A Beginners Guide to Chocolate

Since I’ll be sharing a few chocolate recipes this year, I thought it would be important to have a post about how to handle chocolate. Now, weirdly I am much better with sugar. I can sculpt roses by hand out of sugar, but man when chocolate and I get together I seem to find it in the weirdest places afterward and make a complete mess doing it. How does chocolate even get on your elbow when you haven’t melted any yet? This post will go over the basics of chocolate, how to temper, and any tools you may need. Let’s get started!

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How to Sleigh the Holiday Season: Sugar Basics for Candy Making Beginners

I guess you could call this a sugar crash course 😉 . Alright, we’re gonna get serious about this whole sugar thing. I am posting two recipes that deal with the molten hot mess that candy making can be and I want to make sure all you lovelies are safe while making treats this year. I have read too many recipes that don’t really say how dangerous sugar can be let alone tell you how to properly handle it, not on my blog, no siree! Sugar is no joke and shouldn’t be taken lightly. This guide will walk you through how to handle sugar safely and other tips, and give you all the essentials you’ll need for candy making plus alternatives. Let’s get started!

How to Sleigh the Holiday Season: Making Food Gifts Safely

Oh my gosh am I excited to introduce this series to the blog!! I am a Christmas fanatic. I could care less about the whole gift-giving portion of Christmas, but I love the music, the atmosphere, the snow, all the treats, decorating, and crap I forgot to breathe. I pretty much like everything. One of my absolute favorite things to do is make candy as gifts for friends, family, and neighbors. However, I find that I don’t often trust what other’s give me because I find most people don’t know the first thing about kitchen sanitation and cleanliness. I am ServSafe certified and have been involved in the culinary world from a very young age. It has been ingrained in me to practice food safety and I think it is important to make sure the treats I give out are as safe as a home cook/baker/candy maker can make them. Let’s get started!

Persimmons: What Are They and What Can You Do with Them (30+ Recipes)

Persimmons are the fruit of the season for me, and I know this will be controversial, but I think they deserve more credit than the pumpkin. I know, I know, pumpkins are the fall food, but I’m sure we can all accept one more into our hearts. If you have never heard of, seen, or tasted a persimmon, let me describe one for you: they are very sweet, honey-flavored fruits that look kinda like a tomato and can have a lovely crunchy texture (like an apple) or be practically jelly on the inside. They are delicious.