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Happy New Year! In a few days we will ring in a new year. Tomorrow I will be doing my New Years Eve Segment on Jarlsberg Cheese and also Hibiscus Flowers. Here are the links to the recipes. Pictures will follow after the show.
If you are in the San Diego area. The show is on the CW6 SD Living at 9am.
White Chocolate Hibiscus Mist Drink
Roasted Garlic and Onion Jarlsberg Cheese Dip
Caramelized Onion Jarlberg Bruschetta
Jarlsberg Cheese Red Pepper Salsa
Eggnog! I purchase the liquid gold from the only dairy left in Los Angeles. At one point LA has 22 dairies with cows.. Now only one is left with the cows outside of the city limits. Today I conducted my Holiday Flower Market Tour from San Diego.. One of our stops we savored the eggnog! Its a difficult product to get outside of the LA area.. But here is the information.. Broguiere Dairy in Montebello. 323-726-0524. Its teh fourth generation French family that produces many milk products.
Todays recipes are eggnog cookies and eggnog cheesecake. Enjoy!
Apples are packed with crisp flavor! I have included two great recipes for you to try.. One is my Christmas Dessert..
Check to see my Facebook page at George Geary Culinary Tours and Classes.. I just posted pictures from today's Holiday Flower Market Tour.
Butter.
Yes... a flavor! I have created a Hot Butter Rum Drink and also a French Butter Cookie that is so light! Enjoy! I think you will love these recipes.
Salt vs Unsalted butter. First I kid and say I used unsalted because I am worried about your health. Really do you know how much salt is in butter? I don't either.. So I use unsalted so I can use the amount of salt I feel is best. Also, salted butter last longer so grocery stores can keep it on the shelve longer.
Vanilla...
Only second in line to Chocolate.. (Notice how this entire 12 days started with Chocolate?). I have enclosed a simple custard recipe. Also, I want everyone to make their own vanilla extract. I have attached a few pages on facts of this only edible orchid plant and some stories of the vanilla regions I have been fortunate to tour and visit.
Also, if you make your own vanilla, you need the perfect bottles! I have found them and below is the link for those. And a great price!
Tomorrows flavor is...Butter! And I just purchased 5 pounds of european butter today!
Here is the link to the Hibiscus Holiday Show I did for SD Living: LINK
Vanilla Facts Vanilla Extract Vanilla Custards
6 beautiful bottles! You will want to start making my Limonchello (recipe on this blog).
Holidays are all about the color red and green! Looking at this festive drink it just puts you into the mood!
Tuesday morning I will be doing my Holiday segment for SD Living. I know some of you are outside the area so after the broadcast I will put the show up here on the blog.
The Favor is Hibiscus! Red Ruby Hibiscus flowers make up this Hibiscus Cranberry Margarita that the glass was rimmed with Hibiscus salts. 
The second recipe is Hibiscus Pots De Creme.
If you do not have a BevMo close by, here is a link for the flowers.. I also will highlight a New Years Eve Drink on SD Living the 27th using the flowers.
Contest! Ok.. How would you like to win a bag of the salt and a jar of the flowers? The tenth person to email me at ggeary@aol.com with the correct answer. What country are the flowers from? Wins!
Tomorrows Flavor is: Vanilla!
Also, anyone needing any personalized cookbooks.. Get your order in NOW so you get them for Christmas! STORE
Peppermint.. The flavor alone reminds you of Christmas.. The candy cane would not be any other flavor! It has to be peppermint.. I see some are on the shelves this season are hot sauce flavored.. Not for me!
Here are two recipes for today.
Also here is a link for paper straws.. The Old Fashion feel of the paper straw will take you back to a simpler time.
Tomorrows Flavor is...Hibiscus!
Cardamom.. an underused spice! Try these two recipes for your holiday season..
I get asked about electrical appliances all of the time. This is my favorite blender.. It matches every kitchen and is powerful and the price is right! You will see me using this on SD Living on Tuesday in fact for my blended dessert!
Cinnamon...
Just the word makes you think... Christmas! It does me! Here you will find two recipes for cinnamon. Hard Candies that are simple to make.. Also, a drink I featured on SD Living a few weeks ago..
Cinnamon? What's the difference? Make sure you download the cinnamon information!
Here are the recipes.
Old Fashion Holiday Christmas Candy
I messed up the chocolate cookie recipe yesterday.. Here is the revised version.. I forgot the 2 cups of granulated sugar. Chocolate Cookie Recipe Revised
Two Products today.. LorAnn Cinnamon Oil. You need to always use oil in candy making.. It does not disipate and with a few drops you get a rich flavor. LorAnn products are known for quality and the best for candy making!
Second Product is very important. a thermometer.. Those candy ones from Taylor were good for the time.. Now I suggest an instead read meat thermometer. It has two uses. One for meat where you place the probe into the meat and program the alarm with the exact temperature. Then the alarm goes off when it hits.. same as the boiling candy syrup.. no guessing as to what the degrees are like the old fashion kind.
It's time for the Twelve Days of Holiday Sweetness! This year I am doing a few things different. 1. I am also going to be highlighting a product that I feel is the BEST to use for the recipe. 2. Every day of the twelve days are "themed". Today's theme is Chocolate! 3. I am adding a drink recipe! All drink recipes there will be two versions. Adult and Kid-Friendly! .. And we will have a few contests during the run!
Day 1: Chocolate
Recipes:
Chocolate Fudge Butter Cookies (revised) Tomorrow... Cinnamon!
Half "Bun" Baking Sheets.. First the origin of the name.. A full sheet is standard for bakeries. These pans are mainly to make yeast buns and these are half the size.. thus.. Half Bun Pans! If you have been at one of my classes you will always see me use these trays for prepping and also for baking cookies. Sheets of Parchment Paper ft perfectly. They will not warp, they are affordable to order at least 6! So you can have your cookies cool completely on the cookie trays. Many cookie cookbook authors only like sheets with two sides that are flat like the sheet. Its been told that the air-flow of the oven will not be even with all four sides like these cookie trays.. I say.. Bologna! If the heat in your oven can not go over 1/2-inch then you have more problems with regulation then with baking of your cookies.
A question I have pondered.. Just like is French Toast French? German Chocolate Cake German?
All kidding aside.. Last night was a wonderful Truffle and Confection Class. I posted a few "Live" pictures from the scene in San Diego and texts, tweets and emails came in for the recipe for the English Toffee.
Here is the recipe.. and if you love it.. pre-post! RECIPE
Next week... Daily Holiday Recipes!
It's Fall... I love all of the spices and aromas that make up the fall/holiday time. Here is a spiced cooking that is very soft. I use two kinds of ginger in the recipe.
If you are looking at your spice cabinet and thinking.. I need new spices.. Then check out The Spice House out of Chicago area. They ship and its work every cent! When you open a jar of spices you will begin to notice the freshness right away.
Secondly, I have a few spaces for my May 2014 trip to the south of France. If you are interested please email me at ggeary@aol.com
Here is the recipe for these great cookies: Recipe
Also, make sure you have signed up for my daily recipe for the 12 days of Christmas.. www.georgegeary.com
Do me a favor and repost this and or send to your foodie friends.. They may just gice you my France Trip as a gift!
~~George