Cooking, baking, and home-making

Fixing up a pair of shoes

2012-06-28T12:13:00.000-07:00

Before

I was about to toss these shoes that I haven't worn in several weeks because I scuffed the toe against something and scraped off the pink snythetic outer later. It was bright white underneath and really stood out. I wondered if some paint carefully matched to the color of the shoe would work- just regular acrylic craft paint- and surprisingly it did! Its still noticeable, but the point is its a lot better than before- enough so that I think I'll wear them again.

After

Black Raspberry Pie

2012-06-20T12:17:00.004-07:00


Black raspberry pie

Sorry for such a long lapse in blog posts! Its been a busy last month or two for me. The state park nearby has many patches of black raspberries growing in the forest, and we've been taking advantage of that in our household. I believe we've picked at least sixteen quarts this summer, and froze about 12 of them. They freeze wonderfully for up to a year or so. We're actually still finishing up some frozen ones from last summer! Its great to have berries-free ones at that- all year long. If you haven't tried black raspberries before (also called black caps) they are very similar to raspberries, but with a slightly different flavor. They are also less likely to crush into a sticky juicy mess compared to regular wild red raspberries. They are delightfully sweet, and although they look like blackberries, they aren't as sour. They are loaded with antioxidants, fiber, and vitamin C. For this pie, I used my mother's pie crust recipe.
Pie Crust:
Combine 3 cups flour, 2 tsps salt, and 2 tsps sugar in a bowl. Using a pastry cutter or fork, blend in 1 cup crisco and 3 tbsps cold butter until it resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle in ice cold water by the tablespoon, using as little as possible (around 6-8) until the crust comes together. Pat into two patties, wrap in wax paper, and chill in the fridge while you prepare the berries and preheat the oven.
Pie:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Pour five cups frozen black raspberries (you can also use fresh) into a large bowl. Sprinkle in 3 tablespoons of cornstarch and 1/2 cup of sugar, gently toss until berries are coated. Next, roll our pie crust and assemble pie. Cut slits on top to let the steam out, and wrap edges of crust with tin foil to prevent over browning. Bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes, then decrease heat to 350 and cook for another 45 minutes, until the filling is bubbling and pie crust is golden brown. Enjoy!

Blueberry Cake with Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting

2012-04-30T18:57:00.003-07:00

Blueberry cake with coconut cream cheese frosting

This recipe was a way to use up coconut and blueberries. We have these beautiful frozen blueberries in our freezer and will need to eat them up before its time to pick new ones mid-summer. They stay fresh in the freezer for up to a year (or longer) by the way. The best part about this recipe is, it looks so beautiful, tastes fresh, moist, and sweet, and is so easy to make! This cake was the following recipe:

Ingredients:

For the cake you'll need:

1 box of french vanilla cake mix

3 eggs

1 tsp of vanilla

1 tsp of coconut extract (you can skip this if you don't have it on hand)

1/3 cup oil

1 1/4 cups coconut milk (you can use regular milk to substitute)

2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries, combined with a dusting of flour

Prior to baking

For the frosting:

1/2 stick butter, room temp

1 8oz package cream cheese, room temp

1/4 tsp coconut extract

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

4 cups confectioners sugar

2 cups sweetened shredded coconut (this is optional-for sprinkling on the top and sides- its great because it disguises a slightly messy frosting job!)

Optional:

The batter rises up around the blueberries

Between middle and top layers, spread 1/2 cup of blueberry preserves. Microwave slightly so that it thins enough to spread. I tried this and it turned out great.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 3 round cake pans or pie pans. Prepare cake by combining cake mix, eggs, vanilla and coconut extract, oil, and coconut milk in a mixer. Combine according to cake package directions. Pour cake mix equally into 3 round pans. You can try this with fewer layers and or even in a sheet cake and it would still taste great. You would end up with a little extra frosting if you had less layers, though. After pouring the cake batter, sprinkle the floured blueberries directly on top of the batter. Don't press in, the cake will rise up and around the blueberries. Place in oven and bake about 20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and the cake is golden on top. Allow cake to cool for 10 minutes or so. Meanwhile, assemble the frosting: cream butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add in vanilla and coconut extract. Slowly add confectioners sugar 1/2 cup at a time until the frosting is creamy and smooth. Frost the cake by putting a layer of frosting between each cake, plus more for the sides and top. When finished, sprinkle coconut over the top and sides. Helpful hint: You can hold your hand upright next to the cake to block the coconut from falling away from the sides of the cake and to force it to stick to the sides. Its tricky, but if any falls on the cake plate you can scoop it up and sprinkle it on the top, no big deal.

