Friday Friend Recipe #107 -- Hot Buttered Rum

My Friday Friend Cookbook Countdown #107!

My family's Hot Buttered Rum

and you know all the whys and wherefores of this countdown, right? Homemade cookbook, friends contributed, Handyman said I couldn't/wouldn't do it, I'll show him, yadda yadda yadda....

We always make this at Christmas time and luckily I took a picture of it last Christmas.  That's how far behind I am on posting recipes I've made from the Friday Friend Cookbook. This is #107, but I have up to #130 in my drafts.  I counted the other day and there are 398 recipes in it.  At the rate I'm going this will take me FOREVER!

And sometimes the quality of the photos I take is--well, not so great.  You'll just have to deal with it because,

there is no way I'm making anything a second time--just for a photo. Not that they aren't worth a second time but (sigh) it's work to remember to take pictures and all, sometimes.

It seems as if I've meandered off--complaining--but I'm not really.  Because I'm so far  behind   this post fits perfectly now as we are headed into the Holiday Season.

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens is my favorite Christmas story ever!  (except for the birth of Christ of course)  and this edition of the book--SO BEAUTIFUL!!

The illustrations are gorgeous.

There is nothing better than curling up on a snowy Saturday afternoon in December with a hot buttered rum and reading this book, OR watching the old movie on TV.

The drink?  Hot Buttered Rum?

It's like  butterscotch  cocoa!

And now for my story---because this is my recipe after all. 

Or is it?

For years, I thought this was a secret family recipe that my mom's family had invented!

But when I grew up I began to notice it in every church and community club cookbook.  It was like finding out the truth about Santa Claus!

So disappointing.

But just like I still believe in the magic of Santa (Yes Virginia, he exists as surely as goodness.....) I believe in the magic of family holiday time, drinking this delicious concoction!

It's so good.... so sweet.....so good.

Here is a photo of my family who made up this recipe-- my grandma, holding my crying baby, me and my mom, about 37 years ago.

On January 2nd, 2009, I also posted about this recipe, but since the rules state I am making every recipe in the cookbook, I had to post again---but this is what I said then.....

I thought I might as well chime in on the "hot" drinks that everyone is blogging about. I've seen recipes for mocha's and hot chocolates, but one of my favorite holiday drinks are Hot Buttered Rums. I make the batter around Thanksgiving and if I'm lucky it will last until the middle of January. It's a very sweet drink, so you can't drink more than one in a sitting. Usually. I guess there are always exceptions to the rule. But they are really, really sweet.

Christmas time, when I was young, would be spent between my maternal and paternal grandparents homes. They lived one block from each other. My paternal grandparents would make Tom and Jerry's during the holidays, my maternal grandparents would have Hot Buttered Rums. Honestly, I've never made the Tom and Jerry's. I guess because I just love the HBR's so much.

They are best on a snowy day, of course. And with a good homemade cookie.
An old movie, or a good book, don't hurt much either. If it can all come together at the same time, it's heaven!

Hot Buttered Rum

1 lb real butter
1 lb brown sugar
1 lb white sugar
1/2 gallon real vanilla ice-cream

melt together over slow heat. Store in a jar or Tupperware container in the fridge for a few days, then freeze and use when you need it.

I like mine with hot milk, but most people like their's made with just hot water. With milk, it's like a warm butterscotch treat. Mmmmm.

Use 2 Tbls of the batter
1 oz light rum
mix together in a coffee mug and add boiling water or hot milk.
Sprinkle with nutmeg and cinnamon.

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You know I have a hard time thinking up new stories after the 107th time, so when I first thought of posting this today,  I was going to share the Handyman's election stories.  But they are not that exciting.

I think we're all just waiting for this 'historic' election to be over with.  Sad, but true.

And then....will it really be over?

Oh well... let me just say this...

The Handyman never was elected mayor.

(but he looked quite good in his election flyer, didn't he?  That's a flyer from 2006 lying on top of my sample ballot for this year.  10 years ago, wow!)

And you know what we say now about his losing the mayoral election? 

THANK GOD!

He was elected to another term on the city council tho.  Finally retiring from local politics in 2012.

