September | 2014 | onedadskitchen

Dine in Central America with Ariran Guisou (Chicken Stew)

Finding new and different things to do with the chicken is always an adventure because you can come across so many great recipes from different cultures around the world that you may never have thought of even trying before. Since I buy a lot of whole chickens and chicken pieces, I always want to try new and interesting ways of cooking chicken that are going to bring new flavors to the table. I found this recipe for ariran guisou, a dish from Honduras that is a chicken stew, on the Saveur website and it had a great mix of spices and flavors and seemed very easy to make, so I knew I had to give it a try.

Ariran Guisou (Chicken Stew)

2 pounds skinless chicken legs and thighs

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons sugar

2 teaspoons dry mustard powder

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, sliced

Kosher salt, to taste

2 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil

1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded and sliced

1 cup chicken stock

Combine the chicken legs and thighs, the lime juice, Worcestershire sauce, sugar, mustard powder, black pepper, turmeric, cumin, garlic, onion and kosher salt in a large bowl. Mix all of the ingredients well to coat the chicken. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Heat the vegetable or canola oil in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the chicken pieces and cook, turning the pieces once, until the chicken is browned, about 8 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a plate and set it aside. Add the onions from the marinade and the bell pepper to the skillet. Cook until the onions and peppers are soft, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Add the reserved chicken and any accumulated juices back into the skillet along with the chicken stock. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium. Cover the skillet and continue cooking until the chicken is cooked through and the pieces run clear when pricked with a fork, about 15 to 18 minutes.

What you end up with is an incredibly flavorful chicken that is tender and tasty. The marinade for the chicken is great and you get the wonderful spiciness of the cumin and the turmeric along with a delightfully sweet flavor as well and the lime juice just adds the right amount of tarn flavor and aroma to the overall dish. We all really liked it and I served this with some white rice and the resulting sauce of the chicken went really well with the rice. Once the chicken is marinated, the whole meal took less than 30 minutes to make so it is a great option for you when you want to try out something new with some chicken pieces.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on September 18, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Poultry, Sauce, Soups & Stews, Spices

Tags: Ariran Guisou, chicken stew, Honduras chicken stew, Saveur, Saveur ariran guisou

Take a Turn at Turkey Black Bean Chili

17 Sep

Very often when I make chili I only use ground turkey to do it. We like the flavor of the chili and there is less fat and grease to deal with during the cooking process. I was looking for a recipe that would be just a little bit different from the standard recipe I have been using for years for chili when I cam across this one at myrecipes.com. There are just some slight differences in this recipe from the one I normally use, but you can adapt this recipe to make it as hot or as mild as you would like.

Turkey Black Bean Chili

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 onion, chopped

1 yellow or orange bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 poblano chile, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 pound ground turkey

2 cans (28 ounces each) diced tomatoes

2 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained

3 tablespoons tomato paste

3 tablespoons chili powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 1/2 teaspoons agave nectar or 2 teaspoons sugar

Juice of 1 lime

Kosher salt

Shredded cheddar cheese (optional)

Sour cream (optional)

Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until the oil is shimmering. Saute the onion, bell pepper, poblano chile and the garlic, stirring often, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the ground turkey, increase the heat to high and cook, stirring often and breaking the meat into chunks until the meat is no longer pink, about 4 to 5 minutes.

Stir in the diced tomatoes, the black beans, tomato paste, chili powder, ground cumin and the agave nectar or sugar. Bring the chili to a boil, stirring often. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover, stirring occasionally, and cook until all the flavors are blended, about 45 minutes to 1 hour. Stir in the lime juice. Check the seasonings and add kosher salt if desired or necessary. Serve the chili with shredded cheese and sour cream.

