Saturday, May 26, 2012

Pin It, Do It: Cheddar Pecan Crisps

I've been wanting to join the Weekend Cooking fun, hosted by Beth Fish Reads, for a while now, but never had anything that fit the theme. Thanks to this edition of the Pin It, Do It Challenge, I do! Go check out this week's other Weekend Cooking participants here.

So.

I had high hopes of writing about a delicious cocktail, named after serious drinker Ernest Hemingway. I figured if he drank a bunch of them, they had to be pretty decent. Unfortunately, the Hemingway Daiquiri calls for maraschino liquor, which is proving nearly impossible to find. My local liquor store said they'd order some, but when I called back to see if it had come in, they told me they were unable to find any. I tried ordering it online, but I can't find anyone that will ship it to me.

When I find the elusive ingredient - and I WILL - I'll be sure to let you know. I hope they're good, because otherwise I'll be using the stuff to make homemade maraschino cherries, which actually do look pretty lovely.

Instead, I've made Cheddar-Pecan Crisps (pin here). Last year, I read A Tiger in the Kitchen by Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan. I was impressed by her willingness to put in the work and learn how to cook some of her favorite foods. Ever since, I've been wanting to try some of her recipes. These crisps aren't her creation, but she wrote about them on her blog, which is still actively chronicling her journey with food.

Crisp batter, photo by me.
As I'm writing this, the first batch of crisps is bubbling in the oven. They smell like HEAVEN.

The details of the recipe are a bit
lacking - it looks like maybe they were cut off. I've put them in a 350 degree oven and set the timer at 20 minutes. That seems to be working.

The batter is very thick - I ended up mixing it with my hands, as my poor little electric mixer just wasn't cutting it. Ahh, to dream of a kitchen with counters and storage and a Kitchen Aid stand mixer. Someday.

My crisps didn't come out exactly like the picture. Here's the first batch, fresh out of the oven:
Crisps, again, photo by me.
 I am curious to so if I could track down the complete recipe somewhere. Maybe I was missing a step, or not doing something completely right. Also, they aren't nearly as cheesy as I expected, especially based on how they smelled when they were baking. They taste like savory tea biscuits. Good, but nothing I'd probably make again.

Lu-Lien Tan does have other recipes I want to try. Her family recipe pineapple tarts sound amazing, and served as the inspiration for her cooking project. The recipe makes A TON of tarts, though, so maybe I should wait until I've got the above-mentioned counter space :-)

If you could make a recipe based on a literary inspiration, what would it be? Or maybe you have already - tell me about it!

12 comments:

caite said...

wow, we have maraschino liquor at my local liquor store..in fact, I think my brother has a bottle.

MJ said...

@caite: Do you know what brand it is, by any chance? Maybe that will make it easier to find some.

What does your brother use it for?

Beth F said...

Too bad the crisps weren't quite what you thought. The drink sounds so good. I wonder if I can get maraschino liquor in Pennsylvania.

Uniflame said...

So fun that you are doing the pin it and do it challenge too :) Too bad it is almost over.

MJ said...

@Beth F: I know - the drink sounds really good! If you make them, I'd love to know how they turn out.

@Uniflame: Well, we can certainly continue pinning and doing once it's done!

Unknown said...

Welcome to weekend cooking! It's too bad the crisps didn't turn out as expected, but now I really want cheese sticks (and I bet you could add pecans to the recipe).

(Diane) bookchickdi said...

We're glad to have you at Weekend Cooking! Sorry that the crisps didn't turn out the way you wanted.

MJ said...

@catlin: Pecans in cheese sticks sounds delicious! Go for it!

@Diane: Thanks! I'm sure I'll participate in weekend cooking again.

Hanna said...

I have some serious cheese craving now that I've read about those crisps! I love the idea of literary inspirations, there are so many books that describe cooking in detail. Personally I really like Bulbul Sharma's The Anger of Aubergines.

Libby said...

Wandering over pretty late from Weekend Cooking - but it IS a three day weekend - LOL!

I actually did a different Hemingway Cocktail from the same book - Islands in the Stream - for Weekend Cooking a month or two ago! It was the hero - Tom Hudson's - gin, lime, and coconut drink!

http://libbysbookblog.blogspot.com/2012/05/weekend-cooking-in-venice.html

Carole said...

I'm not brave enough to bake. Well done.

Peggy Ann said...

These do sound so good! Don't you hate it when the recipe doesn't quite work right for you? I've had that happen several times. I will give these a try. Thanks!