Two mustard recipes

While working at Penzey's Spice store I became enlightened and realized how much better some things are homemade.I also became aware of how much better things taste when you use great, quality ingredients. A customer gave these recipes to us at the store and I have made the tarragon mustard 4 times since April and a double batch of the Spicy Guiness Mustard. They are a favorite in our house! Hope you enjoy these recipes.

Tarragon Mustard -4 ounces dry powdered mustard -1 cup tarragon vinegar (see below) -1/2 cup sugar -1 tsp salt -1/4 lb. butter (1 stick ) -6 large eggs -juice of 1 lemon or 3 tbs bottled lemon juice Tarragon vinegar In a clean glass jar or bottle place 3 Tablespoons of dried tarragon ( i of course used Penzey's) Bring 1 quart of vinegar to a light boil. ( use apple cider vinegar if you want or need a gluten free recipe . I used white vinegar) Pour hot vinegar over tarragon but do not cap until it is cool. If the jar has a metal lid place plastic wrap over the jar or bottletop before placing the lid on it. You do not want your vinegar to come in contact with metal. Place in a dark and dry area for 2 weeks.Strain through a fine strainer or cheesecloth and pour into a clean bottle. This will make more then what you need for your first batch. It can be used in salad dressings or saved for further mustard batches. now for the mustard: Place 4 ounces of dried mustard poweder in the top of double boiler.Pour the vinegar over the mustard over the mustard. Do not stir. Cover and let sit for 24 hours. Put water in the bottom of the double boiler and bring to a boil. Place the top of the double boiler over the boiling water. Reduce heat to low medium. Add 1/2 cup sugar, tsp salt, and 1/4 pind butter (1 stick. Mix well until butter melts. Wisk 6 eggs in a seperate bowl. If you have emersion blender blend the eggs until they are a liquid consistency. Add the eggs slowly and stir constantly with wire wisk. Use the low end of medium heat to avoid curdling. Cook 5 minutes , stir constantly. Mustard will have texture like a thick gravy. Remove from heat. Add 3 tbs lemon juice . Stir with rubber spoon or spatula. Store in 8 ounce jars in the refrigerator for up to 6 months. extra notes : If you want honey mustard add honey when the mustard has cooled. I use Penzeys Canadian Mustard Powder. If you want a mustard with a bite you can use Penzeys Oriental Mustard or a blend of both. Spicy Guinness Mustard -12 ounces Guinness Stout -1 1/2 cups brown mustard seed ( 10 ounces) -1 cup red wine vinegar -1 tbs kosher salt -1 tsp black pepper -1/4 tsp ground clove -1/4 tsp ground nutmeg -1/4 tsp allspice Combine all ingredients in a non reactive bowl.Cover with plastic wrap and let sit for 1-2 days so the mustard seeds will soften. Transfer the mixture to a food processor and blend. Stop on occasion and scrape down the sides, Blend until mixture thickens ( about 3 minutes) Transfer to a jar and refrigerate. use immediatley or refrigerate for up to 6 months.

Coconut Flan

This is was so yummy I had to share. I could not believe how easy it was to make. The hardest part was waiting for the finished Flan to cool! :D

COCONUT FLAN - serves 8-10
Ingredients:
Nonstick cooking spray
1 Jar Smuckers Caramel Ice cream topping
3(14 ounce ) cans sweetened condensed milk
1 (14 ounce) can Cream of Coconut
1(14 ounce)can evaporated milk
6 eggs
1 tablespoon Mexican Vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup toasted coconut


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray bundt (yes bundt) pan with pam or other nonstick spray. Heat the caramel topping slightly in the microwave. This will make it pour easier. Pour the entire jar into the bottom of the bundt pan. Using an electric mixer blend the rest of the ingredients (except the coconut) until blended. Pour into bundt pan. Cover with foil. Place the bundt pan inside a larger pan and create a water bath. You want your water to come halfway up the sides of the bundt.

Bake for 1 hour and 45 minutes or until the middle is not jiggly. Let cool at room temperature for 30 minutes then chill in the refrigerator for 3 hours. Before you are ready to turn the flan onto a platter toast the coconut in a nonstick skillet for a few minutes. Turn the flan onto a platter and sprinkle with coconut. Serve. Hear the angels singing !! I did !

I finally have my Chauffeur

So proud of Andrew Got his permit today!