This recipe carries a little more heat to it than the one I had made in the past, thanks to the poblano pepper, but I really liked it and so did Michelle, who is the real chili lover in our family. You can always leave out the poblano if you prefer to have it a little milder. I used the sugar instead of the agave nectar because that is what I had on hand and it did help to cut down the acidity of the tomatoes. The lime juice really adds to the dish as well. I also seasoned the ground turkey before putting it in the chili with some Montreal chicken seasoning for some extra flavor because I find that ground turkey alone can be kind of bland, even in chili, but you can always season it in another manner if you choose or not at all and I think you will still get pretty good flavor out of this recipe. Of course, the flavor gets even better after a day or two and it has been great for lunches or even just as a snack with some tortilla chips.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on September 17, 2014 in Beans, Cooking, Dinner, One Pot Meals, Poultry, Soups & Stews, Turkey

Tags: ground turkey, myrecipes.com, turkey black bean chili, turkey chili, turkey chili recipe

A Quick Weeknight Meal – Garlic Shrimp and White Beans

16 Sep

As much as I love shrimp, the prices of it lately have been pretty high so I have not been able to get it very often. Even the price of frozen shrimp has been a bit much at the supermarket, so when I saw some on sale at the fish market lately and saw it was gulf shrimp I decided to make the splurge and get some to have for dinner. Instead of just making the standard fried shrimp or shrimp scampi, I wanted to try something a little different and something that was not going to be very labor intensive to make it perfect for an easy weeknight meal that can be done in just a few minutes. I found this recipe from Bon Appetit for garlic shrimp and white beans and it sounded perfect and included everything I had on hand already, with the exception of the chiles de arbol, which I left out and substituted some chili powder instead.

Garlic Shrimp and White Beans

6 tablespoons olive oil, divided

3 garlic cloves, minced, divided

2 dried chiles de arbol

1 bay leaf

1 1/4 cups chopped tomato

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon tomato paste

2 15-ounce cans white beans (such as cannellini), rinsed and drained

1 cup chicken broth

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley

Grilled bread (optional)

Preheat the broiler. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large, heavy, ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Add 1 garlic clove, the chiles de arbol, and the bay leaf, and cook, stirring constantly, just until the mixture is fragrant, about 1 to 2 minutes. Do not allow the garlic to burn. Add the chopped tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring and smashing the tomatoes with the back of a wooden spoon, until the tomatoes are completely broken down, about 5 minutes.

Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, until the tomato paste is a deep red and caramelized, about 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the white beans and the chicken broth. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook until the juices are slightly reduced and thickened, about 3 to 4 minutes. Season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper.

Combine the remaining 2 garlic cloves, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil, the shrimp and the smoked paprika in a medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper and toss the mixture to evenly coat all of the shrimp. Scatter the shrimp over the bean mixture in an even layer.

Broil until the shrimp are golden and cooked through, about 3 minutes. Drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over he shrimp and the beans. Garnish the dish with the chopped parsley and serve with grilled bread, if desired.

While the grilled bread sounded really good, I didn’t have any on hand that day so I simply served the shrimp as it was. All of the flavors melded nicely together and the beans and the shrimp had a great taste from the garlic, chili powder and paprika. The tomatoes added a nice touch to the whole dish and having some bread to dip in to sop up the juices would have been a nice touch. The whole meal can be put together in under 30 minutes, so it is perfect for one of those busy weeknights when you need something fast to cook.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on September 16, 2014 in Beans, Cooking, Dinner, One Pot Meals, Seafood

Tags: bon appetit, garlic shrimp, garlic shrimp and white beans, white beans

A Tiny, Tasty Treat – Baked Gingerbread Mini Donuts

15 Sep

I have had a mini donut pan for a while now and usually when I break it out it is to simply make some plain donuts with a simple glaze on them. I haven’t made any in a while and with the fall weather starting to come around, I was thinking of something warming and spicy this past week when I happened to stumble upon this recipe from a Pinch of Yum for naked gingerbread mini donuts. The donuts themselves are a simple gingerbread dough and there is a wonderful maple glaze to put on them to really top things off. This make a great dessert or snack and do not take long to make at all, taking only about 20 minutes to put everything together, bake them and glaze them.

