Friday, October 16, 2009

Autumn Giveaway of love & tenderness......

Is it ever too soon to have another giveaway? I DON'T THINK SOooooo! Not when it involves caramelllllllllll.........aw--ka-powwww!

I made this caramel sauce for this splendid birthday lady's birthday cake and wasn't at all surprised that I had to guard it with my very life to keep it from getting stolen entirely by the shameless guests. So as I sat there the next morning shamelessly sipping on my very own super indulgent CARAMEL topped cappuccino, I realized that this would be the best autumn giveaway EVAH!

Something about autumn to me means smoke! Roasting, barbecuing, baking & especially creating a crispy, caramelized top to desserts. Consider for a moment the autumn harvest fruits: apples, pears, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, chestnuts etc... they all are great baked with crusts of some kind or at least with crunch, crumble, & that ever so slightly burnt taste we all love.

And so I present to you an uper-simple to make but oh-so-worth-it to eat, caramel sauce. Believe me you WANT to score this one.

After my last giveaway I'm not going to ask you WHAT you'd do with the caramel sauce but a few wholesome ideas are: top your coffee or cappuccino with it, drizzle it over your ice-cream or apple pie or just do like me & grab spoonfuls from the fridge when you're feeling needy.

Now the part you've all been waiting for: THE RULES OF THE GAME
  1. to be eligible to win answer this question in the comment box: What pleasant smell or smells takes you back to my childhood.
  2. Please only comment once unless it's your S.O. commenting, more power to you! (if you can get him/her is willing to share the prize with you, good luck w/ that!!)
  3. I can only send these items to people within this country. (We still want to hear from you all though)
  4. The comments will be closed & winner will be announced on Oct 23rd (Fri) A.M.!!

I'm gonna try to do a write up of the recipe soon, I hope. That's the deeeelio! Take care of yourselves. Steer clear of people with the sneezies & think caramelized thoughts.

PS. To my friendly friend of Taiwan who considers herself to be "unlucky" & therefore did not enter last giveaway I say: COMMENT NOW, you can't be unlucky unless you actually try it! ILY!

19 comments:

Dawn said...

Ooooh! That looks way to good. Pick me pleeease!

I'm trying, but honestly can't equate any good smells with childhood. The only (i suppose one could say it's relatively pleasant)smell that always reminds me of when I was young is kerosene and stove heaters.

Oh boy, I think I've just lost my chance to win.

Florence said...

I have always loved the smell of a good kerosene heater. It reminds me of Christmas, which was my favorite time of year ever as a kid. A massive Christmas tree in our dining room, lots of chicken dinners and Kenny G.
My mom used to keep this old massive soap bar in a massive suitcase that we kept our winter clothes in. Our coats and sweaters smelled like that soap for months. Sometimes I think I smell traces of it in people's perfume.
The smell of brand new ESP "Super work books." I'm a real paper sniffer, and those books had one of the best smells ever.

Mary said...

Argh!! Yumm!!

I'm going to get Aiki to comment..haha

hmmm...I have a very good nose so there's wayyy too many smells that I equate to my childhood.

uhhh one off the top of my head would be moth balls..goes right a long with the kerosene heater. I think back when I was a kid everyone in the family used an abundance of moth balls for some odd reason. But it brings back good memories of winter time when was I a kid.

Aiki said...

I can't belive Mary's getting me to do this! I hardly ever go on blogs, much less comment on them. But I guess Alisa's blog is the one to do it on. Ok, well, I'm not really sure what smell reminds me of my childhood...maybe cuz I can't smell but I'm guessing something like...oh wait! It's coming to me--something like "right before it rains or right after it rains, there's this certain smell in the air, especially around asphalt". Alright, that's it for me. Love you Al!

Y.M.R said...

I feel almost guilty participating because i just won a delight. But, I'm going to anyway.

The smell of REAL Chinese food reminds me of walking the streets in China when i was 12, and smelling the stalls on the side.

And the smell of A kotatsu blanket reminds me of my grandpas house when we used to snuggle under the table when it was on. I think i was 7 or 8.

Anonymous said...

The smell of old musty closets, fresh tatami floor and moth balls remind me of when I was about 5 years old and visited my grandma's house. Now, whenever I smell that, I remember when I was little.
Heh, not super nice, but I like it because it brings back memories.
--merch

Kari said...

As one of your shameless guests I can testify of the goodness of this caramel.
Childhood smells... the best food related ones would have to be badam milk, REAL smoked cheese, sausages cooked on a makeshift BBQ by a river, and just picked mangoes, mulberries, guavas, and chikus.
Other childhood related smell memories would have to include the peppermint/tobacco smell of my grandfather, the scent of the bush after the rains, and the stinky breath of a lovable dog.

