Things I Love #1

Motts Hot Apple Cider

I first tried Motts Hot Apple Cider about a year ago, and I've absolutely fallen in love with it. I've always enjoyed regular, cold apple cider from the local orchard, but I didn't really think I would enjoy it hot. Walking down the aisle of the grocery store one day, I spotted the packets of this apple cider mix and saw that it came in a Hot Apple Pie flavor, and that's what sold me on hot cider. It was quite possibly one of the best things I have ever tasted. It has the right amount of sweetness and tart. I've tried other brands of instant hot apple cider packets, but they all lack the tartness that comes from cider sold in jugs, and Motts Hot Apple Cider. It comes in 6 flavors, including:

• Hot Apple Pie
• Red Delicious
• Caramel
• Granny Smith
• Golden Delicious
• and of course, Original

My favorite is the Hot Apple Pie, but I picked up a variety pack from BJ's Wholesale Club last weekend and was able to try Red Delicious for the first time, and it's probably my second favorite flavor. My least favorite flavor is Caramel, though, as it lacks the tartness that I enjoy so much. I haven't been able to find Golden Delicious flavor anywhere, however.

I picked up a 24ct variety pack from BJ's for $5.99, which is a fantastic deal. I believe they cost 50¢ per packet at Giant Eagle, and a 24ct box on amazon.com will set you back $11.98, twice what you'll pay in a wholesale club. I plan on going back to BJ's soon to buy a couple more boxes, as the variety packs are a seasonal item and it'll be pretty hard to find in a couple months.

Drink up, it's apple cider season!

Adventures in Petits Fours

I try to get inspiration from every source possible. This time it came in the form of a Swiss Colony catalog. I'm jealous of how perfect the professionals can get their products to look, as my stuff always comes out just barely looking slightly better than amateur, at best. If you aren't aware of what they are, here's an example:

Not my own creation, but I wish.

 Now I don't try to get too ambitious with any of my kitchen experiments right away, so I took a very simple approach for my first attempt. I decided to make red velvet with a chocolate ganache, and I think they turned out okay. I first tried using an icing recipe I found on another blog, but it turned out to be absolutely horrible in every way possible. It was like eating pure sugar, and the consistency was grainy and thick.

Above you can see the sheets of cake out of the pan, then cut up, and then my final result. They don't look the best, and I didn't make enough ganache to cover every piece, but they taste damn delicious. I didn't quite have a uniform size for every piece, either, as they all seemed to vary in height. I still have more than half of the pieces yet to cover, so perhaps tomorrow I'll make more ganache and try again, or find a more reliable fondant/icing recipe.

Welcome!

Here's the obligatory first post.

I'll come back with more soon. Promise.

Happy belated Halloween!