So, I quickly browsed my 'pie' board on Pinterest to see what looked good. I settled on an apple pie because Leighton had been requesting one not too long ago. There were a couple options, but in the end I chose this one: salted caramel apple pie. All I needed to do was dash to the store for Granny Smith apples. And vanilla ice cream. I am sorry but there is no such thing as apple pie unless there is vanilla ice cream involved.
Riley helped my mix up the dry ingredients to mix with the apples, and I got to work on the pie crust. I have only ever used my mom's pie crust recipe, but I thought it was time to see how one made with butter handled and tasted. I made it easy on myself by using the perfect pie crust recipe that accompanied the pie recipe. It only took moments to put together and handled really well. I used salted butter so skipped the salt in the recipe, as I most often do. But, I think this crust could have used the extra salt. It wasn't as flaky as I *sometimes* get my usual pie recipe, but the flavor was good. And it was so easy to work with.
I also decided that it was about time that I tried out a lattice pie crust since I never had. It was coincidental that as the pie crust chilled in the fridge, Riley and I went to Leighton's school to volunteer in his art class as we often do on Thursdays, and the project of the day involved some weaving. It gave me the little boost of confidence that I needed to come home and make this pie! It didn't turn out as the prettiest pie ever, and it may not win me any pie baking contests (some of you may recall I used to always say that when I grew up I wanted to be a soccer mom who drove a minivan and entered apple pie baking contests!), but I was happy with how it looked!
Of course it was dark by the time the pie was baked, so I wasn't able to use any natural light to get a picture before we cut into the warm from the oven goodness.
But I did take this the next day. Notice that it isn't a full pie shot? Yeah, that's because there was no longer a full pie!
In other kitchen news, I have a few more recipes to share with you.
Skinny orange chicken
I was excited to come across this recipe on Pinterest. As you are well aware, fattening and unhealthy recipes don't scare me off, but I do appreciate the opportunity to taste taste healthier alternatives. The recipe came together quickly, just as promised. I added in some red pepper and snow peas for some extra crunch and color. I tossed them in and stir-fried them for about one minute right before adding in the sauce. When I tasted the sauce right out of the pot, I thought it was far too sweet and that it had a bit of an extract fake flavor to it. However, once everything (rice, meat, sauce, vegetable, green onion, sesame seeds) was combined on a fork, it all worked really well together. Roy loved it. The kids weren't fans. They both said it was too sweet after trying a few pieces.
spicy stir-fry Chinese cabbage
I had some cabbage I needed to use up and wanted a side to go with the orange chicken. I knew that the kids likely wouldn't want any so I searched for a recipe with some heat. And I am so glad I did. This was so delicious, and Roy and I both really loved it. I will definitely be making this again. For chili sauce, I used sriracha. I used rice wine vinegar, didn't bother with the water and cornstarch, and forgot the green onion.
no bake granola bars
When Leighton was home from school on Friday due to the bad weather, I decided to spend some time baking with the kids. But, I went with a recipe I had been wanting to try that didn't actually involve any baking. Just lots of measuring and mixing, which is the fun part for the kids. They loved mashing the banana, dumping in all the different ingredients, and mixing it all up. We did one version pretty similar to the original recipe and used raisins as our dried fruit. The other version we left out the peanut butter and cocoa and used dried cranberries, white chocolate chips, and coconut chunks. I love the crunchy coldness straight of the freezer. They do melt fairly quickly, so these are an eat-at-home and not on-the-go snack. Will be a great addition to poolside treats this summer, I think! I did find them too sweet, and Riley can only get through 1/2 or 3/4 before it being a bit too sweet for her as well. But Leighton? He can eat one of each in a flash! Roy loved the blondie version but thought the chocolate peanut butter ones were a bit too much. I think next time I will use less white chocolate chips in that one and I'd reduce or eliminate the maple syrup in both. The bananas are plenty sweet, especially with the chocolate chips and dried fruit added in.
buffalo tuna melts
I had been reading about tuna melts on an internet forum a couple weeks ago and realized we hadn't had them in a long time. Leighton used to LOVE them, but now doesn't. And Riley has never liked them. So, it useless to use them as a quick meal option if it means I need to make something separate for the kids anyway! And that is the story of why we haven't had them in a long time. But, the more interesting story is that I made some on the weekend for lunch for me & Roy and went with a 'buffalo chicken dip' type idea. I mixed the tuna with Frank's Red Hot, ranch dressing, and celery and topped the buns with cheddar. They were soooo good that I went and bought more cans of tuna so I can make them again soon. I don't know that Roy thought they were as fantastic as I did, but for some reason they hit a specific craving I was having, so they are now my new favorite thing!
banana pumpkin bread
I made the loaf but not the icing. The icing would have been tasty, I'm sure, but I just wanted the loaf this time around. I thought that it baked really well and the texture was great. Super easy to slice without being crumbly all over. The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the flavor of the nutmeg and cloves. It was a bit too strong. Next time I would reduce how much is in there or omit them completely and just use the cinnamon. The ratios were just a bit off for me. Also, there wasn't a baking temp in the recipe so I went with 350 and it took about 60 minutes total.
m&m blondies with a pretzel crust
I was going to make m&m and pretzel cookies but didn't have enough time, so I thought I'd make blondies instead. I've never made blondies, but I knew they'd be quick just like brownies (I've shared my favorite recipe before, I think!). I found two recipes that I wanted to use for different reasons, so I combined them. The first was this recipe for browned butter pretzel m&m blondies. I loved the idea of browned butter. Too bad I was rushing with the kids and forgot to brown the butter. Seriously, how could I forget that?!?! I did use some other elements of the recipe though. The other was this recipe for pretzel crusted m&m blondies. The idea of the pretzel crust sounded fun! Each recipe had different amounts of the other ingredients, so I mixed and matched for what I thought would work for me. In the end, this is what I did:
crust:
4Tbsp melted butter
1 1/2 cups crushed pretzel pieces
blondies:
1/2 cup melted butter (salted)
1 cup light brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup m&ms
I put parchment paper on the bottom of the pan and then baked at 350 for 25 minutes in an 8x8 pan.
I took them to Pauline's for a play date this afternoon and they were a hit with everyone there. I also got an email from Roy while we are there after he sampled one of the few I left at home. He liked them. A lot.
Here's the pretzel crust on the bottom:
I have been craving apple pie for months. Yours looks fantastic. And so does everything else. But I am trying to cut back on the sweets and treats.
ReplyDeleteI should be, too!
Delete