful, sunny and dry here in the PNW today and I'll be finishing up some outdoor fall cleanup chores involving the flower and vegetable beds. I hope those of you that share my love of gardening had a bountiful harvest this year. As always my heirloom tomatoes made it all worth it for me--nothing better then fresh out of the garden and into salads and homemade sauces!

I cannot believe Thanksgiving is next week........my absolute favorite holiday. For me as well as I believe many of you, Thanksgiving is all about family and friends, reflecting on what we are fortunate to have in our lives. We've saved a bundle on our grocery bill this month since I've been trying to use everything up in my freezer and fridge in order to free up space for all the deliciously satisfying holiday food. As with many couples we here split the holiday between our two families, meaning we officially celebrate twice. I also prepare a private dinner with all the trimmings here at home--I'm a bit of a turkey sandwich fanatic and can't seem to be satisfied with take home bags. Every year we purchase 2 turkeys and a smoked ham to create comfort dinners with. Since our turkey is for our immediate family consumption, I roast it in an oven bag with herbs, seasonings and lots of butter until the meat falls from the bone (think rotisserie chicken. YUM!) and don't give a fig about what it looks like. :)

Signing off for now. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you. To those of you who have been affected by hurricane Sandy, my heart goes out to you along with my well wishes and good energy.