It might seem a bit early to think about Holidays Gifts, but actually this is the perfect time to start making your Gifts from the Kitchen.
Here are a few easy ideas that can get you started.
Homemade Vanilla Extract
Add a few vanilla beans, some whole and some split to vodka, rum or brandy. I prefer a dark Jamaican rum since the "sweetness" of the rum gives the extract a smoother, richer taste. Keep in a dark cool place for at least a month, shaking every once in a while. You can reuse the beans. The bottles I used this time can turn into candleholders after the vanilla is used.
To re-use the beans in a new batch of vanilla, just keep in the bottle and add more vodka, rum or brandy. You might have to add a bean or two more. To save for other uses, the bean should be air dried before you store it so it will not mold.
Vanilla Sugar
Insert one or two split vanilla beans in a jar of refined sugar. In just a couple of weeks the sugar will be perfumed with the vanilla scent and taste. You can reuse the beans.
Vanilla Beans
I tied 6 vanilla beans with red raffia and made little gift bundles. Place each bundle in a small zip-lock bag or wrap in clear or colorful Saran wrap.
Liliko'i (Passionfruit) Vinaigrette
Cut passionfruit and scoop out seeds and pulp. Place in a saucepan with small amount of water and enough sugar to make a syrup - about 1 cup sugar per 1 cup liquid - bring to a boil and cook until the pulp starts loosening. Pass through a fine mesh colander or sieve. Add distilled white vinegar. Taste depends on how tart/sweet you like your vinaigrette. Bring to a boil. Cool and store in a clean bottle or jar in refrigerator. Decant into decorative gift bottles just before you assemble your basket.
Hawaiian Sea Salt with Alae and Red Pepper Flakes
In one of our bulk markets, I found some plastic containers of Hawaiian salt with alae (red clay). I bought a large container and mixed it with a large container of red pepper flakes. I then filled smaller seasoning jars I had been saving for the purpose.
Lemon-Ginger Jelly
I have to fezz up that I did not make the jelly myself this year. I found some delicious jellies at one of the recent craft fairs in which we participated and bought some to give as gifts.
I would have preferred to have used Hawaii grown vanilla beans, but could not purchase in bulk from the nearby vanilla farm in time to start preparing the gifts.
For information on buying vanilla in bulk, please visit
www.vanilla.com
www.arizonavanilla.com
Making your own coffee liqueur is fun, easy and rewarding. It is also a great project to do about a month before the Christmas holidays and give as gifts to family and friends.
We like to collect pretty bottles through the year. You can find many in yard or garage sales. After a while, you will start noticing pretty bottles everywhere!
Kona Coffee Liqueur
2 cups finely ground Kona coffee beans (strong, full-bodied blend such as French Roast or espresso)
3 cups boiling water
1-1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon glycerin (*)
4 vanilla beans, split
3 cups vodka
Combine ground coffee and water in a bowl and mix thoroughly. Strain immediately through cheesecloth into a saucepan. Add the sugar, both granulated and brown, and heat for 5 minutes on low heat, stirring constantly, just until mixture begins to steam, do not let it come to a boil. Remove saucepan from heat and let cool.
Stir in the glycerine and vodka and pour into clean glass jars. Add vanilla beans making sure to include the seeds, seal and store in a cool dark place for at least 30 days before using.
Decant into individual gift bottles, tie a pretty ribbon on the neck and tie a card with the recipe if you wish.
(*) Vegetable based glycerin (95.5% USP Kosher) can be used in food applications. You can find it in most pharmacies.
YIELD: 1-1/2 pints
SOURCE: "Coffee... the Frisky Berry!," Come Join the Feast column by Sonia Martinez for the Hawaii Tribune-Herald of Hilo, Hawaii, February 2003
ROSEMARY BUTTER
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 teaspoons fresh rosemary leaves, removed from stem
1/2 teaspoon orange or lemon zest or grated rind
1 Tablespoon white wine or lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red chile pepper
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
4 ounces unsalted butter (1/4 pound - 1 stick), softened
Mix all ingredients until well blended.
They can be rolled into logs and wrapped in plastic wrap. Can be frozen.
Put a frozen pat/slice on roasted chicken, a freshly grilled steak, baked potato, and while grilling shrimp or prawns.
NASTURTIUM BUTTER
4 ounces unsalted butter (1/4 pound - 1 stick), softened
12-18 nasturtium flowers - rinsed and drained - chopped small
3-4 fresh chives (optional) - chopped small
2-4 fresh nasturtium leaves or a few sprigs fresh parsley - chopped small
Mix all ingredients until well blended.
They can be rolled into logs and wrapped in plastic wrap. Can be frozen.
Put a frozen pat/slice on roasted chicken, a freshly grilled steak, baked potato, etc.
I wanted to combine cucumbers and the Green Zebra tomatoes I had received as gifts from a friend's farm with onions and garlic I already had. I added a few of the little red Hawaiian chile peppers from our garden.
I was always told that before you preserve garlic in oil or use them when making pickles you needed to first blanch them in vinegar so that the natural sulphur will not cause them to turn green and harvest botulism. Some experts say that you only need to do it when preserving them in oil. I do it anyway, just to be on the safe side.
For an easy way to peel the garlic without damaging the cloves, I first take apart the whole head and drop the cloves in rapidly boiling water to blanch for about 3 to 5 seconds, stirring them constantly to make sure they just don't float to the top and lay there. Take them out of the boiling water with a skimmer and plunge them in cold water. After cutting the root end off, the skins will slip right off, leaving you with clean smelling hands!
Sonia's Refrigerator Pickles
