July 2017- Cooking with Rum

by ,

July 2017- Cooking with Rum

Rum Curried Pineapple Chicken

Ingredients: 

• 3 1/2 Cups Chicken, cut up or cubed

• 5 Onions, chopped

• 5Tbsp. Olive Oil

• 5 Tbsp. Flour

• 1 Cup Heavy Cream

• 4 Tbsp. Curry Powder

• 1 Qt. Chicken Stock

• 1 Cup Seedless Raisins

• 1 Cup Crushed Pineapple, drained

• ¾ Cup Dark Rum

• Juice of ½ Lemon

• Salt to taste

Directions:

Simmer the chopped up onions in the olive oil until soft and golden. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly over low heat. Add chicken stock. Stir until smooth and slightly thick. Add the raisins, pineapples, rum and lemon juice. Simmer for about 5 minutes and add the cream. Blend the curry powder with a little water to make a paste and add to the mixture. Add the chicken and salt. Simmer over low heat. This dish is excellent over a bed of lettuce or rice. If you want to touch more of the tropics, add some grated coconut and chutney.

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake with Rum and Salted Caramel

Ingredients: 

• 1 Cup Brown Sugar, packed

• 2 Sticks Salted Butter, plus extra for greasing pan

• 1 ½ Cup All-Purpose Flour

• 2 tsp. Baking Powder

• ½ tsp. Ground Cinnamon

• ¼ tsp. Ground Ginger

• 1 Cup Sugar

• ¼ Cup Half-and-half

• 2 tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract

• ¾ Cup Dark Rum

• 2 Lrg. Eggs

• 1 Can O-ring slices of Pineapple, drained

Directions:

Butter a 9-inch cake pan and set aside. Preheat oven to 350⁰ F. In a bowl, place the o-ring slices of pineapple and pour the ¾ cup of rum in the bowl. Let pineapples absorb the rum.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm the brown sugar and one stick of butter, whisk occasionally until it becomes a smooth caramel sauce. Increase the heat and bring sauce to a boil, whisk constantly. Cook until sauce becomes thick and turns a deep brown color, approximately 4 minutes.

Remove the pan from heat and whisk in ¼ cup of the dark rum that is in the bowl with the pineapple slices. Pour the caramel sauce into the prepared cake pan, and swirl to completely cover the bottom of the pan. Set aside and let it cool for about 20 minutes. In a large mixing bowl, mix flour, baking powder, cinnamon and ginger. In a separate bowl, use an electric mixer, set to medium-high and beat together the sugar and a stick of butter until light and fluffy, approximately 3 minutes.

Add the vanilla and the rest of the rum and beat to combine. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the flour and spice mixture along with the half-and-half, about a third at a time.

Lay the rum soaked pineapple rings over the caramel in the cake pan. If you want extra pineapples, take some of the rings and chop into chunks and use to fill in the spaces between the rings. Carefully pour batter over the pineapples and smooth using a rubber spatula dipped in warm water.

Bake for 50 minutes or until fork or metal skewer comes out clean in the center. Rest the pan on a cooling rack for about 30 minutes. Once cooled, run a butter knife along the sides of the pan to loosen the cake. Invert pan onto a plate. Ready to serve. Remember to store remaining cake in an air tight container. Will keep for up to a week.

-Article written by Chef Susan Whitley- 

Hello, my name is Susan Whitley, I am passionate about great foods and beverages. I love finding recipes that incorporate my favorite ingredients and sharing the results with my friends and family.

Through this monthly column I will do my best to inspire you to incorporate the spirit of the tropics into your everyday cooking.

Sue@gotrum.com