Blueberry & strawberry compote

What the heck is a compote anyway?? We've all seen it on menus and thought "Oh, it comes with a compote. What is that? Is it like compost? I don't think I want to eat compost" and then ordered the eggs, right?

Wikipedia says "Compote is a dessert...made of whole or pieces of fruit in sugar syrup. Whole fruits are immersed in water and with sugar and spices added to the dish, over gentle heat." The Kitchen Witch says its an awesome topper to pancakes, french toast and crepes!

Trying to decide on a dinner that everyone in the house will like and won't take much time or require a store run, is sometimes difficult. Pancakes are something that I know everyone, even the preschooler, will love. But what do you do about the syrup when you're a no high fructose corn syrup type of household?

Sure, there's pure maple syrup, but man, that stuff is expensive! And frankly, the stuff that my local grocery stocks isn't that great, either. Its way too sweet and doesn't have much maple flavor. That's when I remembered that I had berries galore in the fridge. Thank you BOGO sales! A blueberry and strawberry fruit compote with pancakes, just what the Witch ordered!

This pancake topper is super simple to make - I'm not just saying that, it really is! It cooks in the same amount of time that my sausage and pancakes cooked in, which is fantastic. And since I'm standing at the stove already, really there's no additional effort put forth other than dumping some ingredients into a pan & stirring every now & then! Pure Kitchen Witchcraft :-)

Blueberry and Strawberry fruit compote
serves 3-4
1 pint blueberries
1/2 lb strawberries
1/4 c sugar
1 t lemon juice
zest from lemon (optional)
1/4 c water

Dump everything into a heavy bottomed pan. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium high and boil for 15 minutes, stirring every few minutes and scraping down the sides of the pan.

Compote is done when bubbles get large (this means the sugars are concentrating) and the syrup is nice & thick. It will thicken additionally as it cools.

Serve over pancakes, French toast or anything that needs a yummy berry touch. Cheesecake would be incredible!


As you can see she liked the compote, too

Nutrition Facts
3 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 162.3
Total Fat 0.3 g
Saturated Fat 0.0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.0 g
Cholesterol 0.0 mg
Sodium 8.8 mg
Potassium 245.8 mg
Total Carbohydrate 40.9 g
Dietary Fiber 5.4 g
Sugars 30.5 g
Protein 1.4 g

Garlicy sauteed 'shrooms

My husband and sister LOVE mushrooms. Me, not so much. But being a good and kind Kitchen Witch I make them garlicky sauteed mushrooms from time to time. Even a mushroom hater like myself has to admit that these morsels smell heavenly when cooking.

For those of you who are wondering why the Kitchen Witch is a hater to the 'shrooms, well the reason is this: I can't get behind their spongy texture. And while their flavor isn't my favorite on their own, I will include mushrooms in some dishes for a background flavor. I just share my 'shrooms with those around me who dig them.

Sissy and Spouse tell me that the garlic infused oil/butter is the bomb. Its delicate and gives a garlicky perfume to the dish, not as much of an IN YOUR FACE punch that garlic can sometimes give. They also agree that the mild garlic enhances the 'shrooms 'mushroomieness' nicely and lets the mushroom be the star of the dish.

I use a combo of EVOO and butter, the EVOO has a higher smoke point than the butter, so the butter has less chance of burning. I keep the butter in for 2 reasons: flavor and browning assistance. The milk solids in the butter really help the 'shrooms develop a nice brown color. Just make sure your 'shrooms are very dry before putting into the hot fat, as they hold a lot of water and make browning difficult. The browned garlic can be reused on garlic toast, in a bruschetta or even as a topping on your pizza if you like.

Garlic sauteed 'shrooms

1/2 lb cremini mushrooms (baby portabellas)
1.5 T EVOO
1 T butter
1 garlic clove, crushed but still whole
1/4 t Kosher salt




Heat the oil, butter and garlic in a small sautee pan. Allow the garlic to get golden and remove.


Add cleaned mushrooms to the hot oil. Allow to sautee about 8-10 min on 1st side, until the are nice & browned. Flip & continue cooking until 2nd side is browned.

Sprinkle cooked mushrooms with Kosher salt, about 2 pinches (1/8 to 1/4 t).

Notice the way the salt flakes cling to the mushrooms? This assures that you'll get a nice salty flavor in every bite!

