October = Pumpkins and Apples

Here are a couple of things I made last weekend:

1. Apple Oatmeal Muffins (made from Apple Ridge Orchard's apples) with this recipe, with slight alterations:

http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/_mobile/recipefinder/apple-oat-muffins-ghk1007

I used 1/4 cup extra of brown sugar, added 1 TB vanilla, added about 2 tsp extra cinnamon, and increased the shredded apple amount to 2 cups. No walnuts for me.

They were pretty... and delicious actually.

2. Pumpkin Aebelskivers

Recipe:

2 1/4 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 T Sugar

4 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

2 egg yolks

2 egg whites

4T butter, melted

2 cups buttermilk

Then you make them like regular Aebleskivers- mix dry ingredients, mix wet ingredients separately (excluding egg whites),

then mix both together... beat egg whites until peak appears, then fold in. butter Aebleskiver pan and cook. Roll in cinnamon sugar mixture.

Results:

Yummy yummy in my tummy- (Sorry Penelope, it's crowded these days).

Delicious Lazy Man's Cream Cheese Apple Danish

I adapted a version of this http://annies-eats.net/2010/11/16/spiced-apple-cream-cheese-danish-braid/ danish from that lovely website and made it 'easier'.

It is delicious I must say.

What you'll need (I made 2 because I wanted to have some to share):

1 box (2 sheets)Puff Pastry from the freezer section (unless you want to make your own)

4 Apples thinly sliced. I don't peel them becasue I think it's wrong.

4 TB brown sugar

4 TB butter

2 tsp Cinnamon

shake shake shake (three shakes) of nutmeg

8 oz cream cheese

2 tsp lemon juice

3 TB of sugar

cinnamon sugar (for sprinkling)

********************************************
Preheat oven to 400 degrees

First- lay out the pastry dough because it has to thaw.

Second- add apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, butter and nutmeg to a sauce pan and cook on medium heat for about 15 minutes. Then let it cool for about 10 minutes.

Then, Mix the cream cheese, lemon juice & sugar and spread down the middle of the pastry (it will be divided in 3rds. I sprinkled some cinnamon sugar over it.

Layer the apple mixture over the cream cheese and cut strips into the pastry and fold over (in a braiding fashion if you so please.

Brush with butter.

Put in the oven- for 13 minutes, then rotate the pan for another 13 minutes.

Mix 2 cups of powdered sugar with 2-3 TB of milk (Add milk slowly until the consistency is right) Then drizzle glaze over the top.

The finished product - YUMMY

YUMMMY.
YUM.

Pork Chops

I also made some pork chops and stewed apples for dinner.

Pork chops were pretty basic, Pork chop- flour- egg mixture- bread crumb mix.

The bread crumb mix was 1/2 cup Bread Crumbs, 3 TB Parmesan cheese, 1 tsp of Bombay Blend flavor mix (Daniel Boulid brand).

Then I put sea salt over the top and baked for 45 minutes at 375º... that was a little too long, probably should have stuck to 35 minutes but since I'm preggers I wanted to make sure it got to temperature.

Here's Anne, my favorite food tester- eating pork chop and stewed apples, only thing missing is the corn on the cob. It came next.

Pumpkin Coffee Cake - Take 1

I wanted to make an easy pumpkin coffee cake...

I came up with these ingredients to try to make it quick:

1 Can of pureed pumpkin

2 3/4 cups of bisquick (next time will reduce to 2 1/4 cups)

1 tsp cinnamon

4 TB sugar

1/3 cup milk

Topping 1:

1/3 cup bisquick

1/3 brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

4 TB butter - I melted it to make the mixture more of a swirl and not a crumb topping

Topping 2: crumb topping

1/3 cup bisquick

1/3 brown sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

2 TB butter- slightly softened - cut in to make crumb topping.

Here is the result:

This is the pumpkin mix--- it was quite dense, and I thought about this but couldn't change it then! A little too much bisquick.

This is the crumb topping

Before baking 30 minutes at 375º

After

After 2:

Best enjoyed on your grandmother's china- with decaf coffee.. (or regular if you are 1. not pregnant and 2. living on the edge)

Next time I'll be sure to use less bisquick because it was too dense. The flavor was good, but it needed to be more 'fluffy'.

I'm Back! Apple Pie that will make your mouth water

Hi people, after a long hiatus I have returned.

Tomorrow I will post a series of pictures of what the heck I have been doing since my last post.

I decided to get back in the swing of things with a pie.... the most classic, and the almost best.... the Apple Pie. I'm calling this the 'Kennedy Pie', it's that classic.

For the Crust:

It's your average pie crust, except I can't follow directions and use shortening, I believe in butter.

2 1/4 cups flour

3/4 tsp salt

2/3 cup butter

8-10 TB cold water

When I roll out the dough, I sprinkle sugar instead of flour and use a paper towel to roll it out (prevents stickiness and prevents toughness of dough that flour brings). Then I sprinkle vanilla on and rub it onto the dough. It makes it special. I promise.

For the Insides- oh the insides!!

I used a bag of apples that I got at the store for $1.50.. they were variety- reddish.

I don't skin my apples. I think it's inhumane.

6 cups of thinly sliced apples

3/4 cups of sugar (I suggest 1/2 cup white, 1/4 cup brown)

1 TB Lemon Juice

2 TB flour

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

If you want detailed directions- email me- the rest is photo only...

After putting all the pie together, I brushed on some 1/2 and 1/2, then sprinkled sugar over the top. I cut out a heart in the middle... it's symbolic.

Then I wrapped my symbolic alien baby in some foil. My alien baby pie is afraid of signals being transmitted...Not really. The foil prevents excess browning on the crust (don't tell anyone, it's not like everyone knows that).

Now the alien is in the oven, for 1 hour on 375º. check back tomorrow for mas details.

*** Edit***

the alien baby has emerged, to show the world its' true beauty!