Sugar – Francois et Moi

Brandied Cherries

francoisetmoiblog@gmail.com — Thu, 26 Dec 2013 17:28:50 +0000

I think it’s safe to say I’ve fallen under the AMC Mad Men spell over the past 6 seasons. I find the 60’s agency antics, the sexual politics, the glamorous fashion, and the intricate story lines cleverly infused with historical events pure genius and incredibly fascinating. However, though I’ve been a Mad Men fan for quite some time, I’m now only beginning to understand the allure of Don Draper’s signature cocktail, The Old-Fashioned. Rye whiskey has never been my spirit of choice, but my interest was peaked a few weeks ago when we were out for our monthly dinner club. My friend, Matt, ordered an old-fashioned, and to my surprise I liked it! The warmth of the rye, the aroma of the orange peel and the sweetness of the muddled cherry made for a delicious combination. We got to chatting with our server and he mentioned how easy it is to make brandied cherries at home, so naturally I wanted to try to make them. To my surprise, you really can’t go wrong with these–if you can measure ingredients, you got this! A fun addition your old-fashioned cocktail, they’ll help channel the inner mad men and women in all of […]

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Frosted Cranberries

francoisetmoiblog@gmail.com — Mon, 11 Nov 2013 13:22:50 +0000

Happy Monday! This weekend, I came across a recipe for sugared cranberries in Sweet Paul Magazine. They looked so festive and fun; I thought I just might give them a go. Though these little bursts of sugary perfection, come together easily, they do require a little foresight, as they need to be started the night before serving. The night before, create a simple syrup by combining 2 cups of granulated sugar and 2 cups of tap water in a saucepan over low heat. Stir occasionally until the sugar dissolves. Place 2 cups of cranberries in a medium bowl, and pour the syrup over top, cover with cellophane and refrigerate overnight. The next morning, drain the simple syrup from the bowl of cranberries. Place roughly 1/2 cup coarse sugar or white sugar sprinkles (which is what we used) in another bowl and coat the cranberries with the sugar a handful at a time. Place the sugared cranberries on a baking sheet to set. Et voila! The coarse sugar and simple syrup will team up to create a crunchy sugar shell. Here I’ve perched the cranberries atop a white buttercream layered cake, but they’d also make a great addition to a cheese plate or simply served by […]

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