Slow Cooker Wild Rice Pudding

This time of year I'm usually looking to eat a little healthier and heartier. It's a tricky balance! This recipe takes little effort and is full of nutrition and hearty whole grains.

What you will need: (4 servings)
3/4 C wild and/or brown rice
2 C milk, coconut milk, or almond milk
1/4 C of your favorite spiced sugar (I used Spice Cake)
1 T butter or coconut oil
a big pinch of salt

optional add-ins: raisins, sultanas, chopped apples or dried fruits, berries, chia seeds...

optional toppings: toasted nuts or seeds, a splash of cream or yogurt, a spoonful of jam or nut butter, chocolate chips, thin strips of candied ginger or orange zest, whipped cream...

What you do:
Melt the butter or coconut oil in the crock pot and spread it around to coat the bottom. Add the rest of the ingredients plus any optional add-ins, stir, cover, and cook on low for 4 1/2 hrs or on high for 2 1/2 hrs.  

When it's done and the rice is tender dish it up and eat it as-is or with desired toppings. It's fun to set out a little buffet of optional toppings and let each person create their own. It makes a terrific breakfast, or can be served with sweet accompaniments and whipped cream for dessert!

Turkey Soup! with Sugo Italian Seasoning

Each holiday we find ourselves with a pretty good stockpile of leftover turkey. It seems like a good idea at the time to bring home a giant storage bag of turkey from Nana's house, but after that coveted turkey sandwich we need a game plan for the rest of it. This recipe is flexible to whatever you end up having on hand. If you don't end up with any bones for the stock, you'll need to use pre-made or purchased chicken stock instead of water. But don't let all that run you off. It takes a while, but it's really easy and so worth it. In this one we use our Sugo seasoning because the herbs and fennel seed go amazingly well with poultry. If you don't like fennel, or have a cajun fried turkey to deal with, you can use Creole seasoning instead.

OK. Here we go.

What you will need:
Left over turkey meat and bones (remove skin)
2 C of water per serving of meat that you have to work with (1/4 C meat = 1 serving)
1 tsp Sugo Italian Seasoning per 2 C water
1/2 C barley or brown/wild rice (for an 8-12 C pot)
1/4 C chopped veg per 2 C water - carrots, celery, onion, etc - whatever was left on that veggie tray besides broccoli can get cut up and thrown in depending on your preferences. 
extra salt to taste
a big pot

What you do:
Boil your meat and bones in the water for an hour. Don't freak out too much about proportions. It's not exact science and you'll have veggies and grains in there too to make it go around. For example: if you have a turkey leg plus 2 C of meat left over, throw it all in a big pot with 8-12 C of water and boil it. Remove the bones and be sure to get all the meat off of them. Careful - it's hot. If you think there might be little bits of bone in there, strain it.
If you never had bones to work with in the first place, just bring your meat to a boil in the right amount of chicken broth.
Add your meat back into the broth (that you made!) plus the seasoning (for a big pot of 10ish cups I use about 2 T of seasoning) and barley/wild rice. Boil to nearly cook the barley - about 35 minutes. Check your broth for salt and seasoning. Add more if it needs it. Add your veg and cook an additional 10 minutes.
You just used Thanksgiving leftovers to make a fabulous soup from scratch. You win at life! You are amazing! Serve it with any surviving dinner rolls and finish off that pie for goodness sake.

*If you want to use white rice or pasta instead of barley, go ahead and throw your veg in at the same time as the rice/pasta and adjust the cooking time to the package directions (white rice=20 min, pasta varies). 

NEW! Take A Tour gift sets

 A Boutique Treats culinary expedition!

 Go on a trip around the world with these perfect pairs!

Each box contains a carefully selected 8 oz spice mix and 8 oz specialty sugar, plus recipes for using them in authentically themed beverages, appetizers, entrées, and desserts.

Take A Tour gift sets are perfect for people who love to cook and experiment with international cuisine.

Cuban Tour

Cuban cuisine is a blend of Spanish, African, and Caribbean influences. Our Havana Seasoning draws from Cuba’s beautiful use of orange and cumin and blends it with punchy herbs like sage and oregano. We chose to pair our Cuban seasoning with Signature Spiced Sugar for it’s warm spices, bay, and citrus flavors.

Moroccan Tour

Moroccan food has been influenced by its exchanges with other cultures and nations over the centuries. Typically a mix of Mediterranean, Arabic, and Andalucian and Berber cuisines, it is known for it’s aromatic spices and sweet dried fruits. Our Moroccan Tagine Spice Mix captures the exotic flavors of this region and brings them to your home. We have paired our Moroccan Tagine Spice Mix with Spice Cake Sugar for its bold use of cinnamon, ginger and clove.

Italian Tour

Italian cuisine is characterized by its simplicity and emphasis on the quality of the ingredients. Letting the fresh flavors of the region speak for themselves is a trademark of true Italian cooking.  Our Sugo Italian Seasoning captures the essence of Tuscany with fennel, oregano, and garlic. We have paired this beautifully herby blend with our Canela Latte Sugar for its reminiscence of an Italian espresso café. 


We are offering these beautiful gift sets for $25.00 each. If you would like to order please contact us at facebook.com/boutiquetreatssugar or boutiquetreats@yahoo.com.

'the bird' is back!

