Cookies served with a milk “shooter” —
what could be better?!
Looking for the best homemade ice cream sandwich cookies? Look no further. These gelato panini’s with molasses cookies are what you’re searching for!
Two is better than one!
What’s better than one chocolate chip cookie recipe? Two chocolate chip cookie recipes! Our original recipe (the first recipe below) makes a devastatingly delicious chocolate chip cookie that is at it’s best if you eat it warm right out of the oven or within about 4 hours of baking. It has been our go to recipe for decades because we make our desserts fresh the day of our events.
But we’ve had requests and occasionally need to make a cookie that will keep longer. That’s when we came up with the second recipe. You can freeze the dough and put the frozen cookies right on the cookie sheet and bake them. AND these cookies even freeze well once they’ve been baked! Simply seal them in an airtight container. Note – this freezer friendly recipe is really loaded with chocolate chips – the chocolate lovers in your family will love them!!
Enjoy! Mary
Mary Crafts-Homer
and our next episode
will be launching in
APRIL
MARCH RECIPE OF THE MONTH
Original Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes 60 average size cookies
Makes 60 average size cookies
Ingredients
2 cups (4 sticks) Butter
2 cups + 4 T Granulated sugar
2 cups Brown sugar
3 large eggs
1T Vanilla
1/3 cup Corn syrup
3 1/3 cup All purpose flour
4 1/2 cup Cake flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking soda
3/4 tsp Salt
2 bags (11oz each) Milk chocolate chips
Method
Cream butter and sugars
Add eggs 1 at a time
Add vanilla and corn syrup
Add chocolate chips
Scoop about 2 1/2 tablespoons of dough per cookie
Bake at 325 F for 10-12 minutes until golden brown
New Chocolate Chip Cookies
makes 12 ginormous cookies
Ingredients
8 oz butter, cold (we use unsalted, but if you use salted, cut back on the salt amount)
1 cup Brown sugar
1/2 cup Sugar
2 large eggs
1 T Vanilla
1 1/2 cups Cake flour
1 1/2 cups All purpose flour
1 tsp Corn starch
3/4 tsp Baking soda
3/4 tsp Sea salt (less if you use salted butter)
2 cups Milk chocolate chips
2 cups Walnuts (optional) we usually don’t use them
Method
Cream the butter and sugar
Add eggs one at a time, add the vanilla
Add dry ingredients until 80% mixed, stir in choc chips and walnuts if using.
Portion out cookies and freeze the dough. We find it if you freeze the dough a bit before you bake them it helps them keep their shape. A half a cup of dough equals one cookie. So measure out the dough and freeze for at least 30 minutes. Yes, these are jumbo cookies!
Bake at 400 F for 12 to 15 minutes. Be sure and watch closely as every oven will vary. They should be slightly brown around the edges and still appear soft and the center.
Comforting Corn Custard
This is one of our most requested recipes. It’s a corn custard, kind of like corn pudding, but even better! You won’t believe how silky smooth it is and how much corn flavor is packed into this modest serving of delicious custard. It’s updated, old-fashioned goodness! And, while your custard is in the oven, check the next episode on our YouTube channel, The Craft(s). It’s all about comfort food!
Enjoy! Mary
Mary Crafts-Homer
Mary Crafts-Homer
We often serve this sweet corn custard with a mushroom sauce, or garnish it with sliced green onion.
and the next episode
“Comfort Food”
will be launching
March 10th
FEBRUARY RECIPE OF THE MONTH
Sweet Corn Custard
Makes 10 – 4 oz. appetizer or small side dish portions
Ingredients
Pan Spray (like “Pam”)
6 Ears of fresh sweet corn (or 3 cups frozen corn, thawed)
4 Cups of heavy cream
8 Large eggs
2 Cups of grated Jack cheese
2 teaspoon of salt
½ teaspoon of ground black pepper
Method
1) Preheat oven to 325-degrees.
2) Using pan spray, generously coat the inside of 10 3-inch/4-ounce ramekins. Set aside.
3) Using a serrated knife, cut the corn kernels off the cobb – you want to get as much of the tender kernel as possible without getting the woody part of the cobb, or thaw 3 cups of the frozen corn.