And you know what we say about that?

THANK GOD!!

And  what do you do with old campaign signs?  Use them for bullet practice!

The magnetic ones you put up in your garage fridge and freezer for nostalgia's sake.

Except for Theresa--she's still on the city council.

I think we can all agree that this has been a vicious presidential campaign...on all sides.

I don't know who will win this election-- but no matter what I always kind of feel bad for the loser.  Especially for their families.  It's not fun to lose---no matter what.  Even if you should lose.  But watching someone you love lose is --really hard.

I found these in my journal--

the first one was a note I sent to all the Friday Friend Forum:

And the second one was a back and forth to my friend Nicole, whose husband lost a race for Judge a couple of years before.

Private at the time, but looking back it really all did work out for the best.

Seriously!

As things do turn out--- the mayor and Rich worked really well together.  REALLY well--and she misses him still.

And we are all really good friends.

She is in my bookclub.

I just thought the political stuff in my life was interesting right now, as I was doing this post.

Nothing like putting my life on view for you all to see now, is there?

Anyway...

MAY BEST PERSON FOR THE JOB WIN!

And may we all be friends.

And in the words of John Wesley (father of the Methodist Church)

May we not be of one heart, though we are not of one opinion?

Wednesday will bring relief --- of a sort.

Then we can get on to drinking Hot Buttered Rums!

The Holidays are right around the corner.

HELP! What Should I Read Next? (From My TBR List)

A monthly meme hosted by Michelle at  Because Reading is Better than Real Life.

Michelle says:

We sit for hours looking through our TBR lists wondering when we will ever get to that one book we were dying to read when we added it 3 months ago or maybe even a year. As our piles get bigger we realize there is just not enough time in a day to read all the books that we wanted to read. So I had a great idea, pick 3 books from my TBR Pile and have you all pick which one I should read next. This is a monthly MEME and you are more than welcome to join me.

There are of course some rules, but if you want to join in go here to check them all out.

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Okay people....help me out here!  I need a book to read and I need your help in choosing which one.

Below are three I want to read, but..... my decision making skills when I'm not at work are nil.

All you have to do is  just make a comment  on which one you choose for me and I'll let you know next Saturday what I'm reading next....the majority wins!

The long-awaited and beguiling second novel from Alain de Botton that tracks the beautifully complicated arc of a romantic partnership, from the internationally bestselling author of On Love and How Proust Can Change Your Life.

We all know the headiness and excitement of the early days of love. But what comes after? In Edinburgh, a couple, Rabih and Kirsten, fall in love. They get married, they have children—but no long-term relationship is as simple as “happily ever after.” The Course of Love is a novel that explores what happens after the birth of love, what it takes to maintain love, and what happens to our original ideals under the pressures of an average existence. You experience, along with Rabih and Kirsten, the first flush of infatuation, the effortlessness of falling into romantic love, and the course of life thereafter. Interwoven with their story and its challenges is an overlay of philosophy—an annotation and a guide to what we are reading.

This is a romantic novel in the true sense, one interested in exploring how love can survive and thrive in the long term. The result is a sensory experience—fictional, philosophical, psychological—that urges us to identify deeply with these characters, and to reflect on his and her own experiences in love. Fresh, visceral, and utterly compelling, The Course of Love is a provocative and life-affirming novel for everyone who believes in love.

Nina Redmond is a literary matchmaker. Pairing a reader with that perfect book is her passion… and also her job. Or at least it was. Until yesterday, she was a librarian in the hectic city. But now the job she loved is no more.

Determined to make a new life for herself, Nina moves to a sleepy village many miles away. There she buys a van and transforms it into a bookmobile—a mobile bookshop that she drives from neighborhood to neighborhood, changing one life after another with the power of storytelling.

From helping her grumpy landlord deliver a lamb, to sharing picnics with a charming train conductor who serenades her with poetry, Nina discovers there’s plenty of adventure, magic, and soul in a place that’s beginning to feel like home… a place where she just might be able to write her own happy ending.

