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12/11/2019 11:01 PMThanksgiving was lovely. I spent two days with three of my granddaughters, my son, and daughter-in-law. And I met Duke, my son’s gorgeous, sweet mule, who is taller than my six-foot, four-inch son.
The drive home was also easy, with no rain, snow, or traffic.
I went to a leftover party at the Fitzgeralds on Friday, and on Saturday, I made a full Thanksgiving dinner for my friends Nancy and Andy, who had dined out on Thursday. I roasted a 14-pound stuffed turkey, with sides of mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables and a blueberry crisp for dessert.
I also had breakfast with friends that weekend. They were worried that I had no leftovers, so they gave me mashed potatoes and turkey. I froze their turkey, along with one-cup packets of the mashed potatoes, so I can make potato bread all winter. To get my recipe for potato bread, visit zip06.com, scroll down until you see the Holidays on the Shoreline magazine on the right hand side, and then turn to page 38.
Now it is time to think about food presents.
The two recipes below came from one family. The Amazing Peanut Brittle is a gift from H.G. Sawyer, a retired dentist, for whom I worked until he retired. Yes, he is a dentist and it is his recipe. The peanut butter and chocolate buckeye recipe was given to me by his wife, Barbara. Both are beyond delicious and make terrific gifts for friends you may visit over the holidays whether that holiday is Hanukkah, Christmas, or Kwanzaa. Maybe save some as you watch 30 full days of Hallmark movies, just in case you need even more sweets.
Lee White of Old Lyme has been a food editor and restaurant reviewer for more than 25 years. You can email her at leeawhite@aol.com.
Amazing Peanut Brittle
From H.G. Sawyer, DDS Emeritus, Groton, Connecticut
4 cups sugar
1 ½ cups white and/or dark Karo syrup
1 ½ cups water
4 cups Spanish peanuts
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon vanilla
3 tablespoons baking soda
Butter two rimmed cookie sheets.
Mix sugar, syrup, and water into a heavy-bottomed large pan. Stir with long wooden spoon. Place candy thermometer into the mixture. Heat at medium-high until thermometer reaches 320 degrees (this will take a long time to hit 290 degrees and, then, very little time to hit 320). Add Spanish peanuts, stir, then add butter and vanilla. Stir, then add baking soda and still until frothy, about 15 to 20 seconds. Pour into cookie sheets and thin to about one-peanut high. (It is great to have a silicone spatula for this.) Place outside if it is cold out or put sheets in refrigerator until hardened, about 20 minutes. Break brittle apart and place in tins or zippered bags.
Buckeyes
From Barbara Sawyer of Mystic
Yield: Depending upon size of buckeyes
6 ounces butterscotch bits
6 ounces chocolate chips
thin slice of paraffin*
1 stick butter, melted
2 cups peanut butter
1 pound confectioners’ sugar
3 cups Rice Krispies
In a double-boiler (or in a saucepan on top of another pan of simmered water), melt butterscotch bits, chocolate chips, and paraffin (use just enough paraffin to keep mixture from being too thick).
In bowl, mix melted butter, peanut butter, confectioners’ sugar, and Rice Krispies. Form into small balls and place on waxed paper. Drop balls, a few at a time, into chocolate mixture and lift out with a fork onto waxed paper on a plate. Refrigerate.
Will keep in a container in a cool place or in the refrigerator. They can also be frozen.
*Paraffin, or wax, is available in the baking section of most supermarkets.