Showing posts with label apples. Show all posts
Showing posts with label apples. Show all posts

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Pie, Pie, Me Oh My!


I went all out for National Pie Day. I made homemade Chicken Pot Pie for supper and Apple Crisp Pie for dessert. This was the first time I have made a Pot Pie from scratch. I must say the whole family was shocked at how good the Pot Pie was. It reminded me of the store bought ones I had as a kid. I found the Pot Pie recipe at reneebeck.com. The only thing I would change is saving myself a step and use frozen mixed veggies instead of chopping celery and carrots. I also used the pioneer woman's perfect flakey pie crust. Her recipe is perfect because it makes 3 crusts. 2 for the pot pie and 1 for the apple pie!  
Healthier Chicken Pot Pie (adapted from AllRecipes.com)
  • 1 lb skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cubed
  • 1 1/2 c. sliced carrots
  • 1 c. frozen green peas
  • 1/2 c. sliced celery
  • 3 tbps butter
  • 1/3 c. chopped onion
  • 1/3 c. all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp celery seed
  • 1 3/4 c. chicken broth
  • 2/3 c. low-fat (1%) milk
  • 1/4 c. chopped Italian parsley
  • 2 (9-inch) unbaked pie crusts
  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
  2. Chop veggies. Combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery in a saucepan. Cover with water. Boil until chicken is no longer pink in the middle and vegetables are fork tender, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain, and set aside.
  3. Cook and stir onions in butter in a saucepan over medium heat, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick, about 5 minutes. Stir in parsley and remove from heat. Set aside.
  4. Place chicken mixture in bottom pie crust; pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in top to allow steam to escape.
  5. Bake in preheated oven until pie is golden brown and filling is bubbly, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Pie Crust from: The Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

  • 1-1/2 cup Crisco (vegetable Shortening)
  • 3 cups All-purpose Flour
  • 1 whole Egg
  • 5 Tablespoons Cold Water
  • 1 Tablespoon White Vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon Salt

Preparation Instructions

In a large bowl, with a pastry cutter, gradually work the Crisco into the flour for about 3 or 4 minutes until it resembles a coarse meal. In a small bowl, beat an egg with a fork and then pour it into the flour/shortening mixture. Add 5 tablespoons of cold water, 1 tablespoon of white vinegar and 1 teaspoon of salt. Stir together gently until all of the ingredients are incorporated.
Separate the dough into thirds. ***Note: Separating it into thirds will result in three thin crusts. If you prefer a more substantial crust, separate it in half.*** Form 3 evenly sized balls of dough and place each dough into a large Ziploc bag. Using a rolling pin, slightly flatten each ball of dough (about ½ inch thick) to make rolling easier later. Seal the bags and place them in the freezer until you need them. (If you will be using it immediately it’s still a good idea to put in the freezer for about 15 to 20 minutes to chill.)
When you are ready to use the dough to make a crust, remove from the freezer and allow to thaw for 15 minutes. On a floured surface roll the dough, starting at the center and working your way out. (Sprinkle some flour over top of the dough if it’s a bit too moist.) If the dough is sticking to the countertop use a metal spatula and carefully scrape it up and flip it over and continue rolling until it’s about ½ inch larger in diameter than your pie pan.
With a spatula, lift the dough carefully from the surface of the counter into the pie pan. Gently press the dough against the corner of the pan. Go around the pie pan pinching and tucking the dough to make a clean edge.

Monday, October 14, 2013

Happy National Dessert Day

Who knew there was a day to celebrate one of my favorite things... DESSERT! One of our favorite desserts is apple crisp. It took awhile to find the perfect recipe. We tried ones from just about every family member, and in the end the one we liked the most came from a bag of apples. Sorry, I don't have a picture of the yummy dessert. It rarely lasts long enough to be photographed.


Our Favorite Apple Crisp

8 medium apples
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 1/8 cups flour
1 1/8 cups oatmeal
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Peel and dice apples and place into a 9X13 pan.
Combine sugar, flour, oats and cinnamon.
Cut in butter until crumbly.
Press oat mixture on top of apples.
Bake for 45- 50 minutes

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Bars


Believe it or not, I didn't find this recipe on Pinterest. This recipe came to me in an email from Betty Crocker. I was partially drawn to trying these bars, because they used apple butter. Which I have a large jar of in my fridge right now. Also, who doesn't like apples and cinnamon! I changed this recipe from the original by adding oatmeal. I love having oatmeal in my bars and cookies, it makes them feel healthier!

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal Bars
adapted from Betty Crocker


Bars
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup apple butter
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup finely chopped peeled apple (1 medium)
1 cup cinnamon-flavored baking chips 
Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk    

  • Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray.