When I first came to Japan I was horrified to find pleasant childhood memories attached to such a foul smell as kero heaters. It's amazing how many people associate it with fond memories, although having lived here for a while I can understand why. :)
Say NO to kerosene heaters people! LOL -feel free to delete it Al.

lil said...

I have to say moth balls and kerosene heaters tooo!!
and Tatami mats..darn did we all live the same childhood?! lol Oh but one food related smell would be yakiimo truck and the quick whiff you catch - or the quick whiffs of roasted chestnut. nom nom nom...
also really strange but mollasses and yogurt!! I now eat mollasses with tahini and spread on bread. The caramel looks soo good, Id love to see your recipe. The other day I made caramel sauce for pancakes with the main sweeter from triple sec liquer :)

Vesna said...

Now I understand why I didn't win the last giveaway. THIS one is mine! haha.
Smells..childhood,hmmm. Ahhh yes!Cow dung would have to be it!Always brings back fond memories of traveling through Switzerland.

Anonymous said...

Al, you are so sweet..I guess I am pretty lucky to join the family, married Oli and have you all as my friends! What more can I ask? :-) I will say its the smell of the fresh air, smell of the sunshine in dry laundry and winds blow through the trees..my childhood was full of nature and play out door, now days we don't get to smell those clean air and see clear stars in the city. I love you guys, I am in deed a lucky Chinese girl! xoxoxoxo

crazynik said...

Even tho I'm not eligible to win anything (weep) I still will comment...
Weirdly enough the smell of sunscreen makes me think of my childhood and how my mom was religious about slathering that stuff on us kids all summer long.
Everytime I get a whiff of it now, it brings back memories of childhood, Japanese public swimming pools and the good ol beach in Tateyama. Heh
Luv ya hun

The Silver Princess said...

I loved living the most was Hong Kong.
and I miss that smell, I'm not sure what it is.. maybe the pollution mixed with the harbor/ food/garbage.
and quite honestly it's probeblym a bad smell..but it makes me happy.
that and living in a little village next to ginger feilds. ahhh home sweet home

Tearz Sakai said...

yikes I missed the last one:D not this time hehe! hmm my child hood memories smells, I just have this one problem I hav a bad nose as u all probably noticed I have a nasal voice yeah, the only time I can actually smell is when I'm PG ha! ok but I'll come up with something. The smell of moth balls, my sis and I would go "treasure hunting" for trinkets in our grandma's closets and draws. the smell of incense in August. and the smell of the ocean. this was all at my grandparents house I have good childhood memories of that place I was 6.

Aich said...

My Grandma's house has a particular scent that I love. It's a mix of expert cooking, wood polish, new tatami, flowers, and Japanese paper doors. It brings me back every time to: excellent food that never runs out,lots of food, crappy Japanese TV that I couldn't take my eyes off of, kotatsu on a cold day, unconditional love and acceptance (you gotta love grandparents), the things I love about old Japan, did I mention kotatsu?, and 100 year old photographs. I love my grandma and grandpa sooo much.

Aich said...

My Grandma's house has a particular scent that I love. It's a mix of expert cooking, wood polish, new tatami, flowers, and Japanese paper doors. It brings me back every time to: excellent food that never runs out,lots of food, crappy Japanese TV that I couldn't take my eyes off of, kotatsu on a cold day, unconditional love and acceptance (you gotta love grandparents), the things I love about old Japan, did I mention kotatsu?, and 100 year old photographs. I love my grandma and grandpa sooo much.

Aimee said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Aimee said...

Nice smells are: My dad's Christmas stuffing & eggnog (that we were not allowed to drink).
Real pine Christmas trees. (grew up in Europe)
Spent my teens in Korea so kimchi brings back teen memories & then later in Japan, yes, kerosene heaters. But kerosene always made me feel sad because I never liked winter as a teen, it depressed me.
Another smell is My dads "oldspice" cologne & my moms fave perfume called OPIUM by YSL. When she died we gave her perfume to the youngest of us kids but every now & then when I go to the dept store I take a whiff to remember her.

Joan said...

I hope Im still qualified for this special caramel sauce. Ahem..

Smells...umm, kero heaters of course. Tatami mats take me back to my grandma's place, our whole family sleeping in their living roomm and walking past the tatami mat store on the way to kumon with my dad.

:)

Anonymous said...

Woo hoo. I never go on blogs, but for some reason this morning I got inspired to comment. Maybe cuz Merch and Aich have been excitedly talking about it for a while. heh.
The smell of fallen pine leaves and watered earth after a rainy day. Kinda similar to Aiki, but not related to asphalt. haha.
-Meg