Holiday Spiced Nuts

I tried a new nut mix recipe from the Williams-Sonoma Holiday Entertaining Cookbook and have received rave reviews. I plan to give these nuts as little holiday gifts to friends and family this year. I purchased simple cellophane treat bags and pretty ribbon from Target to wrap the nuts in.



Spiced Rosemary Nuts

makes about 2 1/2 cups

2 1/2 cups mixed raw nuts
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Place the nuts in a bowl. In a small, heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, warm the olive oil. Add the rosemary and stir until aromatic, about 1 minute. Pour the seasoned oil over the nuts. Add the sugar, cumin, salt, black pepper, and cayenne and stir nuts to coat evenly. Transfer the nuts to a baking pan. Bake, stirring occasionally, until the nuts are toasted, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a plate and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

Best Pumpkin Bread Ever!

My husband has been waiting all year for his favorite pumpkin bread and I know I'll be making a lot of it this season because it's so delicious. This recipe was adapted from a recipe my mother-in-law gave me. I accidentally purchased the canned pumpkin that already had the spices in it and it turned out so delicious and yummy!

Pumpkin Bread

2 1/4 cups of Libby pumpkin pie mix (make sure it has the spices in it – in 30 oz can)
3 cups sugar
1 cup canola oil
2/3 cup water
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 ½ cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp salt
½ tsp cinnamon
½ tsp fresh grated nutmeg (or in the can if you don’t have fresh)
Dash ground ginger
Dash cloves

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease and flour bottoms of two loaf pans (or use pam spray). In a large bowl, blend the pumpkin, sugar, oil, water, eggs and vanilla. Mix using an electric mixer for a couple of minutes at medium speed. Fold in remaining ingredients then mix at low speed until well moistened. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake at 350 for 55 to 70 minutes (it seems to vary depending on the time of year). Cool in pans for about 15 minutes then invert on a cutting board or plate. Cool completely. Wrap tightly in saran wrap and tin foil – this keeps the bread moist for days.

Enjoy!!

Swedish Meatballs Oh My!

I made one of my favorite dishes this week -- Swedish meatballs! They are so yummy. Definitely make them when you are in the mood for something hearty. They aren't hard to make but you do need to devote some time to shaping the meat into balls. This recipe probably takes about 1 hour to make.


Nellie’s Swedish Meatballs

6 TB butter
1 TB grated onion with juice preserved
2/3 cup bread crumbs
1 cup water
½ pound lean ground beef
¼ pound ground veal
¼ pound ground pork
1 tsp salt
½ tsp ground nutmeg
½ tsp allspice
½ tsp pepper
½ tsp sugar
3 TB flour
2 cups beef broth

Sauté the onion and onion juice in 1 TB of the butter for 1-2 minutes. In the large bowl of an electric mixer combine the bread crumbs and water and soak for 1-2 minutes. Add the meats, spices and sugar. Beat on a low speed until smooth then turn the mixer to high and mix until the meat mixture is light and fluffy, about 8-10 minutes. Shape the meat into small meatballs (Swedish meatballs aren’t large like Italian meatballs) and place on a cookie sheet. Melt the remaining butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the meatballs and brown all sides by shaking the pan so they brown easily. Drain the meatballs on paper towels. Add the flour to the pan and stir over medium heat for about 1 minute. Slowly add the beef broth and stir until the gravy is thick and brown. Add the meatballs to the gravy. Serve over mashed potatoes or egg noodles.

*** Grated onions with juice make these meatballs very moist

*** Try sprinkling a little flour over the meat mixture and on your hands to help the meat from sticking to your skin. You can also use two spoons dipped in ice water to make the meatballs. I find that I can’t usually “roll” this meat mixture into balls b/c it’s too sticky. I more or less drop rounds of meat into the frying pan.

It seems counter intuitive to mix the meat using an electric mixer since meat gets tough if you work with it too much, however, these turn out super moist this way! I place a towel over the mixer to prevent a meat mess!