Pretzel Salad Shot

I'll admit it, I'd never heard of Pretzel Salad before I was given this challenge. Our friends, Charles and Stephen were in the middle of planning a 10 year anniversary when the topic of Shotibles came up. They showed me a picture of the layered dessert and challenged me to come up with a Shotible version.

For those of you who aren't in the know, pretzel salad is a dessert. The bottom crust is made up of crushed pretzels. The next layer is typically some sort of cream cheese or whipped cream filling. That is then topped with strawberry gelatin and sliced strawberries. Rumor has it, some people use other flavors of gelatin or other fruits.

For my Shotible version, I used the same pretzel cup as the Margarita Shotible. I made a whipped cream and cream cheese filling with some Strawberry Tequila liqueur mixed in. Rather than putting gelatin on top, I sliced the strawberries and let them stew in granulated sugar for a while making them gooey and syrupy.

I ended up making almost 100 and serving them at Charles and Stephen's anniversary party along with Carrot Cake Shotibles. They seemed to be a big hit, if I do say so myself.

Rocky Road Shot

Back in December, I made over 30 dozen Shotibles.  There were four varieties of Christmas themed Shotibles for parties and gifts. By the time the month was over, I was burnt out and needed a break.  So, now, five months later, I’m ready to get back in the kitchen.  Fittingly, for my comeback, I’ve chosen to go with Rocky Road. 

For the glass, I wanted to go with a chocolate flavor, but I didn’t want to use pure chocolate because it’s way too dense.  I also thought that chocolate sandwich cookies have too specific of a taste.  I compromised, and used a combination of the two. I combined cookie crumbles and margarine, and then mixed in melted milk chocolate.

For the filling, I made a marshmallow mousse using marshmallows, milk, whipping cream and marshmallow flavored vodka.  I mixed in chopped almonds and dark chocolate chunks.  

Champagne Shot

It’s been three weeks since I last updated the blog.  I took a little bit of a holiday break.  So, now we’re a week into the New Year.  Relative to an entire year, we’re still pretty close to the New Year’s holiday, so I don’t feel it’s too late to post my Champagne Shotible.

For the glass, I wanted to use something light and airy.  I chose to use angel food cake.  I used a box mix to bake them and then cored each, which I must say was no easy task given the angel food cake's spongey texture.

For the filling, I made a Champagne butter cream frosting.  First I simmered two cups of Champagne until it reduced down to a quarter of a cup making a sort of Champagne syrup.  I allowed that to cool.  Meanwhile I blended confectioners’ sugar and butter for the filling base.  Once the syrup was cooled, I mixed it into the base.  I then added a tablespoon of regular Champagne.

For the topping, I used some fun little round white sprinkles reminiscent of the tiny bubbles in a glass of Champagne.