Nutrition Facts
2 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 155.4
Total Fat 16.1 g
Saturated Fat 5.0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 9.1 g
Cholesterol 15.5 mg
Sodium 3.2 mg
Potassium 164.6 mg
Total Carbohydrate 2.6 g
Dietary Fiber 0.6 g
Sugars 0.9 g
Protein 1.7 g

Scalloped corn casserole

A friend and blog follower asked me to come up with a scalloped corn recipe for her. Its a favorite in their household, and something that she hadn't ever made at home. Not one to turn a challenge down, I of course, said yes and set my mind immediately to the dish. If any of you ever have any requests please let me know, leave me a comment, send me an email or make a facebook request - any method is fine & I promise I'll get back to you! The Kitchen Witch aims to please!

Knowing what she was looking to get out of the dish was my first question. Was she looking for something creamy and pudding like, maybe cheesy or crunchy on top? Or was her vision of scalloped corn something totally different?

Turns out we were on the same page, something sweet, creamy, cheesy and corn filled. I had a bag of Fresh Gourmet Crispy Onions in the cabinet and boy, they sure did add a great flavor and nice crispy crunch to the top. A layer of toasted melty cheddar adds the final touch to this dish. The inside is soft, corn flavored and cheesy all at once. Sherry, I hope this is what you had in mind we all enjoyed it throughly here!

Scalloped Corn Casserole
Serves 4 (side dish)
1 T butter
2 T yellow corn meal
1 T AP flour
1 bag frozen yellow corn
1 c milk
1 egg, beaten
4 oz shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 t Kosher salt
few grinds of pepper
OPTIONAL 4 T crispy onions (Fresh Gourmet or Frenches fried onions are good)

In a sauce pan melt butter. Whisk in flour to make a roux. Cook about 3 min or until it smells nutty and just starts to take on a golden color. Slowly whisk in the milk. Once mixture thickens remove from heat.

Add 2 oz cheese, stir well to melt evenly into the sauce. Add corn meal & salt & pepper and whisk well.

Next add corn and the beaten egg stirring very well to incorporate.

Pour mixture into a small casserole dish sprayed with non stick spray. I used a 2 qt enameled cast iron dutch oven which I cooked the cheese sauce in also, 1 pot makes me happy!


Wipe sides of casserole pan off, any batter on the sides will burn otherwise. Top corn mixture with onions and cheese. Bake uncovered for 45 min or until the casserole puffs up, the cheese is melted & starts to brown. Let sit at least 5 min before serving.



Nutrition Facts
4 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 283.5
Total Fat 15.4 g
Saturated Fat 9.0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.9 g
Monounsaturated Fat 4.5 g
Cholesterol 95.5 mg
Sodium 454.1 mg
Potassium 297.1 mg
Total Carbohydrate 25.7 g
Dietary Fiber 2.5 g
Sugars 6.3 g
Protein 13.8 g

Cheesy spinach and sundried tomato lasagna

Whats for dinner? That seems to be the question I have daily. Not one to make the same thing over & over again I needed to create something new & different for dinner. Today I decided to focus in on a new side dish and go with a favorite main course, Herbed Chicken in wine sauce.

I had my mind set on spanakopita but didn't have what I needed to make it - out of filo. Who wants spanakopita with out filo? Not me! However when I discovered a box of Barilla no boil lasagna sheets I got a burst of Kitchen Witchcraft. I could make a pasta type version of spanakopita, with delectable sun dried tomatoes showing off their tart goodness. Hmm... this has potential.

Ok. We've got sun dried tomatoes, spinach, feta cheese and pasta sheets. Sauce is the next thing to examine. I thought a lower fat version of Alfredo sauce would help round out the flavors. Garlic is always on hand so that was an easy addition. I used milk rather than cream to save on fat and calories but still provide the milky sweetness that Alfredo is famous for. 2 tablespoons of Parmesan and 1 clove of garlic turn plain milk into an Alfredo that makes both your mouth and scale happy.

Cheesy Spinach and sundried tomato lasagna
serves 4 as a side dish
10 oz spinich, defrosted & squeezed dry
3 T feta cheese
2 T parmesean cheese
2 oz shredded mozzerella cheese
1 c milk
2 cloves garlic, minced
kosher salt & pepper (1/2 t salt, 1/8t pepper)
2 grates nutmeg
1.5 oz sundried tomatoes diced
3 sheets Barillia no boil lasagna pasta sheets

Preheat oven to 375*
Thaw spinach. Squeeze dry with a towel. Add salt, pepper & nutmeg. Stir to combine. Add the mozzarella cheese and 1 clove of garlic minced. Stir well to incorporate well.



Mix milk, Parmesan cheese and remaining garlic (minced) in a bowl.