Allow to chill in the fridge, its delicious served cold with a nice tall glass of milk.

Before and After- Yard Sale Find

2012-04-28T07:37:00.001-07:00

I found this barn wood picture frame at a yard sale for fifty cents. I loved the frame and got it without really thinking a lot about what to put into it- some kind of custom size painting that I have yet to do perhaps? But after we got home, Ben had an idea of what to do with it. We've recently started using a printer that does great photo prints, without using expensive ink. We figured out that it comes to about eleven cents per full page of ink. Not bad! Ben figured out how to print a panorama photo we shot in West Virginia on vacation last summer to fit the strange 20X5" size. It does have a seam in the middle, but its hard to notice and we love it. Project total? 61cents (50 cents for the frame and 11 cents for the photo).

African Sweet Potato and Peanut Stew

2012-04-25T17:07:00.004-07:00

This stew recipe is from this book we got for free at a yard sale this weekend. Its so delicious! We were going to freeze the extra (it makes enough for 6-10 servings) but we ate the leftovers so fast we didn't need to. Ingredients:

3 tbsp water

2 medium yellow onions

3 garlic cloves

2 red bell peppers, cut in 1 inch squares

1 tbsp light brown sugar

1 tsp grated or minced fresh ginger (we used 1/4 tsp ground ginger)

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1/2 to 3/4 cup smooth or crunchy peanut butter

3 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes

1 can red kidney beans, drained (we used pink beans)

1 can diced tomatoes

4 cups vegetable stock

1 tsp salt (or to taste)

Directions:

Heat water in a large sauce pan- add onions and garlic and cook until softened. Add bell pepper, cover, and cook until softened. Stir in brown sugar, ginger, cumin, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper, and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds.
Stir in peanut butter, distributing evenly. (We tried thinning the peanut butter out first with a whisk and water before adding to the pot, so that it incorporated evenly into the stew).

Add sweet potatoes, beans, and tomatoes. Add vegetable stock, bring to a boil, then simmer on low until sweet potatoes are soft (about thirty minutes). Taste and salt if necessary.

Sprouted lentils with Broccoli

2012-04-25T15:00:00.002-07:00

If you take lentils, soak them overnight, then rinse twice daily for 1-2 days, they begin to sprout. Basically, it mellows the flavor out and they get sweeter and more delicate. The texture changes to slightly crunchy and crisp, with an almost sugar snap pea flavor. Its amazing. I tried it for the first time lately and was surprised at how it turned lentils from being boring and brown to tasting fresh and almost like fresh peas from the garden. Try it sometime! You can eat them raw as a healthy, crunch snack (just 82 calories per cup with 6 grams of protein!) or saute them with veggies like we did. It doesn't take much work and its kind of fun to see them "starting to grow." We can't really garden much since we have a balcony but this is one way to "grow" something indoors.