  • In large bowl, beat butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add apple butter, eggs and vanilla; beat until well blended.

  • On low speed, beat in flour, oatmeal, baking soda and salt until well blended. Stir in apple and cinnamon chips. Spread batter in pan.

  • Bake 28 to 32 minutes or until edges begin to pull away from sides of pan and top is evenly browned. Cool in pan on cooling rack at least 1 hour.

  • In small bowl, mix glaze ingredients until thin enough to drizzle. Drizzle glaze over bars. For bars, cut into 8 rows by 4 rows.

  •                                          


    Monday, January 23, 2012

    Mini Apple Crisp Triangles


    Since it was a crappy day outside yesterday, I decided it was a great day to bake something new! I found a recipe for Sugar Crumb Crispy, I believe on Pinterest, and added a few things that I thought would make it a little more like mini apple crisp. The ones I made without apple butter actually reminded me of the dessert pizza from Papa Murphys. So you can make them with or without apple butter they are good both ways!

    Mini Apple Crisp Triangles

    • 3-4 tbs butter *make sure butter is cold*
    • 2 tbs sugar
    • 2 tbs brown sugar
    • 1/4 tsp cinnamon
    • dash of salt
    • 1/4 cup flour
    • 1/4 cup oatmeal
    • Apple Butter
    • 1 can Cresent Rolls
    Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
    Cut in butter to sugars, cinnamon, and salt and flour to form crumbs.
    On an ungreased cookie sheet, separate crescent roll dough into 8 triangles.  Sprinkle crumbs on top.
    Bake at 400 degrees F for 8-12 minutes.
    After they were cooked and cooled I cut them into smaller triangles but you can leave them big too!


    GLAZE
    • 1/2 cup powdered sugar  (if the glaze is too runny, just add more powdered sugar to get yours to the desired consistency)
    • 1 Tbsp. softened butter
    • 1/4 tsp. vanilla
    • 1 to 1-1/2 Tbsp. milk
    Blend together and drizzle over triangles.


    Below are some step by step photos.....



    Cut in butter to sugars, cinnamon, and salt and flour to form crumbs.


    On an ungreased cookie sheet, separate crescent roll dough into 8 triangles. Then if you are using Apple Butter, spread that onto the triangles.


    Sprinkle crumbs on top. Then Bake 8-12 minutes. I did mine for 10.


    Hot out of the oven ready for glaze.

    Wednesday, August 24, 2011

    First Day of School & After School Snack

    Last week was the start of school here. Gabby started 3rd grade. She has Mrs. Mortensen as a teacher, and thus far is loving it. Although it comes with a little more homework than last year. Every night she has math, fact practice and 20 minutes of reading. One big plus this year (in her book anyway) she get to have a planner to keep track of what goes on day to day! 

    This week Jayden started school. I think I was more nervous for him to start than he was. Jayden is quite a ball of fire and can be unpredictable with his attitude and temper. My worries aside Daddy took him to his first day of school, while I was on my way home from Atlanta. He has Mrs. Froelich as his teacher. 

    BTW.... I got the idea to use the white board on Pinterest. It is one of the few things I have pinned and actually done. I am trying to get better about it! 







    One of the kids' favorite snacks is apples and dip. After Gabby's first day of school I made her favorite dip along with a new peanut butter dip for snack time.

    Gabby's Favorite Dip

    1 (8oz) pkg cream cheese
    1/2 cup brown sugar
    1 Tbsp Vanilla

    My family always had this dip when we had our "Cheese and Cracker Parties" on sunday nights. So it is a childhood favorite of mine and I am glad I was able to introduce it to my kids and hopefully someday they will do the same! Also, this dip is good heated up a little too!


    The peanut butter dip I got from Better Homes and Gardens. It was an interesting dip, but I didn't like it on apples I liked it better for crackers.

    ingredients
    • cup low-fat cottage cheese
    • tablespoons peanut butter
    • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon or apple pie spice
    • 1 to 2 teaspoons skim milk
    • medium apples or pears, cored and sliced

    directions 1. For dip, in blender container or food processor bowl place the cottage cheese, peanut butter, and cinnamon or apple pie spice. Cover and blend or process until smooth. If necessary, stir in enough milk to make dip of desired consistency.
    2. Serve the dip immediately or cover and chill it for up to 24 hours. Serve dip with the apple or pear slices. Makes 6 (2-tablespoon) servings.

    nutrition facts
    Calories106 Total Fat (g)4 Cholesterol (mg)3, Sodium (mg)178, Carbohydrate (g)13, Protein (g)7, Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet