During my junior and senior years in high school and summers in college, I worked at Lone Tree Retirement Community in Meade, KS. Mostly I worked in the kitchen as a “dish washer”, but the title was a bit of a misnomer. My job description, had it ever been documented, would read like this: Responsible for everything related to serving meals to 90 residents … except cooking. Setting tables, prepping desserts and drinks, serving each resident, clearing tables, cleaning dining room aaaand washing all the dishes were some of the things on my to-do list for each meal. It was physically exhausting for obvious reasons, but it was mentally exhausting as well. Each resident had different specifications for his or her place setting. (e.g. Elizabeth is on a 1500 calorie diabetic diet/likes half-strength Postum at dinner, full-strength at supper/prefers to drink from a red cup/will yell at me if I don’t serve her first … ) Just worrying that I would accidentally give a diabetic resident a regular dessert kept my stomach in knots most days. Despite its challenges, it was not a bad job and I generally enjoyed the company of the residents and my co-workers.

I have some really nice memories from my time working at Lone Tree. One thing I especially remember is the tasty carrot orange cookies the cooks would occasionally bake. I am not certain what brought these cookies to mind a few days ago, but once the idea was stuck in my head, I knew I’d have to try to recreate them. As I recall the cookies, I think I would now find them a little too sweet. So I’ve modified the basic recipe, found at allrecipes.com, to pump up the flavor and balance the sweetness.

This is one of the rare recipes in which I actually prefer to use white sugar instead of maple sugar. I’ve made them both ways and I like them both, but I feel fresh carrot is just too delicate a flavor to hold up to the power of maple.

I hope you enjoy these as much as I did back during my days working at Lone Tree.

Soft Carrot Cookies with Orange Zest Glaze

Ingredients

For cookies
* 1/4 cup unsalted butter
* 1/2 cup shortening
* 1 cup white sugar
* 1 egg
* 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1 cup mashed cooked carrots
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
For Glaze
* 1 cup confectioners sugar
* Zest from 2 oranges (don’t skimp on the zest!)
* 1 Tablespoon fresh squeezed orange juice. (“fresh squeezed” is important. You CAN taste the difference)
* 5 packets True Lemon (this is an important ingredient!)

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line cookie sheet with baking parchment.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the shortening and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the egg, then stir in the vanilla and carrots.
3. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually stir into the creamed mixture.
4. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheet.
5. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly golden. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. To make the glaze, put 1 cup of the confectioners’ sugar and 5 packets True Lemon into a medium bowl.
7. Zest two oranges into the bowl with the sugar.
8. Add orange juice. Mix until smooth.
9. Spread onto the cooled cookies. Store in an airtight container.

Special thanks, once again, to Nate Kauffman for another beautiful picture.

Around this time of year, when daytime temps hover in the high 30s and the overnight lows still drop below freezing, maple trees start to wake from their dormancy and prepare for the growing season. To fuel new growth, the tree releases its stored sugar which makes the sap sweeter than any other time of year, averaging around 2 or 3 percent sugar content.

Ever since I have been interested in maple syrup and its production, I’ve wondered how maple sap might look and taste. Although I have visited several sugar shacks* and seen the syrup in production, I never had the opportunity to see and taste maple sap right from the tree. That is until last Sunday, when Nate surprised me by taking me to the Morton Arboretum for their maple tapping program.

My previous experience with sap was limited to the sticky, resinous stuff produced by conifers, so I was quite surprised when I finally got a look.

Untitled from karen kauffman on Vimeo.

It looks just like water and the sweetness is barely noticeable. This makes sense, considering it IS just water with a tiny bit of sucrose. What can I say, common sense occasionally eludes me. :-)

* In this context, a sugar shack is a small, well-ventilated shelter where maple sap is boiled into maple syrup.

As we close in on Thanksgiving, I want to take a few minutes to express my gratitude to some wonderful people.

I’m thankful for Kristi.
If she reads this post, she may be surprised to discover that her question about spices, asked mostly in passing, was the encouragement I needed to pick myself up, get back in the kitchen and start blogging again.

