Jalapeño Garlic Black Truffle Popcorn

What do you do with two beautiful jalapeños,

a few cloves of garlic, and some black truffle sea salt?

You could make some popcorn!!!!

That’s right, POPCORN!!!!!

I slice the peppers into rings and the garlic into slivers and put the truffle salt on standby. I have a Whirley Pop so I put the popcorn and oil in and turn the stove on high. When the oil starts to bubble in a spirited manner I throw in the peppers and garlic and continue the popping as per usual. The delayed addition keeps the overall heat down and makes it so the garlic and peppers aren’t overly roasted. But you can add the peppers sooner or later depending on the peppers you are using and your own personal preferences.

Once the popping is complete I pour the popcorn into my bowl. At this point it’s always nice to have a second pair of hands so one person can pour the popcorn in layers while the other person makes sure to get the appropriate amount of truffle salt onto all the popcorn!!

Happy popping!!

XO

Charleston Spice Co.

Chai Ice Cream

Yeah.

mmmm, yum.

Words.

I’m at a loss here, but shoot, this ice cream is delightfully refreshing (all by itself or in an ice cream sammie, you can’t go wrong).

It’s creamy and cold and full of that lovely chai flavor. It’s best if you make the cream mixture a day in advance and let it chill and intensify in flavor before turning it into ice cream! Here’s what ya need:

6 rounded teaspoons chai masala

10 oz water

1 cup sugar

14 oz milk

4 rounded teaspoons black tea (optional, we didn’t use tea in the pictured ice cream)

2 cups heavy cream

Bring H2O and chai to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add sugar and simmer for 5 minutes. Add milk and tea simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and steep for 30 minutes to 2 hours. Strain chai and stir in heavy cream. Chill overnight and then follow your ice cream makers directions to freeze ice cream!

If you want to make deliciously scrumptious ice cream sandwiches you can take the easy route like us. Instead of making our own cookies we went to our favorite cookie baker at the farmers market, The Cookie Chick, and bought a variety of cookies!!

Stay cool, stay sweet,

Charleston Spice Co.

Ice Cream Sammies

Remember that chocolate ice cream? And those peanut butter cookies?

This is what can happen if you make them around the same time:

You can make these sandwiches and eat them right away. Or if you are planning ahead, you can make them in advance, wrap them individually in plastic wrap, and stash them in the freezer. This way you can pull out one pre-made sandwich at a time whenever you get that craving!!

Stay cool, stay sweet,

XO

Charleston Spice Co.

Artichoke and sun-dried tomato crostini

These are fabulous.

Oh, I’m sorry, am I supposed to say something else?

Did you look at that picture? Do those not look like little bites that will impress your friends and relatives at cocktail hour?

Well, yes but are they easy to make? Hors d’oeuvres can be such a hassle, you say.

Don’t worry they are super easy to make. The only hard part is remembering to prepare the artichoke and sun-dried tomato topping a couple days before you want to serve them. The topping will be fine after 24 hours but give it three days and it goes from being just a base hit to being a home run when the bases are loaded in the bottom of the ninth during a tied game.

Here’s what ya need:

1 cup artichoke hearts, chopped

1/4 cup sun-dried tomato, chopped

1 clove garlic, chopped

2 teaspoons Mediterranean Oil Blend (or blend of your choice)

a generous drizzle of olive oil

one baguette

enough cream cheese to spread on all your crostini

In a small bowl combine artichoke hearts, tomato, and garlic. Coat with a healthy drizzle of olive oil, mix up until evenly coated then add spices and blend all togehter. Cover mixture and store in refrigerator for at least 24 hours but preferably up to three or four days.

Slice baguette and toast to taste. Spread each toasted slice with cream cheese, top with prepared artichoke and tomato topping, and serve!

Cheers!

Charleston Spice Co.

Artichoke and Avocado Spread

Inspired by a recent trip to one of our favorite wine and cheese shops, my mom and I decided to make some sort of artichoke spread.

When we first pulled out the artichoke hearts we were thinking something along the lines of olive oil, olives, and artichoke but then we saw half an avocado sitting all alone on the counter and we started moving in a whole new direction.

What we created was a beautiful combination of artichoke dip and guacamole. Perfect for an afternoon snack or cocktail hour.

Here’s what you need:

1 cup artichoke hearts, chopped

1/2 an avocado

2 ounces cream cheese

1 teaspoon Adobo

Hot pepper paste to taste (we used about 1 1/2 tablespoons of ají mirasol paste!)

Cheese for topping, optional

Mash avocado and cream cheese together until somewhat smooth and blended. Add in Adobo and chili paste. Stir in chopped artichoke hearts. Top with a light dusting of cheese and serve right away with bread or crackers!! We found that the spread was best on slightly toasted and crunchy bread!