Baked Gingerbread Mini Donuts

For the Donuts:

1 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Pinch of allspice

Pinch of ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1/4 cup applesauce

1 tablespoon milk

2 tablespoons melted butter

For the Glaze:

2 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons milk

1/2 cup powdered sugar

For the donuts, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves, salt and brown sugar until they are blended. Stir in the egg, applesauce, milk and melted butter until they are well incorporated and the batter forms. Pour the batter into a gallon-sized plastic bag and cut the corner off. Alternatively, you can use a piping bag if you have one on hand. Pipe the batter into a greased mini donut pan, filling each donut space to about half full. You may have to make 2 batches depending on the size of your donut pan as this will make 18 to 24 mini donuts. Bake the donuts in the oven until they are firm, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and carefully take each donut out of the pan.

For the glaze, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter with the 1/4 cup of brown sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring he mixture to a boil and boil it for about 2 minutes. Add the maple syrup and 1 tablespoon of the milk and bring the mixture back to a boil. Add the powdered sugar and use the last tablespoon of milk to help thin out the glaze if needed. Keep the glaze over low heat (higher heat will make the glaze start to crystallize) and dunk each mini donut into the frosting to coat it. The frosting will set almost immediately. Serve the donuts when complete.

This is a very simple way to make a really tasty treat. The donuts had that great ginger flavor and the maple glaze on the top went perfectly with the donuts. I got about 18 donuts out of my mix, but I think you can make them smaller and get a little more if you like. The mini donut pans are fairly easy to find today in many shops, and if you are looking for one you can find one here. They are pretty inexpensive so you can pick one up often for ten dollars or less if you want one. I’ll have to remember this recipe since it’s so easy to do and it is a good one to do with the kids. I apologize for the sloppy picture, but trust me they turn out better than my picture may look!

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on September 15, 2014 in Cooking, Dessert, Snacks

Tags: baked gingerbread mini donuts, gingerbread mini donuts, gingerbread mini donuts with maple glaze, maple glaze, mini donut, mini donut recipe, mini donuts, Pinch of Yum

The Best Slow-Cooker Recipes : Cooking Channel

14 Sep

The Best Slow-Cooker Recipes : Cooking Channel.

It’s getting into the Fall time of year where you want to make some housewarming meals at home but may not have the time to do just everything you want during the week. This is where your slow cooker can really come in handy and Cooking Channel has put together 26 of their best slow cooker recipes for you to tryr so you can make some great meals with just a little bit of work and have everything ready when you get home. Check it out!

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Posted by MikeG on September 14, 2014 in Beef, Cooking, Cooking Websites, Dinner, One Pot Meals, Pork, Poultry, Slow Cooker Meals

Tags: 26 slow cooker recipes, best slow cooker recipes, Cooking Channel, Cooking Channel slow cooker recipes, slow cooker recipes

14 Pizzas That Are the Definition of Perfection – Bon Appétit

12 Sep

14 Pizzas That Are the Definition of Perfection – Bon Appétit.

Friday night is pizza night in many homes, but instead of ordering out, why not try making some pizza at home tonight. You can make your own dough or buy store-bought pizza dough and let your imagination run wild with what you want on your pie or you can take a look at these 14 pizza recipe suggestions from Bon Appetit to get some great ideas for dinner tonight. Add a salad and you are all set for a great Friday night meal. Check it out!

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Posted by MikeG on September 12, 2014 in Appetizers, Cooking, Cooking Websites, Dinner, Grilling, Pizza, Sauce, Snacks

Tags: 14 pizza recipes, 14 pizzas that are the definition of perfection, Bon Appetit 14 pizza recipes, homemade pizza, pizza night, pizza recipes

Never Mind the Mall! Make Your Own Bourbon Chicken in the Slow Cooker

11 Sep

If you have spent any time at all in any mall, you have more than likely ventured into the food court once or twice. While you may typically find fast food options that everyone is familiar with, you are also likely going to find some type of restaurant offering you up free samples of the famous bourbon chicken seen in malls everywhere. I had been thinking about trying to replicate this on my own at home recently and after reading many of the recipes I found online I realized that a lot of these recipes do not actually use any bourbon at all in them and the name actually comes from Bourbon Street in New Orleans and not the content of the recipe. While this made sense, I was kind of looking forward to using a little bit of bourbon in a recipe because you can get some great flavor from it. I did finally come across a recipe from Betty Crocker that makes use of bourbon and is made in the slow cooker, allowing me to put everything together quickly and just let it cook until dinner time.

