I stumbled across this delightful metal cookie press quite by chance at Dragon Moon Gifts and I was just struck by it.  The online store is a family owned company run in Alberta and as always I love supporting small business and indi shops so I suggest you guys hurry up and snap up their entire cookie stamp stock!  I’d love to see how you guys use them so if you make a batch of cookies with this stamp you can send the pictures in and I’ll post them to the site to show off your work!

Enjoy this drink on a cool fall evening or on a chilly winter day.

The Winter Witch’s Cocoa

Ingredients:

5 Ounces Semi-Sweet Chocolate

2  C Whole Milk

1/2 C Whipping Cream

8-10 Fresh Mint Leaves – Bruised with a motor and pestal (Or use the bottom of a cup in a bowl.)

3 Tbls Sugar

Instructions:

1)  Over a very low heat, carefully melt the chocolate making sure to stir constantly.  Once chocolate burns, it ruins the whole batch so keep it low and be patient.  You might also wish to make use of a double boiler or metal bowl set above a pot of boiling water.  Set aside once melted but make sure to continue stirring occasionally while working on the rest of the drink.

2)  In a second pot, combine milk, cream, mint leaves and sugar.  Bring to a boil, stirring often and not allowing it to boil over, and cook until sugar has dissolved away into the milk. Turn off heat.

3)  Using a slotted spoon or a straining ladle scoop the mint leaves out of the milk brew and discard.

4)  Pour the chocolate in a little bit at a time and whisk thoroughly until blended and smooth.  Pour into four mugs and serve.

Whipped cream might be served on top as an added treat.

I’m in a traditional mood this year when it comes to Halloween treats.  The Candy Apple Pops has got me on a sort of tangent and so I had to find another adaptation of the sweet treats to share with you.  Enjoy!

Caramel Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

Crisp:

1 C Brown Sugar

½ C Flour

½ C Rolled Oats

½ C Butter

1 Tbls Ground Cinnamon

1 Tbls Nutmeg

6 Granny Smith Apples  (Don’t use a red variety of apple, they don’t bake well at all and the tartness of this apple blends so very well with the brown sugar flavour.)

Sauce:

¾ C Water

1C Sugar

½ C Corn Syrup

1 C Whipping Cream

Instructions:

Crisp:

1. Preheat oven to 375F.

2. Mix the first six ingredients and mix by hand until throughly blended.

3. Take a lightly greased 10-inch pan, slice apples thinly and layer over bottom of the pan.

4. Sprinkle flour and oat mix over the apples in an even layer.

5. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until apples are softened.

6. While crisp is baking in the oven prepare caramel sauce.

Sauce:

1. Mix first three ingredients in sauce pan and heat over light to medium heat, stirring constantly until it all dissolves and mixes.

2. Turn up heat until mix boils and then wait without stirring until it begins to turn a dark gold colour. A helpful trick is to lift the pan by the handle occasionally and tilting it in a circular motion to mix it just a bit without stirring. Be careful not to spill, this is a very nasty burn to get. This step should take roughly 8-9 minutes.

3. Take the pot off the heat and slowly add cream. BE CAREFUL! The coldness of the cream meeting the heat of the mix will cause splattering and bubbling that could splash onto you, best to wear long sleeves when making this.

4. Return to a lower setting of heat and mix until the whole sauce is smooth and dissolved through.

5. Once crisp is finished, portion servings into dishes and then drizzle the caramel sauce over the servings generously. Feel free to serve with ice cream.