W is for Whiskey

Salted Caramel Royal Crown Whiskey hooks up with Kahlua, Creme de Banana and Espresso for a different take on an Espresso Martini.

W is for Whiskey.......

Eggnog White Russian #SundayFunday

Enjoy this Holiday twist on a classic cocktail by using Eggnog in place of the cream in your White Russian.

The Sunday Funday Bloggers are sharing Eggnog recipes today....Cheers!!

Enjoying Turkish Coffee while flipping through The Essential Guide to Turkish Wines #WineDownWednesday

Deep, dark and aromatic this Turkish Coffee, made without an ibrik, is worth the extra work when you want to serve up something special with dessert.

I enjoyed mine while flipping through The Essential Guide to Turkish Wines written by one of my blogging friends Andrea LeMieux of The Quirky Cork.

Spelt, Chocolate, and Coffee Cake #CakeSliceBakers

I served up this dense, fudgy, chocolate cake for Valentine's Day but it is the perfect dessert to show your love all year long.  The fact that the recipe makes only a 9" square cake is a bonus in my book.

It's time for the Cake Slice Bakers..........

Spiked Rum Coffee and a Book Review

As 2022 came to a close I was (and still am) recuperating from being ran over by a truck.  This means a lot of reading time as I am unable to do much else.  This is frustrating because I am feeling pretty good but I still only have use of one arm so I am limited as to my activities.  

I can walk now and am able to take care of all my personal needs but I get pooped out pretty quickly which puts me back onto the couch with a book.  The first book I am going to share with you was recommended by my friend, Cam of Culinary Cam and is a Mystery Thriller by Charlie Donlea called Twenty Years Later.........

Kugelhopf #BundtBakers

This delicious yeast cake is more like a bread and delicious for breakfast with your coffee in the morning.

It is time for Bundt Bakers..................

Kahlua and Cream Cake #BundtBakers

Baby, it's cold outside.....Here in Michigan we have been well below freezing for a couple of weeks.  The solution?  Cuddling up by the fire with a cocktail.  Too early for a cocktail?  Then cuddle up with this Kahlua and Cream Bundt Cake.  All the same flavors that you love in the cocktail.  Or do as I did and enjoy both while cuddling with your sweetie.

It's time for Bundt Bakers........

Chocolate Coffee Martini #ImprovCookingChallenge

This creamy, chocolatey, coffee flavored Martini will be the perfect ending to your Valentine's Day dinner.

Whether you like to eat in or out on Valentine's Day, this cocktail will be the perfect ending to your evening.

Kahlua Cupcakes #CakeSliceBakers

Chocolate cupcakes flavored with Kahlua and topped with a Kahlua Buttercream are a perfect little after dinner treat with your coffee.

It's time for the Cake Slice Bakers......

Coffee Cinnamon Rolls #SpringSweetsWeek

This post is sponsored in conjunction with #SpringSweetsWeek. I received product samples from sponsor companies to help in the creation of the #SpringSweetsWeek recipes. All opinions are mine alone.

These scrumptious cinnamon rolls are flavored with frosted cinnamon buns flavored coffee for an extra punch of cinnamon goodness and a layer of coffee flavor along with the love which with they are served.  

Welcome to Day 4 of Spring Sweets Week.........

Coffee and Baileys Individual Bundts and the Weekly Menu #BundtBakers

These adorable little mini, cupcake size bundts, are flavored with instant coffee, brewed coffee and Bailey's Irish Cream and then glazed with more Baileys.  They are the perfect individually sized dessert.

It's time for the March edition of Bundt Bakers......

Crimson Lake Spiked Coffee #FoodiesRead

The Teen got me a book as one of my birthday gifts.  She knows how much I love to read and she thought that this book sounded like I would enjoy it.

Deep Chocolate Mint Snack Cake #SpringSweetsWeek

This post is sponsored in conjunction with #SpringSweetsWeek. I received product samples from sponsor companies to help in the creation of the #SpringSweetsWeek recipes. All opinions are mine alone.

Deep, rich, chocolate mint snack cake is so moist and flavorful you don't need any frosting.  

It is Day 2 of Spring Sweets Week.......

Coffee Scented Short Ribs #JubileeCookbook

I received a cookbook for review in return for this article.  I received no monetary compensation.  All thoughts, opinions and writings are strictly my own.  

Beef short ribs rubbed with coffee, cocoa and spices then braised to a tender, fall of the bone goodness.  Served over mashed potatoes and drowned in the au jus.  So delicious.

This recipe comes from Jubilee; Recipes From Two Centuries of African American Cooking by Toni Tipton-Martin.

Coffee Rubbed Pork with Autumn Spices #FallFlavors

I received product from sponsors, Millican Pecan Company and Door County Coffee to assist in the creation of recipes for the Fall Flavors event.  All content, writings and opinions in this blog are strictly my own.

Tender, juicy pork loin encrusted with an Autumn spiced coffee and brown sugar rub then slow cooked to perfection.

We are still celebrating Fall Flavors.  Come on in for some great recipes and the chance to win some amazing prizes from our sponsors.........

Beartown; An Audible Book Review

This is a fictional account of the lives of people in a small community called Beartown.  It is a disturbing and truthful look at humankind and current life, at least in First World Countries.  Beartown could easily be the true account of any community and is probably closer to the truth in our communities than we would like to believe.

