Cinnamon Candied Almonds

One of the very first things I ever saved on Pinterest was a recipe for cinnamon candied almonds. They were easy to make and tasted awesome, and I've made the recipe at Christmas for several years now. However, much to my dismay, when I went to follow the link this year, the website was no longer available. This will not do! So, I have cobbled together the recipe partly from other similar recipes and partly from memory.

Place in a large frying pan:

3 cups almonds
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg (optional)
1/4 tsp ground cloves (optional)

Stir everything together until the nuts are coated in the sugar mixture. Cook on high. Once the sugar mixture starts to simmer, you'll want to stir continuously to ensure both even coverage of the nuts and prevent sticking. Keep stirring, basically until all the water has boiled off. You'll be able to tell when they're done; they go from being sticky to being dry and crystallized. Remove them from the pan, and let them cool for a few minutes before eating.

They're delicious, I promise!

Best Wishes

Bath Salt Recipe

Hello again!
For Christmas, I like to make as many gifts as I can. My sister-in-law requested bath salts this year, and I happen to have an excellent method for making them, so I thought I'd share. Bits and pieces come from books or Pinterest, and I'll try to reference them where I can.

The first step is to make your salt base. The original recipe I found was in Scott Cunningham's "Complete Book of Incense, Oils, and Brews", though I left out the table salt. To this base can be added nearly any essential oils that you like, or a combination of a few. (It is important to know your oils, as some can cause skin irritation or photo-toxicity, but in this small amount, diluted in a whole bathtub of water, I don't think it would cause too many problems.)

So, after you've made your base, you want to add your liquid parts. I like to add a drop or two of food coloring, for two reasons: one, it makes the finished product look prettier, and two, it helps you know when all your liquid is evenly mixed in. When you're adding such tiny amounts, it takes a lot of stirring to get everything evenly mixed, and the food dye is a good indicator of when it's done. Adding this tiny amount of food dye should not stain the tub, but don't use too much, or in a tub with a damaged finish.

After everything is mixed, your going to bake the salt. Yes, bake it. At a very low temperature, for about 15 minutes. This will help keep the oils from separating from the salts and settling at the bottom of the jar. Don't ask me how it works, but it seems to.

So, here is the recipe:

1. Make the base
 - 3 parts epsom salt
 - 2 parts baking soda
 (where a part is any size container you choose. I like to do cups,  but it could be anything from a teaspoon up, really. Also, I measure by volume, not by weight.)

2. Use this base to make smaller batches of different "flavors":
To every half cup of salt base, add 10-15 drops essential oil

3. Bake
Place the salt in an oven safe container, and place in an oven preheated to 200 degrees Fahrenheit (this low of a temperature should not damage the volatile essential oils). Bake the salt for 15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes

When the salt mix has cooled (at least an hour), you can spoon it into jars. I like to use little jars that hold between 1/2 cup and 1 cup of salt, so they are essentially pre measured; just add the whole jar to the bathtub! Something interesting to note, however, is that you will end up with more salt than you started with. I'm not entirely sure why.

Play around with different scents and colors. You can even layer the colors for a neat effect. I've also used baking extracts like vanilla and orange to "flavour" my salt recipes; you'll want to use more than the essential oils though, as they are not as concentrated (about 1/2 - 1 teaspoon).

Some finished salts; grapefruit and mint mojito

Hope you enjoy this recipe, and the  baths that follow!

Best Wishes