November 1, 2020

Sugar Skulls

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Sugar Skulls

(Calaveras de Azúcar)

November 1-2: Day of the Dead (Día de Muertos)

We admire the colorful artistry of decorated sugar skulls that we see displayed on the ofrendas (altars) at this time of the year.

Islander and her Mexican cake club friends in San Antonio, Texas, had planned on making sugar skulls together but, ironically, life got in the way of the Day of the Dead festivities. So she went ahead and took a hands-on class when visiting a museum in Houston, Texas, one year.

Now Islander enjoys demonstrating the creative and spiritual process with others (library culinary club, church family life ministries, ESL students, etc.). Making sugar skulls has become part of our respectful observation of the Day of the Dead and we hope it is a sweet activity for all who try it, too.

Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon meringue powder
  • 1 teaspoon water
  • Royal icing
  • Gel paste colors

Directions

In a large bowl, combine the sugar, meringue powder and water. Mix until it feels like wet sand.

Pack the skulls mold with the sugar mixture. Level off with a bench scraper. Invert the sugar skull onto cardboard or plate. Let dry for at least 24 hours.

Stir royal icing until it is pipeable consistency. Place in decorating bags using tips 1 and 2 (alternatively, snip a small hole from the end of the bag).

Decorate the skulls with colorful royal icing. Let dry for another 24 hours.

Notes

  • Muchas gracias (thank you very much) to Margarita F. for giving us the sugar skulls mold.
  • For another festive food for Day of the Day, try making sugar skulls cookies.
 

October 26, 2020

Kabocha Salad

Posted by HI Cookery under 10 October | Tags: , , , , , |
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Kabocha Salad

October 26: National Pumpkin Day

Our local library’s culinary club once had a potluck theme about pumpkins. Members brought in a variety of sweet and savory dishes—pumpkin pie, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin soup, pumpkin hummus….. But Islander’s friend, Yukiko H., brought in something slightly different than the usual pumpkin recipes. Her contribution was a salad/side dish made out of Japanese pumpkin, a squash called kabocha. It was kind of sweet and savory at the same time and it was Islander’s favorite of all the other potluck pumpkin dishes. Thankfully, Yukiko shared her recipe with us and we are happy to feature her kabocha salad recipe on our blog for National Pumpkin Day.

Recipe

(From Yukiko H.)

Ingredients

  • Small kabocha squash, cooked until tender
  • ¼ cup onion
  • 1 ½ tablespoon of white vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon of sugar
  • ½ teaspoon of salt
  • black pepper to taste
  • 1-2 slices of bacon
  • 1 tablespoon canola oil

Directions

Cut the kabocha squash into wedges or large chunks. Scoop out the seeds. Peel off the skin. Cook by baking (first toss in a little cooking oil, spread on a baking sheet and heat in the oven at 350 degrees F for about 30-40 minutes) OR boiling (simmer in a pot of boiling water for 20-30 minutes until soft, then drain). Place in a bowl and mash a little bit, leaving some chunky pieces.

In a large bowl, grate the onion and sprinkle a little salt to get rid of its sharpness. Add vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper in the same bowl and mix them well.

Chop the bacon roughly. Fry the bacon pieces in the canola oil until they become crispy. Put them in the bowl, including the grease, in the onion mixture. Toss in the kabocha pieces. Dish out and serve warm.

Notes

  • Arigato (thank you) for sharing your recipe for our blog, Yukiko!
  • Don’t forget to check out all of our other pumpkin recipes under the Theme Menus tab.
 

October 26, 2020

Pumpkin Spice Latte

Posted by HI Cookery under 10 October | Tags: , , , , |
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Pumpkin Spice Latte

October 26: National Pumpkin Day

One can of pumpkin puree = three recipes (first—pumpkin hummus, second—pumpkin pie spice rice krispies treats, and third—this pumpkin spice latte). All of these pumpkin recipes, plus the ones we have posted in the past, has made it necessary for us to add a “pumpkins” category to our Theme Menus.

Although Highlander has cut down his spending on and drinking Starbuck’s coffees and has taken up tea, he likes to indulge once in a while on a latte-like libation. Starbuck’s pumpkin spice latte is so popular that it showed up on the menu a whole month before the fall season even started!

There are lots of artificial ingredients and flavors in the sugary Starbuck’s beverage. So we made a much healthier version at home with the leftover pumpkin puree we had from the two other recipes we made earlier.

For a fall favorite beverage, make this pumpkin spice latte to celebrate National Pumpkin Day!

Recipe

(Adapted from Nutribullet)

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons canned pumpkin puree
  • 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk, sweetened or unsweetened
  • 1/2 cup coffee, black/strong, cooled (we used Kona coffee)
  • 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • 2 tablespoons maple syrup
  • Optional toppings: whipped cream, ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg

Directions

In the container of a blender/mixer, combine the pumpkin puree, almond milk and coffee. Sprinkle in the pumpkin pie spice.

Add the maple syrup. Cover the container and blend until smooth. Pour into a glass or mug. Garnish with a swirl of whipped cream and sprinkles of ground cinnamon and/or nutmeg.

Notes

  • Use canned pumpkin puree and not canned pumpkin pie mix.
  • This is a thin drink; it is not thick like a smoothie.
  • Substitute almond milk for another favorite milk. If using unsweetened almond milk, add ¼ teaspoon vanilla.
  • Check out our new “Pumpkins” category under the Theme Menus tab on our blog.

 

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