For over fifty years the Turners have lived on Yarrow Street. Their house has seen thirteen children get grown and gone—and some return; it has seen the arrival of grandchildren, the fall of Detroit’s East Side, and the loss of a father. But when their powerful mother falls ill, the Turners are called home to decide their house’s fate and to reckon with how their past haunts—and shapes—their future. The Turner House is a striking examination of the price we pay for our dreams, and the ways in which our families bring us home.

Please leave your vote in the comments.

Thanks so much.

Happy Reading!

Romance Time

From Goodreads:

A little subdued. A little stubborn. A little tired of going out on blind dates with men who drive vans with sofas in the back, Jane Alcott is living the Single Girl existence in the big city. She is also leading a double life. By day, she's a reporter covering the raucous Seattle Chinooks hockey team—especially their notorious goalie Luc Martineau. By night, she's a writer, secretly creating the scandalous adventures of "Honey Pie"...the magazine series that has all the men talking.

SEE JANE SPAR

Luc has made his feelings about parasite reporters—and Jane—perfectly clear. But if he thinks he's going to make her life a misery, he'd better think again.

SEE JANE ATTRACT

For as long as he can remember, Luc has been single minded about his career. The last thing he needs is a smart mouthed, pain in the backside, reporter digging into his past and getting in his way. But once the little reporter shed her black and gray clothes in favor of a sexy red dress, Luc sees that there is more to Jane than originally meets the eye.

Maybe it's time to take a risk. Maybe it's time to live out fantasies. Maybe it's time to....

SEE JANE SCORE!  

From Me:

It was fun....and touching.....and steamy (just read the front cover).

And it's Hockey....so you know, a nice way to spend an afternoon.

Cookbook Countdown #95 -- cactus paddle salad nopales salad And Cooking Club #9

My friend Louise hosted Cookbook Wednesday for years, but  she is not feeling so well, so it is suspended for now.

I am not taking up the weekly commitment, (with a Mr. Linky, etc)  I just have one of my cookbooks to 'count down' and I am going to do it on Wednesday and think of how great Louise's blog is and hope she is up to par soon!

Months of Edible Creations!

This is cookbook number 95!

You can see them all so far if you click here.

This indispensable cookbook, an instant classic when first published in 1989, is now back in print with a brand-new introduction from the most celebrated authority on Mexican cooking, Diana Kennedy. The culmination of more than fifty years of living, traveling, and cooking in Mexico, The Art of Mexican Cooking is the ultimate guide to creating authentic Mexican food in your own kitchen, with more than 200 beloved recipes as well as evocative illustrations.

The dishes included, favorites from all the regions of Mexico, range from sophisticated to pure and simple, but they all share an intrinsic depth of taste. Aficionados will go to great lengths to duplicate the authentic dishes (and Kennedy tells them exactly how), but here too is a wealth of less complicated recipes for the casual cook in search of the unmistakable flavors of a bold cuisine.

Kennedy shares the secrets of true Mexican flavor: balancing the piquant taste of chiles with a little salt and acid, for instance, or charring them to round out their flavor; broiling tomatoes to bring out their character, or adding cumin for a light accent. By using Kennedy’s kitchen wisdom and advice, and carefully selecting produce that is now readily available in most American markets, cooks with an appetite for Mexican cuisine–and Kennedy devotees old and new–can at last serve and enjoy real Mexican food.

My thoughts?

It's a great cookbook ---  a serious cookbook.  There is no flash in this cookbook--it's mostly text and very few photos.  It's for serious cooks who want to make good authentic Mexican food.

I'm glad I own this, but I don't really use it.

Truth be told, I am just going to ask and watch my daughter-in-law and her mother when I want authentic Mexican Home cooking.

But this one is a good reference to have on your shelf.

Now, what did I make from this cookbook? 

Well....

It was my COOKING CLUB get together again and our theme was Mexican Street Food.

The Cooks/ The Characters:

Before you go any further--- my cooking club posts just keep getting longer and longer each time. I can't seem to leave any photo out.

So, just take this as a warning.

  I was assigned salad.

Mexican street food salad?  I wasn't sure there was one.  When my daughter in law and her family make a salad, they use lettuce and tomatoes and dress it with fresh lime juice.

I was stumped.

