Jeepers Creepers... (Blueberry Stuffed Lychee Fruit)

...where'd you get those Peepers? 
  
Here's my second installment of taking back the holidays...the Valentine's Day holiday that is...Halloween style! 
The eyes are said to be 'the windows to the soul' and what better way to show your love and commitment by serving this gruesomely sweet fruit garnish of lychees and blueberries with your favorite cocktail. Doesn't it just scream, "I've only got eyes for you!" Watch the flash of uncertainty cross his face when you serve this on Valentine's Day. 💓

These Peepers are made with Lychee fruit and blueberries dripping with bloody gelatin for a realistic look. If you're intimidated by the look of them and if you've never tasted lychees, I understand if you have reservations. My kids wouldn't even try the lychees before the gory wardrobe change, despite my pleas of , "You'll like it! Trust me!" Lychees taste like a cross between pear and guava with a texture that's smooth, sweet and tropical. Add the blueberries and raspberry jello and it's truly divine. A perfect complement to your favorite tropical drink or a sweet side to martinis.

Jeepers Creepers...

(Blueberry Stuffed Lychee Fruit)
Makes ~20 peepers

1- 20oz. can of Lychee Fruit in Syrup, 1/4 c. reserved
20+ blueberries
1 small package raspberry gelatin
1 cup water

Heat 1 cup of water and dissolve gelatin, remove from heat and set aside. Drain Lychees and reserve 1/4 cup of syrup. Add 1/4 cup lychee syrup to cooling Jello. Let cool and begin to thicken but don't allow it to fully set.
Stuff lychees with blueberries and place in a shallow dish. I used a Rubbermaid deviled egg carrier and it worked like a charm. Once the Jello has thickened, use a turkey baster to portion jello mixture over the blueberries. Refrigerate until firm for about an hour. This can be made up to 1 day ahead and refrigerate until ready to serve. Pierce lychees with toothpick and garnish your favorite cocktail.

Here's the cocktail recipe I used in this blog. Feel free to add 1 oz. of vodka to bump it up a notch. 😀

Makes 1 drink
1 oz. Malibu Caribbean Rum with Pineapple Liqueur
1 oz. Pineapple Orange Guava Juice
1 oz. Cranberry Blueberry Juice

Here's another idea using these peepers...If you are feeding a crowd for Halloween Valentine's Day, Triple the batch, pile them high and serve them as this gruesome "Eye of the Beholder Fruit Salad!" 💕💕

Other recipes to try:

Fangtini

Squirmy Wormy Shots

Bloody Eyeball Bruschetta

My Bloody Valentine (Red Velvet Cake with Berry Sauce)

Valentine's day is not my favorite holiday. Honestly, it's an awful holiday. It puts ridiculous pressure on couples, new and old. And don't get me started on the number it works on all the single gals. I remember depressingly quiet and lonely Valentine's days when I was young and single. It's ironic that what was once a dreaded day to endure long ago, sounds like the perfect Valentine's Day to me today. What I'd give for a quiet evening alone...All kidding aside, what better way to improve a dreaded holiday, than by channeling my favorite holiday...Halloween! 

I redefined all the hearts and chocolates of Valentine's day with this cadaver quality dessert! Sure it looks like a bloody, gory mess but it is actually a  decadent heart-shaped red velvet cake. Dense and moist like a large cake pop with chocolate buttercream frosting mixed in and drizzled with a deep scarlet berry sauce! Scary enough to chase the faint of heart away. If he doesn't run, you've found yourself a keeper! Happy Valentine's Day.

My Bloody Valentine Cake

(Red Velvet Cake with Berry Sauce)
Serves 4

1 box Red Velvet Cake mix
3 T chocolate frosting*
1 heart-shaped Jello Mold 
a smidge of purple gel food coloring

Bake cake according to package directions. Cool completely. In a large bowl, crumble cake and add about 3 Tbsp chocolate frosting and mix until incorporated.

*I made my own Chocolate Buttercream (recipe below), but feel free to use ready made frosting if desired.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
2 T cocoa powder
1-2 T whipping cream 
Cream butter, sugar and cocoa with a hand mixer. Add whipping cream and whip until smooth. 

Place 1 cup of prepared cake/frosting mixture in a separate bowl and add a small amount of purple food coloring to darken the cake slightly. The darker cake mix will be used to make the veins of the heart. 

Using you hands roll small thin tubes of cake mix and place in the contour of the veins of the jello mold. Refrigerate veins for about 30 minutes to harden a bit before topping with more cake mixture.

Remove from refrigerator and fill mold with the lighter cake mixture and then finish the top with the remaining darker cake mix. Refrigerate overnight or until firm. 
To remove from the mold, place a plate over the mold and gently squeeze the mold until the cake releases. Now prepare the berry sauce.


Mixed Berry Sauce
1 cup frozen mixed berries (strawberry, blackberry, raspberry, blueberry)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water

Add all ingredients to a small sauce pan and heat until bubbling. Smash berries with a potato masher. Set aside. If you want smooth sauce (blood look only) with no berries, strain it and discard the fruit. If you want it chunky, do not strain the sauce. Here's a picture of the cake with the strained sauce where the top picture is chunky style.  Enjoy!