4) Put corn in a saucepan, add 4 cups of heavy cream and bring to a low simmer and let it simmer for 5 minutes – you are infusing that cream with sweet corn flavor. After 5 minutes of simmering, cool down the mixture and put in a blender. Run the blender until the mixture is smooth.
5) Strain the pureed corn and cream through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl, discard any solids that are in the strainer.
6) Grate 2 cups of Jack cheese.
7) Crack 8 eggs and add to the bowl, along with your grated Jack cheese, 1 teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of ground black pepper, stir well to break up the eggs, but don’t whisk in any air into the eggs – they shouldn’t be foamy.
8) Now add your heavy cream that has been infused with the corn and stir it through.
9) Fill the ramekins ¾ full of the mixture. Set the filled ramekins in a 9 X 13 pan. Put hot water from the tap in a pitcher, and gently pour the hot water around the ramekins, without letting it splash into the custard cups (this is a water bath). You should end up with the water coming up ¾ of the way up the sides of the ramekins.
10) Cover the pan and the ramekins with foil and take a knife and punch a few holes in the foil to allow the steam to escape.
11) Carefully move the water bath to your preheated oven (325 degrees) and bake the custards for 35 to 40 minutes, until they are set firm, but are still creamy inside (if they are too runny, you won’t be able to unmold them).
12) Take the custards out of the oven, and hold them in the 9 X 13 pan, still covered with the foil, staying warm in the hot water until you are ready to serve.
For Serving
You can leave the custard in the ramekins and serve that way, or, to unmold them run a small paring knife between the custard and the ramekin to help release the edges of the custard. Turn out and unmold them onto your plate or bowl. Serve forth!
The new year is such an exciting time! We’re looking forward to creating our February Valentine’s Pop-up Restaurant, and launching our new YouTube Channel, TheCraft(s), but first, I’ll tell you about a favorite winter salad. We get so many requests for this salad this time of year we wanted to send out the recipe. It’s a light and refreshing winter salad with an incredibly delicious vinaigrette…and it features pistachio’s! Did you know that pistachio’s are grown in Southern Utah? You’ll be able to find Utah pistachio’s at almost any local grocery store. You’ll love serving it as a starter for dinner or pairing it with soup for lunch. Garnishing this salad with sliced apples or pears is a healthy way to take it up a notch.
Enjoy! Mary
Mary Crafts-Homer
Garnish this salad with apples or pears for extra deliciousness
Our next pop-up will be a night to remember
JANUARY RECIPE OF THE MONTH
Winter Salad with Poppy Seed Vinaigrette
with Roasted Pistachios, Gorgonzola & Dried Figs
Serves 10
Salad Ingredients
1 pound mix greens (farm greens)
1 cup of roasted pistachios (toasted)
1 cup of crumbled Gorgonzola cheese (4 ounces Gorgonzola, crumbled)
1 cup of dried figs (cut in quarters) We love using fresh figs when they are in season!
1 cup of poppy seed vinaigrette
Ingredients for the Poppy Seed Vinaigrette
1.5 Tbsp of mayonnaise
2 Tbsp of red wine vinegar
1 Tbsp of honey
1/4 cup of vegetable oil or olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp of poppy seeds
Method
Combine mayo, vinegar and honey in a blender. Blend until smooth. With blender running slowly add the oil until emulsified. Remove from blender. Whisk in the poppy seeds. Adjust seasonings. (You can use an immersion blender when making a smaller amount)
Toss together the salad ingredients and drizzle with vinaigrette. Serve immediately.
This feature was originally posted in Utah Valley Magazine Holiday Edition! Pick up a copy for more delicious recipes!
Shown here with a dried fruit confit and creme anglaise; the pecan glaze is equally delicious!
Ingredients for the cake
4 large eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup melted butter
1 TBS vanilla
1/2 cup whiskey or apple juice
1/2 cup buttermilk
4 large eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup melted butter
1 TBS vanilla
1/2 cup whiskey or apple juice
1/2 cup buttermilk
________________________
2 cups sugar
3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups sweet potato puree
3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups sweet potato puree
METHOD FOR THE CAKEPreheat oven to 350 degrees, grease bundt pan with butter and lightly dust with with flour
1. Combine wet ingredients in a mixing bowl
2. Sift together dry ingredients in a separate bowl
3. Combine mixtures into one bowl
4. Add sweet potato puree, mix until incorporated
5. Pour batter into prepared bundt pan
6. Bake on center rack for 22 to 30 minutes, let cool and invert onto platter
FOR THE GLAZE
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup bourbon (optional) or 2 TBS vanilla
Combine ingredients in a sauce pan, bring to boil over medium heat. When it has reached a boil lower heat to keep warm. This glaze keeps for at least a week refrigerated, re-heat it before serving.
