Saturday Special: How to Make Pecan Butter

Last night, I planned to serve banana spring rolls to my guests. Unfortunately, I made two terrible mistakes. I made them ahead and baked them (instead of frying them). I'm not sure which of those dealt the fatal blow, but baked banana spring rolls is not something I will serve again. 

As a topper, I toasted some pecans. That didn't go well either. 

Stirring pecans in a hot skillet, talking, and texting don't mix. Enough said. 

This morning, I was determined to have a little more success, so I retrieved a bag of pecans from the freezer. I melted 4 tablespoons of butter in the microwave, added three cups of pecan pieces, and cooked them for 8 1/2 minutes. (Time would vary if they hadn't been frozen)

While the pecans were cooking, I smeared some peanut butter on a granola bar for breakfast and bemoaned the fact that the jar was almost empty. Suddenly, a fabulous idea burst into my brain. 

Pecan butter. 

I found a recipe at Cookie and Katie's blog. (No relation to my sister and niece of the same names.) I didn't use the recipe, but I did use their concepts. The pecan butter I've made in the past has been a little dry and crumbly. Still delicious, but lacking the smooth texture of peanut butter. 

Keep processing, they suggested. So I did. Wow. Smooth. Thick. Pourable. Delicious. 

No added oil. (Except the butter I used to toast the pecans.) 

No added sugar. 

No added salt. 

Just creamy, roasted pecan deliciousness. 

Here's my recipe:

3 Tbsp melted butter

3 cups pecan pieces

Toss together, then spread pecans on a microwaveable plate. Cook in microwave for 6-8 minutes. Watch it. Don't cook too long. If they aren't ready, cook a little longer. 

(Yes. That's how I cook.)

When the pecans are toasted, process them until they become beautifully smooth, creamy butter. They start out as pecan pieces, then crumbles, then a thick paste. Finally, creamy butter. 

I didn't time it. I just kept going for the goal. Don't settle for crumbles or graininess. Wait for the best. It's sure to come. 

That's a good lesson for life, too. 

Wait for the best. 

Judging by my pecan butter, it's definitely worth it in the end.

#pecanbutter #waitforthebest #recipe #pecanbutterrecipe #howtomakepecanbutter

The Pumpkin Party

My son Ryan and his girlfriend Hannah are here this weekend for fall break. They had bought a pumpkin on sale before they left Atlanta and wanted some savory pumpkin recipes. We searched a mountain of cookbooks for recipes, couldn't find a thing, and finally turned to the Internet. We found this great pumpkin soup recipe on allrecipes.com. Hannah liked it so well that she had pumpkin soup for every course of her dinner tonight. It was so good that I've decided to share it with you. I've rearranged it and modified it a little. It's super easy and worth trying. 

Creamy Pumpkin Soup

6 c chicken stock

1 large can pumpkin purée

1 c chopped onion

1/2 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

1 garlic clove, minced

5 whole black peppercorns 

1/2 c heavy cream

1 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley

Combine first six ingredients in a large pot, bring to a boil and reduce heat to simmer for 30 minutes. 

Purée one cup at a time in a blender or food processor.

Return to pot, bring back to a boil, then simmer another 30 minutes. 

Add heavy cream just before serving and garnish with parsley. (Hannah says the parsley doesn't taste as good as it looks, so just leave it off)

Here's the best part of the pumpkin soup. My only job was to get the pot out of the cabinet and harvest the fresh herbs! Ryan and Hannah did all the rest!

Here's Ryan and Hannah after enjoying the yummy pumpkin soup they made. 

Enjoy! 

TTGLC Soup

The Tuesday-Thursday Gourmet Lunch Club was tossing ideas about in a vain attempt to choose a lunch menu for Thursday. It was raining, cold, and miserable outside. "Let's have something wonderful," one of us said. "Hamburgers on the grill," was another idea. Finally, one of us said, "I'll tell you what I want. Tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches! Yum!" The soup and sandwich idea seemed to lead the vote. 

Late this afternoon, we began to discuss tomorrow's menu again. My boss wanted his wife's tomato soup. "She uses baking soda in it. It's her secret ingredient," he assured me. The only problem was that she was out of town and he didn't have the recipe. Having learned the fine art of googling from my son, I searched for the recipe and was stunned to find a tomato soup with baking soda recipe. Since I had the recipe, I was elected to make the soup, and had every intention of following the recipe. The dogs were racing in circles around the kitchen, though, and I was very distracted. The soup was wonderful, but the recipe was definitely cobbled together (and super easy).  I thought you might enjoy it.  

TTGLC tomato soup

4 Tbsp olive oil

2 onions, coarsely chopped

2 or 3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 can (12 oz) tomato paste

1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes

1-2 tbsp dried basil (to taste)

3 cups milk

Pinch baking soda

Salt and pepper to taste 

Heavy cream for drizzling

Sautée the onions and garlic in olive oil until soft, then add tomato paste and diced tomatoes. Cook 5-10 minutes (longer for richer flavor and thicker soup) then purée in blender, in batches if needed. Return to pot and heat. Sprinkle the baking soda over a few spoonfuls of milk to dissolve, then add this and the remainder of the milk to the soup. Bring to a nice simmer and heat thoroughly. Ladle into bowls, add salt and pepper as desired, and garnish with a drizzle of heavy cream. 

My mama loved creamy tomato soup, especially with grilled cheese sandwiches. Having to give up those rich cans of Campbell's when she was diagnosed with Celiac disease and switched to a gluten-free diet was one of her hardest sacrifices. (Well, giving up Twinkies and Ding Dongs was pretty tough, too.). As I sampled the soup tonight, I wished that I'd had this baking soda soup recipe a few years ago. She would have loved it!  Since I didn't, I'm enjoying it now in memory of my mama. 

When you try this recipe, I hope you think about my mama, too. She loved the beach, MSU Bulldogs, and creamy tomato soup! Yum!