Vegetarian "chicken" sandwich healthy alternative

2012-04-22T12:14:00.006-07:00

I used to like chicken patties and would eat them at the school cafeteria, or in a fast food meal. But one day I bit into one- and crunched down on a small piece of...something. Fat? Ligament? I don't want to know. Shudder.... its just a big yuck factor for me eating processed meat. Before trying vegetarian alternatives, I didn't know something could taste similar, but you would be surprised. The more processed the meat (think sausage or chicken patty) the more similar the vegetarian alternatives taste. It makes sense, I guess, since most processed meat is pretty spongy and gets a lot of its flavors from additives. The vegetarian alternatives aren't something that is such a "super healthy" alternative that you'd want to eat them every day- definitely not. They are still highly processed, and can be expensive as well. Still, though, they are definitely a healthier alternative to the meat versions- less fat and cholesterol, as well as boasting a similar protein content. For a healthy alternative to a fast food chicken sandwich, I toasted a Morningstar Farm vegetarian chicken patty with a half a slice of Texas Longhorn Cheddar cheese and some ketchup, on a honey wheat sandwich thins. It tasted very similar to the famous chic-fil-a sandwich, but much less fat and sodium. Yummy! In case you were wondering what was next to the sandwich on the plate- its matzoh crackers spread with cream cheese and topped with horseradish topping (dug up from my in-laws garden.) Sounds a little strange but my husband was very hungry while I was making dinner and thought he would make a little snack to munch on in the mean time :).

Blueberry cinnamon rolls with lemon-cream cheese icing

2012-04-22T11:37:00.000-07:00

Adapted from this recipe from carnal creations blog. I followed the recipe, except for changing the lemon glaze to a homemade cream cheese icing with fresh lemon juice and zest whipped into it. But next time I'd love to try the lemon glaze, because it sounds really good too. Very refreshing and the perfect compliment to the sweet blueberries. We took the extra cinnamon rolls and froze them individually to enjoy them over the next several weeks, but if you have a big family they may be gone in one sitting!

Ingredients

For the dough:

¾ cup whole milk, heated to 110 degrees
1 envelope (2¼ teaspoons) instant or rapid-rise yeast
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
4¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup cornstarch
½ cup granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons salt
12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces and softened

For the filling:

¾ cups packed light brown sugar (don't use dark, it will be too heavy a molasses flavor)
2½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon salt
1 pint fresh blueberries
1½ teaspoons fresh lemon zest (from one lemon)
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

Icing

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from one lemon)
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 tbsp unsalted butter, softened
6 oz cream cheese, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups confectioners' sugar

Instructions

1. To prep:

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 200 degrees. When oven reaches 200 degrees, shut off. Line the bottom of a 13- by 9-inch baking pan with foil or parchment paper. Grease foil or parchment paper and sides of the pan. You can also use a round 9" cake pan like I did, but you'll need at least two of those if you go that route. Also, grease a medium bowl to hold the dough when it's completed.

2. For the dough:

Whisk heated 110 degree milk and yeast in liquid measuring cup until yeast dissolves, then whisk in eggs and vanilla extract. In bowl of stand mixer fitted with dough hook, mix flour, cornstarch, sugar, and salt until combined. With mixer on low, add warm milk mixture in steady stream and mix until dough comes together, about 1 minute. Increase speed to medium and add butter, one piece at a time, until incorporated. I added my butter in 4 second intervals. Continue to mix until dough is smooth and comes away from sides of bowl, about 10 minutes. if after mixing for 10 minutes the dough is still too wet and sticky, add up to ¼ cup flour (one tablespoon at a time) until the dough releases from the bowl. Turn dough out onto clean surface and knead to form a smooth, round ball. Transfer dough to prepared bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and place in warm turned off oven. Let rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours. I usually turn my 200 degree oven off as soon as I put the dough in to rise to jumpstart the yeast.

3. For the filling:

Combine brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in small bowl using a fork or your fingers to break up any large lumps. Turn dough out onto very lightly floured surface (I never sprinkle flour down before rolling because there's so much butter in this dough it never sticks, but everyone's work surface is different). Roll dough into 16-inch square, spread with 5 tbsp of softened butter, and sprinkle evenly with filling. Lightly press the filling into the dough. Evenly sprinkle the blueberries and lemon zest over the filling. Starting with the edge nearest you, roll dough into tight cylinder, pinch lightly to seal seam, and cut into 8 pieces using either a serrated knife or bench scraper. It's easier to cut the dough in half, then cut each side in half until you have 8 large rolls. For smaller cinnamon buns, cut the dough into 12 pieces. Transfer pieces, cut-side up, to prepared pan. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm spot until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

4. For the icing and to bake:

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk softened butter, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla, cream cheese, and confectioners’ sugar in medium bowl until smooth. TDiscard plastic wrap and bake buns until deep golden brown and filling is melted, about 25 to 35 minutes. Cool for about 15 minutes then ice rolls before serving warm.