In a small rectangular pan (I modified a bread pan, details follow) line with a strip of aluminium foil to make a sling, will cover bottom and up sides partially. Spray with non stick spray. Place 1 sheet of pasta on bottom, layer with 1/3 of the spinach/cheese mixture. Top with 1/3 of the diced sundried tomatoes. Top with 1 T feta cheese.

Repeat layers 2 more times


Make a small ball of foil. With the side of the foil sling press lasagna against side of pan, compacting as you go. Place foil ball between side of bread pan and side of lasagna, this will help keep it place while baking. Press down firmly with palms of hands to set layers. Pour milk mixture over top, tip pan around so milk enters every layer.

Cover with foil and bake at 375* for 20 min. Remove foil, bake an additional 10 minutes.

Let cool 5 min in pan before removing. Remove sling from pan, lasagna will come with it. Slide the foil sling off the lasagna and slice into 4 servings.



Nutrition Facts
4 Servings
Amount Per Serving
Calories 173.9
Total Fat 6.7 g
Saturated Fat 3.6 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.2 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.4 g
Cholesterol 23.9 mg
Sodium 566.6 mg
Potassium 187.7 mg
Total Carbohydrate 17.4 g
Dietary Fiber 2.2 g
Sugars 3.6 g
Protein 11.6 g

Chili

Everyone's got their own version of chili. Some like a tomato based chili with beans. Others shudder to even consider a bean in their chili, keeping it traditional "Texas Red" with beef cubes and dried chili peppers. And there are those out there like to put it on spaghetti and top it with cheese and onions. The Kitchen Witch's version is a tomato/beef/bean chili that is only 250 calories a serving, what's not to love there?

I like chili as an easy go to meal when I'm not feeling very inspired to cook. It involves opening a lot of cans, something that even a tired Kitchen Witch can pull off. The tomatoes with jalapenos are available at most grocery stores, look for RoTel brand tomatoes, they help give a nice spicy kick to the chili with minimal effort. The grocery store was kind enough to have fire roasted tomatoes available - and at the same price as the plain ones! When coupled with the spicy smoky chipolte in adobo, the fire roasted tomatoes really sing.

Around here we like to top our chili with sour cream and shredded cheddar. A nice crunchy tortilla chip is the only other thing you need, other than a spoon of course!

Chili serves 8
1 lb lean ground beef
1 green pepper 1/2 in dice
1 medium yellow onion diced
3 cloves garlic, minced fine
2 cans fire roasted tomatoes
1 can tomato with jalapeños
2 cans kidney beans, drained & rinsed (I used 1 dark & 1 light)
1 chipolte in adobo sauce, fine mince
1 1/2 T chili powder
1/2 t paperkia
1 t oregano
1 1/2 t kosher salt
1/2 t pepper
1/8 t cayenne pepper

Brown beef. Drain fat. Put beef back into the pot, add onions, garlic & bell peppers. Cook about 5 min or until onions start to soften.
Add spices, stir well to coat meat and veggies in spices. Add tomatoes (all of them) and the beans. Stir to mix. Allow to simmer for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adjust salt if needed.

Top with sour cream and shredded cheddar cheese if desired.

Nutrition Facts
8 Servings (10 oz each)

Amount Per Serving
Calories 249.3
Total Fat 12.4 g
Saturated Fat 4.8 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.8 g
Monounsaturated Fat 5.2 g
Cholesterol 42.5 mg
Sodium 841.1 mg
Potassium 531.3 mg
Total Carbohydrate 19.3 g
Dietary Fiber 6.9 g
Sugars 3.0 g
Protein 15.2 g

Chocolate pudding

Chocolate pudding. Its a comfort dessert classic that I predict will be having a major resurgence in popularity very very soon. So if you want to be in with the in crowd check out this chocolate pudding recipe. Your foodie friends will be envious of your uber cool retro 'slow food' dessert.

The recipe I've listed is pretty basic. Don't let its simplicity deceive you, it has a very complex deep flavor, something that you won't be getting out of a box. You also won't be getting any artificial color, flavors, no preservatives, additives, HFCS or PHO's.

What you WILL get is this; 10 generous half cup servings that are only 128 calories a serving!! When you compare that to the '100 calorie packs' that are all the rage now a days you'll be happy with what you see, and taste. Not only are you DOUBLING the serving size (100 cal packs are 1/4 c each) but they taste about a million times better!

