Cooking Tips from Snapfinger Catering - Using "Old" Chocolate

Do you often wonder if it's ok to use chocolate that you've had for a while and has turned white around the edges?  The white haze is called bloom. It's caused by cocoa butter rising to the surface, and it happens to chocolate when it is stored in a place that is too warm. The best place to keep it is in a dark cabinet that stays cool, between 60 to 70 degrees. In most kitchens, that means the cabinet that is farthest from the stove. 

Bloom doesn't mean you can't use the chocolate. It will disappear when it melts. Taste a little bit just to make sure it hasn't picked up an off flavor.

Cooking Tips from Snapfinger Catering - The Perfect Turkey

Want to have a "self-basting" turkey that looks and tastes great when you serve it? Check out this tip from Chef Dale at Bon Appetit Caterers in Orlando, Florida.

Our Thanksgiving feasts challenge our culinary skills in a professional kitchen as well our home kitchens.  One less thing to do is one less thing to forget to do!

During the cooking frenzy, it’s easy to overlook basting the center of attraction, Tom the Turkey!  We all want the ooh’s and ah’s when we proudly strut the golden-skinned bird to the wide-eyed family and friends with forks and knives in hand, sitting around our beautifully decorated dining table.  But then you open the oven and there's your beige turkey!

Here's what I do so the bird bastes itself.  First, warm some chicken stock and butter until melted.  Soak a large enough piece of cheesecloth in the prepared stock and snugly drape the cloth over your prepared bird, letting enough drape in the bottom of your roasting pan.  The cloth will continually soak up the juices during the baking process and you won't have to worry about basting at all!  Carefully peel the cloth to reveal that perfectly golden skin you'll be proud of.

Also, consider rubbing flavored butters and fresh herbs under the skin as well as the outside of the skin.  I have used:

Maple Butter
Southwestern Chipotle Butter
Citrus Butter
Herb Butter

Get creative and use create your own flavorful butter recipe!

Last Minute Catering Orders Through Snapfinger Catering

So, it is 9 a.m. and either of the following two scenarios plays out.

Scenario one - Your boss pops his head out of his office to let you know that he needs lunch for 30 people today at noon.

Scenario two - In your rush to get home to pick up the kids, to get them to soccer practice, to get dinner on the table, to do some cleaning....yadda, yadda, yadda...you get the picture, you forget to order lunch for the sales meeting the next day and you don't realize it until you arrive at work at 8:30 a.m. the next day.

So, do you A) Freak out and begin to panic, or do you, B) Turn to Snapfinger Catering to pull it all together for you?

We hope you said B because that is exactly what we do nearly every day of the week for someone in one of our six markets. Trust us, you are not alone. And you know what else? It doesn't matter to us why you are in the predicament you are in. The only thing that matters is that we get a solution and make you and your boss happy.

So, either give us a call at 1.888.760.7627 or utilize our Live Chat feature on our site, and let us know what you need. Trust us, we can do this a lot faster than you can. We know our providers. We know who can pull together last minute orders the best. We can even see which providers may already be coming to a location near you with another delivery and can easily add an extra 30 box lunches to their route.

And, if worse came to shove, we've got market owners that work and live right there in your markets. So don't be surprised to see Sean, or Ginger or Donna or Katherine making a delivery. Listen, we know what it takes to make a successful business, and we're willing to do whatever it takes.

So, if you find yourself in a pinch, don't panic, give us a call at 1.888.760.7627 or hit us up on the Live Chat right on our website at www.snapfingercatering.com.

Cooking Tips from Snapfinger Catering - Baked Brie

From the kitchen of Chef Mario’s, Inc. – Raleigh, NC.  Great for entertaining at the holidays.  YUMMY!!!

Baked Brie Pie

Makes one 8-10” pie

                                                                                             

Just about the easiest pie crust in the world!

 

Ingredients

1 pound of Flour

1 cup Vegetable Oil

1/2 cup Milk

1 tsp Salt

 

Pie Dough Directions: Place the flour in a bowl, make a well in center and pour oil, milk and salt into well. Mix dough with one finger until it comes together. Continue to mix with your hand until dough forms a ball.

Roll dough between 2 sheets of parchment paper into a round about 1/8 inch thick (you will have extra dough). Use the paper to control the dough and place in an 8 inch pie tin. Crimp edges with your thumb and pointer finger around the crust edge. Place another pie tin inside your pie dough and fill with dry beans (this will weight it down for the real pie). Blind bake your dough for about 20-25 minutes in a 350 degree oven or until golden around edges. (Or skirt this step by buying a cooked pie shell from the store).

Brie and Topping

1 T lemon juice

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup pecans (or your favorite nuts)

1 Apple, sliced thin

1 14oz wheel of Brie, rind removed, cut into chunks

Filling Directions: Place Brie chunks in the prepared pie crust and top with apples in a thin layer. In a bowl, mix together lemon juice, brown sugar, nuts and butter. Top the pie and apples with this mixture. Bake for 6-8 minutes or until cheese is gooey and sugar is melted. Serve with crispies or crackers.

Cooking Tips from Snapfinger Catering - Bruschetta

It is that time of year! Do you feel like you'll be cooking from now until the end of the year? Well, we've reached out to a few of our chefs to ask them for some of their favorite and most useful recipes.

So here's our first from Chef Dale at Bon Appetit in Orlando, Florida that is both easy and tasty!

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As the holidays approach, food preparation can become overwhelming. One tip is to keep menu ideas simply but spectacular. I like serving Bruschetta with a variety of toppings so my guests can make their own as they choose; this keeps me in the kitchen with the rest of the food. If you buy the ready made toppings, all there is to cook are the bruchetta toasts.

Buy a good artisanal loaf and slice it on the bias. If you have a stove top cast iron grill pan, grill each slice until golden (or bake in the oven). As soon as you remove them, rub the surface with garlic cloves and then dust with Jane's Crazy Mixed Up Seasoning which is available at Publix or Albertson's. Arrange them on a platter or in a cloth lined basket and serve with purchased toppings on the side.

Topping suggestions:
·  Caponata
·  Tomato, Basil and Garlic Bruschetta Topping
·  Olive Tapenade
·  Spicy Hummus
·  Marinated Mozzarella
·  Grated Ricotta Salata
·  Grated Pecorino Romano
·  Grated Parmesan

Then, enjoy!