Gingered Pear and Golden Raisin

Mouth watering chunks of pear, surrounded by golden raisins, with a delicate

taste of ginger.

Just before going into the oven, sprinkle the top crust

with Demerara sugar.

Hot out of the oven, the crust has been cooked to 

a golden delicious color.


When you are tired of apple, go for pear!!!

As Always, 

ENJOY!

Recipe Source:  bon appetit November 1991

INGREDIENTS

1. • 3/4 cup golden raisins
   • 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger (about 2 1/2 ounces)
   • 3 pounds ripe medium pears (about 7), peeled, cored, sliced 1/2 inch thick
   • 1/2 cup sugar
   • 3 tablespoons butter, melted
   • 2 tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
   • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
   • 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
   • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
   • 2 Buttermilk Pie Crust Dough disks
2. • 1 egg
   • 2 tablespoons milk
3. • Vanilla ice cream

PREPARATION

1. 1. Combine raisins and ginger in heavy small saucepan. Add enough water to just cover. Simmer over low heat until liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Cool completely.
   2. Position rack in lowest third of oven and preheat to 400°F. Combine pears and next 6 ingredients in bowl. Stir in raisin mixture. Roll out 1 pie crust disk on lightly floured surface to 13-inch round (about 1/8 inch thick). Roll up dough on rolling pin and transfer to 9-inch-diameter glass pie plate. Gently press into place. Trim edges of crust, leaving 1/4-inch overhang. Spoon pear mixture into pan, mounding in center.
   3. Roll out second crust disk on lightly floured surface to 13-inch-diameter round. Roll up on rolling pin and unroll over pie. Trim edges, leaving 3/4 -inch overhang. Fold overhang of top crust under edge of bottom crust. Pinch edges together to seal. Crimp edges to make decorative border. Gather and reroll scraps. Cut out decorative shapes. Beat egg with milk in small bowl for glaze. Brush top of pie with glaze. Make several slashes in top crust so steam can escape.
   4. Bake pie until crust is golden brown and juices bubble up through slashes, covering crust edges with foil if browning too quickly, about 1 hour. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

Pumpkin Pie

A few cracks is ok.  As the pie cools they close up.

Blind baking the crust, insures that you will have a crispy crust 

and not a soggy crust.



A few extra steps in this recipe, but the end result is perfection!

As Always,

ENJOY!

Recipe Source: the kitchn

Ingredients1 (9-inch) unbaked pie crust
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin purée 
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves or allspice
3/4 cup whole milk
3/4 cup heavy cream
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

 Arrange a rack in the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 425°F. Roll out the pie crust and transfer it to a 9-inch pie pan. Crimp the edges. Chill for 30 minutes while the oven heats.

 Line the pie crust with parchment or aluminum foil and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until the edges just start to brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove the weights and lining, and bake for another 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and keep near the stove.

 Combine the pumpkin purée, granulated sugar, brown sugar, salt, and spices in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment or blender. Blend until the brown sugar is completely mixed in and the purée looks glossy.

 Transfer the purée to a saucepan and set over medium-high heat. Stir frequently until you see wisps of steam rising from the purée, then stir continuously until the mixture is very steamy and "plops" when you pause for a second. The mixture will also start to smell like spices and cooked pumpkin. Cook for no more than 5 minutes.

 Remove the pan from the heat. Whisk in the milk and cream. To warm the eggs and ensure that they don't cook when you add them to the pumpkin mixture, whisk them together in a separate bowl, then whisk in a few spoonfuls of the warm pumpkin mixture. Slowly whisk the eggs into the saucepan with the pumpkin mixture. Whisk in the vanilla.

 Place the partially baked pie crust on a parchment-lined baking sheet and set it near the stove. Carefully pour the warm pumpkin mixture into the warm pie crust. If it looks like there's too much filling for the crust, stop when you come close to the edge of the crust.

 Carefully transfer the baking sheet with the pie to the oven and immediately turn down the heat to 375°F. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes — until the pie is puffed in the middle, but still jiggles when you gently shake the pan. You'll also see small cracks form in the outer part of the pie and some bubbling around the edge. Check the pie every 15 minutes or so and cover the crust with a ring of foil when it becomes deep brown.

 Let the pie cool before serving — it will continue to set as it cools.

Walnut and Fig Bread

Absolutely delicious!

I have previously posted this recipe, but this batch was made
with the Levain my son brought home from the San Francisco Bay Area.

I added, 1 cup of fig jam, but not chopped dried fig, plus as the recipe calls for
on a single loaf, 1 cup of toasted walnuts.

As Always,

ENJOY!

