Please Sir, I Want S'more

I learned this past week that one of my favorite people in the world has never (never!) had a s'mores*. Yeah, I gasped a little too. Having a pretty insane sweet tooth myself I just couldn't stand for that. In my opinion, the choco-marshallow confection is integral to a healthy childhood (did I say healthy? I'm sticking to it!). So tomorrow we're doing it up right: Homemade graham crackers, homemade vanilla bean marshmallows**, and slabs of deep dark chocolate.

Graham Cracker recipe HERE.
Marshmallow recipe:

after trying several recipes over the years I assembled this one which uses egg whites. If you're wary of whipping egg whites (I understand) you can find one without, using a little internet research.

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons cold water

1/4 cup light corn syrup

3/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon powdered gelatin

2 egg whites, room temperature

1 whole vanilla bean, split open and scraped or 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

cornstarch

Line an 8X8 baking pan with plastic wrap. Spray generously with cooking spray and sprinkle lightly with some cornstarch, shake the excess off. In a heavy-bottom saucepan, combine 1/4 cup of the water, corn syrup, and sugar, bring to a boil until “soft-ball” stage, or 235 degrees on a candy thermometer. Sprinkle the gelatin over 2 Tbs cold water and let dissolve. Remove the syrup from the heat, add the gelatin, and mix. Whip the whites until soft peaks form and pour the syrup into the whites. Add the vanilla seeds and continue whipping until stiff. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and let set 24 hours at room temperature. Unmold and cut squares with a hot knife.

To assemble: Lay your chocolate on the graham cracker and the marshmallow on top of the chocolate. Now stick it all under the broiler until the marshmallow is toasty ( like mine burnt) and the chocolate is soft. Finish with another graham cracker on top.

*poptarts don't count.

**I homemake everything, it's sort of a sickness.

One Day Late

I will sing a song to you

and you will shake the ground for me

and the birds and bees and old fruit trees

will spit out songs like gushing streams

then Jesus will come through the ground so dirty

with worms in his hair and a hand so sturdy

to call us his magic we call him worthy

Jesus came up through the ground so dirty.

"Jesus" by Page France.

Easter is one of those holidays that gets better as you get older. It seems to me there are so few obligations and expectations attached to Easter and so there is something wonderfully quiet about it. Whether you're religious or not, it signifies the real start of spring, marked by symbols of rebirth and new beginnings, longer days and pastel dresses, resolutions and sunny dispositions. Also, the story of Easter is so loaded with hope and belief how could you help but feel smitten. Oh, and did I mention there's candy? Lots and lots of candy...

Eat Cake.

I am a big fan of cakespy.com. If you know me at all, you know I love cupcakes and anything that has to do with them which these folks clearly understand. But sometimes they write about different sweet treats- like pie. I hope this brightens your day the way it has brightened mine.


http://www.cakespy.com/2009/02/pie-la-mode-campaign-to-make-pie-cooler.html