*Make Ahead: After transferring pieces to prepared pan in step 3, buns can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for 24 hours. When ready to bake, let sit at room temperature for 1 hour. Remove plastic wrap and continue with step 4 as directed.

*Reheat any leftover rolls in the microwave for 10 to 20 seconds.

Easy tomato basil white pizza with fresh mozzarella

2012-04-17T18:55:00.001-07:00

This pizza is really easy to make, and quick, too. I use rapid rise yeast and from starting the recipe to the first bite, it was only one hour. You can use ready-made dough to save even more time.
Ingredients:
Pizza dough:
1 pkg yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup oil
1 cup warm water
3 cups flour

Toppings:
ranch dressing
Sliced tomatoes
fresh mozzarella
fresh basil leaves

Directions:
Combine yeast, salt, sugar, oil and water. Let stand 5 minutes. Stir in flour and knead until the dough is soft and elastic. Cover and let rise about 45 minutes. While rising, preheat oven to 450. Roll out dough into a large circle, then cover dough with a drizzle of ranch dressing- I used about 3 or 4 tbsp to cover a large pizza. Then layer sliced tomatoes. Cook for 5-10 minutes (until dough looks almost done) then pull out and add sliced fresh mozzarella. Return to oven until cheese is bubbly. Immediately after taking the pizza out, sprinkle basil over top. Enjoy! Its really yummy and very fast.

White Chip Mocha Cookies

2012-04-13T16:27:00.002-07:00

These are so, SO good. They are the result of experimenting with the right amounts of butter, shortening, and flour, to get the taste and texture I always crave in a cookie.

I am really picky about cookies. They have to be soft and chewy, with slightly crisp edges. They have to taste buttery and sweet, but not too much so. They have to be the perfect thickness- These cookies fit the bill perfectly. I created this recipe early on in our marriage and they are always gobbled up within a day or two.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter- room temperature
1/4 cup shortening
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
2 tsp instant coffee
1 cup flour
1/4 cup dark or regular cocoa powder
1/4 cup white chocolate chips
1/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, cream butter, shortening, brown sugar, white sugar, egg, and vanilla.
In another bowl, mix together flour, salt, baking soda, coffee, and cocoa.
Add butter mixture to flour mixture and stir well with a spoon.
Then, stir in white chocolate and chocolate morsels.
Place by rounded tablespoon onto a cookie sheet- makes about 2 dozen. Bake for 8-11 minutes, or until tops no longer look shiny.
Allow to cool for 2 minutes on cookie sheet before taking cookies off to put onto cooling rack.

Oven roasted tomatoes and peppers with rotini and chickpeas

2012-04-12T16:42:00.000-07:00

This meal is very satisfying and healthy. It also makes the kitchen smell great while you are cooking! It didn't take terribly long to cook, probably around 40 minutes start to finish. It may become a go-to if we ever need to use up some tomatoes.

Ben and I were given an abundance of tomatoes last summer from my in-laws, and discovered the perfect way to use up large quantities, skin and all- roast them. They taste like another vegetable (fruit?) altogether after they've been drizzled with oil and sprinkled with salt and roasted to heavenly perfection. You can plunk them in a blender to create a super delicious tomato soup, full of anti oxidants. I only had two tomatoes to use up in this instance, though, and was craving pasta. This recipe was the result.
Ingredients

2 medium tomatoes, skins on
1 small yellow bell pepper
1/2 box of whole wheat rotini pasta
1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce
1 small can of chickpeas
Salt and olive oil

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Quarter the tomatoes and slice bell peppers into similar sized chunks. Place in roasting pan and drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt. Place in oven and roast for 20-25 min, until peppers are browning and tomatoes are sizzling. Meanwhile, begin cooking pasta according to box directions. In a large sauce pan, warm up spaghetti sauce and chickpeas. Heat to simmering. Add pasta, stir. Place the roasted tomatoes (skins and all!) and peppers into a blender, and pulse until it becomes a thick sauce. Pour into pan with spaghetti sauce and chickpeas. Optional: If desired, place dice sized chunks of mozzarella or cheddar cheese in pan and allow the heat to soften the cheese before eating.

