Good Living 123

For National Kahlua Day, I share a “partner” recipe from yesterday. Kahlua combines the flavors of coffee liquor and rum.

Super Simple Tiramisu Cups

1 ½ c heavy/whipping cream
½ c powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
3 T spiced rum or coffee liqueur
8 oz mascarpone cheese, softened to room temperature
Cocoa powder, optional
Rolled cookies, such as tiramisu or hazelnut pirouettes or cream-filled wafer cookies and/or lady fingers
Fresh raspberries, for garnish

In a large mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to whip the cream on medium speed. When it starts to thicken, sift in the sugar, followed by the vanilla and liqueur. When soft peaks form, add the cheese and beat to combine. Spoon into small serving bowls and dust with cocoa powder, if desired, or adorn with a raspberry. At serving time, insert a cookie (or 2) at the edge of each.

 KISS Tips: I like to make half with rum and half with coffee liqueurs. (If making ahead of time, place a coffee bean at the edge of each one that has coffee liqueur.) At serving time, garnish the rum ones with chocolate hazelnut pirouette cookie pieces and the coffee ones with tiramisu rolled cookies or coffee-soaked ladyfingers, for differentiation. These are also great paired with Super Simple Cannoli Cups.

 KISS Variation: Turn these into Tiramisu Pastry Bites by piping or spooning the filling into crispy mini phyllo pastry cups. Dust with cocoa powder before serving. Serve with or without a garnish of a bit of mandarin or tangerine section.

For National Pistachio Day, I share my Super Simple Cannoli Cups recipe.

Super Simple Cannoli Cups
The magic of cannoli pastries has as much to do with the Ricotta Impastata filling as it does with the delectable pastry rolls. However, we can also enjoy the yumminess without making the pastries.

2 c (16 oz) whole milk ricotta cheese
½ heaping cup powdered sugar (Confectioners’ sugar)
1/2 tsp 100% pure vanilla extract (or spiced rum or brandy)
¼ – ½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp dried orange peel (or 1 tsp fresh orange zest), optional
Garnishes: coarsely chopped pistachios and mini chocolate chips

Place drained ricotta in a large mixing bowl; stir in sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and orange peel thoroughly. Spoon (or pipe) into your individual serving dishes. Garnish and chill till serving time.

KISS Notes: Powdered, not granular sugar, is needed for this recipe, as regular sugar will leave an undesirable, slightly grainy texture. It’s best to let ricotta drain in a cheesecloth-lined fine-mesh sieve over a bowl in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight. While this is especially important when filling cannoli pastry tubes, it is an optional step for this recipe. (When making cannoli pastries, double this recipe for the filling.)

Welcome to National Margarita Weekend! (Many beverages get their own day, but Margaritas go above and beyond!) Stay warm and enjoy a Margarita.

Last Fall, I hosted a bachelorette party for a dear friend, and margaritas were her request. (Yay, Angie, Baby!) So, here are the recipes for both the hi-test and family-friendly versions I served:

Super Simple Margarita Punch
1 lg can frozen limeade
1 c water
¼ – 1/3 c fresh lime juice
½ c Grand Marnier
¾ c silver tequila
1 bottle champagne
Family Friendly Margarita Punch
1 lg can frozen limeade
1 can water
Peach nectar (or orange juice)
Sparkling white grape juice
Garnishes: skewers of purple grapes, strawberries, and a lime wedge

Combine all but the champagne/sparkling juice and keep chilled till serving time. At serving time, pour over ice into the punch bowl and add champagne. Garnish each glass.

KISS Tips: Try paper umbrellas with long stems as the garnish skewers. For other variations, blend in fresh or frozen strawberries or include berries in the ice cubes. You could also add muddled fresh jalapeno slices (no seeds) for a crazy bit of kick. This would also be delightful served in a carved-out watermelon.

Celebrate National Crab Stuffed Flounder Day with another Super Simple recipe. Rolled or served open-faced, this easy dish can look fancy, but it’s not complicated at all.

Super Simple Crabby Flounder
1 ½ – 2 lbs flounder fillets
2 T melted butter
5-6 T mayonnaise
2 T chopped parsley
½ tsp paprika, smoky or sweet
1 ½ – 2 c lump blue crab or other crabmeat, thawed, if frozen; drained; cartilage removed
2 T chopped sweet red pepper
2 T chopped sweet onion
3 T butter
1 T Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp Mrs. Dash garlic – herb seasoning (or other favorite)
¼ – ½ tsp salt or Old Bay seasoning
8-9 Ritz crackers, crumbled (or ¾ c panko)

Separate fillets into 4-6 servings; brush with the melted butter. In a medium bowl, combine mayo, parsley, and paprika thoroughly. Gently stir in crab, taking care not to break up the lumps too much. Spread evenly over the buttered fillets.  Place red pepper, onion, and 3 T butter in microwave-safe bowl; microwave on high for 1 min. Stir in remaining ingredients and sprinkle atop the crab mixture. Bake 20 minutes at 350° F. Garnish with lemon slices and fresh flat-leaf parsley, if desired.

KISS Tips: You can also add ¼ c finely diced mushrooms and/or ½ c diced raw shrimp and/or scallops to the seasoned onion-pepper mixture. ½ tsp dry mustard or 1 tsp to 1 T spicy mustard is also a yummy twist. Flounder is a sweet, white fish, so you could also consider using fillets of tilapia, sole, cod, haddock, or orange roughy. For a lovely presentation, prepare each filet in individual au gratin dishes.