Life's Simple Pleasures

Sometimes the simplest things are the most enjoyable, partly because of the simplicity. For me, Anise Hyssop Honey Butter is one of those things.

The recipe:

• Two tablespoons anise hyssop flowers
• 1/4 cup of butter
• 1/4 cup of honey. 

Soften the butter, cream w/ the honey and stir in the flowers. Spoon into a small bowl, cover and chill. Good on toast or pancakes but on biscuits it really shines!

Where caramel was born...

Ed Alcock for The New York Times

Everything I've read about making salted caramels points to Brittany in the northwest coastal region of France.That's confirmed again in this recent New York Times piece on the a few of the remaining caramel makers in that area. Once upon a time there were any number of shops that specialized in handmade caramels au beurre salé but nowadays only a few remain and of those even fewer are still making caramels by hand. But all seem to confirm that the highest quality ingredients are key and on that we all agree. The Hudson Valley cream and butter that we use here at Cooper Street Kitchen is superb and we still use do it all by hand. I like to think that the taste and texture of our caramel would compare favorably with what is made in the old country, but the best way to find out for sure would be to go there and taste for myself. Caramel tour, anyone?

How You Eat Is How You Live

The Local Food movement is growing faster than garden weeds, at least around these parts, and there seems to be no end to the sources touting this revolution and offering recipes, resources, advice and building a community based on relearning what cooking and eating is really about and creating networks of like-minded people who want to know what they're eating and what went into producing it.
Food52 is one such source that's recently come to my attention and their Cooking Manifesto was the subject of a recent edition of their newsletter. Short and to the point, it sums up why so many people feel that time spent in the kitchen cooking and time spent with friends and family eating is so important and I couldn't agree more.

 

our cooking manifesto

We love spending time in the kitchen, and we believe that memorable cooking doesn't have to be complicated or precious.

Because, if you cook:

Your family will eat dinner together.
You will naturally have a more sustainable household.
You'll set a lifelong example for your children.
You'll understand what goes into food and will eat more healthily.
You'll make your home an important place in your life.
You'll make others happy.
People will remember you.

Tuthilltown Toddy

Hudson Baby Bourbon and our own Sea Salt Caramel harmonize perfectly in the winter warmer we call the Tuthilltown Toddy:

Warm 10 oz. milk (or water) in a saucepan or heatproof mug, stir in 1-1/2 Tablespoon CSK Caramel, heat again to just before scalding, add 2 oz. Hudson Baby Bourbon Whiskey, stir, then dust with cardamom (or cinnamon or nutmeg).

Cheers!

Wondering what to get for all the Scrooges on your list?

Cratchit! Why are you eating now, you already had your fifteen minutes for dinner. Time is money! Get busy now, man!

I'm very sorry, sir, but these caramels that Mrs. Cratchit gave me for Christmas are just so delicious I can't stop eating them. Perhaps you'd care to try one, Uncle?

My word! They are indeed exquisite! Your wife's taste in sweets is clearly better than her taste in husbands.
Take the rest of the day off Cratchit, but you'd better leave the caramels here for safe keeping.




Guaranteed to put a smile on the face of the Scroogiest Scrooge!

What is Caramel? (and what is not?)

The Five Ingredients of Real Caramel

As the weather cools down and the year-end holidays approach, sweet treats seem to be more what many people are craving. While perusing the produce section recently I noticed several products labeled as "caramel" displayed with the apples, and I agree that caramel and apples are a great combination of tastes. But when reading the ingredients on these "caramel" products, I see that they bear little, if any, resemblance to real caramel. All of which leads to the question:

 What is Caramel?

In the simplest sense, caramel is sugar that is heated until it melts and then heated some more until it begins to darken but not so much that it scorches. Think crème brûlée; just the slightest hint of bitterness and a satisfying crack as the spoon pushes through. Real caramel candy (or sauce) begins the same way but as the end product should be something softer and more melt-in-your-mouth, cream and butter are added after the sugar is caramelized and then heated again until the caramel attains the desired consistency.

What is Not Caramel?

Some products found on grocery shelves are labeled as “caramel” but the ingredients include unnecessary items like oil, thickening agents, coloring agents, “caramel flavor” or unhealthy sweeteners like high fructose corn syrup. These products are used to reduce production costs but the end product bears no similarity to real caramel.

So in a nutshell, real caramel candy contains only a few ingredients: sugar, cream and butter plus a small amount of “invert sugar” to prevent the sugar from recrystallizing, and salt. Additional flavorings can be added, like vanilla, chocolate, or maybe a fruit flavor, but anything else is unnecessary or worse.

Cooper Street Kitchen takes pride in producing our caramel using the basic recipe that has stood the test of time. Our basic recipe contains only five ingredients: Sugar, cream, butter, agave nectar and sea salt. The cream and butter come from local dairy farms in the Hudson Valley and no artificial ingredients of any kind are ever used in our caramel. Try some, I think you'll like it!