A Condiment from the Heavens. Homemade Sweet & HOT Mustard.

Anything with the words Spicy, Sweet & Mustard, all in the same sentence, you immediately have my attention.

I will spread, dip, drench, and lather anything with this condiment from the heavens.

Plus, I can't believe I made it!  Seriously. 

My darling neighbor so gracefully shared this recipe with me, which she so eloquently calls "Food from the Gods".  She said she makes this in large batches during the Holiday's and gives it away as gifts.

Unlike the kind and giving person as my neighbor is, I too make this in large batches.  But I keep it for myself.  I'm very stingy with this heavenly condiment.

1 c. dry ground mustard

1 c. apple cider vinegar

2 eggs

1 c. sugar

Pinch of salt

Glass containers with tight fitting lid

I bought these darling little 250 ml Ball jars from Target.  They came in a 4-pack and this recipe will fill 3 of these jars 3/4 of the way full.

I guess if you were a nice person, you could keep one jar and give 2 of them away. 

I, on the other hand, am not a nice person when it comes to sharing this recipe.  I refuse to part with any of this delicious condiment.

Mix together well 1 c. dry mustard and 1 c. apple cider vinegar in a Tupperware container and let stand overnight.  As they say back East, "fuget about it".

24 hours later, beat 2 eggs and add 1 c. sugar in top of a double boiler.  Now don't worry.  I don't have a double boiler either. Honestly, I don't think I have ever owned, or will own a double boiler. I've always improvised.

This is what I did.  I took a large pan, filled it a little less than half way with water, then took a Pyrex heat-proof glass bowl and set it inside the pan.

Place on stove at medium high heat.  Add Mustard and Vinegar mixture to the egg and sugar mixture. Whisk well.

Add a pinch of salt and continue to whisk until combined.

Keep watching and whisking until mixture comes to a soft boil.  Keep whisking away until texture becomes somewhat thick, like a "thin custard". Not thick like a pudding but thick enough that when you dip a spoon in the mixture, it will coat the back and not drip off right away. 

Pour into your cute little jars and let cool for just a bit before screwing the lid on.

This condiment from the heavens has so so many uses.

I instantly made myself a ham sandwich because I could not take it any longer.

Here are some delicious suggestions for this heavenly sauce.

Brats & Hot Dogs are a given.

Delicious on any sandwich; Grilled Cheese, Hot Pastrami, Po' Boy....anything goes.

Oh, to die for, with fresh warm pretzels.

Add a smidgen in your deviled eggs or egg salad, oy vey.

So good on the side to dip your wrapped smokies.

Dip, spread, smear.......

You get the idea.

Truly, a condiment from the Heavens.

Restaurant-Good Salad Dressing - LEMON MAPLE VINAIGRETTE

Why is it that salads from restaurants always taste better than when you make them at home?

When I order a salad from a restaurant, it always tastes so refreshing. 

I always wonder why I don't have more salads at home.  Lettuce, Tomatoes & Croutons.  Simple right?

But somehow, when I make one at home, it just doesn't hit the spot like it does when I'm sitting in a booth someplace and paying 5 times what it would cost if I made it at home. 

This makes me mad, and I'm not going to take it anymore.

So here it is, my version of a Restaurant-Good salad.

Dressing:
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil
Juice of 1 lemon
2 Tbsp. Real Maple Syrup (not pancake syrup)
2 cloves garlic
1 tsp. Kosher salt
1 tsp. black pepper

Salad:
Heart of Romaine Lettuce (no substitutes)
Grape or Cherry Tomatoes, cut in half
Dried cranberries (Craisins)
Mini Croutons
White cheddar cheese, cut into small cubes


The beauty of this salad dressing is there are only 6 ingredients.

Have you ever counted the ingredients on a salad dressing bottle that's in your refrigerator?

Go on, check it out and see for yourself.  I'll wait.

In case you don't want to get up, it will probably look something like this one:

Xanthan Gum!  What the?

Disodium Inosinate?

Who comes up with this stuff?

Side Note:  when I looked up the word Disodium Inosinate online, this was the definition:
chemical formula C10H11N4Na2O8P, is the disodium salt of inosinic acid. It is a food additive often found in instant noodles, potato chips, and a variety of other snacks. It is used as a flavor enhancer, in synergy with monosodium glutamate  to provide the umami taste.

Oh ok, now I understand!  That cleared up everything.

Why can't things be simple? 

Simple is good.

Simple is good for ya.

So let's get started with a restaurant-good salad with good for ya Lemon Maple Vinaigrette Dressing.

Get out your handy dandy home-made salad dressing bottle.  If you don't have one, any ole glass container will do that has a nice tight fitting lid.  Maybe a Mason jar, or even an old salsa jar that you've rinsed out really well of course. 