I’m thankful for Sally and Roger.
Of all the virtues I could list about these two, I will just mention the one that is most relevant to this post; they know how to throw a party. Their most recent party, a potluck, was a good excuse to work up a new recipe (which we’ll eventually get to, I promise.)

I’m thankful for Will.
Let’s be honest; I try really hard to impress him. So many times, I have pushed myself just a little further because of him. At Roger and Sally’s party, I held my breath as Will sampled my contribution to the potluck: Coriander Maple Corn. His response: “this is actually really good.” I turned to goo.

I’m thankful for Olive.
She showed me that one’s day job need not interfere with one’s dream.

I’m thankful for James.
He is a shining example of what it means to dedicate oneself to excellence. Many years ago he challenged me to give my best to even the smallest and most insignificant of projects. I am working to make this a way of life.

I am thankful for Nate.
He held me, prayed with me, comforted me and encouraged me as I worked through a difficult career transition that threw me off my stride and knocked me off my feet. Cue Bette Middler; he helped me rediscover joy.

And now, here is the recipe that was inspired by Kristi, Sally, Roger, Will, Olive, James and Nate. I hope you enjoy it!!

Coriander Maple Corn

3 ½  Tbs. whole coriander seeds
1 ½ tsp. black peppercorns
12 whole cloves
1 cup popcorn kernels
¾ cup grade B maple syrup
¼ cup light corn syrup
1 cup maple sugar
1 cup salted butter
1 tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. vanilla

Popping corn

While you may use microwave popcorn (natural, unbuttered) for this recipe, I recommend popping the corn on your stovetop instead. This gives the popcorn a nice toastiness  you just don’t get from the microwaved stuff. I won’t bore you with instructions on stovetop popcorn. You’ll find a really good tutorial here. (skip the salt, as you’ll be adding it to the corn later.)

Prep

Measure and set aside all ingredients.
Line two baking sheets with parchment.
Read all instructions.

A note about tools

Be sure to use either a silicone scraper or wooden spoon for stirring. The success or failure of this recipe depends on preventing crystallization of the caramel. Silicone and wood discourage crystal formation more than metal.

Onward

1) Grind spices. I use a dedicated coffee grinder for this. You can also use a pestle and mortar, but it is harder to get a really fine grind this way.

2) Preheat oven to 250°.

3) In a heavy, 3 qt. sauce pan, melt butter over low heat, add maple sugar and stir until combined.  Let the maple sugar dissolve a bit before adding remaining ingredients.

2) Add maple syrup, corn syrup, and ground spices. Stir just until combined.

3) Bring ingredients to a boil undisturbed over medium heat to 250°.

4) Remove candy thermometer then add baking soda and vanilla. The mixture will foam. Let this foaming subside a bit.

5) Pour the caramel over the popcorn.

6) Fold the caramel into the popcorn, making sure the corn is coated evenly. The caramel should be smooth and shiny. Here is a good explanation of how to prevent crystal formation.

7) Spread popcorn onto baking sheets and place in oven.

8) Bake for 45 minutes, turning corn every 15 minutes.

9) Before you put the corn in the oven for the third time, sprinkle with sea salt.

10) Remove corn from oven and let cool thoroughly before placing in an airtight container.

Thanks to Nate for another stunning picture.  I married well, folks.

People are quirky.  I am a person. Therefore, I am quirky.

I had a bit of a dilemma on my hands while I was on vacation last week. The campground where my family and I stayed had an ice cream parlour which featured a dozen or so flavors of homemade ice cream.  Three of the flavors were Blue Beach (?) Blue Bubblegum (!) and Maple Pecan (!!!)

This may not seem to be too much of a problem, but I have this little quirk: I simply cannot pass up blue ice cream. So having not just one, but two blue options standing in the way of the Maple Pecan caused a bit of dessert anxiety inside me.

I guess the three options were too much for me to deal with. So in a surprising turn of events, I passed on all three … multiple times, friends!