Levain Bread

What a wonderful surprise, when my son came home for Thanksgiving and  brought home a starter

from the San Francisco Bay area!

A starter with a whole new host of good bacteria!

Time to bake some bread and try it out!

We had so much fun together making our bread. The bread turned out

absolutely amazing.  Perfectly chewy inside with a great crust on the outside.

This recipe is the same as the walnut Levain I have previously posted, 

just without the walnuts.

As Always,

ENJOY!

Blackberry-Apple Pie

A delicious variation on a classic.

With the cheddar cheese crust, it makes it extra special.

As Always,

ENJOY!

Recipe Source: Southern Living November 2011

INGREDIENTS

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup cold butter, cut into pieces
• 1 1/2 cups (6 oz.) shredded white Cheddar cheese
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup ice water
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• Blackberry-Apple Pie Filling
• 1 tablespoon sparkling sugar

FILLING

• 3 pounds Granny Smith apples
• 3 pounds Braeburn apples
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 (12-oz.) package frozen blackberries (2 cups)
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• Peel apples, and cut into 1/2-inch-thick wedges; toss with sugar and 1/2 cup flour.
  
  

  Melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; add apple mixture, and saute 15 to 20 minutes or until apples are tender. Remove from heat. Cool completely (about 1 hour).
  
  

  Toss frozen blackberries with 1 Tbsp. flour, and stir into apple mixture. Use immediately.
• DIRECTIONS

Stir together flour and salt in a large bowl. Cut butter into flour mixture with a pastry blender until mixture resembles small peas. Stir in cheese. Drizzle 1/2 cup ice water over flour mixture, stirring with a fork until dry ingredients are moistened and dough is crumbly but forms a ball when pressed together, adding more ice water, 1 Tbsp. at a time, if necessary (up to 1/4 cup). Divide dough in half. Place each half on a large piece of plastic wrap. Shape each dough half into a flat disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap, and chill 2 to 24 hours.

Preheat oven to 400°. Place 1 dough disk on a lightly floured surface; sprinkle dough lightly with flour. Roll dough to about 1/4-inch thickness. Starting at 1 edge of dough, wrap dough around rolling pin. Place rolling pin over a 9-inch pie plate, and unroll dough over pie plate. Press dough into pie plate; trim off excess crust along edges. Brush edges of crust lightly with egg; reserve remaining egg. Spoon Blackberry-Apple Pie Filling into crust, mounding filling slightly in center.

Roll remaining dough disk to about 1/4-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut dough into 9 (1-inch-wide) strips. Arrange strips in a lattice design over filling; gently press ends of strips into bottom crust; crimp edge of crust. Brush lattice with reserved egg; sprinkle with sparkling sugar. Place on a baking sheet.

Bake at 400° on lower oven rack 45 to 50 minutes. Cover loosely with foil to prevent excessive browning, and bake 25 more minutes or until juices are thick and bubbly. Cool on a wire rack 2 hours.

Thanksgiving Pie Parade 2017

Another amazingly wonderful Thanksgiving, 

and truly I have so much to be thankful for!!

An amazing family, my strong faith, and good health!

We are so very blessed!

The bounty of our feast started with a deliciously moist, 

dry rubbed turkey, so many wonderful sides contributed by 

all the family, and ended with the glorious spread of pies. 

There are always the classic family favorites, and then

I love to try a few new recipes as well.

This year's pie menu included:

Crimson Pie

Mince Pie

Classic Pecan Pie

Texas Pecan Pie

Pumpkin Chai Cheesecake

Apple and Blackberry Pie

(with a sharp cheddar cheese crust)

Gingered Pear and Golden Raisin Pie

(served with a Cider Bourbon Sauce)

Hopefully some of these recipes will inspire you for your next holiday feast!

As Always,

ENJOY!

Raspberry Streusel Pie

Love this! So delicious even when it is not summer time!

Raspberries with sugar and instant tapioca. Let set for 15-20 minutes.

Streusel blended to a fine crumb. This can be made a day ahead.

Pie crust ready to be filled, After Chilling in the freezer for 10-15 minutes.

Gently pour raspberries in crust, pushing fruit to the edges,
so streusel will lay evenly.

streusel added after 25 minutes of baking.

Fully baked pie needs to cool for a few hours before cutting.

This is what I consider an uncommon pie.  We have all eaten mixed berry pies, or
blueberry pies or boysenberry pies. but a purely raspberry pie,is not often seen.
Maybe that is because raspberries are so delicate, or maybe because
raspberries cooked down more than other berries, so more fruit is
required to fill a pie shell.
For whatever the reason, I think it should become a more commonly made
pie, because it is absolutely delicious!  It almost seems decadent
to eat so much of this fruit in one sitting!