So like the residents of Beartown, we put on our blinders.  We tell ourselves that it couldn't or wouldn't be our kids.  That we are the parents that will have more influence over our children than their peers and that we are the kind of people who would stand up and shout out about truth, honesty, goodness, kindness, responsibility and consequences in the face of popular opinion and beliefs.

My daughter, Amy, also read this novel. Neither of us knew the other had read it but when having a pedicure/lunch date we were talking about what we were reading and discovered that we had both just finished this novel.

Amy believes it should be required reading in high schools world wide.  I believe she is correct.  I also believe that it should prompt daily discussion in schools and homes. Discussions about how it is so easy to get caught up in the we/they mentality.  Discussions about overlooking someone's faults/sins/crimes because that person is important to the community/society.  Discussions about the inequality between men and women that still exists today even though we try to deny it.  Discussions about taking responsibility for your own actions.

The list goes on and on.  You could have daily dinner conversations with your teens for a month and not cover it all.

This novel by Frederik Backman is very different from the others of his that I have read and loved.  A Man Called Ove,  My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She Was Sorry,  and Britt Marie Was Here were all novels featuring loveable characters, even the cantankerous ones, who learn to accept and care for one another despite initial difference.  They are feel good novels that I enjoyed immensely.

Beartown is, by no stretch of the imagination, a feel good novel.  All of these previous audible novels were narrated by a pleasant, soft spoken voice that contributed to this relaxed, feel good atmosphere.

The narrator of Beartown has a harsh voice, perfectly suited for this novel.  It is a powerful novel and one that I would strongly recommend, especially for a book club setting where it will provide great fodder for your reviews and discussions.

There was not a lot of food in this novel.  There was however a lot of invitations to "come in for coffee".  There was also an explosion of a smoothie in the beginning of the novel when the lid was not properly placed on the blender and lots of alcohol consumed.

This inspired me to make and share this Frozen Irish Coffee.  Join me over at Foodies Read as sip our smoothie and see what the other food bloggers are reading this month.

Frozen Irish Coffee

1 c. cold coffee

1/2 c. Irish cream liqueur

2 T. chocolate syrup

2 c. ice cubes

whipped cream and chocolate syrup for garnish, if desired

Place coffee, liqueur, chocolate syrup and ice cubes into a heavy duty blender. Puree until smooth.  Divide between 2 glasses.  Garnish with whipped cream and a drizzle of chocolate syrup, if desired.

Print Recipe

Baby Beet Salad with a Creamy Coffee Dressing #FabulousFallBounty #CrazyIngredientChallenge

Remember what I was saying about providence a couple of days ago?  Well, it is smiling down upon me again today.

This is Day 3 of Fabulous Fall Bounty, hosted by Cam of Culinary Adventures with Camilla and sponsored by Melissa's Produce, Le Creuset and Silpat.  These companies sent a dozen bloggers products to use in the creation of recipes for this event.  I received no monetary compensation and all opinions are my own.

One of the things I received, in this huge box from Melissa's, was peeled and steamed baby beets.  These are wonderful to have in the refrigerator.  Especially, if like me, you LOVE beets.  They are so yummy and delicious but they do take a while to prepare.  Having these precooked and sealed beets on hand makes life much easier.

You can imagine how thrilled I was when the poll for our Crazy Ingredient Challenge was complete and beets was one of the winning ingredients.  Providence.

Each month, our host, Kelly of Passion Kneaded, gives us 2 subsets of 4 ingredients.  We vote on which ingredients we want from each subset and when the tally comes in we are told which ingredients we must include in a recipe created for the event.

It is a lot of fun and, if you enjoy a challenge, we would love to have you join us.  Just put a comment below or on any of the recipe links for CIC and let us know.

The second ingredient this month? Coffee.... that kinda set me back a bit.  My first thought was a coffee flavored smoothie.  I use beets in my smoothies quite often.  I actually played around with the idea of making a beet and coffee ice cream too.  

It seemed as if each idea I had included a creaminess of some sort.  This led me to think about a creamy salad dressing.  I love adding beets to my salads and I thought that the bitterness of a creamy coffee dressing, drizzled on a salad that was sweetened, naturally, with beets would work.

Yes, those are some beautiful beef filet steaks that you see in the background.  This salad was going to be the first course of a Surf and Turf dinner that I was serving for company so I wanted it to be delicious.

And it was.  I kept it very simple.  Mixed greens, sliced beets and a drizzle of creamy coffee dressing.  It was surprisingly tasty and the perfect salad to serve when the rest of the meal is going to be rich and decadent.  Bitter is one of my favorite tastes.  I know it is not for everybody so I did add a little honey to the dressing to cut the bitterness just a bit while still leaving enough that it made you stop and take notice that this was not your ordinary salad dressing.

Baby Beet Salad with a Creamy Coffee Dressing

1 baby beet per person, steamed, peeled and cut into slices

2 handfuls of mixed greens, per person

1 (6 oz) carton plain Greek yogurt

2 T. brewed coffee

1 t. honey

salt and pepper to taste

Whisk together the yogurt, coffee, honey, salt and pepper.  Taste and adjust sweetness and seasonings as desired.

Chill a salad plate for each person.  Place 2 handfuls of salad greens on each plate.  Top with sliced beets and drizzle with dressing. Print Recipe

More Fabulous Fall Bounty

An InLinkz Link-up

More Beet and Coffee Creations

An InLinkz Link-up