Tis The Season Tisane

A tisane is an infusion of herbs that is brewed for medicinal effect. The following hot herbal tea is the perfect elixir to drink as a remedy during Winter's cold and flu season. If you are not partial to mint, try making it with lemon balm instead. Use mint if you are seeking to soothe stomach discomfort due to rotovirus or holiday fare over-indulgence.

Ingredients : 4 cups water
1/2 cinnamon stick
5 ounces fresh ginger root
1 tablespoon lemon zest strips
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup honey
1 handful of fresh mint or lemon balm

While bringing the water to a boil, peel & chop ginger root.
Add to the boiling water along with the cinnamon stick,lemon
zest and juice. Cover and simmer on low heat for 30 minutes.
Add honey,stir & continue simmering for 20 more minutes. Pour
over fresh mint, strain and serve or cool and refrigerate.
Yields about one quart : brew to relieve colds and flu symptoms.

Ireland's Charming Halloween Bread



As Halloween is associated with fortune telling and divination, Barmbrack is traditionally made at this time of year, for it has various charms literally baked into the dough.  Each one’s significance is as follows: a ring ~ to foretell marriage, a silver coin ~ to herald wealth, a pea or thimble ~ indicates spinsterhood, a small piece of cloth ~ portends poverty, a button ~ means bachelorhood, and a piece of matchstick foreshadows an abusive spouse. “Barm” is from the olde English word “beorma”, meaning yeasty fermented liquor.  Brack comes from an Irish word meaning “speckled”, which this bread is with dried fruit. 

Ingredients:
1 lb flour
6 oz sugar
1 lb mixed dried fruit

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 egg
1 tsp ground allspice
Pot of hot black tea

Method:
Wrap each charm carefully in parchment paper.
The trick to making a Barm Brack is the soaking of fruit overnight in the
tea. While this makes the dried fruit softer and more appealing in general,
one must be careful when mixing the dough not to over-knead or the
rehydrated fruit will break too much. Add the sugar and egg to the fruit mix the next day. Sift in the remaining dry ingredients. Mix gently. Stir in the wrapped charms and try to distribute them evenly. Use a round
baking pan at 350°F for about 60 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.

The Breac (bread) can be made up to a week in advance and stored in an air-tight
container. It is traditional that only he/she who has baked it should
cut and serve the slices on October 31st! It is also good toasted and served with hot cider or tea.

Pumpkin Fudge

                    Enjoy making and eating this seasonal fudge recipe, as it's the perfect confection to serve at
          

                Halloween parties or to give as gifts for a homemade treat to those who like pumpkin sweets!

                 Ingredients : 3 cups organic sugar

                                    12 tablespoons butter

                                    1 five ounce can evaporated milk

                                    1/2 cup pumpkin puree

                                    1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

                                    1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

                                    1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

                                    1 + 1/2 cups butterscotch chips

                                    7 ounces marshmallow Fluff

                                    1 cup walnuts (toasted & chopped)

                  Method :  Combine the first six ingredients in a heavy saucepan.Bring to a boil,while stirring constantly.Lower heat and cook to the soft-ball stage reading on a candy thermometer (234*F).Remove pan from stove and stir in the butterscotch chips ; then add the Fluff & nuts.Mix thoroughly and spread evenly into a buttered 13"x9" pan.cool and cut into squares : keep wrapped and refrigerated til serving or gifting.

Candy Corn Confection

Candy corn was invented in the US in the 1880s and at that time was made by hand.

This recipe for the enjoyable Halloween confection is similar to the traditional one.

Using simple ingredients, this sweet treat can be made in one’s own kitchen:

Ingredients:   1 cup granulated sugar

                      2/3 cup corn syrup

                      1/3 cup butter

                      1 teaspoon vanilla extract

                      2 + ½ cups confectioner’s sugar

                      1/3 cup powdered milk                     

                       ¼ teaspoon salt

                       Red & yellow food coloring

 Method: In a large saucepan combine granulated sugar, corn syrup, and butter. Bring to a boil over high heat while stirring constantly, then reduce heat to medium and continue boiling for 5 minutes while stirring occasionally. Remove mixture from heat and add vanilla extract.

Combine the icing sugar, powdered milk, and salt in a separate bowl and add to the mixture in the saucepan, mixing thoroughly. Allow the dough mixture to sit until it's cool enough to handle.

Divide the dough into 3 equal parts and place each part in a small mixing bowl. Add orange food coloring to one part (a combination of yellow and red) and yellow food coloring to another part, leaving the remaining part uncolored or white.

Knead the dough in each bowl until smooth and stiff enough to hold its shape, and the colors are even. Wearing plastic gloves can help prevent your hands from being stained by the food coloring.

