Brigadoon, Thanksgiving, Mint Chocolate Filled Cupcakes.

Today I am off to the theatre in Drayton once again to see Brigadoon. It is one of my favourite films but I have never seen it on stage. I am looking forward to it. If you don't know it, its a magical story of a Scottish village which is so worried about the wickedness of the outside world that their minister prays to be protected from it. The minister is lost, but the village is hidden from the world for a hundred years at a time and comes back for one day. That is the background for a love story between a modern American and a Scottish girl from an obscure village. In the movie its Gene Kelly and Cyd Charisse with Van Johnson. This is a typical instance of Matt saying he has seen the best perform it why would he want to see anyone else. He doesn't understand the draw of live theatre at all. It being Thanksgiving our local store, Zehrs, has passed on tips for cooking a turkey. I thought I would pass them on to you in case you are cooking a bird this weekend. They can be found at this site. Although I bought two turkey breasts in the States, Zehrs was selling turkeys for 99¢ a lb. this week so we couldn't resist buying one. It was roughly 10 lbs which is really way too much for us. Now comes the question, to stuff or not to stuff? I am not a big fan of stuffing, other than chestnut, but Matt likes it. He says don't bother, but .... Mind you I haven't cooked a whole turkey for a year or two and it was never something one cooked very often. One thing I will probably make is bread sauce which is an old tradition with English roast turkeys and I really enjoy it. Won't be having cranberry, Matt isn't too keen and I am not overly fond of it either. I heard a delightful little story from one of my customers yesterday, apparently her husband, at the age of 17, decided to come from England to Canada on an adventure to tour the whole country and then return home. However, he met my customer and they fell in love. That was 49 years ago, they have just celebrated their anniverary. In this age of regular divorce, that is so nice to hear. A friend was asking for decadent cupcakes this week. I came across this one yesterday and had to share it with her and with you. Don't they look absolutely scrumptious? Mint Chocolate Filled Cupcakes Source: Eating Well The Batter: 3 cups flour 2 cups white sugar 1/2 cup Equal Exchange Organic Baking Cocoa 2 tsp salt 2 tsp baking soda 2 cups water 2/3 cup vegetable oil 2 Tablespoons vinegar 2 tsp vanilla Mix dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa, salt, baking soda) and then add water, oil, vinegar and vanilla. Mix well. Put cupcake papers in a muffin tin and fill 1/2 full with the batter. Filling: 8 ounces cream cheese 1 egg 1/3 cup sugar pinch of salt 1 bar Equal Exchange Organic Mint Chocolate, chopped finely Cream together cream cheese, egg, sugar, and salt, and stir in chocolate. Put a spoonful of filling into center of each cup of batter. Bake at 350F / 180C for about 25 minutes. Frosting: 2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened 1/2 cup butter, softened 2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar 1 tsp vanilla extract While cupcakes are baking, whip up the frosting. In a medium bowl, cream together the cream cheese and butter until creamy. Mix in the vanilla, then gradually stir in the confectioners' sugar. Frost the cupcakes after they've had time to fully cool. Makes about 32 cupcakes. To my Canadian readers, Happy Thanksgiving, to everyone else, have a great weekend.