Pistachios

It’s almost St. Patrick’s Day and I’m part of a virtual St. Patrick’s Day Party! If there was one word to describe the holiday for me, it would be: green. When it comes to desserts there aren’t many green colored options, and I decided to do something with pistachios. I’ve made pistachio flavored cupcakes before but I used jello pudding mix which gave it an artificial taste. I’m not knocking on pistachio pudding mix; I’ve actually grown to like that artificial pistachio flavor. Much like how I’ve grown to love maraschino cherries.
The pistachio flavor of the pudding isn’t assertive. If I had to describe the flavor, I would say it’s very similar to the Häagen-Dazs pistachio ice cream only in pudding form, especially once it’s topped with a dollop of whipped cream. It’s dreamy and luscious, and pale green in color.
And because I wanted to add lucky charms into the whole thing, I made some lucky charms churros. Funny thing is they look entirely different from now I imagined them. I wanted them to have lots of marshmallows and cereal pieces stuck on them. Unfortunately, when I did put whole pieces of the cereal onto the churros, they looked chunky and unappealing. So I crushed them and stuck them on there, similar to sprinkles. A little more whimsical, but it doesn’t really scream “lucky charms”. Oh well.
The churros btw, are delicious. They’re crisp on the outside and chewy on the inside. Don’t get scared and take them out of the oil too early or you’ll end up with doughy insides. Now excuse me while I oogle at these awesome dishes that everyone else contributed to our party… You’re of course, welcome and encouraged to check them out too. 😉

Baileys Chocolate Caramel Tarts – Sugarhero
Bangers and Mash with Guiness Onion Gravy – The Beach House Kitchen
Black Lentil Roasted Broccoli Shepard’s Pie – Calizona
Boozy Irish Coffee Milkshake with Baileys Caramel Drizzle – Meg is Well
Chocolate Stout No-Churn Ice Cream with Homemade Toffee Crumble – Ciao Chow Bambina
Colcannon Irish Mashed Potatoes – Keviniscooking
Get Charmed By Double Spice Chocolate Cookies – The Sweet Nerd
Guinness Irish Stew Mini Pot Pies – The Road to Honey
Irish Spice Bag – Seasons & Suppers
Pork Chops with an Irish Whiskey Sauce – Salt & Lavender
Raspberry Chocolate Milk Porter Pudding Shooters – Beer Girl Cooks
Shepherd’s Pie {with Guinness Lamb & Horseradish Mash} – Girl Heart Food
Sour Apple Tequila Cocktail – The Lucky Shamrock – No Spoon Necessary
St. Patrick’s Lemon Cucumber Martini With Fresh Basil – Beyond Mere Sustenance
Traditional Irish Soda Bread with Orange Butter – What Should I Make For…
Vegan Mint Chocolate Bark – Salted Plains

Lucky Charms Churros & Real Pistachio Pudding

For the Pistachio Paste

Ingredients:
½ c salted pistachios, shelled
⅓ c. sugar
2 tbsp. water

Instructions:

In the bowl of a food processor, pulse pistachios until finely ground.
Add sugar and water and continue to blend until smooth.

For the Pistachio Pudding
Makes about 4 ramekins

Ingredients:
1 batch pistachio paste (recipe above)
2 c. whole milk
2 egg yolks
⅓ c. sugar
2 tbsp. corn starch
pinch of salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
½ c. heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp. powdered sugar
a handful pistachios, chopped

Instructions:

In a small pot, whisk pistachio paste and milk together and heat until simmering.
While the pistachio milk comes to a simmer, whisk egg yolks, sugar, cornstarch and salt in a small bowl to form a smooth paste.
Slowly whisk in the hot pistachio milk by the ladleful into the egg mixture until you use up half of the pistachio milk.
Add the rest of the egg mixture back into the pot and whisk on medium heat until pudding is thickened.
Remove pot from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla extract until smooth.
Spoon pudding into ramekins, and wrap with plastic wrap and push the plastic onto the surface so it doesn’t form a skin.
Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.
Before serving, whip heavy cream and powdered sugar together until stiff peaks form, place a dollop of whipped cream on top and garnish with chopped pistachios.

For the Lucky Charms Churros

For the churros

Ingredients:
½ c. sugar
1 ½ tsp. cinnamon
1 c. water
1 ½ tbsp. sugar
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
½ tsp. salt
1 c. all-purpose flour
2 qt. vegetable oil (for frying)
vanilla glaze (recipe below)
about 1 cup of crushed lucky charms cereal (with mostly marshmallows; less cereal)

Instructions:

In a shallow bowl, combine ½ c. sugar and cinnamon and set aside.
In a small saucepan over medium heat, whisk water, sugar, 2 tbsp. vegetable oil, and salt together and bring to a boil.
Once the mixture is boiling, turn off the heat, add in the flour and stir with a wooden spoon until a ball of dough forms.
In a large heavy pot clipped with a candy thermometer, heat the vegetable oil until 375 degrees.
While the oil heats, transfer the dough into a piping bag fitted with a large star tip. The dough is dense and tough to push through the piping bag so use a heavy-duty bag.
On a sheet pan lined with parchment paper, pipe the length of the churros you would like and cut it off with either a sharp knife or scissors until you use up the dough.
Once the oil is heated, slowly place the churro dough into the hot oil. Do not drop the dough into the oil for it will splatter. Place about 3-4 pieces and fry until golden brown, about 2-4 minutes.
Lightly shake off the excess oil, and place the cooked churros onto a plate lined with paper towels.
Drain churros for two minutes and then toss in the cinnamon sugar.
Repeat with the remaining churro dough.
Once the churros are cool, drizzle the top half of the churros with the vanilla glaze and dip into the crushed marshmallows.