Since the ice cream-shaped vacuum in my soul went unfilled during vacation, upon arriving back home, I had to remedy the situation right away.

Maple Ice Cream with Candied Bacon

Tools

2 quart-ish sauce pan
8 quart-ish pot
1 quart-ish bowl
9″x13″ glass baking dish
Candy thermometer
Wire wisk
Ice cream maker
Strainer and cheese cloth (optional and may not be necessary if you watch the ice cream base carefully)
Parchment paper

Ingredients

3 cups whipping cream
1 cup whole milk
2 cups grade B maple syrup
4 egg yolks
A pinch of sea salt (or more, to taste)
6 strips thick sliced bacon
1 cup light brown sugar

Everything ready? OK, let’s go!

Ice Cream Base

1) Place egg yolks in the 1 quart bowl and set aside.
2) In the 3 quart sauce pan, reduce 2 cups of syrup down to 1 cup over medium low heat. Stir frequently. You may want to use a candy thermometer, because the syrup should really stay below 225° F during reduction. This reduction might take a while. Be patient, the concentrated maple flavor is worth the time spent here.
3) Combine whipping cream, milk and reduced maple syrup in the 8 quart pot and place over medium heat, stirring until the mixture is hot.
4) Wisk 1 cup of the cream mixture into the egg yolks, ¼ cup at a time.
5) Add the yolk mixture to the cream base and reduce heat to low.
6) Stir cream base constantly until it thickens a bit (around 160° F). Watch carefully and do not let the base come near a boil, because the eggs will curdle and you’ll have little egg yolk floaters in the mixture. Yuck! However, if this does happen, all is not lost. Just strain out the little nasties and promise yourself that you’ll do better next time. :-)
7) Remove from heat and let cool for an hour or so, stirring occasionally.
8 ) Cover and refrigerate the ice cream base until very cold; at least 6 hours.

Candied Bacon

1) Preheat oven to 400° F.
2) Lay 6 strips of bacon in a 9″x13″ glass baking dish and place in oven for 5 minutes.
3) Remove bacon from oven and pour off fat.
4) Sprinkle light brown sugar over the strips and return to oven for another 8 minutes.
5) Remove dish from oven, turn over and drag the bacon through the dark syrupy sugar in the pan.
6) Return bacon to oven for 8 more minutes.
7) Cool bacon strips on parchment paper.
8 ) Once the bacon is completely cooled, crumble it into chunks and refrigerate until you are ready to use it.

Note: Not all bacon is created equal, so the times listed here may vary depending on the thickness of the bacon and how much water it contains. A good rule of thumb: just keep an eye on the bacon and don’t let it burn. :-)

Making the Ice Cream

1) Follow the manufacturers instructions for your particular machine, adding the bacon chunks about 10 minutes before the ice cream is done.
2) The ice cream will still be quite soft, so you’ll need to place it in the freezer for several hours to allow it to set up nicely. Or you can just eat it while it’s still soft. ;-)

Special thanks to my best friend Nate for another great pic.

It is to my great shame that I took my family for granted for many years. I deeply regret the years spent focused on myself more than them.

They are, all of them, crazy, unique, frustrating, complicated and wonderful. So whenever I have a chance to spend time with them, I jump at it. This does not happen nearly as often as I’d like, since we are spread out from State College, PA to Great Falls, MT.

But occasionally the stars align and we are all able to get together in one place, as will happen this coming week when we gather at Glacier National Park.

The State College contingency (my brother and his bride) will be stopping by on their way out to Montana and I will be hitching a ride with them. Since we are not due in Glacier until next week, they are spending a couple of days here. This gives me a reason to haul out recipes for tasty foods that I don’t usually take the time to prepare.

Here is one of my longtime ab faves, with a maple-y twist. I found the base for this recipe, of all places, at About.com
Of all the cinnamon roll recipes I’ve tried over the years, this by far surpasses all the others. With my modifications ;-) , I recommend it highly.