Slow Cooker Bourbon Chicken

1/2 cup bourbon

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup honey

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 tablespoon ketchup

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/2 cup chopped green onions

Spray the slow cooker insert with cooking spray to prevent any sticking from occuring during the cooking process. In the slow cooker, mix the bourbon, the honey, the soy sauce, the rice vinegar, the ketchup, the chopped onion, the chopped garlic and the grated ginger until it is combined. Add the chicken breasts to the mixture and toss to coat the chicken.

Cover the slow cooker and cook on the Low heat setting for 6 to 8 hours. Remove the chicken from the slow cooker to a cutting board or platter. With 2 forks shred the chicken breasts or break the chicken into bite-size pieces, whichever you prefer. Return the chicken to the slow cooker and toss it to coat it in the bourbon sauce. Place the chicken in a large bowl or on a platter and sprinkle the green onions over the top before serving.

There is not much to this recipe at all and it is a great slow cooker option when you want to try something different. The bourbon sauce is full of flavor and not too sweet, making it just perfect for your meal. I served this with white rice to keep things very simple and the meal was all put together very easily. You can start this one before you leave for work or school in the morning and it can be done waiting for you when you get home. If you are looking to make this without the bourbon, you can use chicken broth or even Apple juice instead for flavor.I think it tastes better than anything they serve you at the food court in the mall and you may never look at those free samples the same way again. This will even be great as a pulled chicken option to serve on buns with some coleslaw.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on September 11, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, One Pot Meals, Poultry, Sauce, Slow Cooker Meals

Tags: Betty Crocker, bourbon chicken, bourbon chicken recipe, bourbon sauce, slow cooker, slow cooker bourbon chicken, slow cooker recipes

An Elegant and Quick Weeknight Meal – Herbed Roasted Chicken with Lemon, Garlic and Red Onions

10 Sep

Who says you can’t have a nice looking dinner that doesn’t take forever to cook on a weeknight? Sometimes you want everyone to come to the table with a meal that not only tastes great but looks great, the problem is that most of us just do not have enough time to put this together after a full day. This recipe from Williams-Sonoma for a herbed roast chicken with lemon, garlic and red onions looks fantastic, tastes great and can all be put together in just over hour thanks to some high temperature roasting so you can have a whole chicken on the table for your family in no time at all.

Herbed Roast Chicken with Lemon, Garlic and Red Onions

1 whole chicken, about 4 pounds

2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3 lemons, halved

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh chives

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon

2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped, plus 2 garlic heads, halved crosswise

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, at room temperature

2 small red onions, halved through the stem end

2 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Rinse the chicken inside and out and pat it dry well with paper towels. Season the chicken inside and out with the kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper and place two lemon halves inside the chicken cavity. Tuck the wing tips behind the back and tie the legs together with kitchen twine.

In a small bowl, stir together the chives, thyme, oregano, parsley, tarragon, lemon zest and chopped garlic. Add the butter and stir until the herb mixture is well incorporated with the butter.

Starting at the cavity, slip your fingers underneath the chicken skin and loosen it all over, being careful not to tear it and reaching as far as possible into the thigh area of the chicken. Using your fingers, rub the butter mixture under the skin, distributing it as evenly as you possibly can,

Place the chicken, breast side up, in a large, oven-safe saute pan or skillet and add the remaining lemon halves, the garlic heads and the red onions to the pan. Drizzle the contents of the pan with the olive oil. Roast the chicken until the skin is well browned and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, away from the bone, registers 170 degrees, about 50 to 60 minutes.

Transfer the chicken to a carving board, cover it loosely with aluminum foil and allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes. Carve the chicken and serve immediately with the roasted lemon halves, garlic and red onions alongside the chicken.

