Haystacks...Simple Chocolatey Goodness

I haven't been able to make posts like I normally would like to. Going back into teaching has taken me away from the time to make my usual blog posts when I was working in the corporate side. No worries though. I have actually enjoyed being back in education with these kids. They really have warmed up to me and they really want to learn.

Well for this go around, I wanted to post something that everyone can make easily, but it would be a conversation piece for any occasion. This is a very simple recipe, but its a great dessert as it is very rich, but you can't stop eating it.

  

A while back, we had a game night and I brought this over. They were a hit! I am definitely going to be making these for gatherings etc. Someone couldn't help but eat some of the chocolatey goodness...

 Ingredients: (Remember, you might want to cut the recipe as it yields a lot of haystacks)


12 oz bag semisweet chocolate
1/2 cup milk chocolate
2-3 cups smokehouse almonds (depends on how salty you want it)
1-2 cups chow mein noodles
2-3 cups mixed nuts
1 1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 1/2 cup dried blueberries

First, start by boiling your water in a medium sized pot. I am creating a double boiler this way. Obtain a glass bowl and you will be able to slowly melt the chocolate in the boiling water.

While the water is boiling, you can add all of the ingredients together with the exception of the chocolate. This is a salty yet sweet treat so many adults really would like this. Incorporate well. Place off to the side.

 

When the water is starting to boil, you can add the glass bowl with the chocolate. Make sure you are constantly mixing as the chocolate will start to melt. Once the chocolate is melted, take off the heat as you don't want to overdo it with the the chocolate.

Incorporate the chocolate into the mixture. Make sure you incorporate the chocolate well into the whole mixture making sure to remember not to overdo it.

You can make your haystacks onto parchment. What I have done instead is place them into cupcake cups as they will harden and its great for individual servings. In order to have them harden, place into the refrigerator for about an hour.

Again, this is great for gatherings as its pretty and people will not stop eating this. Do this way ahead of time and people will think that you slaved over to make these decadent treats.

Red Eye Gravy

I do love different types of gravies or sauces. Like I have said in the past, if you don't know how to make a good sauce or gravy, you need to learn. I have learned that good gravies/sauces help mask when you mess up a meal. Well not really, but its nice to think that! (*chuckle*)

This recipe is something that I came across a long time ago. I have made it a couple of times and prefer to use it with pork.

Ingredients:

olive oil
2 pork chops
2 tbsp salted butter
1 cup white mushrooms (baby bellas work as well)
2 - 3 tbsp all purpose flour
2 cups cold coffee
1 tbsp Worcestershire
1 tbsp whole peppercorn
salt if needed
Optional - 1/2 cup heavy cream

Sear the pork chops with the olive oil. Do this to both sides. You don't want to over cook the chops. You just want to brown them on both sides. You can finish cooking it in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes or until how well done you would like it cooked.

Place the pork chops off to the side. I am cutting the pork chops in half and adding a dressing full of mushrooms and other good stuff. This doesn't have to be anything fancy. If you don't want to have stuffed pork chops, that is ok. Just keep it simple.

Now you are ready to make your red eye gravy. Using the same pan that you cooked the pork chops in, add the 2 tbsp of butter. Once the butter has melted, add the mushrooms. Brown them and add some Worcestershire to the cooking mushrooms.

After you have cooked the mushrooms, move off to the side. Add the flour to the heated pan. Whisk the flour with a small whisk making sure the flour is cooked down and brown. Don't get it too brown (unless you want to).

Add the coffee to the flour mixture. Continue to stir. Also add the peppercorns to the sauce. Stir to make sure its well incorporated. Taste to see if you need to add additional salt.

As you can tell, this will be a great addition to the pork chop. I have also make a twice baked potato with a side salad. Very very good!!

 

Recently, I have made this with no mushrooms and added some heavy cream. This makes the red eye gravy lighter as well as creamier. This time I diced the pork into bite sized pieces along with fresh green beans, and garlic mashed new potatoes.

Salsa Tomatillo/Tomatillo Sauce

As in previous posts, I have shown you how to make a variety of salsas. This is one type of salsa that you can have it already premade, but I do prefer to make my own. This salsa is great to use as a sauce for other dishes.

Ingredients:

6 - 8 tomatillos
1 32 oz container of chicken broth (or 32 oz water)
1 large onion
4 jalapeños
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tbsp cumin
1 tsp mexican oregano (or 1 tbsp oregano)
1 bunch of cilantro
salt and pepper to taste

First, start to take the leaves off of the tomatillos. I like to use tomatillos as they bring color to some of my dishes.

Make sure you rinse them and place off to the side. Keep them whole as the boiling process will help in softening the tomatillos.

Start the heat on high and prepare a pot in which you are going to boil the tomatillos. Place half of the broth into the pot.

Add the tomatillos to the pot. Add the rest of the broth if you need to cover the tomatillos.

Dice up the onions and the jalapeños. With the jalapeños, you can take off some of the seeds and veins. This has the most heat, but I prefer to keep the veins with three of the jalapeños and devein the other. Once done, add to the pot.

 

 

Bring this to a boil. You can tell it is done because the tomatillos will have a not so green color. They should also be soft to the touch.

With the blender, add the tomatillos onions and jalapeños. Notice that I am adding the veggies first. Add the broth or liquid to the veggies.

Add the additional spices to the blender.

 

Puree the mixture until well blended. Add additional salt and pepper if you need to. I prefer not to add salt since I might have this with chips, but I tend to use it for enchiladas verdes or enchiladas verdes casserole.