Salt caramels are easy to make and have a very unique taste since sea salt goes so well with caramel.

Method

Add sugar, cream, corn syrup and butter to a heavy candy pot and slowly bring to a boil on medium-medium low heat. It takes a while to heat up but if you rush this you are likely to burn your pot.

Lower the heat and put a lid on for a few minutes, this is to clean up the sides of the pot of sugar, which can ruin the candy.

Take the lid off and put a candy thermometer on the pot and bring to 248 degrees F.

Firm Ball (244-248° F) (118-120° C)

This gives you around an 87% sugar concentration

It takes a while to bring the mixture up to 248 degrees F, so go slowly.

Once you hit the correct temperature remove the thermometer and add the sea salt and vanilla. Stir slowly and becareful since this is a very hot mixture.

Pour the mix into an 8 x 8 inch, or smaller silicon form. We like silicon since you do not need to butter the dish and it is flexible when you remove them.

While hot put about 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt on top. Let stand, uncovered for about 24 hours. Cut into pieces and wrap in wax paper to store.

Baked Ziti is a smooth cheese pasta casserole. I am not sure how Italian this dish is but we all grew up with it so it counts as an American dish no matter what.

The basic dish is very flexible, using most any kind of short round pasta and most any type of cheese and your favorite sauce you can create a great everyday meal. Or if you pair the casserole with some nice bread, olive oil and wine you can create a nice Sunday meal.

Method

Parboil the pasta (partially cook the pasta) in a large pot. In a 9 x 13 inch pan mix the pasta with the sauce (preferably homemade) and add the grated parmesan and 2 cups ricotta cheese with a spoon around the dish. Top with slices of mozzarella cheese and bake for 20 - 30 minutes at 325 degrees F.

Homemade Tomato Sauce

If you choose to make homemade sauce you could start with one 28 ounce can of whole or diced tomatoes. Dice up the tomatoes if whole and reserve the liquid. Dice up one onion and sautee for a minute or two one medium high heat. Add tomato paste, sautee. Then add the tomatoes and sautee for 5 minutes. Deglaze with the reserved juice from the can and add the herbs. This is where you can really make a great sauce. Thyme, rosemary, cayenne pepper...the list of herbs and spices you can add is endless.

Add a tablespoon or two of white sugar, salt and pepper to taste, and stir. Then for the ziti you can blend the sauce in a blender and just pour over the pasta.

This recipe for white chocolate mousse really came out great. Once before we used a white chocolate ganache to frost a white butter cake and this came out even better. Usually for chocolate tortes we use a 1 to 1 ratio of dark chocolate and heavy cream, but when using white chocolate we have discovered that you need less cream, or the ganache will never set properly.

Method

Ganache - heat up 1.5 deciliters (~ 5 fluid ounces) of heavy cream to a scald, but watch the cream carefully, it can easily boil over. Pour the hot cream over the white chocolate (~ 7 ounces). Let it sit for a few minutes and then stir to combine. At first it will seem liquidy, but as you stir the ganache will thicken.

Place in a shallow pan in the fridge for a while until it is fully chilled.

Once the ganache is fully chilled place it in a mixer or whip by hand until it doubles in volume, about 5 - 6 minutes.

Whip the 1 cup of cream with or without sugar, it is your choice.

Serving

In a cocktail glass, or wine glass layer the whipped ganache and cream and serve with fruit. 

Banana Pancakes are easy to make and great to have as a late night snack or breakfast. There is really no time that is not perfect for pancakes.

makes about 9 small or 3 large pancakes

Method

Add all the ingredients to work bowl, except the banana and fold together. Do not stir too much. Let the batter sit for a few minutes while you slice the banana in thin slices or wedges.

Add the banana slices to the batter and fold in.

Heat up a non-stick pan on medium heat with about a 1/2 tablespoon of butter and either make three small pancakes or one larger one.

Cook about 1-2 minutes on each side and serve. Add butter, syrup and cream.

Beef ribs taste great and make an interesting presentation for the holidays or any summer day. They are usually very expensive to have out, but we found them for about $3/pound (December 2008) at our local grocer.

So we started with two racks, about 3 pounds total, although the bones on beef ribs are a lot larger and heavier then with the more familiar baby back pork ribs. Beef ribs also have less meat than you are paying for because of the size of the bones, but they have a richer taste than pork ribs. They do not fall apart quite the same way as pork ribs either, so they are easier to move once cooked. Pork ribs tend to completely fall apart when you try to move them.

Baby Back Pork Ribs

Preparation

We laid them out on a half sheet pan the night before and coated them with a dry rub, sometimes referred to as a dry brine because of all the salt in the rub.

Rub

• 4 teaspoons kosher salt, use less for table salt
• 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoons lemon pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh cracked black pepper
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika

Rub the mix all over the ribs, coating both the back and the front. Cover with foil and let sit overnight.

Cooking

Preheat your over to 325 degrees F and cook for 2 hours. Then remove the foil and rub a little barbecue sauce on the top (presentation side) of the ribs and place under the broiler for 5 - 10 minutes.

Serve.

They will be tender and should have a very beefy flavor, but do not rush the cooking process because the meat can become tough if the heat is too high.

Save the Bones

The bones have a lot of flavor and really should be used. If you take the bones and sautee them with some butter on high heat you can begin to make a great beef stock to use in soups or stews.