Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Got Candy Canes? Cleo Coyle’s Candy Cane Frosting recipe for Cakes and Brownies


Got Candy Canes? Good! Set some aside in your cupboard for the coming months. Why? Because candy canes are very easy to find in stores now, and after the holidays are over, when the dreary months of January, February, and March settle in, you can bring them out and make this beautifully festive Candy Cane Frosting to cheer you up again. Just looking at this frosting lifts the spirits and the taste is fantastic.


Cleo Coyle, notorious
hoarder of candy canes,
is author of 
The
Coffeehouse Mysteries
While my recipe is very basic (crushed candy canes in a standard buttercream), I've made sure to keep my version light on the peppermint extract. The candy canes are crushed so finely that they give the frosting a gorgeous pink color. It's sweet and flavorful and perfectly complements chocolate so it's a winner on brownies as well as chocolate cakes and cupcakes. 

These brownies were featured in my holiday-themed Coffeehouse Mystery Holiday Grind as an invention of Tucker's, one of the beloved baristas at my fictional Village Blend coffeehouse. FYI...


If you're new to me or this blog, the Coffeehouse Mysteries are culinary mysteries set in a landmark Greenwich Village coffeehouse, and each of the ten titles includes the added bonus of recipes. To learn more about my Coffeehouse series, click here.


Cheers, everyone! I hope you're all
enjoying the holiday season...

Merry Christmas 
and Happy Chanukah!
~ Cleo 





Cleo Coyle’s
Candy Cane Frosting


This recipe is now archived. 

For a copy of my Candy Cane Brownies and Frosting recipe, stop by my website: Coffeehouse Mystery.com









 







The Origin of Candy Canes

In 1670, in Cologne, Germany, a choirmaster wanted to solve the problem of noise caused by children in his church during Christmas Eve services. He asked a local candy maker for some sweet sticks for them. In order to justify the practice of giving candy to children during worship services, he asked the candy maker to add a crook to the top of each stick, which would help children remember the shepherds who paid visit to the baby Jesus. From Germany, the candy canes spread to other parts of Europe. Around 1882, people began hanging them on Christmas trees and in the early 1920s, Chicago confectioners the Bunte Brothers filed the earliest patents for candy cane making machines. (Source: Wikipedia)


Eat with Joy to the World!


~ Cleo Coyle, author of

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11 comments:

  1. Yes! I have candy canes! How did you know? And I'm looking forward to whacking the heck out of them (now that I've finished baking more cookies than I can count).

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  2. Using my CVS coupons for free candy canes!!!! These would be a wonderful pick-me-up during the dark months of February and March!!

    Of course I will make a batch this week...just because I need a stress reliever big time!!

    Merry Christmas to you and Marc!!!

    nanc

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  3. Looking forward to making this one, Cleo! It looks beautiful and sounds like a lot of fun to make, too...particularly hammering on the canes in a ziplock! Ha! Hope you have a wonderful holiday.

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  4. How very pretty and festive, Cleo! Perfect for a party!

    ~ Krista

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  5. Reply to...

    @Sheila - Ha! The whacking is indeed the best part. Happy baking -- and happy holidays! - to you and your loved ones.

    ~ Cleo

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  6. Reply to...

    @Nanc - Lol, I pick up my candy canes in drug stores, too. Don't you love their holiday tchotchke aisle? I always find something that flashes or plays music or does *something* that will amuse my cats. And, of course, you're right...plenty of those striped little canes for the cupboard. (I am the queen hoarder of the cane, as you know.)

    Thx for dropping by the Kitchen, Nanc. May you and your family have a lovely holiday and a bright New Year!

    ~ Cleo Coffeehouse Mystery.com
    Cleo Coyle on Twitter

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  7. Reply to...

    @Elizabeth/Riley - Yes! Don't you love recipes that allow you to bang on the counter with a hammer. (Culinary anger management, I say.) The frosting really is a spirit lifter, and I hope you enjoy it, too.

    Warmest holiday wishes,
    ~ Cleo Coffeehouse Mystery.com
    Cleo Coyle on Twitter

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  8. Reply to...

    @Krista - Festive is the perfect word for this frosting. My 2nd favorite part of making it (after the stress-relieving banging to crush the canes) is the moment the white buttercream blushes pink. It's as much fun to make as it is to eat.

    My very best to you for a delightful holiday and a bright New Year!
    ~ Cleo Coffeehouse Mystery.com
    Cleo Coyle on Twitter

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  9. What a delightful way to dress up a cookie plate! "Culinary anger management" - I love it! I'll make another batch of brownies just so I can make this frosting. Fun!

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  10. Cleo, these look so yummy and festive. Your recipes are always so delicious you should do a cookbook.

    Mason
    Thoughts in Progress

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  11. Another yummy recipe I can't wait to try!, Each year we buy candy canes to hang on the tree, and now I can put them to good use after the season. I am looking foreword to releasing my culinary anger on those bad boys.

    Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all!

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