DIY Spiced Olives

I'm a freak for all things pickled. The relish tray is my favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner. I frequent the fancy olive bar at Whole Foods. I pick out all of the spicy carrots in the jalepenos at Mexican restaurants. I have a problem - but it's not one I can't solve! I learned it's actually pretty easy to pickle your own veggies and olives.  The only real problem is restraining your temptation to open them early before they have cured. 
Here is a recipe for home-made spiced olives, but you could substitute the olives for fresh, sliced cucumber, carrots, zucchini, peppers, sweet red onions, okra, those little baby corns...really almost anything. If you want to make less than a quart, just remember there are 4 cups in a quart and reduce the ingredients accordingly. Enjoy!

What you will need per 1 quart jar:
1 quart size canning jar
3-4 C olives (any kind)
1 1/2 C vinegar
2 C water
1 T kosher salt
1/4 C of your favorite Boutique Treats spice mix (They all work! Just go with what you like)

Optional: any combo of sliced onions, garlic cloves, serrano pepper, red bell pepper, etc.

Directions:
Rinse the brine or oil off your olives. Heat the water, vinegar, salt, and spices just to a simmer on the stove and stir to dissolve the salt. Add your olives/veg plus any optional ingredients to the jar. Pour the vinegar mixture over the olives. Make sure they are covered completely by the liquid and leave 1/4" of space at the top of the jar. Tightly screw on the lid.
Let them cool at room temperature and then put them in the refrigerator to season. (Unless you are an expert canner, these need to be kept in the fridge). Let them sit 2 weeks in the fridge before eating them. It's so hard to wait, but I believe in you!

NEW!!! Limited Edition Summer Seasoning - the rub

Just in time for summer grilling, we are happy to introduce "the rub". Sweet and sour, smoky and spicy - this all-purpose spice rub is great on steaks, ribs, fajitas, and as a marinade for all things grilled. Sprinkle straight on roasted veggies or mix in potato salad! Best go ahead and grab one - after the lazy days of summer are gone, so is the rub!

Banana Fig Bread with Gingerbread Sugar

I'm one of those people who counts the over-ripeness of a banana in terms of hours instead of days. One hour past perfectly prime and I'm not eating it.   So, needless to say, we end up with a lot of left-over bananas. I'm always looking for good banana recipes so they don't go to waste, and adapted this one to include figs and gingerbread sugar. It's delicious. I think the texture is a bit more cake-like, which I prefer, and the figs and spices from the sugar really make it special.

What you will need:
2 C All-Purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 C softened butter
3/4 C gingerbread sugar
1/2 C sliced, dried figs (or nuts if you prefer)
2 eggs
2 C (4 smallish) over-ripe bananas

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9X5" loaf pan.
In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients.
In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar together. Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs and bananas util it is all blended. Now stir in the figs. Slowly add the flour mixture to the banana mixture until it is all well blended, scraping down the sides. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Bake in the preheated oven for 60-65 minutes. 

Now you have a delicious, potassium-paked breakfast or snack. My kids even like it with a scoop of ice cream on top for dessert! 

Tips and Tricks:

- Waiting for butter to soften is something my patience quota is not built for.  I also seriously hate non-stick cooking sprays because they seem to go everywhere but the pan.  Instead, I put my cold stick of butter in my loaf pan and put them both in the pre-heating oven for 5 minutes. Now I have softened butter AND a lightly greased pan. boom.

- Don't have quite enough bananas? Add any kind of lunch box fruit cup (without the juice) or 1/2 C of applesauce instead. It won't be a bad thing to have little bits of pineapple or cherry floating around in there.

- Don't like figs? Don't worry about it! Add nuts, dates, raisins, or CHOCOLATE CHIPS!

- Don't have Gingerbread Sugar? You could use any of our specialty sugars in its place, except Peppermint...that would be weird.

*To order Gingerbread Sugar, please leave a message at www.facebook.com/BoutiqueTreatsSugar. 