Then Sally, who was the host this month ( on the far right) and also teaches English as a Second Language to adults at the community college, told me that her students had suggested 'nopales"  or "cactus salad".  It's pretty authentic.

Or she said they mentioned  "jimaca salad".

So, what did I do?

Made 3 salads of course!

Nopales

Jimaca

Black bean salad

And my 3 cookbooks were:

And the rest of the street food......

Nopales (cactus) salad

Jicama/Mango and Black Bean salad-- from me

Homemade tomatillo salsa -- from Sally

HA!  That doesn't look homemade, but I swear it was! ??

Shrimp ceviche tostado -- from Gina

Corn (street corn---the best!)  from Debbie E.

Tres-leches cupcakes -- from April

Carne Asada and frijoles and Mexican slaw --from Sally and Shelly

Cucumber Jalapeno and Blueberry Basil

Margaritas!

A great time was had by all!

As usual.

The Handyman is seen in a Sombrero?

He never, EVER plays along like that.

Maybe it was the margaritas?

In every Cooking Club post I talk about how much I love these people and how much fun we have--so I won't do that again. Just know that it's so.

When all is said and done--this was a really healthy meal. Not a bunch of cheese and sauces and sour cream which is more Americanized Mexican cooking...this was authentic.

So... are you ready for the Nopalitos?

Diana Kennedy says:

Salads as such do not play an important part in the Mexican kitchen, where there are so many fresh garnishes, pickles and sauces to accompany the food.  However, a salad of nopalitos, a popular food in the marketplace, does rank high. Cooked green beans or chayote can be substituted.

3 cups cooked napales, cut into squares (I just bought a can of them)

3 T finely chopped white onion

1/2 cup loosely packed finely chopped cilantro

1/2 t Mexican oregano

2 T fresh lime juice

sea salt to taste

3 small tomatoes, unskinned, sliced

1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro

1/3 cup crumbled fresco cheese

1/3 cup purple onion rings

3 canned jalapenos cut into quarters lengthwise

1 avocado, peeled and sliced

Inner leaves of romaine letter for serving.

Mix the nopalitos with the next four ingredients and set aside to season for 30 minutes.  Stir well and adjust seasoning. Spread the nopoalitos  over the platter. Decorate with the tomato slices and top with cilantro, cheese, onion rings, jalapeno strips and slices of avocado.

Mango, Jicama and Cucumber Salad

From the Muy Bueno cookbook

2 small yellow mangos, peeled, pitted and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

2 red or green mangos, peeled, pitted, and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1 medium jicama, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch cubes

2 to 3 T lime juice

1/2 t Tajin (chili spice)

Dash of cayenne pepper

salt to taste

In a mixing bowl, combine the mangos, jicama, and cucumbers. Add lime juice. Sprinkle with chili powder/tajin, cayenne pepper and salt.

Toss well, cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.

This was really good!

And Sally might kill me, but really...

what are the odds?

Sally and Paul... the perfect hosts!!

Paul never fell asleep at the wheel---unlike Sally.

(except for when she was making homemade corn tortillas, homemade salsa, homemade margaritas, homemade beans, homemade Mexican chocolate, and on and on..... just kidding of course about her falling asleep, but seriously, what are the odds that almost every picture I took of her, her eyes are closed?)

Cooking Club #9 was the best one yet!

And these cooking club meals were all good too... Just click on the link to see.

Cooking Club #1   Meals your mom used to make

Cooking Club #2  Cajun Cooking

Cooking Club #3 -Let's all go to Hawaii

Cooking club #4  American Regional Cooking--Great Lakes Region, featuring SUPPER CLUBS.

Cooking Club #5  Famous Chefs

Cooking Club #6  Meatball madness--or something round

Cooking Club #7  Breakfast for dinner

Cooking Club  #8  Slow cooking  

Cooking Club #9  Mexican Street Food 

Happy Eating!

See you next time.

Next up for the Cooking Club?

December -- Christmas cookies of your heritage or tradition and a reading of "A Christmas Carol"

Homemade Hot Buttered Rums and Tom and Jerrys.

January --  A Thai cooking demonstration (where someone teaches us and we watch and eat)