Tofu- Egg Salad

2012-04-11T15:04:00.000-07:00

This is a very fast, easy, basic tofu-egg salad recipe. Its healthier than the regular stuff but tastes just as good!

Ingredients
2 hard boiled eggs
1/2 block of firm tofu, water pressed out
1 tbsp Nayonaise (or whatever kind of mayo you have)
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp spicy mustard
1/4 tsp minced fresh dill

Directions: Use a fork to mash up egg and tofu into crumbly pieces. Add other ingredients and mix well. This tastes great on a salad with fresh cucumber slices, and I'm sure it would be great in a sandwich.

Sweet and Sour Spiced Tofu Stir Fry

2012-04-10T17:31:00.000-07:00

Ben and I eat a lot of veggies, and stir-frying is one of our favorite ways to eat them. This stir fry is a nice blend of sweet and sour, and has a smoky taste of cumin. If you like some heat, you can add some red pepper flakes, but I used a hot pepper jelly that left it mildly spicy. Its very forgiving and you can really play around with the recipe, substituting whatever veggies you have on hand, and it pairs well with rice and a simple side salad.
A word on tofu: If you've never cooked with tofu before, I suggest an open mind. It really isn't that scary. It doesn't taste like much on its own, and the consistency varies from firm (think hard boiled egg white) to soft (cream cheese texture) depending on what you get. It absorbs the flavors of whatever it is prepared with or marinated in. Personally, we've always gotten firm and extra firm tofu, but I wouldn't be opposed to trying soft or silken tofu. If you aren't used to it, try it along with another ingredient so it isn't all by itself- such as blending it 50/50 with ricotta in a lasagna. It really isn't that scary. A 1/2 cup serving has just 88 calories, 10 grams of protein, and a good amount of iron, magnesium, folate, manganese, and many other minerals.

Ingredients:
Tofu and marinade:
1/2 block of firm/extra firm tofu (about 1 cup chopped)
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp mango hot pepper jelly (if you don't have this, just use apricot jelly, or even extra honey or brown sugar)
2 tbsps soy sauce

Veggies and spices: (substitute others as long as you keep the same amounts)
2 carrots chopped
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup chopped broccoli florets
1 small yellow pepper
1 small orange pepper
1/4 cup corn
1 tbsp cumin seeds

Directions

Start with the rice, and then tofu preparations. If you are using brown rice to serve with this, start cooking the rice since it will take 40 minutes to fully cook. Otherwise you can wait a few minutes, then prepare white. Or if you're really in a hurry, you can use instant rice. This recipe serves 4 so cook however much rice you think you'll use. Press tofu to remove excess water (I wrap in a clean towel and place a heavy pan on top for around 30 minutes). Whisk together marinade ingredients in a bowl, add chopped tofu. Allow to marinade in fridge for 3o minutes or more, while you prepare the rest of the stir fry.
Assemble and begin chopping the veggies. While you are doing so, put a tbsp of oil in a cast iron pan and heat to medium. Add the cumin seeds- the heat of the oil will draw out amazing flavors from the seeds. It really is a must- powdered cumin doesn't hold a candle to it.
Once the oil is hot, begin adding your veggies. Add the onions and carrots first, cook for about 10 minutes or until starting to soften, then add the rest of the veggies. Continue cooking on medium, stirring occasionally and adding more oil if necessary.
Once veggies are cooked, add the tofu and marinade, stirring well. Salt if desired-I did not need much salt since the marinade is already salty.
Serve over rice.
Enjoy!

Our Guard Dog

2012-04-09T09:30:00.000-07:00

Our dog, Hailey, is a great guard dog.

