Sugarcrafter

CSN Stores Giveaway Winner!

August 23, 2010 | Print | E-mail | Filed under giveaways

Congratulations to lucky number 38 – Kara!

I’ll be forwarding your e-mail address on to CSN Stores, so be on the lookout for your gift card code. Enjoy your new pie dish!

Also, a big thank you to all who entered – I had so much fun reading about what you’d put the money toward! As for me, I put the money toward my very first Le Creuset dutch oven. It won’t be arriving for a couple more weeks, so my review will have to wait until then…but since it’ll be just in time for fall soups and stews, I know it’ll be put to good use right away. Thanks to CSN Stores for a great giveaway!

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Rum Peach Butter

August 21, 2010 | Print | E-mail | Filed under canning, peaches

I’ve been wanting to make some type of preserves with peaches ever since summer first hit, so when the grocery store began overflowing with them, I went for it. I really wanted to find a place to pick them, but I figured that since we had already picked strawberries and cherries this year (and apples are coming up soon!) it’d be better to just snag some locally grown peaches from the store. I decided that instead of spicing up the butter with several of my favorite fall spices like I normally do, I’d add in some spiced rum and let the magic happen. Don’t worry, the alcohol cooks down as the peaches simmer…but the taste that’s left behind really augments the flavor of the butter. Plus, I just love the gorgeous color! It’ll be a cheery reminder of summer when I’m popping open a jar this winter.

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House Salsa

August 19, 2010 | Print | E-mail | Filed under canning, tomatoes

This month’s Tigress’ Can Jam challenge was tomatoes, which made me a little nervous. I decided to make tomato sauce – that had to be simple, right? – but when I opened up my trusty Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving to the page on tomato sauce, what I saw was a few pages of guidelines instead of a recipe. Ever since my pepper and onion sauce fail, I’m always worried about not adding enough acid when preserving vegetables, so I like to have a recipe I can stick to to make sure I get the proportions right. After frantically flipping through the book for a little while, I finally landed on one of the first recipes in the book: simple house salsa. Though I do like salsa, I really just thought it would be fun to invent my very own house salsa! I halved the original recipe because I only had 5 cups worth of tomatoes. Give it a try, and tweak it a bit to make it your own!

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Saffron and Red Pepper Risotto

August 17, 2010 | Print | E-mail | Filed under pepper, rice

Saffron isn’t something that I pick up often due to its price tag, but when I do, I like to cook things that show off the flavor of this delicate spice. I have trouble finding it at my grocery store, so I was lucky to snag some at a World Market when we visited family several months ago. It’s been sitting in my spice rack since then just begging me to do something with it…until a few weeks ago that is, when I decided that it’s been far too long I’ve made risotto. I put it to good use in this red pepper risotto, and not only is the saffron wonderfully fragrant while you’re cooking, but the color of the finished dish is just gorgeous. Also, it’s a great dish for some of these cooler days we’ve been having lately (if you don’t know me by now, I’m kind of in love with fall). If cooler weather hasn’t come your way yet, no worries…just bookmark this one for later!

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CSN Stores Giveaway & Upcoming Review

August 13, 2010 | Print | E-mail | Filed under giveaways

A couple weeks ago, CSN Stores contacted me and asked if I’d be willing to let them sponsor a giveaway and product review – if you haven’t heard of them, CSN Stores is comprised of over 200 stores where you can shop for cookware, home decor, and more. They’re giving me a $40 gift card toward anything in any of their stores to review – and, they’re giving away a $40 gift card to one of you, too!