The compound butter that you put under the skin of the chicken adds all of the great flavors of the herbs along with the lemon zest and garlic to give you a great flavor boost to the moist chicken you get. The whole house smelled of lemon and garlic as it the chicken was roasting, which I enjoyed, and the taste of the chicken was spot on perfect. You could always use dried herbs instead of fresh if that is what you have on hand, but just remember to reduce the amounts used as dried herbs tend to have more intense flavor to them. This meal is perfect with some roasted potatoes, mashed potatoes or even wild rice and your choice of vegetables so you can have it as a great weeknight meal or even a nice, elegant meal when you have guests over without spending a lot of time in the kitchen.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on September 10, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Herbs, Poultry

Tags: herbed roast chicken, herbed roast chicken with lemon garlic and red onions, roast chicken, roast chicken recipes, Williams-Sonoma herbed roast chicken, Williams-Sonoma roast chicken

Indoors or Out Enjoy Grilled NY Style Sausages with Balsamic Onion Sauce and Grilled Tomatoes

09 Sep

Not having a grill to use can be a detriment when I come across recipes that sound wonderful and would taste great. An electric grill just does not provide the same type of results and experience as a gas or charcoal grill, in my opinion, so when I see a grilling recipe I want to try I often try to adapt it to indoor cooking and use either a grill pan (much to the chagrin of my smoke alarm many times) or find a way to cook it in the oven. While the results may not be exactly the same for me, they can still get pretty close, or at least good enough for my purposes.. Such is the case of this recipe I saw from Bobby Flay for grilled New York-style sausages with a balsamic onion sauce and grilled tomatoes, a great alternative to the average hot dog on the grill. I am posting the grilling recipe that Bobby Flay uses even though I did everything indoors in cast iron pans or in the case of the sausages, in the oven.

Grilled NY Style Sausages with Balsamic Onion Sauce and Grilled Tomatoes

For the Balsamic Onion Sauce:

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 large Spanish onions, halved and thinly sliced
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup ketchup
1 teaspoon hot sauce

For the Grilled Cherry Tomatoes with Basil:

1 pint cherry tomatoes, cored
1 tablespoon canola oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

For the Grilled Sausage:
4 hot Italian sausage links
4 sweet Italian sausage links
1 loaf seeded semolina bread, cut into thick slices

For the balsamic onions: Put the balsamic vinegar, oil, onions and some salt and pepper in a medium skillet over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are very soft and soupy, about 15 minutes.

Stir in the chile powder and cinnamon and cook for 1 minute. Add the ketchup, 1/2 cup of water, the hot sauce, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper, and bring to a simmer. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened, about 10 minutes. Transfer the onions to a bowl and cool to room temperature before serving.

For the grilled tomatoes: Heat the grill for high direct and indirect heat. Put the tomatoes in a bowl and toss them with the canola oil and some salt and pepper. Transfer the tomatoes to a grill basket and grill over direct heat, tossing occasionally, until the tomatoes are slightly charred all over and softened, about 5 minutes. Transfer the tomatoes to a bowl, drizzle them with the olive oil, and crush them lightly with a fork. Toss the tomatoes with the basil, then set them aside.

For the sausage: Put the sausages over the direct heat and cook until they are slightly charred on all sides, about 2 minutes per side. Move the sausages to the indirect heat, cover, and cook until they are just cooked through, about 10 minutes.

Transfer the sausage to a cutting board. Grill the bread over direct heat until it is lightly charred, about 15 seconds, then transfer the bread to a platter.

Slice the sausages about 1-inch thick. Top each slice of bread with some of the grilled tomatoes, a few slices of sausage and a dollop of the onion sauce.