TO SERVE
Ladle glaze onto serving plate and place slice of pumpkin cake on top, garnish with whipped cream, gelato, or ice-cream.
Check out more Salt Lake City, Park City, and Utah County catering at www.culinarycrafts.com!
- 2 pounds black-eyed peas, soaked overnight if possible
- 2 pounds smoked ham hock, meaty ham bone or slab bacon
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 large onion, peeled and stuck with 2 cloves
- 1 bay leaf
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon allspice
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 2 pounds collard greens, cut in 1-inch ribbons (about 8 cups)
- 1 bunch scallions, cleaned and chopped, for garnish
Preparation
- Drain peas and put them in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed soup pot. Add ham hock or bone (if using slab bacon, cut it into 2-inch chunks), cover with 10 cups water and turn heat to high. Add salt, onion stuck with cloves, bay leaf, black pepper and allspice.
- Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a gentle simmer. Skim off and discard any foam that rises to the surface. Simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until peas are tender. Throughout cooking, add water as necessary, always keeping liquid level 1 inch above surface, stirring with wooden spoon occasionally. Turn off heat. Check broth for salt and adjust seasoning. Mixture should be fairly brothy. With a pair of tongs, remove ham hock, ham bone or bacon. Chop meat and skin in rough pieces and set aside.
- Put a large wide skillet over medium-high heat. Add vegetable oil and heat until wavy. Add garlic and red pepper and let sizzle without browning. Add collard greens and stir to coat. Season with salt and add 1 cup water, stirring to help wilt greens. Add chopped ham and reduce heat to medium, then cover with lid slightly ajar and cook until greens are soft, about 20 minutes. Check seasoning.
- To serve, put greens and meat in low soup bowls, then ladle over hot black-eyed peas. Sprinkle with scallions.
Winter has arrived!
I recently took a trip to Scotland with Rick and a group from the Salt Lake City Chamber of Commerce. It was a fantastically beautiful trip. I was excited to taste some original Scottish cooking and baking to see how our recipes compared. One of my favorites has always been the Sticky Toffee Pudding Cake. We have worked on developing the ultimate recipe and it has been one of our go-to recipes for years. When I finally tasted the original Scottish pudding cake, I was very pleased to find out that we had actually improved on the authentic Scottish version! Your family is going to love our new and improved version of this traditional holiday dessert.
I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
Love, Mary
Here we are at the edge of the mystical lake “Loch Ness” on a perfectly overcast day in Scotland!
NOVEMBER RECIPE OF THE MONTH
Sticky Toffee Pudding Cake
Makes one pudding cake
Ingredients
1 cup plus 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup pitted dates, finely chopped
1 cups boiling water
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup pitted dates, finely chopped
1 cups boiling water
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp. vanilla
Toffee sauce
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
Garnish
Whipped Cream
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10-inch round or square baking dish. Sift the flour and baking powder onto a sheet of waxed paper. Chop the date’s pretty fine. Place in a small bowl and add the boiling water and baking soda; set aside.
In a bowl of electric mixer beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla; beat until blended. Gradually beat in the flour mixture. Add the date mixture to the batter and fold until blended with a rubber spatula. Pour into the prepared baking dish. Bake until pudding is set and firm on top, about 35 minutes. Remove from oven to a wire rack.
Directions for Toffee sauce
Combine the butter, heavy cream and brown sugar in a small heavy saucepan; heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil gently over medium low heat until mixture is thickened, about 8 minutes. Add vanilla and and serve immediately. Drizzle with toffee sauce and garnish with whipped cream.
It’s super easy to homemake BBQ sauce. Just add a bunch of ingredients to a pot and let it simmer! You can customize it to your taste. Add sugar, honey, or molasses to make it sweeter. Add more apple cider vinegar to make it tangy. Anything you want! It’s perfect for the last grilling you’ll do before the weather gets too cold.
