meringues

Make These Desserts Ahead and Enjoy Your Holiday!

Posted on December 21, 2011 by Alison Ashton — 7 Comments ↓

I’ve always considered desserts the simplest part of the holiday feast. That’s because you can get it all done–or at least, mostly done–a couple of days before the big day so you have plenty of time to attend to other chores and dishes.

Here are five delicious, seasonal desserts that you can make at least two to three days ahead and savor throughout the holidays.

Apple Pie with Chinese Five Spice and Hazelnut Crumb Topping. Chinese five spice powder adds a surprising, bright note to the cooked caramel-y apple filling while a nutty crumb topping adds crunch. You can make the Toasted Nut Pastry Dough up to a week ahead, pop it in the fridge, and then cook the filling, blind-bake the crust and finish off the pie a couple of days before the holiday. (Pressed for time? Pick up a pre-made whole-wheat pastry crust. We won’t tell.)
Spiced Pumpkin Harvest Bundt Cake with Pecans. Linda West Eckhardt created this homey, old-fashioned treat to celebrate NOURISH Evolution’s first birthday. It’s golden and rich with warm spices and a lemony glaze. Leftovers will make delightful snacks all weekend long.
Chocolate Angel Food Cake. For some crowds, only chocolate will do, so whip up our angel food cake. Only instead of macerated strawberries, pair it with Grandma Friese’s Whole Cranberries, which are soaked in port. It’s a gorgeous holiday presentation.
Small bites. Desserts don’t have to be lavish to end the feast on a high note, and your guests may well appreciate a selection of little treats. (Honestly, I’m tempted to go this route myself this year.) Decorated with dried cranberries and slivered almonds, Crunchy Ruby-Studded Meringue Buttons are light and festively pretty. Our Chocolate Orange Pistachio Biscotti are prefect for dunking in after-dinner coffee, while these Boozy Orange-Pecan Truffles are rich-tasting, impressive and not too heavy. Make extra and freeze ‘em to enjoy throughout the holiday season.
Pumpkin Tart with Maple Whipped Cream and Toasted Walnuts. Graham crackers, sugar and butter add up to the world’s easiest crust for this tart. Add a simple, spicy pumpkin filling and you’re good to go. Bake the tart up to two days before the feast and store it in the fridge. You also can whip the cream a day or two in advance and refrigerate it. Toast the nuts a day or two ahead and stash them in an airtight container.

Have a happy–and sweet–holiday!

6 Halloween Treats to Nourish Your Favorite Goblins

Posted on October 27, 2010 by Alison Ashton — No Comments ↓

As I’ve noted here before, things were different when I was a kid. It was the era of Space Age food, Tang and TV dinners. Come to think of it, thanks to Tang, I can’t stand to drink fresh orange juice with pulp to this day. Halloween was no exception. By the time we were 5, my friends and I were skipping up the block unsupervised to demand candy from the neighbors.

I knew to bring my haul home for Mom to inspect before I opened even one little Tootsie Roll or package of Smarties. We’d dump the contents of my trick-or-treating bag onto the dining room table and she’d paw through it, pulling out anything that looked vaguely suspicious. It was, after all, the age of urban legends about razor blades in apples and poisoned candy. That meant any unpackaged goodies were discarded–pieces of fruit and homemade treats (unless I could absolutely, positively recall who had given to me).

Looking back, I think that concern was really an excuse for Mom to set aside her favorite treats to nibble when I wasn’t looking. I was OK with that, as long as she didn’t swipe my Clark bars.

Times have changed, though. Kids still go trick-or-treating, of course, but little ghouls and goblins are just as likely to gather for a party at a friend’s house. In that case, homemade Halloween treats will trump the store-bought kind every time. With that in mind, here are 6 treats from the NOURISH Evolution kitchens. Happy Halloween, my little fiends!

Noe’s Remixed Party Mix. Unlike me and my mom, not everyone has a raging sweet tooth. Put out bowls of this savory, updated version of Chex mix to help counteract the holiday sugar high.

No-Bake Peanut Butter Treats. Little ghosts will gobble up these these chocolate-topped popcorn squares no time. If you want to enjoy any yourself, take my mom’s cue and set aside a couple of them before the party starts.

Salted Pistachio Brittle. Crunchy, salty and sweet, this brittle is delightful on its own or sprinkled over vanilla ice cream.

Ruby-Studded Meringue Buttons. For Halloween, you can use candy corn in place of the dried fruit and almonds called for in this recipe. Boo!

Fair-Trade Chocolate Earthquake Cookies. Made with dark chocolate, these cookies are full of deep-flavored goodness that will appeal to grown-up ghouls who haven’t figured out that they’ve outgrown trick-or-treating. (No, you’re never really too old.)

Maple Caramel Popcorn. This goody is mildly addictive, but because it’s based on fiber-rich popcorn it’s also filling so you can’t overindulge. Well, not too much, anyway…

Ruby-Studded Meringue Buttons

Posted on December 4, 2009 by Lia Huber — No Comments ↓

These little meringue buttons studded with cranberry and cherry “rubies” and slivered almonds are light as air. They make gorgeous gifts, and are great as little nibbles amid the rich fare of the holidays.

8 large egg whites, at room temperature
Sea salt
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
3/4 cup dried cherries and cranberries, finely chopped
1/2 cup blanched and slivered almonds, lightly toasted

Preheat oven to 175 degrees F and arrange racks in top and bottom thirds of the oven. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.

In a clean metal bowl, beat egg whites and a pinch of salt in a stand mixer with a whisk attachment on high speed (or use a handheld mixer fitted with whisk attachments) to just beyond when they hold soft peaks (about a minute). Add sugar gradually, continuing to beat until all the sugar is incorporated and the mixture makes stiff peaks. Add the almond extract and continue beating a bit longer until peaks turn shiny. Total beating time will be about 2-1/2 minutes.

Scoop mixture into a pastry bag (you may have to do this in two batches, depending on the size of your pastry bag) fitted with a mid-sized fluted tip and pipe 1-inch mounds, leaving a finger-width of space in between each. Continue piping until mixture is used up and both sheets are filled.

Carefully sprinkle the fruit and almonds onto the meringues. Bake for 2 hours, swapping the cookie sheets half way through. Turn off the oven and let the meringues cool in the oven for 30 minutes.

Makes 100