Chocolate Pudding
makes 10 half (1/2) cup servings

4 c 2% milk
3/4 c sugar
1/2 c cocoa powder
1/4 c corn starch
pinch salt
1 t vanilla
1 T butter

Sift sugar, cocoa powder and corn starch together. This will break up any lumps ensuring a smooth pudding.

Add milk and whisk well. The cocoa powder will cause the mixture to be very foamy at first. Cook over medium high heat. As the mixture heats the bubbles will dissipate.

Whisk well, this will help the pudding stay smooth and lump free. Pay attention to the bottom of the pan, using your whisk on the bottom will help avoid scorch spots. Bring to a boil, boil for 1 minute.

Remove from heat, whisk in butter and vanilla. Pour hot pudding into mugs and allow to cool. If you want to avoid the 'skin' on the top of the pudding cover with plastic wrap directly on top of hot liquid immediatly after pouring. If you're like the Kitchen Witch and dig the pudding skin then leave the plastic wrap on the roll and enjoy.


Nutrition Facts - 10 Servings (1/2 cup ea)
Amount Per Serving
Calories 128.1
Total Fat 3.7 g
Saturated Fat 2.3 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.1 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.1 g
Cholesterol 10.9 mg
Sodium 56.6 mg
Potassium 66.8 mg
Total Carbohydrate 22.0 g
Dietary Fiber 1.4 g
Sugars 20.1 g
Protein 4.1 g

Shrimp scampi with broccoli and tortellini

Garlic, white wine and butter, classic scampi ingredients. What makes this so different is the calories, or lack there of! Imagine eating a nice full bowl of pasta, tender veggies and big plump shrimp in a decadent sauce for LESS than 350 calories! The prep on this is quick - almost as fast a microwaveable meal - you'll be eating in 20 minutes or less!!

Other flavorful, low calorie additions could include sun dried tomatoes, caramelized onions, wilted spinich, olives, really anything you like! And if shrimp isn't your thing feel free to use chicken or pork.

I used pre-cooked shrimp because that's what was on sale at the store this week. I had reservations about heating the cooked shrimp in the wine garlic sauce because I didn't want them to get too tough, a very common problem with shrimp. I am happy to say that the quick boil was enough to thaw & reheat the shrimp, while adding a nice seafood flavor to the sauce, and the shrimp were still nice & tender. If you have raw shrimp cook in the wine sauce about 1 min longer than directed or until shrimp turn pink & curl.

The amounts shown below are for 1 lunch size portion. If I were making this for dinner I'd double it for myself & the husband and pair it with a salad to round out the meal.

Shrimp scampi with broccoli and tortellini
makes 1 serving
7 large (21-30) shrimp, precooked is fine
1/4 c Barilla 3 cheese tortellini
1/2 head broccoli, cut into very small florettes
1 clove garlic minced
1 dash salt
1 t butter
1/4 c white wine
1 t crispy onion toppers, optional (I found these in the crouton area of my local store. You could use french fried onions if you can't find the Fresh Gourmet Crispy Onions)

To a pot of boiling water add the tortellini. Set timer for 10-11 minutes. 5 min after adding pasta add broccoli. At 10 minutes test pasta for tenderness. Drain pasta & broccoli. Put into a bowl & cover to keep warm.

In the same pot add the butter, frozen shrimp, garlic, salt & wine. Bring to a boil, simmer until shrimp are heated thru, about 1-2 minutes max. Remove shrimp, arrange on top of pasta.

Crank the heat up to HI and reduce the wine by half. Pour reduced sauce over top of shrimp and serve.



Andrea the Kitchen Witch will now be posting nutritional information for recipes. I hope this is a feature that will help you plan healthy nutritious meals for your family! Its one thing to look good, its another to taste good & its the best of all when it does both of those AND is good for you! Healthy can be tasty, with a little Kitchen Witchcraft!
Nutrition Facts
1 Serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories 329.2
Total Fat 11.2 g
~~Saturated Fat 6.7 g
~~Polyunsaturated Fat 0.5 g
~~Monounsaturated Fat 1.8 g
Cholesterol 114.5 mg
Sodium 828.3 mg
Potassium 221.1 mg
Total Carbohydrate 26.1 g
~~Dietary Fiber 3.4 g
~~Sugars 1.7 g
Protein 14.2 g

Apple upsidedown gingerbread with cinnamon whipped cream

Apples are my favorite fruit, hands down. Gingerbread is high on my list of favorites as well. Thats why when I heard about apple gingerbread upside down cake I knew it would be a hit. I mean whats not to love, apples, spicy gingerbread, caramel topping, sounds like a serious case of Kitchen Witchcraft to me!