She is very friendly but also incredibly prone to barking. Especially around things she thinks are a threat, or should be eaten. This list includes cats, birds, squirrels, deer, and lately, Amish buggies when we drive through Lancaster. Shetland sheepdogs were bred to herd, so it makes sense that she would want to chase these kinds of things. More information on shelties here. With the return of warmer weather, I've started letting her stand out on the balcony from time to time. She's sure to warn us if she thinks there's something dangerous out there- like a cat or deer. Or both, as seen in this video:

Happy Easter!

2012-04-08T10:43:00.001-07:00

Our dog Hailey enjoying the spring blooms and cherry blossoms.

No-sew fabric flower hairpin

2012-04-04T08:58:00.006-07:00

Lately I've decided to experiment with creating flower hair clips. I've always avoided projects like these because I don't enjoy sewing, so once I realized all you need is scissors, old fabric, and hot glue, I was so excited.

For this project, you will need just a few scraps of cotton cloth. You can have all one color but I chose to do two for this one.

Start with a large piece cut with the edges scalloped, which is on the far right. You can follow a pattern but I don't. It turns out fine if the edges aren't perfect, this is a forgiving design. You'll also need a set of four slightly smaller scalloped circles, and then four more that are slightly smaller yet. You can see I didn't bother ironing the fabric- its okay, it will still turn out fine.
Lay out the largest circle and on top, hot glue on the second largest circles, by folding them into quarters and glueing them evenly spaced around. I tried to show that in the photo, but its tricky to describe. Hopefully you can see what I meant. :)

3. Then repeat the same process with the slightly smaller scalloped circles- I used the patterned fabric on top of the solid grey.
4. All done! You can leave it as-is, or top it with a pretty bead or hot glue a button on. In this case I topped mine with another layer of four (smaller yet) scalloped circles, and then pinned a little white flower that was part of a scrap-booking embellishment. You can then attach it to a bobby pin, or if you have thick hair like me you can glue it to a clip.

Mini apple pies

2012-04-04T06:49:00.004-07:00

I have a confession to make. Its one that's saved us a lot of money on produce, and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I buy produce from the crash and dent. From the discount cart. The rejected fruits and veggies with bruises and flaws. The thing I think people don't realize is, sometimes the discount produce is NOT that bad. It sometimes just depends on the store. I've certainly seen some things that should never be labeled for sale- well on their way out and past their prime. But certain veggies are okay, including things like apples, zucchini, or peppers, because you can tell just by looking at them if they are still salvageable. These gala apples were delicious (I ate four last week during my lunches) and they hardly had any dents or bruises. I've bought less-pretty ones before and baked them into a pie or applesauce, but these were good enough to eat fresh. They were packed up for less tan 50 cents a pound. A small side tangent- we discovered on Sundays, a local grocery store marks down organic boxed lettuce mixes like spring mix for example, for half price, because its a day or two before its sell by date. It stays fresh a few days after, so if you eat a lot of greens (we can plow through a huge box in a matter of days) than you'll eat it up before you have to worry about it being "bad." Also, believe it or not, sometimes discount produce isn't really discount, so be careful. I will weigh the package if it doesn't have the weight on it. $1.50 a pound for green peppers is not discount, for example. You should expect to pay half price or LESS for discount produce. I decided to use up the remaining apples in a baked dish- if you don't feel comfortable eating discount produce, try cooking it right away into something. I also had a can of refrigerated biscuits that was soon to expire. This simple recipe is easy and looks really cute. It would work well for a brunch, or even as a snack to take to work. Here's how to make them:

Ingredients:
5 apples, peeled and finely chopped
1 can of refrigerated biscuits (I used pillsbury)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp corn starch
3 tbsp butter plus 1 tsp canola oil

