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Sweet Spot Archives Summer 2002 Spring 2002 Winter 2002 Holiday 2001 |
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WE HAVE A WINNER! “MAKE YOUR LEMONADE STAND OUT” CONTEST WINNERS ANNOUNCED Lemonade stands popped up all across Northern California this summer as kids participated in the "Make Your Lemonade Stand Out Contest” sponsored by C&H, Sunkist Growers, Inc. and Radio Disney. Kids used everything from colorful paint, balloons and Hawaiian leis to stuffed animals and American flags to make the most attractive lemonade stand to grab the grand prize trip to Disneyland. It was a very tough decision for the judges! But the top honor went to the Dobson family of Windsor, California. Thanks to everyone who participated!    Honorable Mentions: Daniel, Emma and Molly Vainish, Sunnyvale Emily and Audrey Espinosa, San Jose Matthew Lalanne and Family, Porterville Stephanie Hess, Alamo |
Pumpkins and cranberries: Just say the words and you summon up Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The golden-orange squash and the ruby-red berry were staples of the Pilgrims’ first feast, and they still give American holiday tables their color and flavor.
What’s best about these seasonal fruits? Their versatility! For breakfast or after dinner, sweetened a little or a lot, pumpkins and cranberries can play almost any role your holiday “script” demands. We especially like them combined with crunchy, heart-healthy walnuts. (Thanks to our friends at the Walnut Marketing Board and Libby’s for many of these inspired suggestions! And check out “Find a Recipe” on the C&H home page for even more holiday recipes.)
Pumpkin Perfection
Although we usually treat it as a fruit, pumpkin is really a vegetable of the squash family. (Outside the United States, it’s rarely used in desserts.) High in healthful beta-carotene, low in fat and sodium, it adds fiber and moisture to baked goods. Its mild flavor lends itself to creative additions of sugar and spice, and its smooth texture is enhanced by the crunchy contrast of walnuts.
Take the chill off a crisp autumn morning with warm-from-the-oven Pumpkin ’n’ Spice Muffins: moist, dark, and filling. Most muffin recipes can be baked in loaf form, too, but we’re partial to this Pumpkin Bread, chockful of raisins and nuts. Or whip up a batch of gingery Sweet Pumpkin Dip, blended with cream cheese and C&H Powdered Sugar, to spread on toast or bagels.For an easy and unusual first course at Thanksgiving dinner, serve Creamy Pumpkin Soup in a decorative tureen or hollowed-out fresh pumpkin. Made with Libby’s canned pumpkin and seasoned with cinnamon and garlic, it uses a bit of C&H Pure Cane Brown Sugar to round out the flavors.
Pumpkin pie is, of course, a holiday tradition. But why not surprise your guests with some new pumpkin desserts this year? Pumpkin Mousse Ice Cream Pie is divinely rich yet fast and easy to make—only the gingersnap crust requires baking. Pumpkin Bourbon Cheesecake has a nutty crust, a tablespoonful of bourbon for flavor, and a decadent sour-cream topping. Walnut Pumpkin Torte, glazed with icing (as shown here) or dusted with powdered sugar, looks beautiful when baked in a decorative Bundt pan. And The Great Pumpkin Cake—four layers high, filled with secret crunch, and frosted with whipped cream—makes a spectacular finale to your holiday feast or a sensational addition to a potluck table.Crazy for Cranberries
The first person to bite into a raw cranberry must have had a vivid imagination—and a lot of optimism! This native American fruit is too hard and tart to be eaten au naturel, but is positively delicious when mixed with just the right amount of sugar. And cranberries are especially good when paired with other fruits.
For example, serve Raw Cranberry Relish, Cranberry Chutney or Cranberry Orange Compote to add zing to your holiday turkey or goose. Or add a handful of cranberries—and extra sugar to taste—to homemade applesauce for a beautiful pink color and tart flavor. An old favorite gets a refreshing update in Cranberry Waldorf Salad, made with cranberry juice cocktail and chilled in a decorative mold.
Even kids will love cranberries when they’re baked with eggs and butter in Cranberry Bread Pudding. Use canned cranberry sauce (the whole-berry kind) to make scrumptiously rich Cranberry Jewel Bars. Oats and chopped California walnuts add plenty of texture to an easy-to-make, sure-to-impress Pear and Cranberry Crisp. A food processor and electric mixer make quick work of Cranberry Walnut Cake, baked in layers and frosted with whipped cream. Dried cranberries, orange zest, and orange extract give texture and citrus-y flavor to Orange Cranberry Spice Cookies. And Cranberry-Date Pie, chewy with walnuts and apples and positively begging to be served with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, is so good it may replace mincemeat or apple pie on your holiday table.
Finally, don’t forget that the best holiday gifts come from your kitchen. Make plenty of jewel-toned Cranberry Jelly in decorative glass jars for your friends, family, and co-workers to enjoy all year round. Be sure to save some for your own family!
For more holiday recipes using walnuts or pumpkin, visit the Walnut Marketing Board Web site or VeryBestBaking.com. Or use “Find a Recipe” on the C&H home page: just enter cranberries or pumpkin in the search field.| Baking Tip The Walnut Marketing Board offers this tasty suggestion: When you bake with walnuts, get maximum flavor and crunch by toasting them for a few minutes at 350ºF. Allow them to cool, then add to your recipe as the instructions indicate. |
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Baker’s Profile: Dianna Wara  Hors d’oeuvres… For Dessert? Culinary kudos to Dianna Wara of Washington, Illinois for winning first place in C&H’s “It’s Not Just for Frostings” recipe category at the Illinois State Fair. Dianna’s prize-winning recipe for Chocolate Truffle Dessert Ball with Sweet Crackers is a powdered sugar double delight. It features a chocolate, peanut butter, cream cheese truffle (what a decadent mouthful!) served with sweet cracker-like cookies and a drizzle of chocolate glaze. Dianna calls it a “dessert hors d’oeuvre” due to its small size and intense flavor. Serious dessert lovers might consider it a prelude to another dessert! Dianna created the recipe from scratch, including the “sweet cracker” of which she is especially proud. Fork pricks in the cookie give it the “cracker” look. Dianna lives in Washington, Illinois with her two children, Melissa, 14, and Corey, 12, who often lend Mom a baking-gloved hand in the kitchen. When Dianna’s not baking, she works as a special education aid at a local grade school. Dianna has been entering the state fair contest for three years, with no wins, until this year, when she won an impressive six ribbons in various categories. She won the grand prize in the fair’s Chocolate Champion culinary contest for her “Sinful Chocolate Caramel Tart.” And Dianna is still elbow deep in flour and C&H Sugar--in fact, she is already working on recipes for next year’s state fair. We can’t wait to see what she comes up with! |