The first time I made this gingerbread upside down cake I used McIntosh apples. While they did have good flavor the apples tendency to become overly soft when cooked was an issue. The 2nd time around I used Pink Ladies. Wow, what an improvement! The apple flavor is still very pronounced but the apples have a tarter edge than the McIntosh did, and a firmer flesh which stood up to the gingerbread, as well as the caramel topping, a lot better.

I decided to use my old standby cast iron skillet to bake this gingerbread cake in. What can I say, I love my cast iron!! Old fashioned pineapple upside down cake is made in an iron skillet, why not my apple upside down gingerbread? Here's how the cast iron helps make a superior upside down cake, or gingerbread:

~The caramel topping cooks in the same pan as the cake bakes in, less pans to clean!
~Cast iron holds heat extremely well. This means that the pan is pretty darn hot when you pour your batter into it, resulting in a very even bake and a delectable crusty edge
~Because the caramel is cooked and never removed from the pan it develops a deep caramel flavor, something that was lost in the original. (at least at my high altitude it was)

The cinnamon whipped cream is a Kitchen Witch exclusive. The slightly sweetened spicy cream is the crowning touch to an already delicious cake.

Apple upside down gingerbread
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen, serves 12
Topping
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
Pinch of salt
4 apples (about 1 3/4 pounds), peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch wedges (I used Pink Ladies)

Batter
1/2 cup (1 stick or 4 ounces) butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/3 cup dark molasses
1/3 cup honey
1 cup milk
1 T lemon juice
2 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 t fresh ground nutmeg

Cinnamon Whipped cream
1 c heavy whipping cream
1/2 t vanilla
3 shakes cinnamon or 1/8 t approx
1 T powdered sugar

Heat a cast iron skillet over med heat. Add the topping ingredients to the pan, whisk well. It will take a bit of cooking but the mixture will go from grainy to smooth caramel, just keep working it! Cook the caramel for 5 minutes over med heat, stirring often.



Arrange apple slices on top of the hot caramel, using a spiral pattern. Remember this will be your presentation side! You will probally have about 1 apples worth of slices that won't fit into your pretty design. Dice them up & sprinkle over the top of the arranged apples.

In the work bowl of a mixer whip butter until fluffy. Add sugar, whip well. Add honey, molasses and egg, mixing well until smooth. Add the milk & lemon juice, mix well. The batter will be very curdled looking, this is normal.


Sift flour, spices, salt & soda together. Add dry ingredients to the wet in 3 installments, scraping down the sides after each installment. Batter will begin to smooth out after 2nd addition.

Pour batter over apple slices using care not to disturb the apples. Smooth batter on top and bake at 335* for 45-60 minutes. Start checking at 45 min, remove when a toothpick inserted into middle comes out clean. Allow to cool for 15 min before inverting.



USE CAUTION when inverting, the cast iron will be HOT still. Invert cake onto a large plate.


To make the cinnamon whipped cream add all ingredients into a work bowl and whip cream with a mixer. You will want stiff peaks, about 5 min of whipping.

Top cake with dollops of whipped cream. Best when served warm. Delicious with coffee.

Caramel

As the sweet, brown, buttery smells of cooking caramel fill the Kitchen Witch headquarters we know the holiday baking season is upon us.

Here in Colorado its pretty difficult to make candies and other boiled sugar confections because of our altitude. For you low landers, that's anyone under 3,000 ft above sea level, you probaly don't have any clue what I'm talking about. Let me tell you. Water boils at 212* at sea level. Here, at 6,000+ ft ABOVE sea level water boils around 190*. Whats the problem, Kitchen Witch, your water boils at a lower temp, things should cook faster, right? Well, no, not so much. What happens here is that the water in say caramel boils out too soon and the sugars start to recrystalize before we want them to, resulting in caramel that is crunchy and hard, not soft & chewy. Or cookies that are flat as pancakes, not soft & chewy and puffy. Altitude, its a bitch!

The caramel recipe I'm about to share with you is more of a 'cheaters caramel' compared to a traditional caramel preparation (sugar, butter and cream). I realize that true candy makers will probally shudder at the corn syrup addition to the caramel but its what allows this caramel to work so well at our altitude.
For those who are wondering, the corn syrup alters the crystaline structure of the dissolved sugar, and won't allow it to recrystalize and become hard or crunchy. The corn syrup is the key to a chewy caramel at the Kitchen Witches high altitude.
If you are in a lower altitude & would like to try a more traditional approach please do and let me know how it goes! For those of us, lowlanders and highlanders alike, who would love homemade caramels thats pretty fool-proof, give this one a shot! It has not let me down yet!

