"Love is an act of endless forgiveness." ~ Peter Ustinov
NOTE: I spend my Wednesdays Unplugged from appointments. It's my day to stay home, enjoy cooking and welcome our kids and grandkids for dinner in the evening. We end our meal with quotes from the Norwegian 'Quote Cup' passed on to me from my grandmother. I share a quote and a recipe here each week, and sometimes some photos of family fun. I love trying new recipes…and love getting recipes you would like to share!
Last week we got to go to our grandson's 4th grade classroom to hear his presentation about his heritage. It's hard to believe when you look at him that he is half Norwegian… but so many other children in his class have Scandinavian heritage that he talked about his Haitian heritage. Very interesting, and job well done!
RECIPE OF THE WEEK
With Valentine's Day just a couple days away, I decided to make this week's recipe something sweet. These salted-caramel bars were slow to make, but delicious… from Zoe Nathan at Food and Wine. I found the pastry layer was too well done… watch to keep it light and delicate, not browned.
SALTED-CARAMEL BARS
PASTRY SHELL 
- 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 large egg white, beaten
CARAMEL
- 2 1/4 cups heavy cream
- 1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped
- 2 1/4 cups sugar
- 1 3/4 sticks unsalted butter
- 2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a 2-inch overhang. In a large bowl, cream the butter using an electric mixer at low speed. Beat in the confectioners' sugar. Add the whole eggs and beat until incorporated, then beat in the flour and salt. Press the pastry into the prepared pan in an even layer, 1/4 inch thick. Freeze until firm, 10 minutes.
Line th epastry with parchment paper and fill with pie weights. Bake for 35 minutes, until just set. Carefully remove th epie weights and parchment. Brush the shell with the egg white and bake for 20 minutes longer, until golden and cooked through. Let cool.
In a saucepan, bring the cream, vanilla bean and seeds to a simmer. Cover; keep warm.
In a large, heavy saucepan, stir the sugar into 1/4 cup of water. Bring to a full boil and simmer for over moderate heat, without stirring, until a deep amber caramel forms, 7 minutes or longer.
Remove the caramel from the heat and carefully add the cream. When the bubbling subsides, stir in the butter. Insert a candy thermometer and cook over moderately high heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the caramel reaches 240 degrees F, about 10 minutes. Discard the vanilla bean and stir in the salt. Pour the caramel over the shell. Refrigerate until firm, 4 hours or overnight. Remove the bar from the pan using the parchment overhang; cut into squares.
Sharlene Hensrud, RE/MAX Results – Email – Minneapolis Realtor Who Cooks
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