i feel like it's been a whole lifetime since i have blogged last! so much has happened! i finished the bar exam (for the second time). i'm still waiting for results, but i'm feeling pretty good about this go round. AND i turned 27! AND on my 27th birthday, my sister, sara, went into labor with her second child, who was born the day after my birthday (barely missed sharing a birthday!). we actually had planned a baby shower the saturday after he was born, but the little stinker threw a kink in our plans by coming two and a half weeks early. so, we had to postpone the baby shower, but it will be this saturday. i like to think that abel just couldn't stand the thought of us partying without him, so he had to make sure to be a guest at his own shower. :)
my sister is a very picky eater, so we had fun making a shower menu that is all about sara. i can't wait to surprise her with everything this weekend! but one thing that is no longer a surprise are these mints that i made for the shower. i made them a couple of days early, because about two days after they are made is when, i think, they have the best flavor. i actually got this recipe from my sister-in-law, carrie. she made these and gave them as little gifts at christmas, and i was addicted! if you want a favor for a party, these would be super cute in little baggies or in cupcake liners. these are also great on a platter or in a bowl. you can use food coloring to make them any colors you wish, but since i am preparing to serve these at a baby shower for a boy, these are blue and white. this recipe makes about 10 dozen mints. (that's 120!) the biggest challenge is not to eat these while they sit and set after you make them. but since it makes so many, eating a few won't hurt too badly. ;-)
disclaimer: do NOT use a standmixer for this recipe. just use a big bowl and your hands. putting this much powdered sugar in a standmixer is a bad, bad, bad idea!
ingredients:
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into slices
2 pounds powdered sugar
5 tablespoons cold water
1/4 teaspoon salt
EITHER: 1/2 teaspoon peppermint oil OR 1 teaspoon peppermint extract
food coloring in a color or colors of your choice
directions:
1. put sugar in a LARGE bowl (and i mean LARGE...)
2. cut butter into sugar with fingers. (this is when it starts getting messy...)
3. add salt, oil (or extract), and a tablespoon of water at a time. you can toss ingredients with a fork, but i found it easier just to use my hands to combine ingredients and combine then. (the mixture will be a little crumbly, but it will smooth out when you start kneading.)
4. form mixture into 3 or 4 balls. do this by grabbing a handful of the mixture at a time and start kneading it, stretching it, smashing it like a pancake... you'll understand when the mixture gets in your hands. you just need to stretch it out and knead it until it's smooth. if the mixture appears to crumbly, you can add water, a bit at a time, to make it easier to knead. (be sure to add it a little at a time, because if you get it too watery, you'll have a major mess and waste on your hands. literally.) once you start kneading, you will see the dough balls begin to have a smooth and satiny finish. it will take a couple minutes for each ball to get it to the desired texture. there's no real reason for precisely 3-4 balls, but that seems to be enough for a good size handful that is easy to knead. (there's no picture of this, because it got really messy at this point, but look at step 5's picture to get an idea of what the balls of dough will look like.)
5. once all the dough has been kneaded, you can put all the dough together. THEN separate the dough into as many balls as you have colors you want to try. example. if you want to make 2 colors, separate into 2 balls. if you want to make 3 colors, separate into 3. etc. i made blue and white, so i had two balls of dough.
6. choose which color you want to work with first. take the other balls and cover them with plastic wrap to keep them from drying out while you work with the other dough balls.
7. color the dough! add a decent amount of food color and keep kneading until the color is thoroughly and evenly distributed throughout. i got a little festive with this. (my nephew's name is "Abel", so i had fun with my color!)
8. pinch off the dough, about a quarter sized pinch at a time, and roll the dough between your hands like you're making a snake out of play dough. it feels about the same. you want the snake-like tubes to be about a half inch in diameter. when you've gotten them to the desired thickness, lay them out on a cookie sheet or cutting board, any surface you can cut on with a butter knife.
9. once all your "snakes" are on your cutting surface, cut them into about 1/2 inch slices... pics below show the process in both white and blue.
10. let them sit on the cutting surface for about 2-3 hours to dry.
these are still on my kitchen counter drying, but i may or may not have taste tested a few. hey! i'm my own quality control department!
once these finish drying, i will put them in some airtight containers (rubbermaid, pyrex, anchor, etc.) and store them in the fridge until it's time for the party! then i'll mix them together in a pretty bowl with a serving spoon and let our family and friends enjoy! you can easily buy buttermints at a store, but i promise you that these are so much better and worth the effort!
for those of you that are coming to the party on saturday, let me know how you like them! i can't wait to share them!
fin.