Better late than never! Our limited edition turkey seasoning, the bird, has been remixed just in time for the holidays. Whip up a 1/4 C with a stick of butter and rub that bird down.  1 T mixed with vinegar and oil makes a fantastic salad dressing. Sprinkle on veggies, potatoes, rice, or stuffing - you won't be disappointed! But grab it while you can, because once Santa is gone - so is the bird.


For a full list of ingredients, see our 'Products and Pricing' page.

To order contact us at: facebook.com/boutiquetreatssugar or boutiquetreats@yahoo.com

Tapas Party!

I love having a few quick, easy snack recipes in my back pocket for parties and guests. Our spice mixes can make throwing a variety of tapas on the table come together in a snap. Here are some of the ways I like to use them...




CREOLE Ranch Dip:
1 C sour cream
1-2 T Creole seasoning

*Stir to combine and serve with chips or raw veggies.


Chimichurri with HAVANA:
1/2 C fresh, chopped Italian parsley
1/2 C fresh, chopped cilantro
1/4 C white wine vinegar
1/2 C olive oil
1 fresh, chopped garlic clove
1 T Havana seasoning
pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)

*Just zip it all up in a blender or food processor and serve with plantain chips, tortilla chips, or with raw veggies.

SUGO Infused Olive Oil:
1/2 C olive oil
1 T Sugo seasoning 
splash of basalmic vinegar (optional)

*Mix together and serve with tuscan bread or raw veggies for dipping.

MOROCCAN Cream Cheese Spread:
1 C cream cheese, goat cheese, or a mixture of both
1 T Moroccan Tagine Spice Mix
1/2 C chopped dried apricots or greek olives (optional)
Sesame crackers or celery sticks

*Stir the cream cheese and Moroccan Tagine spice mix together until blended. Spread onto sesame crackers or into celery sticks. Top with chopped apricots or greek olives. 

TEXAS CHILI Bean Dip:
2 cans of refried beans (or 2 cans pinto beans + 2 T olive oil - mashed)
2 T Texas Chili Spice Mix 


*Stir to blend, warm, and serve with corn chips. If it seems too thick just stir in a little water. This can also be done with a small block of melted Velveeta.

Bean and Corn Salad with Havana spice mix

I can always go for something fresh and simple. This salad is a snap to put together and can double as a salsa when served with tortilla chips. Use any kind of bean you like and fresh or frozen corn instead of canned if you prefer. Double the recipe to serve more than four.

What you need:
1 can black eyed peas or other bean - drained and rinsed
1 can corn - drained
1/2 green bell pepper - diced
1/2 C diced tomato
1/2 C diced cucumber
1/4 C sliced black or green olives
1 avocado - cut into cubes
1/4 C chopped cilantro
juice of 1 lime
1/4 C olive oil
1 tsp Havana spice mix
salt/pepper to taste

What you do:
Stir the lime juice, olive oil, and Havana spice mix in a medium sized bowl. Add everything else. If you want it spicy, dice a seeded jalepeno or thai chili in there too. Season with salt and pepper to taste. That's it! Now eat it like a salad, a veg taco filling, or as a salsa with chips. 

Swirly Bread with Signature Spiced Sugar

Let's get this squared away right up front - there is no shame in buying a tube of refrigerated bread dough, rolling it out, and following this recipe with it if you are just not into making bread from scratch. But, in case your car is in the shop, like mine, and you have nothing else to do.....
I'm pretty sure there is nobody on earth who doesn't like fresh bread. Swirl some butter and spiced sugar through it and you have the stuff they must certainly eat in heaven.  I like the citrus notes in Signature Spiced, but you really could use any of our specialty sugars except Peppermint. I think Granulated Chocolate or Gingerbread Sugar might make something extra special.

What You Need (makes 2 loaves):

For the dough -
6 C all-purpose flour
1 pkg active dry yeast
2 1/4 C milk
2 T plain white sugar
1 T butter
2 tsp salt

For the swirl -
1 stick butter (sliced into tablespoons)
1/2 C Signature Spiced Sugar (or any of our other specialty sugars)

What You Do:

In a standing mixer bowl, combine 3 C flour + the yeast.
In a med saucepan, stir and heat the milk, butter, white sugar, and salt over low heat until it reaches 120 degrees. This part is very important.
Add the hot liquid to the flour+yeast and beat on low to combine. Then beat on high for 3 minutes.
Switch to the kneading hook, or turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes until it is elastic and smooth.
Lightly oil a large bowl and let the dough rise for an hour with a damp tea towel over it.
Punch down the dough, divide it into two equal pieces, and roll each of them out onto a floured surface into 6X18" rectangles.
Place the butter pats all over the tops of the the rolled-out dough. Now sprinkle 1/4 C of spiced sugar on top of each one.

Starting from the short end, roll each rectangle up jelly roll style and place them into greased 4X8 loaf pans.
Cover the loaves with a damp tea towel and let them rise 30 more minutes - or until they have doubled in size.

Bake the loaves in a pre-heated 350 degree oven for 30 minutes.
Remove them from the pans (or they will get soggy) and allow them to cool on a cooling rack before slicing. Serve toasted with butter or all by itself. While it takes a long time, it's really not that hard and so very worth the effort for a special occasion or to share with a friend. The loaves last up to a week (in theory - they will get gobbled up before that) and I suggest storing them wrapped up in the fridge.