Other recipes to try:

Black Magic Spellcakes

Valentine Peppermints

Red Velvet Brownies with Cookie Crumble Frosting

Valentine Peppermints

Sometimes you just have to indulge in something fabulous and fun, like these Valentine Peppermints. A few years ago, I made these peppermint patties for Halloween with my friend, Neidin. We made them into pumpkin shapes with a gorgeous candy corn layering inside. Check out the blog post here. They were absolutely stunning and the kids loved them, especially Adam, my youngest son. He's my sweet tooth kiddo; Lover of anything and everything with sugar! Well, the other day Adam asked me if I could make them again. Being on the cusp of February, I decided to make them into Valentine Hearts with cupid inspired pink, red, and white layers on the inside and chocolatey goodness on the outside...with sprinkles too!

These are pretty simple to make if you are well versed in melting chocolate. From numerous discussions with my friends, who apparently have no problems with the stuff, I've decided that I'm clearly doing something wrong. I went through two bags of chocolate before I got it to coat right and then I couldn't get the darn mint off my fork! These mints were a bit stickier than the last ones I made and I'm going to chalk it up to the cold weather or I needed to add more powdered sugar. Something...Who knows? Anyhoo, I finally got the chocolate to work with lots of frustration and cuss words and trips to the store!  
Voila! 
Now I'm ready to box up these chocolates for my loving sons with a message that reads, "You are as beautiful on the inside as well as outside! "

Happy Valentine's day!

Valentine Peppermints 

(recipe from HGTV) 

Makes ~14, 1-inch patties

3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
2 1/4 Tbsp light corn syrup
2 1/4 Tbsp water
1 tsp pure peppermint extract
1 1/2 Tbsp vegetable shortening
pinch of salt
red gel food coloring (I used Wilton)
15 oz. melting chocolate

Add powdered sugar, corn syrup, water, peppermint extract, shortening and a pinch of salt in a stand mixer and mix until just combined. Knead on a work surface dusted with powdered sugar until smooth.
Divide dough into thirds. Add a small amount of the red food coloring to one of the balls of dough to make a light pink. Add 1/2 t of red gel food coloring to another ball of dough and continue to add until it is a deep red. Leaving the last one white.
Roll out each dough between two pieces of parchment paper. Make sure they are even thickness and similar in shape. Stack the layers on parchment paper, starting with pink, red and then finally white. Cover top with another piece of parchment and refrigerate for 10 minutes.

Using a 1" heart-shaped cookie cutter, cut out mints and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Place cut patties back into the refrigerator to chill.

Melt chocolate according to package directions and then begin to dip each patty into the chocolate and place on a wax paper lined cookie sheet. Refrigerate until chocolate is set.  Store in cool place, layered between wax paper. Enjoy!

Other recipes to try:

Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies

Pancetta and Onion Tartlets

Red Velvet Brownies

 

Movie Night Snack Mix

Happy New Year! Apologies for my short hiatus from the blog. Unfortunately, I suffered from what I like to think of as the blog equivalent of writer's block. 
After the holidays, I was exhausted. The kids returned to school and I imagined that I would fall right back in step with the blog, cooking, taking photos and writing but that just didn't happen. Even worse, I didn't feel like cooking, not even for our nightly family dinners. I felt completely at a loss creatively. Even the business idea I'd been working on, took a back seat. 

Writer's block? ...well, some might even say that I suffered from a small bout of depression because I wasn't doing the things I loved to do. 
Okay...admittedly, I was feeling a bit blue and my writer's block was just the symptom, not the cause. Luckily, the old me is returning as I anxiously prepare new recipes and toss around fun new ideas and actively work on my business idea. I'll share the business idea with you once I work through the details...I'm really excited about it! Personal insight aside, here's a deliciously simple snack mix that's perfect for your family movie nights and birthday parties, or to chase away a small bout of writer's block. (Wink) ...I literally ate a fourth of this very large recipe all by myself and it did make me feel better. :)  I'll warn you though, it's addicting, utterly delicious, and not low calorie! Enjoy!


...Also a perfect snack for the holidays, from Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, St. Patrick's Day or Halloween, just add your choice of holiday candy to fit your holiday and enjoy!

Here's a few more of my easy dessert recipes using ready-made ingredients:
Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies
Heath Bar Cookies
S'mores Cellar Cake
Cereal Bars

Cereal Bars

Chocolate Cake Mix Cookies

Heath Bar Cookies

Movie Night Snack Mix
(recipe from Taste of Home Halloween Food and Fun, 2007)


3 quarts popped popcorn*
4 cups Honey Nut Cheerios
4 cups Corn or Rice Chex
2 cups peanuts
1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup butter, cubed
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda

optional: holiday candy, chocolate chips, candy corn etc. 

*Note: I cheated and used 3 bags of Microwave Butter popcorn and it was amazing just watch out for the un-popped kernels and take extra care not to add them to your mix. You will break a tooth on them! 

In a very large greased roasting pan (I used two large, disposable aluminum buffet pans), combine popcorn, cereal and peanuts and set aside. In a large saucepan, combine brown sugar, corn syrup and butter; bring to a rolling boil. Boil for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat, quickly stir in vanilla and baking soda until mixture is light and fluffy.

Immediately pour over popcorn mixture, toss to coat. Bake uncovered, at 250 degrees for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Cool completely.

To customize your snack mix for special events, add seasonal candy (Candy corn, M n M's, chocolate chips etc.) when mostly cooled and mix well. Cool completely and serve.