Ingredient Spotlight-Dessert Sauces-Butterscotch & Chocolate

If you try either of these easy dessert sauces, you will understand why I could not NOT link them up to Eat at Home's Ingredient Spotlight today.  They are so quick and easy, made with regular ingredients most of us have in our pantries all the time.  Either sauce is great over just about any dessert:  first and foremost, ice cream; but also pound cake, puddings and custards, bread pudding, apple or peach pie, etc., etc.  If no one is looking they are also perfect to just slurp off a spoon.  I sometimes add chopped, toasted nuts (walnuts to the chocolate, pecans to the butterscotch) just to make them a little more decadent.  Keep any leftovers in the fridge.  Cover and warm slowly in the microwave, 50% power about a minute at a time, stirring often.  I think the recipes came off the internet, but I don't remember from where.

Hot Butterscotch Sauce
1 cup (240 ml) packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup (60 ml) half-and-half
2 T (30 ml) butter or margarine
2 T (30 ml) light corn syrup

In 1-quart (1-liter) saucepan over medium heat, heat brown sugar, half-and-half, butter or margarine and corn syrup to boiling, stirring occasionally.  Serve over ice cream, pound cake slices, peach or apple pie, tapioca pudding or baked custard.  Makes 1 cup

Chocolate Dessert Sauce
1 cup (6 oz) semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup half-and-half
1 T butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In 1-quart saucepan over low heat, melt chocolate with corn syrup, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat; stir in remaining ingredients until mixed.  Serve warm over your favorite dessert.  Makes 1-1/3 cups.

You can make Mint Chocolate Sauce by using mint chocolate chips and omitting the vanilla.

Now I think that I will have to have a banana split for dessert tonight.  Enjoy.

I am linking to post to Eat at Home's Ingredient Spotlight and Whisking Wednesdays at a Pinch of This, That, and The Other.

Tomorrow I will be Skipping through Blogland and coincidentally stopping by Eat at Home


.

Ingredient Spotlight-Curried Rice and Vegetables

hen I began to choose what recipes I wanted to post for this week's Ingredient Spotlight-half and half/cream, I ended up with three recipes and couldn't decide among them. So there will be two posts today.  One for this recipe and one for two easy dessert sauces, Chocolate and Butterscotch.

This recipe combines rice and vegetables into one side dish.  Although I use peas and carrots, any vegetable of your choice could be used; and it is a good way to use up leftover veggies.  The curry/nutmeg flavor is very subtle and just makes one wonder, "What is that?" I sometimes use chopped, toasted walnuts or crisp bacon bits as a garnish for this. This is my adaptation of a recipe that came from the internet several years ago. You can also add chopped, cooked chicken to make this into a main dish.

2 T. butter
1 bunch green onions (you can use regular onions, about 3/4 c.)
1/3 c. chopped red pepper (omit if you don't like)
1 large clove garlic minced (the garlic was shy and wouldn't get in the photo)
1 c. frozen peas and carrots
T. butter
1 c. rice (I use Calrose)
1/2 t. curry powder
1/8 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. half-and-half

Slice the green onions including a couple of inches of the green part. In a saucepan, melt the first tablespoon of butter. Add green onions, red pepper, and minced garlic. Saute' until just tender. Remove from saucepan and set aside. In same saucepan, melt the second tablespoon of butter. Add the rice and cook, stirring often, until rice begins to turn golden. Add required amount of water for the rice you use.  Bring to a boil, turn heat very low and cook rice for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes.  Meanwhile, cook peas and carrots in microwave, drain.  Stir together the green onion mixture, rice, peas and carrots, curry powder, nutmeg, and salt. Mix well. Add half-and-half. Return to heat just to heat mixture through. Makes 4-6 servings.

A tip: If your rice is too firm and all the liquid has been absorbed, add about 1/4 c. hot liquid, cover, and cook until liquid is absorbed.  Repeat if necessary.

I am linking to Eat at Home Ingredient Spotlight