Date-Pecan Truffles

Happy New Year! With new year resolutions hanging over my head, and this impossible sweet tooth I developed over the holidays, I have been looking for some healthy compromises. A good friend of mine, who has been experimenting with raw-food recipes, introduced me to a date-nut crumble that she served with freshly chopped apples as dessert. It was so delicious that it inspired me to see what I could do to naughty it up just a bit and turn it into a bite-sized treat.

This recipe can be adjusted to your liking, as long as you keep the relative proportions, and can be used with a variety of our specialty sugars.  I think it goes especially well with Vanilla-Chai or Signatures Spiced, but I bet it would also be fantastic with Spice Cake, Gingerbread, or even Mayan Mocha! 

What you will need:
1 C unsalted, raw pecans or pecan pieces
1 C dates
1/2 C unsweetened, finely shredded coconut
1 T Vanilla-Chai or other specialty sugar
a good pinch of sea salt

Stir your sugar and coconut together in a bowl and set aside.

Toast your pecans on a sheet pan under the oven broiler for a few minutes, until they start to smell toasty. Watch closely that they don't begin to burn. Pulse your warm pecans with your dates and a pinch of salt in a food processor until they can hold a shape when squeezed together.

Form a small spoonfuls of the mixture into little cubes or balls, roll them in the coconut-sugar mixture, and place them on a sheet pan. When you are finished, refrigerate them for about a half an hour to allow them to set up a bit before serving. If any left-overs survive, you can keep them stored in the fridge for several weeks to take care of that persistent sweet tooth, without feeling too bad about it!  

These beautiful, fun treats also make great gifts when packaged in a pretty jar, and can fake out most kids as candy for a wholesome snack that's full of protein, fiber, and nutrition. Enjoy!

the bird - limited edition seasoning for turkey and stuffing

From now until December 31, 2015 we are offering a limited edition seasoning specially formulated for your holiday turkey and stuffing! Garlic and herbs with pinch of cracked fennel and nutmeg, this blend can also be used to season veggies, potatoes, or freshly baked herb bread. To order, leave a message on our Facebook page at: facebook.com/boutiquetreatssugar.

Spiced Simple Syrup

The holidays are here! Time to eat, drink and be merry with friends, neighbors, family, co-workers....wow, that's exhausting! Here's a really easy recipe for a tasty little syrup you can keep on hand and use at any last second to fancy up your beverages. I used Spice Cake here, but it would work just as well with Signature Spiced, Gingerbread, or Vanilla-Chai. You could even make it with Peppermint!

What you will need:
2 C spiced sugar
3 C water

Directions:
Bring your spiced sugar and water to a boil in a medium sized sauce pan. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Allow it to cool and transfer it to a jar or container and store it in the fridge or freezer.  

That's it! Now you have it ready to add to chilled wine for a spiced sangria. You can add it to hot apple juice and create instant cider. You can add a few teaspoons to a glass of champagne, rum, or bourbon and win hostess of the year for world's most fabulous cocktail! Add it to coffee, tea, or punch. Use it with cooked apples and cranberries for an amazing holiday compote, ice cream topping, or pie filling.  There are endless things you can create. Let us know what you come up with!

Rice Pudding - with Signature Spiced Sugar

Couldn't you go for a warm bowl of creamy, comforting rice pudding? It makes a great breakfast or dessert. In this recipe I substituted white sugar for Signature Spiced Sugar because it hits all the right notes: cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, citrus...but you could easily use Spice Cake or Canela Latte if you prefer. I like to add a cinnamon stick to bump up the cinnamon flavor as well!

What you will need:
8 C whole milk
1 C white or arborio rice
3/4 C Signature Spiced Sugar
2 T butter

Directions:
In a large pot, melt the butter.  Saute the rice (and cinnamon stick if using) with the butter for a minute on med heat and stir. Add the milk and bring just to a boil.  

Lower the heat and continue to stir and cook for 25 minutes.  Stir in the sugar ad continue to cook and stir at a low simmer for 20-30 more minutes until the rice is very soft and creamy.  Remove the cinnamon stick, rest to cool for a few minutes, and serve warm!