Still using your hands, roll each part into a long, thin rope, making each rope of equal length. You may need to use a long countertop or tabletop covered with a strip of waxed paper for this. You'll also need to be careful when rolling as the ropes can easily break if you form them too thin.

When you're done, lay the three ropes of dough along side each other with the orange dough in the middle and carefully press them together to make a long, narrow rectangle. A gentle, light rolling with a rolling pin along the length of the rectangle helps to press the rope edges together, but be careful not to flatten the dough so the rectangle stays as narrow as possible, plus you'll also want the kernels plump looking and not flat.

Finally, cut the dough into triangles or "kernels" using a sharp knife and gently shape the kernels with your fingers, if needed. Allow the kernels to sit for a while and become firm.

You'll end up with over a pound of homemade candy corn, some with yellow tips and some with the traditional white tips. There's no getting around it, kneading the dough and forming the ropes is time-consuming, hard work, but the results are worth it.

Witchy Coffee

          This is the quintessential libation to enjoy during the Autumn months, or any other time that one is inclined to partake of an unusually flavoured and soul-warming cup of coffee. This beverage is made with an Italian herbal liqueur called "Strega" ("witch") that is made in the Benevento region and contains seventy herbal ingredients. Some of theses are saffron, mint, cinnamon, iris, juniper, and fennel. The traditional liqueur is redolent of minty, conifer notes and pairs well with dark roast coffee.

           To make one generous serving, you will need : 3 tablespoons of Strega liqueur, nine ounces (a little over one cup) of freshly brewed, dark roast coffee, 6 tablespoons fresh cream, and one teaspoon of dark brown sugar. Combine liqueur & coffee in a heavy-bottom saucepan ; stir in sugar, while warming over low heat. When the sugar is completely dissolved, pour the mixture into a large ceramic mug, stir in the cream, and sip slowly to savour the complex flavours. For a more artful presentation, pour the warm pan mixture into a glass goblet with a spoon set over it's top to separate the cream. Garnish the floating layer with a dusting of ground cinnamon, if desired before enjoying. Here's to the Season of the Witch!

Celtic Lughnasa Loaf

The combination of oats and both whole-wheat & white flours make a delicious bread trio with which to celebrate the first grain harvest festival. Enjoy one, freeze one, and give one away!

Ingredients:

4 cups all-purpose flour

4 cups whole wheat flour

4 cups quick-cooking rolled oats (not instant)

2 tablespoons salt

½ cup butter

2 + ½ cups milk

2 packages active dry yeast

½ cup warm water

Method:

In a large bowl, mix flours and oats.

Combine sugar, salt, butter and milk in a saucepan and heat until the butter melts; cool to lukewarm.

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water.

Add milk mixture and yeast to the flours and mix well. Don't worry if the liquid does not absorb all the flour mixture.

Turn the dough out on board and knead excess flour mixture into the moist mixture. Knead 10 to 15 minutes, then put the dough in a greased bowl and turn to grease top.

Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place free from drafts 2 hours, or until doubled.

Punch dough down and divide into 3 portions. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.

Shape in loaves and put in 3 greased 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pans.

Cover and let rise in warm place for 1-1/2 hours, or until doubled.

Bake in a preheated, 400*F oven for about 35 minutes.

Remove from pans and cool on rack. Brush bread with melted butter and sprinkle toasted oats over the tops of the loaves before slicing.

Wishing Globes

The childhood enchantment of beholding a swirling snow globe lends itself

           to another dimension when crafted with correspondences and intention.

           First consider your objective and visualize the contents of a wishing globe.

           Craft and thrift stores sell figurines or you can prowl flea markets & yard sales.

           Glass jars can also be economically obtained from all four of these sources,

           or better yet, recycle and sterilize jam and other types of condiment jars.

           After you have chosen a ceramic or plastic central figure, select a glitter.

           It comes in many forms and colours; from seasonal themes to rainbow hues.

           Keep the purpose of your wishing globe in mind when deciding which to use.

           Other supplies you will need:

                                                             clear-drying epoxy

                                                             distilled water

                                                             glycerin

            First, glue the figure onto the center of the up-turned glass jar’s lid.

            Allow it to completely dry and then fill the jar to the top with distilled water.

            Add a pinch of the glitter medium along with one half teaspoon of glycerin.

            Close the jar’s lid tightly and invert to an up-right position.

            Concentrate the intention of your wish on the figure inside the glass jar.

            Visualize the swirling positive energy working to manifest your wish there-in.

            Repeat the last two steps as a daily affirmation until you achieve your goal.