Thursday, October 31, 2013

October Bakin' Friends


Our secret ingredient for October was CANDY CORN!  I made 2 different recipes I had never made before (my first mistake) and needless to say, they didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped.  So I went with a tried and true recipe for the person I was to send my candy corn treat to (Hi Zainab!).  But Tami Nelson, the Bakin' Friend who had my name, had no trouble at all with that tri-colored, super sugary confection.  She made Rice Krispy Treats, creating layers of candy corn-colored goodness then cutting them into wedges.  I love Rice Krispy Treats and these are a very yummy version!  And they're ALL GONE!!!



But wait . . . there's more!  She also sent me Candy Corn Nanaimo Bars!  Never had a Nanaimo Bar?  Then you best hustle up to British Columbia and visit the city of Nanaimo on Vancouver Island for which these bars are named.  I was there about 20 years ago and had one (probably several, I can't remember) and loved them.  But I haven't had one since, so these were a real sweet surprise for me!




She got the recipe from Serious Eats (a favorite site of mine) and they describe these bars "as possibly Canada's crowning culinary achievement: a decadent no-bake bar composed of a dense chocolate and coconut base topped with a rich, custardy buttercream and then crowned with a firm chocolate topping.  But in this version, the classic puts on a Halloween costume, swapping the top chocolate layer for a layer of sweet and festive melted candy corn.  The result is an unrelentingly sweet and unabashedly rich treat, certain to satisfy even the sweetest of teeth.  Will they make you fat? Probably, but you can always blame Canada."  
If you'd like the recipe, here's the link: http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2009/10/cakespy-candy-corn-nanaimo-bars-halloween-baking.html?ref=search

Check out those layers:



And she topped them with traditional orange and black sprinkles.  They are so delicious!  Since this is the season of sweets, sweets and more sweets, I stashed several bars in the freezer to save as a special treat.  She also included this card that says it all - how sweet it is!




Tami, thank you so much for the double dose of candy corn goodies!  I hope your Halloween is full of sweet treats too!


Bakin' Friends is now in it's second year.  If you would like to join our group, please go to http://www.stephsbitebybite.com/bakin-friends for more information.  Making new friends has never been sweeter!