Ingredients
- 4 cups ketchup
- 1 1/3 cup honey
- 2/3 cup brown sugar
- 2/3 cup worcestershire sauce
- 1 large diced yellow onion
- 1 large diced bell pepper (any color)
- 1 TBSP Tabasco
- 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 TBSP garlic powder
- 1 cap liquid smoke
The first thing you’ll want to do is chop up the onions and bell peppers into a large dice. Put a large pot on the stove and turn it on to a high heat. Drizzle some olive oil into the pot. Add onions and bell peppers to the pot.
Let the onions and bell peppers sauté and caramelize in the pan. It will usually take around 5-7 minutes. It goes a lot faster if you have a gas stove rather than electric. In the picture below, you can see the difference of when the onions and peppers first went into the pot and then when it’s ready.
After they’re caramelized, you’re going to deglaze the pan with the apple cider vinegar. Add it into the pot and let it steam and pick up the caramelization from the onions and bell peppers. Then add the ketchup and garlic powder to the pot.
Then add the brown sugar, worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, and liquid smoke to the pot.
Next, add the honey and mix all the ingredients together.
Let the pot simmer on low for about 30 min to a hour. The onions and peppers will be soft when it’s done. You can see the coloring difference in the picture on the right.
After it’s done simmering, you can either blend everything together for a thicker sauce or you can strain the bell peppers out for a thinner BBQ sauce. We strained it out in this one.
Now you can see the BBQ sauce all done. Get some ribs or chicken and get a brush and brush on the sauce on top of the ribs. Now eat and enjoy!
Check out more Salt Lake City, Park City, and Utah County catering at www.culinarycrafts.com!
Shrimp & Grits & Salt & Honey!
Yummm!
I’m so excited to share this ultimate Shrimp and Grits recipe with you! It’s one of the 7 courses I’ll be serving at our “Honey and Salt” Pop-up Restaurant this month. This recipe calls for mushrooms, which add a delicious richness to the classic southern dish. And, I’ll be topping it off with a dash of Utah Real Salt and a drizzle of local honey, which takes this dish to whole new level of scrumptious! This is just a sample of the incredible food we’ll be serving at the Pop-up. To experience the entire evening, please join us at Snuck Farm, Friday September 30th. Seating is limited, so make your reservations soon.
Enjoy! Mary
SEPTEMBER RECIPE OF THE MONTH
Shrimp with Smokey Grits and Mushrooms
Serves 10
Ingredients for the Grits
2 T olive oil
1 onion
3 cups stone ground grits
8 oz. grated smoked gouda
9 cups chicken stock
2 cups heavy cream
Redmond Real salt and pepper to taste
2 T olive oil
1 onion
3 cups stone ground grits
8 oz. grated smoked gouda
9 cups chicken stock
2 cups heavy cream
Redmond Real salt and pepper to taste
Method
Finely dice onion and saute in olive oil until onion is translucent. Add the grits and stir until they are evenly coated in the oil. Add the water & chicken base and cook the grits simmering until tender and water is almost absorbed. Add the cream and stir. Add the grated cheese and stir until every thing is fully mixed. Serve immediately for best result.
Ingredients for the Shrimp, Sausage, and Bacon
8 oz of Creminelli sausage, finely chopped (or any hard salami of your choice)
8 oz of smoked bacon, chopped
2 lb. of mushrooms, sliced
2 bunches of green onion
2 T garlic, chopped
3 lb. of shrimp, peeled and deveined (20-24 count size)
1 T shrimp or lobster base
2 t. Old Bay seasoning
1 t. paprika
4 cups water
6 oz. butter, cut in pieces
Redmond Real salt and pepper to taste.
Diced red bell pepper and chives to garnish
Method
Saute the sausage, bacon, mushrooms, and garlic until the mushrooms are cooked and bacon is crispy. Add a bit of olive oil, if needed. Add water and spices. Bring to a boil and add the shrimp and green onions. Cook until shrimp are pink and cooked. Slowly add the butter, constantly whisking until it is incorporated.
Spoon the grits into the bottom of a bowl and ladle the shrimp mixture over the top. Drizzle with a touch of honey and Redmond Real Salt and pepper to taste. Garnish with chopped chive and red bell pepper.