This particular raspberry pie was made for my brother Matt's birthday!
So all of the family was able to enjoy a slice!

As Always,

ENJOY!

INGREDIENTS

pie dough for 1 crust

30 oz. frozen raspberries

1/2 cup sugar

3 Tbsp. minute tapioca

1 cup flour

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp. salt

6 Tbsp. butter

      Prepare pie dough recipe.  Form into disk, and chill for 30 minutes.  Prepare streusel topping and set aside.

    In a large bowl, add raspberries, sugar and instant tapioca.  Stir to coat the berries.  Set aside for 15 to 20 minutes.

    Roll out the pie dough and line a 9" pie pan.  Trim and crimp the edges.  Put in freezer for 10-15 minutes.

    Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

     Set frozen pie shell on a baking tray, fill with the berry mixture.  Place pie in oven for 25 minutes to bake.  

    Remove pie from oven, reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.  Sprinkle streusel topping over pie.  Return pie to oven and continue baking for 25 minutes.

 Cool pie completey(2-3 hours) before cutting and serving.

Peanut Caramel Cookie Cups

These cookies were totally last minute inspiration. 

I baked a pan of mini muffin sized peanut butter cup cookies. 

The pan bakes up 24 cookies, but I only had 15

peanut butter cups. 

Hmmmm...... what to do with the remaining cups. 

Quickly I pressed some lightly salted peanuts into 

the cups, and realizing that they would not stay in place 

without some help, I took out a jar of homemade caramel sauce 

from my refrigerator, and drizzled a little caramel over the top. 

Viola!.... now the peanut butter cookie cups had a new filling. 

Be creative and add your own style filling!

As Always,

ENJOY!

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

What to do with leftover Halloween candy?

Turn them into delicious cookies that everyone will enjoy!

Stir up a batch of peanut butter cookie dough

( I used the recipe featured in the previous post).

Roll dough into 1" balls and place each ball into 

a mini muffin tin.  If you don't have one, and you don't have 

a friend you can borrow one from, no worries, just place on a cookie sheet. 

Bake the cookies, and immediately after removing from the oven, 

lightly push in the unwrapped peanut butter cup. 

let cool completely in the muffin tins before removing. 

As Always,

ENJOY!

Peanut Butter Cookies

These cookies far exceeded my expectations!

These were the first peanut butter cookies I have eaten

that were moist and chewy, which is the way I like my cookies!

In my opinion, most peanut butter cookies tend to be dry, but not 

these ones!

As Always,

ENJOY!

Recipe Source: Mel's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup butter, softened 
• 2 cups creamy peanut butter 
• 1 1/2 cups brown sugar 
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar 
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, beat together the butter and peanut butter until light and fluffy.
• Add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and mix until combined. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until creamy.
• Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined.
• Scoop the dough and roll into 1 1/2 - 2-inch balls. Place on parchment-  placing them a couple inches apart.
• Bake for 10 minutes until puffed. 
• Remove from the oven and immediately press each cookie to flatten slightly with the bottom of a flat drinking glass. Don’t flatten the cookies to smithereens, just press the puffed part down until the cookies are an even thickness.
• Scoop onto a cooling rack to cool completely. 

Flourless Chocolate Cake

A great way to end a meal!

The delicacy and simplicity of a flourless chocolate cake,

is what makes it so enjoyable.  A good dollop of whip cream, 

and nothing more is needed. 

I have made and eaten flourless chocolate cakes that have

a chocolate ganache frosting.  They are delicious and very rich.

However, serving a cake, where you can enjoy the light

texture and flavor of the chocolate without any other

enhancement, is what flourless cakes are all about!

This recipe is extremely simple and the finished product 

turns out very well.

As Always,

ENJOY!

Recipe Source: Martha Stewart

INGREDIENTS

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for pan

• 8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 6 large eggs, separating yolks and egg whites
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
• Sweetened whipped cream, for serving
• 
  

1. 1. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees with the rack in the center. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.
2. 2. Place butter and chocolate in a large heatproof bowl and microwave in 30-second increments, stirring each time, until completely melted. Let cool slightly. Whisk in egg yolks.
3. 3. In a large bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add granulated sugar, and continue beating until glossy stiff peaks form. Whisk 1/4 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture; then gently fold in remaining egg whites.
4. 4. Pour batter into the prepared pan, and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Bake until the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan and is set in the center, 45 to 50 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack; remove sides of pan. Serve at room temperature, dusted with confectioners' sugar. Serve with whipped cream, if desired.