Boston Baked / French Burnt Peanuts/Almonds

What exactly are Boston Baked Peanuts, aka French Burnt Peanuts? I have no idea, to tell you the truth. (Note: The picture above is actually of the almonds because they turned out prettier.)

This recipe journey started when my mom bought a clearance tub of Planters Sweet 'n' Crunchy peanuts and said, find a way to make this for me. Uh, sure, mom, no problem.

So my journey first took me to variations of Toffee Peanuts, which is kind of like Peanut Brittle without all the brittle (which I'll share in another post). She said, good, but not what I asked for.

Then, while we were in a drug store, she said that she thought they are also called Boston Baked Beans or something like that. So we looked for them, but the Boston Baked Beans we found were some red peanuts and didn't have the crunchy topping that she wanted. But it did give me another avenue to find a recipe.

And so, here comes this recipe for Boston Baked peanuts/almonds, which I note are seem to be also known as French Burnt peanuts. I include almonds because, really, we were just trying to use up some bulk peanuts that we bought from the warehouse club that we did not like and so I used them up, but because we also had a lot of almonds, I thought I would try a batch with the almonds, and they came out really well. They are so addictive - not too sweet, but you have to be careful, once you start, you just can't stop. They're that good. So try them - with peanuts, almonds, or any other type of nut you have on hand. I dare you to just stop at one.

French Burnt/Boston Baked Peanuts

2 c peanuts (or almonds)*
1 c sugar
1/2 c water
1 t salt (optional)

* If peanuts or almonds are raw, they may require additional time in the oven. You can use the roasted peanuts you get in the store, and if they're already salted, I would omit the salt in this recipe.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. Cook until all the liquid has evaporated, and the peanuts are coated with sugar, stirring occasionally. (While you could probably evaporate the liquid at a higher heat, the sugar will probably burn and the nuts will turn a yucky brown/black color.) This will take a while - 20-30 minutes.

Spread nuts over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-20 minutes, stirring once. If raw nuts were used, bake for an additional 10 minutes. The nuts will not turn golden brown in the oven, and they may seem a bit soft coming out of the oven, but when they cool, they will get nice and crunchy.

Cool and store in an airtight container.

Sausage Balls

One of my earliest recollections of recipes and cooking was my 8th grade Home Economics class where the teacher would give us recipes to cook in class. And one of the recipes was for Sausage balls. I've since lost the recipe, but with the wonders of the internet, it's amazing to find the same recipe - and its many variations.

Actually, these were left over from some other recipe I'm trying to invent in my attempt to enter recipes for the Pillsbury Bake-Off. I can't exactly divulge all the specifics (yet), but here is what I've done for these sausage balls. I find that in a lot of recipes, the ratio of the flour/pancake mix to sausage is a little much so I've reduced it here. And some recipes call for Parmesan cheese, but I don't remember that in my Home Ec recipe and find it unnecessary too.

With that said, this recipe is such an easy one to make - you can't mess it up and it's always a hit whenever I take it to parties. Try it, and it'll become a favorite in your arsenal too.

Sausage Balls

1 pound pork sausage (hot or mild - your preference)
2 c Pancake mix (like Bisquick)
4 c cheddar cheese, grated or shredded
1/2 c milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all ingredients together and mix thoroughly. Using your hands works best, and you'll have to get your hands dirty anyway to make the balls.

Make 1-inch balls from the mixture and place on ungreased baking sheet (or parchment paper if you want easier clean-up). Space balls 1-2 inches apart - they don't spread out so you can space them fairly close together if you want.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown.**

Serve warm or at room temperature.

**Note: The grease will start to come out of the cheese and the balls in the oven, but when they get a chance to cool off a little, they won't seem greasy at all.

One of the Best Ways to Use Up Apples

The Best Apple Tart Ever

This is my first attempt at a food blog. I know that's just what the world needs -- another food blog, but whether or not it's ever read, there's something somewhat comforting to share wonderful food experiences you have with others so that they can have terrific food experiences of their own so here I go.

I know that apple season is long over, but way back in the fall, my parents bought a box of Fuji apples from the farmer's market. They were such a good deal, and we all love Fuji apples so of course, we thought that there would be no problem in getting rid of them. Fast forward four months (and counting), and we are still dealing with the remnants of the apples. Although we stored them in a cool, dry basement, after all this time, the apples are slowly turning to mush with a few brown spots and no longer appealing to eat solo. Applesauce would be the easy solution, but since there's no pork chops or babies around to enjoy them with, enter the Barefoot Contessa's French Apple Tart.

I don't remember the first time I made this recipe, but it's simply one of the best apple desserts I've ever made. (And I've made some pretty good apple crisps and apple crostadas in my time.) The crust is amazing  -- light, flaky, with just a hint of sweetness. Actually, I think we like it even more than the apples themselves, and I might try just making the tart as a stand-alone crispy treat someday, but until then, it's a great way to use up leftover apples. The original recipe said using Granny Smith apples, but I think any kind of apples could work.