The American Pickers

Apple Pickers that is :D HA HA! When Hurricane Irene headed to town we headed out. Headed to the mountains of North Carolina. Asheville to be exact. We lived the life of luxury at the Grove Park Inn. If you ever have the chance to stay at the inn it was very cute, clean and had amazing scenery!
We spent an afternoon picking apples at Grandads Apples in Henderson.

Cutest little firehouse
the kids. grove park in the background.
aryn feeding a squirrel. Nut attached to a fishing pole.



Beautiful gardens and statues all around the Grove Park Inn.
my silly girls
Just for you! Oh heck, who are we kidding she is not going to share that apple with anyone!

Just a little higher dad, I want the one at the top!

Finally Back to school !

School officially started August 25th . Andrew came down with a fever on the 24th and ended missing most of the first 2 weeks of school. We have gotten everyone healthy and Andrew finally had his first day of school on August 31st. (only to be sick again 2 days later but thats another story!)

A magical vacation

A very last minute Disney vacation for the josupait family this summer. After spending the begining part of summer sick i felt i had missed out on so much of the summer. In my heart I felt bad for the kids and kevin, they spent a large amount of time in the house waiting on mom. Fun was in order and i knew where we needed to be.

It had been 5 years since we went to Disney last. Aryn has very little memory of our previous trips. We made sure to make lots of new and exciting ones. The kids are a bit older so we where able to do some things that we could not have done before !

End of the day at Hollywood Studios
On Exhibition Everest at Animal Kingdom
This is a Kona Cone, It is a Waffle cone sundae with candy sprinkled on top surrounded by a cloud of cotton candy! Alyssa about had a fit when they set it in front of her!
one of the funnest places at Disney to eat, Sci Fiction drive in!




Your never too old for the mad hatters tea party! :d lol!

Breakfast at O'hana

Snuggles with Pooh Bear!
Love you Mickey! Thanks for the memories!

Cozumel.... port of call 4

This is the second trip to Cozumel for the Josupait family. We had a fabulous time. We went Isla Passion. It was an amazing little island on the North end of Cozumel. They had a beach. volleyball, soccer, trampoline, all you can eat mexican buffet and open bar. So of course we tried the beer, sat in the sun and had a great time. The kids were sad when it was time to go back to the shore. We had about 90 minutes before we had to be back on the boat so we did some massive power shopping, Aryn got her hair braided, Andrew bought a huge sombrero, and Alyssa had fun trying Mexican Chocolate and bought some more stuff from Del Sol which seemed to be at every port selling the exact same stuff.






Alyssa found a sombrero... perfect fit!
Cozumel es muey fun!


On the pier, our boat in the background.

the 3 amigos on Isla Passion


this trampoline is fun!



OOps , there goes Alyssa off the side!

Port of Call Belize, day 4 on board

Goff's Caye This island is only 1.2 square miles. It sites in the middle of the ocean. Think Gilligan's Island! Today was Aryn's first day of snorkeling off the boat. The water was about 15 feet deep but it was rough. She was a trooper and was one of the first ones to jump off the boat! Andrew and Alyssa choose to stay on the island and play in the sand. Belize in and island that you have tender from. Many of the island do not have piers or terminals. I have included a photo of a boat tendering. So you basically walk a plank/walkway about 8 feet above the water onto a smaller boat.

Aryn Found this shell in the water. We put it back. It was still alive
View of the island
Photo of beach from excursion boat
Alyssa on the beach!
After a fun day on the island we tendered into Belize city. Not a lot to see or do there. So tried the beer .... looked around

Belize Beer!


At the pharmacies you can buy meds. I guess it is a good deal if you don't have insurance or don't want to see a doctor. The water in Belize was beautiful, the island was beautiful. When you are pulling into port there are tons of little islands that pop up out of the water all over the place. Makes for beautiful photos!

Port 2 - Isla Roatan , Honduras

Port 2 - Isla Roatan , Honduras. Today we went to Maya Key , A private Island with amazing views and wildlife.
This was my seat on the beach, beautiful right!?



Beach shot !
Ok, We are from the south where it is humid from March to November. Baby we have nothing on Honduras. That place was hot and humid!
do i need to say anything about this photo? i think this is an example of a photo is worth a thousands words!
chilling out at fat tuesdays !

May Key has a mangrove that had monkeys on it. They were fun to watch !
The 3 amigos in Roatan, having fun!
Andrew snorkeling
Alyssa snorkeling

Andrew on the beach, maybe my favorite shot of the day!


Honduras beer
Mahogany Bay. Close to pier, you can walk. Beautiful beach. Owned by Carnival cruise lines
Our ship in the background
Finally a yacht i can afford.
A fun day by all!