As I stated, I made everything inside, using a cast iron skillet for the onion sauce, a grill pan for the tomatoes and the oven for the sausages. The onions were straightforward as I could follow the recipe. The tomatoes on the grill pan were cooked over low heat for about 4 minutes until they blistered and popped and then I took them off the pan and proceeded with the recipe. The sausages I baked in the oven for about 45 minutes in a 375 degree oven, half the time covered in foil and the other half without, allowing them to crisp up a bit. To me, this works out better than simply frying the sausages in a pan and you get better texture and pop. Overall, I loved the mix of the sausages with the tomatoes and the onion sauce. The onion sauce is the real winner, in my opinion, and we used it again on hamburgers and even as a topping on some pizza. It makes a great grilling alternative for you when you want something more than a hot dog or hamburger. I forgot to take a picture of the sausages, but I do have a picture of the onions and the tomatoes.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!

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Posted by MikeG on September 9, 2014 in Cooking, Dinner, Grilling, Pork, Side Dishes, Vegetables

Tags: balsamic onion sauce, Bobby Flay, food network, grilled cherry tomatoes with basil, grilled NY style sausages, grilled NY style sausages with balsamic onion sauce and grilled tomatoes, grilled sausages, grilled tomatoes, sausages

An Easy Dessert From the Past – Icebox Cake

08 Sep

Easy desserts can be really helpful when you cannot think of anything to make and are having a dinner or just want a special treat for you and your family one night without having to put a lot of effort into it. One of the classic desserts that many people may remember from their youth is just like this – the classic icebox cake. It only has a few ingredients to it and most of the time you need to put into making the cake is the cake chilling in the refrigerator. What you come out with is a great tasting classic without much effort. I got this recipe from the Cooking Channel, though you can also find the recipe on the back of the chocolate wafer cooking package you use in the recipe (unless of course you are making your own chocolate wafer cookies).

Classic Icebox Cake

40 chocolate wafer cookies (store-bought or homemade)

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup water

1 teaspoon corn syrup

3 cups heavy whipping cream

To make the caramel whipped cream, in a medium saucepan put the sugar in a mound in the center of the pan. Try to be sure that the sugar does not hit the sides of the pan. Gently add the water and the corn syrup, making sure that the sugar does not splash up on the sides of the pan. If any of the sugar is not dissolved, very gently stir, but make sure none of the sugar hits the sides of the pan. All of this care to keep the sugar off the sides of the pan will prevent the sugar from crystallizing while it cooks.

Cook the sugar mixture over high heat, without stirring. When the sugar starts to color on the edges, gently stir the sugar until it is quite dark. The sugar will smoke a bit until it has turned dark.

Once the caramel is dark in color, reduce the heat and add half of the heavy whipping cream. The caramel will sputter and seize up, which is normal. Gently whisk the caramel until the sugar dissolves. Add the remaining heavy cream and stir. Strain the caramel cream into a shallow container and cover and refrigerate it until it is well chilled, about 2 to 4 hours minimum.

Using a whisk or a stand mixer, whip 2/3 of the chilled caramel cream until soft peaks have formed. Reserve the remaining 1/3 of the cream for topping the cake.

To make the icebox cake, Line a 8-inch by 4-inch loaf pan with plastic wrap.

Coat the bottom of the prepared loaf pan with about 1/4-inch thick layer of the caramel cream. Line the outer edge of the loaf pan with chocolate wafer cookies. Spread a layer of cream on each cookie and layer them together in the pan. You should end up with about 3 rows of cookies and cream. Cover the top with more of the cream so that the cookies are completely covered. Refrigerate the cake for at least 3 hours or overnight.

Invert the cake onto a serving platter. Whip the remaining 1/3 of the caramel cream and decorate the cake with it as you wish.

Of course, if you didn’t want to go through the effort of making the caramel cream, you could simply make some regular whipped cream and use that as the base and topping for your cake and it would come out just as nicely I believe, but the caramel adds a nice touch and flavor to the cake. The cake is light and airy and the chocolate wafers just go so nicely with the cream that you can find yourself eating a lot of this cake without much effort at all. It’s pretty tasty and one that we use often, either with regular whipped cream or caramel cream.

That’s all I have for today. Check back next time for another recipe. Until then, enjoy the rest of your day and enjoy your meal!