Category: Kitchen

Candy Flavored Vodka

There’s no better gift to bring to a holiday party than alcohol. This is just a fact. But alcohol you made yourself? You’ll be the toast of the town! Luckily vodka-infused drinks are super easy to make, provided that you have a little while to let it soak (so basically, it’s not a last-minute party idea). You want to make candy libations? We’ll show you how, and try it ourselves, with results posted next week!

Step One:The ingredients
1)Giant Halloween-sized bag of colorful candy (it looks better in the final product) like Skittles, cotton candy, Jolly Ranchers, candy canes, or red hots. Not gummy candy, which will absorb all the alcohol (that’s an entirely different kind of treat!)
2) 1.75 liter bottle of vodka (mid-range is best, doesn’t have to be Grey Goose, but don’t buy the Russian $5 off-brand that makes you go blind)
3) A funnel
4) coffee filters/paper towels
5) A large glass container

Step 2: The Prep
Put candy into dishes, celebrated by color or type. Pour in vodka to top of container: the candy will soak up all the alcohol, so you’re going to have to be careful on the ratios here. Cover the container (not with plastic), and let it sit for a week.

Step 3: Wait several days
The time ratio here is a little bit confusing: Generally for fruit you have to wait a week, but candy is more water-soluble. We’d say 3-4 days is a good amount of time to let the flavor soak in. You don’t need the candy to totally dissolve, just color/add flavor to the alcohol.

Step 4: Strain and Serve
You a coffee filter to pour the alcohol into another jar and catch the candies still floating in there (no one wants to choke on a half-dissolved Jolly Ranchers). The use a funnel to transfer into decorative bottles. VIA

 

Make Mozzarella Cheese

You’ll Need:

–1 gallon (or larger — I used my 6 quart stock pot) stainless steel or other non-reactive (e.g. non-aluminum, non-cast iron) pot, with lid
–dairy thermometer
–colander
–slotted spoon
–long knife
–rubber gloves (optional, but recommended)
–cheese cloth (optional, but also recommended)

–1 gallon milk — not ultra-pasteurized. If using raw milk, and you aren’t absolutely, positively sure it is free of pathogens, heat the milk to 145 degrees Farenheit and keep it there for 30 minutes to pasteurize it. If using store-bought milk, be sure you go with regular “pasteurized” milk, and not “ultra-pasteurized” (it’ll say on the label) as the latter has been heated to a very high temperature that destroys all the organisms you need to make cheese.
–1 1/4 cup cool chlorine-free water. If you don’t have a water filtration system that removes chlorine for you, you can get it at the grocery store.
–1 1/2 teaspoon citric acid
–1/4 teaspoon (or 1/4 tablet) rennet
–1 teaspoon cheese salt (or salt substitute). Optional, but, again, recommended.

Click HERE for step-by-step instructions

Layered Pumpkin Bars

What You Need

25 NABISCO Ginger Snaps, finely crushed (about 1-1/3 cups)
1/4 cup  butter, melted
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 cup  sugar
1-1/2 cups canned pumpkin
1/2 tsp.  ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
2   eggs
2 pkg. (3.4 oz. each) JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding
2 cups  cold milk
1 tub (8 oz.) COOL WHIP Whipped Topping, thawed, divided
1/2 cup  chopped PLANTERS Pecans, toasted

Make It

HEAT oven to 350°F.

MIX cookie crumbs and butter; press onto bottom of 13×9-inch pan. Bake 10 min. Beat cream cheese and sugar with mixer until well blended. Add pumpkin and spices; mix well. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating on low speed after each just until blended; pour over crust.

BAKE 30 min. or until center is almost set. Cool 1 hour.

BEAT pudding mixes and milk in medium bowl with whisk 2 min. Stir in 1 cup COOL WHIP. Spread over dessert; cover with remaining COOL WHIP.

REFRIGERATE 3 hours or until firm. Sprinkle with nuts before serving.

via