Now you might be asking, what’s up with this ají mirasol stuff? And why does that knife say Braniff?

It’s all connected, my friend. As it happens my mom spent a large part of her younger years in Lima, Peru. Thus hot peppers and hints of Peruvian cuisine are part of her soul and flair in the kitchen and often find their way into last minute meal creations like this one.

But what about the knife?

Oh yes, when she and her family flew down to South America airlines like Braniff provided real silverware on flights, fancy huh? I’d like to think they stopped that practice on account of too many people taking these cute little knives with them and not because they may have presented a safety hazard.

Hope you’re having a great week!

-Charleston Spice Co.

Springtime S’mores

Remember those Lemon Icebox Cookies? And those Lavender Marshmallows?

They were both pretty great, right?

Well let’s take a minute and put two and two together with a little dark chocolate.

That’s right, let’s make s’mores.

But why stop there? Let’s take these s’mores to the next level. Let’s add some fresh-cut strawberries:

The delicate flavors of each of the components of this dessert sandwich are rather chic & sophisticated yet the ooey gooey nature of this treat allows you to be a messy happy kid again.

So enjoy the subtle melding of flavors while you lick your fingers and giggle at the chocolate and marshmallow stuck to your friend’s face.

XO,

Charleston Spice Co.

 

10min Emergency Tortilla Chips

These chips are for emergencies only.

Just kidding. They’re for the times when it’s snowing and you don’t want to go to the store to get chips for that queso you just made. Or those times when you finish your second margarita and realize you don’t have chips for your salsa and there is no way you are driving to the store to get some. Or these are for those times when you think you have everything planned and perfect for your fiesta until you realize as the first guests arrive that there are no chips for the guacamole.

First, don’t panic, if you have tortillas in your pantry, I can help.

Here’s what you’ll need:

Tortillas (as many as you want, flour will be softer, corn with be crispier)

Olive oil (you’ll need just enough to cover all of your chips)

Salt (enough to sprinkle on your chips)

1 lime (this is not necessary but if you want chips with a hint of lime you might want some fresh lime juice)

A positive attitude (and possibly another margarita)

Preheat oven to 400F. Take your tortillas and cut them however you like: strips, triangles, letters, numbers, shapes. Place cut tortillas on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Paint both sides with olive oil, spritz with a little lime juice, and sprinkle with salt. Place in oven for 10 mins. Remove and let cool for a couple of minutes then serve!!

Soft Pretzels

I’m guilty.

I’ll admit it.

I don’t always follow recipes.

Sometimes I don’t even read them the whole way through, I just get so inspired and excited that I have to start making something and then I’m just flying by the seat of my pants.

To state the obvious, this method does not always result in success.

But this time, I took it slow, I read this recipe all the way through multiple times. There are plenty of recipes for soft pretzels out there but I chose this one because while the recipe looked like all the others, the pictures were lovely. I’m a sucker for pretty pictures, they don’t call it food porn for nothin’. 

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 1/2 cups warm water (110-115 F)

1 Tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons flake sea salt

1 package of active dry yeast

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Olive oil or vegetable oil

10 cups of water

2/3 cup baking soda

1 egg yolk beaten with 1 Tablespoon water

Salt to sprinkle on top of the pretzels (I tried lots of different combinations of salt, Celery Salt, Black Truffle Sea Salt, and Flake Salt with Bali Pyramid)

In the bowl of your mixer combine water, sugar, and salt. Add the yeast and let it sit for five minutes or until it begins to foam.

Add the flour and butter. Using the hook attachment mix on low until everything is combined. Then kick it up a notch and knead the dough on medium until it is smooth and pulls away from the bowl, 4 to 5 mins.

Get yourself a clean bowl and grease it with oil, I used olive oil. Take the dough and plop it into your greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place for an hour or until the dough doubles in size!

Preheat the oven to 450F and place the racks in the middle positions.

Line two baking sheets with lightly oiled parchment paper.

And this is the point when I really didn’t follow that recipe I told you about. I wanted to make heart shaped pretzels, tis the season for that sort of falderal. Roll that dough out however suits your fancy. Don’t flour your work surface, just use your palms to roll the dough from the center out into ropes.

Once you have your pretzel twists or twisted hearts or letters, combine the 10 cups of water and the baking soda in an 8 quart pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, drop the pretzels in one at a time for 30 seconds, remove with a slotted spoon or spatula. Place on your baking sheets. Paint pretzels with the yolk and water combo and sprinkle with your choice of salt or spice blend!!

Bake the pretzels for 12 to 14 minutes, rotating pans and switching top and bottom pans. The pretzels should be a lovely golden brown color

The final step is to enjoy!!!!