Once you start making this salad dressing, trust me, you're going to want to get a nice glass salad dressing bottle. Like one of those Good Seasons Salad Dressing bottles they sell at the grocery store.

Take your garlic cloves and mash them really well onto a cutting board or in a wooden bowl.  Mash it together with the Kosher salt.  Now scoop all of that salty garlic goodness into your glass container.

Take your lemon, and be sure to roll it around on the counter, while gently pressing it down with the palm of your hand. This gets it all juicy and easy to squeeze out every last drop.  Once you are done pressing and rolling, you will notice the feel of the lemon is much softer and will be easier to juice.

Into your glass container with the garlic and salt, pour in your vegetable oil, juice of your lemon (watch out for seeds) and pepper.

Ok, now for the maple syrup.  Be sure you buy REAL MAPLE SYRUP and not the kind you pour on your kids pancakes.  The real McCoy.  Mine looks like this:

Now shake shake shake.  Shake Shake Shake.  Shake your Vinaigrette.

Now for the salad itself.  My preference for a really good salad is Hearts of Romaine lettuce.

I get them in a bag of three, and personally I like to cut the lettuce with a knife into small pieces. 

Pet Peeve of mine is a salad where the lettuce is in big chunks. So I cut the lettuce, but feel free to "gently tear" the lettuce, like all the fancy Chefs do.

Get yourself a nice large bowl, put in your cut (or torn) lettuce, throw in a handful of Craisins, Pecans, sliced grape tomatoes, sliced white cheddar cheese and a handful of mini-croutons (again a preference. I like the mini croutons). Feel free to add your favorite salad fixings instead of the one's I mentioned.

Drizzle your Restaurant-Good salad dressing over the top, and toss toss toss.  Toss toss toss.  Be sure to get everything all coated so each bite is better than the one before.

And if you are lucky enough to have a nice chunk of crusty bread, go ahead and dip it right into that dressing.  Why I do believe, you'll think you're sitting in a booth in some restaurnt, eating the best salad you've ever tasted.

 

Cranberry Orange Cream Cheese Spread. SCHMEAR AWAY!

Oh how I love Cranberries.

And Oh how I love Cream Cheese.

When I have this glory in my refrigerator, I will literally walk around trying to find things to Schmear this on.

I love the word Schmear.  I feel so "New York Deli" when I say it.

I walk down the aisles of my grocery store, looking for anything that would be worthy to have a Schmer of this stuff.

And you probably won't believe me, but as I fell asleep last night, I thought "I wonder what I have in the house that I can Schmear that stuff on for breakfast tomorrow morning".

So sad I know, but these are the things I think of as I drift off to slumber.

Since my beloved Cranberries will soon no longer grace my grocery store produce shelves, I had to quickly make 4 tubs of this stuff.  You know, so I can "Schmear" it on things.

Just think of the possibilities:

* Use it as a spread for your turkey sandwich.

* Schemar it on a freshly toasted Belgium Waffle instead of your normal syrup.

* Bake my recipe for Crazy Delicious Cranberry Bread and spread a Schmear on that

* Oh and those extra thick English Muffins, where all the cranberry cream cheese will fall down into each of the little nooks & crannies.  Oh My.

* Schmear it on your favorite cracker, so pretty for a party.

* Use it for fruit dip.

* Or of course, like the New Yorkers do, Schmear it on a toasted Bagel.

Now hurry and go buy this stuff:

1 (8 ounce) cube cream cheese, room temperature.
1/2 c. honey
1/2 c. Fresh Cranberries Chopped up in Blender (about 1 c. fresh cranberies)
Zest of one Orange

Note: If you have Walnuts add 1/4 cup chopped walnuts.  I LOVE walnuts in this but I didn't have any today, which made me really sad.

Grab some fresh cranberries and throw them into a blender.  About 1 cup of fresh, should turn into 1/2 c. chopped, but you might have to throw a few in or take a few out.  Give it a whirl in your blender and see how many whole berries come out to 1/2 c. blended.

Don't blend them so much that they turn into cranberry particles.  It's ok if they are somewhat chunky.

Put your room temperature cream cheese, honey, and chopped cranberries in your Kichen Aid mixer, or in a big bowl. 

Take out your spiffy zester, and zest one orange over the bowl.  Be sure not to zest too far down into the white of the orange rind, cause that stuff is no good.

Isn't orange zest so pretty?

Blend everything up pretty thoroughly.

If you are using nuts, I would now add the nuts, after it has all been blended, and fold in your walnuts at this point.  I sure wish I had some walnuts.

Find a nice little container with a tight fitting lid and place in the refrigerator for several hours.  Over night is best.  It will get the flavors all married together and be so wonderful.

Now, grab something Schmearable and get going.

Just think of all the possibilities. 

Schmear until your little heart's content.