Chewy caramels
from the Better Homes & Gardens 'Complete step by step cookbook'
2 sticks unsalted butter
2 1/4 c brown sugar
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup light corn syrup
1/4 t salt
1 t vanilla

Melt butter in a heavy bottom sauce pan. Add brown sugar and salt, stir well until it incorporates.


Add corn syrup and stir very well. *TIP spray the measuring cup with non stick spray before measuring the corn syrup, it'll pour right out and not stick to your cup that way*

Once mixture starts to boil add the sweetened condensed milk.

Notice how the caramel darkens as it gets closer to the target temperature.


Boil sugar mixture over med heat until it comes to the hard ball stage - that was 233* here at my altitude, please use the altitude conversion chart to determine what temp you should be aiming for based on your location.

Pour caramel into a buttered 8x8 pan, dust with kosher salt (salted caramel is amazing, try it!) and allow to cool completely before cutting & wrapping.

OR you can pour hot caramel onto pecan clusters to make 'turtles'. Top each cluster with a few chocolate chips. The residual heat in the caramel will melt the chips, all you have to do is come back & spread the melted chocolate over the caramel.

Candy stages, temp (at sea level) and cold water test results
Thread (230*-234*) -- syrup dropped from spoon spins 2 in thread
Soft Ball (234*-240*) -- syrup can be shaped into a ball that flattens when removed from water.
firm ball (244*- 248*) -- syrup can be shaped into a firm ball that does not flatten when removed from water
hard ball (250*- 266*) -- syrup forms a hard ball that is pliable
soft crack (270*-290*) -- syrup separates into threads that are not brittle
hard crack (300*-310*) -- syrup separates into hard, brittle threads

To do the cold water test, which is most accurate for high altitudes, get a small bowl of water, add 4-6 ice cubes, once water is very cold remove ice & drop small amounts of syrup into the water. I HIGHLY recommend doing this test through out the cooking process, to familiarize yourself with what the syrup looks like at the different stages.

ALTITUDE ADJUSTMENT: Decrease temperature about 2* for every 1,000 ft above sea level

Happy Winter Solstice everyone! I wish you all a very happy holiday season filled with yummy treats, good friends, family and fun! May your kitchen be filled with delicious treats to sustain you through the winter season. By the power of three by three I wish you all Blessed Be!
With much love,
Andrea the Kitchen Witch

Cavity Finders aka Magic Bars

There is one thing that I make annually that really says CHRISTMAS to us and that's Cavity Finders. They also go by Hello Dolly bars, magic bars or 5 layer bars. But around here they are known as Cavity finders. The name should be pretty self explanatory but for those of you who don't get it let me explain. These bars are sweet, chewy, chocolaty goodness and if you have even the slightest dental imperfection you will know all about it after eating one of these bars. Is it a coincidence that we have our semi annual dentist cleaning appointment in January? I think not.

This recipe is NOT a Kitchen Witch creation. It is, however, simplicity and deliciousness in a 13x9 pan. My mom used to make these when I was a little girl. The recipe has been around forever - and regardless of what you call them, Cavity finders are Christmas baking at its finest, at least in this Kitchen Witches' eyes, and taste buds.

Cavity Finders
adapted from EAGLE brand Magic bars Recipe

1 stick unsalted butter
1 sleeve graham crackers, pulverized
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 bag chocolate chips
1/2 bag coconut flakes
1 c chopped nuts, optional



Preheat oven to 350*.

In a 13x9 pan place stick of butter and put into hot oven to melt butter.


Crush graham crackers. I use my food processor set up with a grating blade. This produces even crumbs and is turbo fast. If you don't have a food processor put the whole crackers in a large zip top bag and smash away. This method is a great way to relieve holiday stress!

Pour cracker crumbs evenly over melted butter. Tamp down with the flat end of a glass to create an even crust.


Top the crust with sweetened condensed milk.


Top the milk layer with the chocolate chips.


Top the chocolate chips with the coconut flakes.



Top coconut flakes with chopped pecans. Press firmly into pan with palm of hand. This creates a nice tight cookie and makes slicing easier.



Bake for 25 min or until sides are golden brown and the milk is bubbling up in the center. Allow to cool for a full 24 hours before cutting. Yes, I'm serious. The 24 hr rest gives the chocolate time to solidify and the ingredients to meld into a cohesive bar. Your patience will be rewarded!