Directions: On low heat, melt butter and canola oil in a sauce pan. Add apples, cinnamon, and cornstarch, allowing to cook until softened, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees and begin placing the biscuits into a muffin tin, pressing up the sides to create a little pie crust. I used flaky layers and actually split each biscuit in half to get a thinner crust. I had a couple of extra pieces leftover at the end and just used those to create a top crust. I ultimately liked the open pies better, though. Make you stir the apple mixture a few times as it cooks. The cornstarch will thicken it. Once they are soft, use a spoon to heap them inside of the biscuits and then place in the oven for about 15-20 minutes, until the crusts are golden and cooked. If I make these again, I might try adding a crumble topping. If you have a big sweet tooth, be aware that 1/4 cup sugar for all those apples is actually not much, and they don't turn out that sweet. If you like really sweet pie, you could probably double the sugar and it would still turn out fine. I'm trying to reduce my sugar intake, and felt like it was just enough sweetness. Another thing I might try is making a savory version of these, using a mixture of apple, potato, onion, and Morningstar sausage, and swiss cheese (its really yummy, I've made it as a pot pie before). If you feel its too much sweet stuff for your family, or don't think you can eat them fast (they are good for a day or two but if you can't eat them up by then they won't stay fresh long) than freeze them. You can thaw them out, microwave or re-toast, and enjoy a warm, fresh, mini apple pie any time.

Spring Cleaning

2012-04-03T10:22:00.011-07:00

Ben and I took a walk the other day- the weather has been so lovely. The leaves are going to be out soon, and there's some pretty phlox and tulips blooming already. As we walked down the lawn, we were stuck by an awful eye sore- our own balcony. The result of "hurry up and stuff it outside" mentality, its become a pit of items thrust out-of-sight and out-of-mind in the wintertime.

As you can see, once spring rolled around, we tossed a lot of things out there- the right hand pile is actually our Christmas tree packed away, bikes on the left, and wait till you get a hold of our balcony closet...

Its rather embarrassing how horrendous the pile has become. Part of the huge mess is that I needed to dig out our folding table, which was in the BACK of the pile, to take into school one day. I was in a hurry, so I climbed up to the top of the pile (I'm kind of cringing thinking about it) and yanked it up and over the heap, and dragged it out.

It reminds me in a small scale of the show about hoarding. Something had to be done. I've found with a big mess, the best approach is to completely empty out the area you intend to organize, and then go through everything, weed out things to throw or give away, and place things back in a more orderly fashion.

So, for your enjoyment, here's what the balcony looked like AFTER I emptied the whole closet out:

It was rather ridiculous. Two folding chairs, two bike racks, two lawn chairs, one rocking lawn chair, three plant stands, about fifty pots for plants, rags and painting supplies galore, and much more. And one dog, somewhere in the mix. After going through it all, sweeping out the closet, and re-organizing the whole thing I came up with a box of extra things to give away and two garbage bags full of trash (mostly old potting soil from last summer's plants). I also discovered two nails high up in the closet and used those to hang the bike racks and a snow shovel. That freed up some space below, and everything fit much better after I was finished:

Here's the "before" and "after" to save you from scrolling back up.
Its still not that pretty looking
but a definite improvement...

2012-04-01T18:29:00.014-07:00

Stuffed crust pizza.

Ben and I love pizza- all kinds. Thin crust, thick crust, plain cheese, veggies, white pizza, regular, and everything in between. I've experimen ted a lot with pizza crusts over the last few y ears and at one point a couple years ago, I asked my mother for her crust recipe, since I've always loved her pizza. It might be just me, but do you ever notice how Mom's ANYTHING is better than when you make it? I have her crust "recipe" (she doesn't measure anything out) and mine still doesn't turn out as delicious as hers. But this pizza crust recipe is fairly fool proof. I've even experimented with substituting some of the white flour for wheat, and its still good. It was only recently, though, that I realized that how I was cooking the pizza made a big difference. In order to get that pizzeria taste and texture, you have to imitate the cooking method. Without having a brick fire oven in your house, the next best thing is a pizza stone, and high heat- broiling hot.

A pizza stone isn't a necessity--I would say using t he broiler and high heat makes the most difference-- but I think it helps give the crust a great texture. We received one from my Aunt as a wedding shower gift, and it was such a neat idea! We've used it so much over the years. You can use them for more than just pizzas, too. Baking bread on them is awesome too.