Maple Sweet Rolls with orange cream cheese icing

Ingredients:

For Dough
1½ packages (about 3¼ teaspoons) dry yeast
¼ cup warm (90° F- 100° F) water*
½ cup butter
¼ cup granulated maple sugar **
1½ teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 egg
4 to 5 cups sifted bread flour
* When making yeast bread, it is best to use filtered water. Sometimes trace chlorine in tap water causes yeast to be less effective.
**This stuff is so good it brings tears to your eyes, unfortunately the expense might also make you cry. In an upcoming post, I will explain how you can make your own maple sugar.

For Filling
½ cup softened butter
1 to 2 cups-ish granulated maple sugar

For Orange Cream Cheese Frosting
1 oz softened cream cheese
1Tbs softened butter
1 tsp orange zest
1 Tbs orange juice
1 cup powdered sugar

Here we go!
1) Add the warm water to the yeast and soak 10 minutes.
2) Cut up butter into ½ cubes and place in a large bowl.
3) Scald milk then pour over the butter.
4) Add maple sugar and salt and cool to tepid.
5) Beat the egg for about a minute in a small bowl.
6) Add the dissolved yeast and beaten egg to the milk mixture.
7) Add 4 cups flour adding one at a time beating after each addition.

Dough will be soft yet firm enough to handle. If the dough is just too loose to handle, you may add up to ½ cup more flour, 1 tsp at a time, until you can pick it up. Note: Your hands are going to get messy here; just deal with it. Don’t go adding a ton of flour just to make the dough easier to work.

8 ) Knead on floured board until elastic and smooth. You may sprinkle the board with flour as you knead, but sparingly; only enough to keep the dough from sticking to the board.
9) Round dough into a ball and place in a large oiled bowl and let rise for about an hour or until doubled in size.
9) Empty dough onto a floured board and roll into a rectangle roughly 12″ x 16″.
10) Spread softened butter evenly over the dough.
11) Layer a generous amount of maple sugar on top of the butter.
12) Roll dough in jellyroll fashion.
13) Using a very sharp knife, cut off slices about 1 to 1-1/2 inches thick.
14) Place slices in a greased 9″ x 13″ baking pan. Let rise until rolls fill the pan generously…about another hour.
15) Bake in a 350° F oven about 15 – 20 minutes.
16) remove from oven and frost with orange cream cheese icing while rolls are still warm

Orange Cream Cheese Frosting
1) Cream butter, cream cheese and orange zest together
2) Mix in powdered sugar until blended. The mixture will be stiff.
3) Beat in orange juice until icing is smooth

Special thanks to Mark and Annette for giving me a reason to make these wonderful rolls.

Helping my dad in the garden is one of my most cherished childhood memories. As a pastor, it was important for him to get out into the community, so rather than planting vegetables in our backyard, he signed up for a plot at the city garden. Perhaps it was this small level of removal from home that made going to the garden such an exciting excursion for my sister and me.

Amy and I truly loved going to the garden with Dad and we were always anxious to lend a hand. Normally, my dad would have welcomed such enthusiastic help, but he knew what we were really after: the beans. We would make ourselves sick eating the fresh beans, often ruining our supper.

Of course, Dad also grew summer squash. And although that particular vegetable was not noteworthy to me at the time, I always think of him when I eat it now. So I had to make this today:

Grilled Maple-Glazed Summer squash.

Ingredients
2 Tbs grade B maple syrup
1 Tbs unsalted butter, melted
1 fat summer squash

Instructions
1) Slice squash into rounds about 3/4 inch thick.
2) Combine melted butter and maple syrup.
3) Bring grill temperature to medium-high.
4) Place squash on the grill and brush with the maple mixture.
5) Grill for about 45 seconds to 1 minute.
6) Flip the squash and brush top side with maple mixture.
7) Grill for about 45 seconds to 1 minute and remove squash from grill.
8 ) Season with salt and coarsely ground pepper to taste.

Special thanks to my dad for being awesome and to my best friend, Nate, for the image.