Anyway- here's how to create stuffed crust pizza.

For the dough:
1 packet yeast
1 cup warm water
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup oil
3 cups flour

Combine all the ingredients but the flour, let sit for about 10 minutes. Then stir in the flour, one
cupful at a time. Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic.

Allow to rise until doubled. Once dough has risen, preheat oven to highest heat setting (I used 475-500) with the pizza stone preheating in the oven. If you don't have a pizza stone, just cook it on a cookie sheet as normal, no need to preheat it. In the meantime, prepare your toppings and then get enough mozzarella sticks or similarly sliced pieces, to roll into the crust for stuffed crust.

Here's where it gets tricky. You want to have the crust rolled out ahead of time, into a circle, on top of something you can slide it off of (or lift it carefully and then place on hot pizza stone). I tried using an upside down cookie sheet covered in flour the first time. It worked but the pizza needed "fixed" after I slid it onto the pizza stone. Then I tried NOT doing it ahead of time and it was tricky too, because once I laid the dough on the hot pizza stone, the dough cooked so fast that before I could roll up the mozzarella sticks into the crust, it had already baked stiff! The first method seems to work better. I promise its worth the work. If you are doing the stuffed crust, make sure you leave the edges of the crust extra thick so you have enough to stretch and roll around the cheese. Work your way around and use mozzarella sticks cut in half so they bend into a circle shape easier. Just lay the cheese near the edge and roll/squish the dough around it and pinch to seal. Make sure you roll towards the inside of the pizza so if it does come unrolled, the cheese doesn't leak all over the oven.

Then add your toppings- we love white pizza, and I just use ranch dressing instead of pizza sauce spread over the top, then I add lots of chopped veggies and sometimes a Morningstar Farms sausage or bacon.

Once you're ready to put it into the oven, make sure the rack is up high, around 6 inches away from the top of the oven, and then set the setting on broil. This is essential. I tried getting a picture but its blurry because I had to do it quickly:

And then here's some pictures of the pizza after it came out of the oven (just about five minutes later! It really does cook that fast so keep a careful eye on it!)

Trader Joes inspired biscotti

2012-04-01T15:40:00.006-07:00

Ben and I love trader Joe's. One of the perks to a visit is all the wonderful samples they have, including one we tried with their coffee samples: http://traderjoes.com/fearless-flyer/article.asp?article_id=354 They were delicious- sweet without being overly so, and the perfect texture even after "dunking" as their name suggests. We don't usually purchase store bought baked goods, and the price was a little high for our range.

Today, I felt in the mood for some biscotti and decided to try to make something with a similar flavor- cinnamon, craisins, and white chocolate coming into the mix. I settled on this recipe, which is an adaptation of the following recipe used as a "base" for the dough: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/biscotti/detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Title&e11=biscotti&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Recipe%20Search%20Results

Recipe:
For the dough:

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup white sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 eggs
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 to 1 cup craisins, depending on what you prefer
white chocolate for drizzling over top (approx 1/3 cup melted chips)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
In a medium bowl, beat together the oil, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon until well blended. Combine the flour, oats, and baking powder, stir into the egg mixture to form a heavy dough. Stir in craisins. Divide dough into two pieces. Form each piece into a roll as long as your cookie sheet. Place roll onto the prepared cookie sheet, and press down to 1/2 inch thickness.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown. Remove from the baking sheet to cool on a wire rack. When The cookies are cool enough to handle, slice each one crosswise into 1/2 inch slices. Place the slices cut side up back onto the baking sheet. Bake for an additional 6 to 10 minutes on each side. Slices should be lightly toasted.
Melt chocolate on low heat, stirring frequently, until melted. Drizzle over top of the biscotti, or dip biscotti partially into it if you prefer. Allow to cool.

Another picture- they turn out so pretty with the chocolate. I'm sure regular or dark chocolate would also be delicious if you aren't a fan of white. These would make a great gift idea tied up in a pretty bag.