turn me over

there are days when i'm feeling a little "semi-homemade" today was one of them. i used store bought puff pastry to make apple turnovers. they turned out pretty great, even if i didn't make everything 100% haha.

1 package puff pastry
3 apples peeled, cored and diced into 1/2 inch pieces
3 tablespoons orange juice
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon flour
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 egg for egg wash

after you dice the apples, mix them right away with the orange juice to prevent browning. then add the rest of your ingredients to the apples.. set aside.

flour your counter top and roll out each puff pastry sheet until it's about 12"by12". cut into four pieces. put your egg wash along one of the corners.. place your apple filling onto that half of the pastry. fold over and press edges together. use your fork to seal the edges further.

place on baking sheet, put the egg wash on top of the pastry and sprinkle with a little sugar.


bake for about 25 minutes on 400 degrees

eggcellent

my niece absolutely loves pickled eggs. it wasn't until i made them for her a few months back, that i had even tried them. turns out, i ended up loving them too.
after having months without them,i decided to make them for her(and me) today.

one dozen eggs, hard boiled
2 14 ounce cans of sliced beets
1/2 can apple cider vinegar
1/2 can white vinegar
1 cup sugar
1/4 can water
10 whole cloves

in a large gallon jar(i used an old pickle jar that is just huge), place all the beets in the bottom.. all the liquid from the cans of beets needs to go into a saucepan.
add the vinegars,water,sugar,and cloves to the beet liquid. have the liquid come to a boil, making sure the sugar is dissolved. then turn the heat off and let cool.

peel your eggs and place them in the jar with the beets.
add the cooled liquid to the eggs and refrigerate. it's that easy!

strawberry fields forever..

so a few weeks ago, i had to go to bed bath and beyond to buy a bridal shower gift.
while i was there, i happened to find a tart pan, one that i've been wanting forever.
to break it in, i made a strawberry and kiwi tart.. it was absolutely delicious.

crust:

1 1/4 cups flour
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold diced butter
2 tablespoons cold shortening, i used crisco
1/4 cup ice water

pastry cream:

5 extra-large egg yolks, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 cups scalded milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon Cognac(i personally don't like cognac so i added more vanilla instead)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon heavy cream

pre-heat oven to 375 degrees

combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a small bowl and place in the freezer for 30 minutes.
put the flour mixture in the food processor.
add the butter and shortening and pulse about 10 times, or until the butter is in the size of peas.
add the ice water and process until the dough comes together.

dump on a well-floured board and form into a disk. wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes.i found i needed to chill for about an hour.

on a well floured surface, roll out your chilled dough, and transfer to your tart pan.
try to not stretch it while fitting it in your pan, it will shrink while baking.
cover the dough with foil, and pour dried rice or dried beans in the foil. this is just weighing it down so the crust doesn't rise while baking. bake for about 10 minutes like this.
remove foil and beans/rice.. prick the crust numerous times with a fork and bake for 15-20 minutes more until golden brown.

in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment,
beat the egg yolks and sugar on medium-high speed for 4 minutes,
or until very thick. reduce to low speed, and add the cornstarch.

with the mixer still on low, slowly pour the hot milk into the egg mixture.
pour the mixture into a medium saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture thickens, 5 to 7 minutes.
don't be alarmed when the custard comes to a boil and appears to curdle; switch to a whisk and beat vigorously.
cook, whisking constantly, for another 2 minutes; the custard will come together and become very thick, like pudding.
stir in the vanilla,cognac,butter,and heavy cream.
plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold.

assemble with any fruit you like, or no fruit at all.

thank you, can i have s'more?

who doesn't love s'mores? graham crackers, chocolate and marshmallow. what's not to love?
i took this classic combination and turned them into s'mores brownies.. take a look

graham cracker crust:

6 tablespoons melted butter
1 1/2 cups crushed graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons sugar

chocolate brownie center:

8 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 ounces chopped unsweetened chocolate
1 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large cold eggs
1 cup flour

marshmallow topping:

four cups large marshmallows

pre-heat oven to 325 degrees
line 8x8 pan with foil

for the crust, lightly butter the foil with some of the melted butter.
stir the rest of the butter together with the crumbs, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl.
press the crumb mixture evenly over the bottom of the pan. bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

meanwhile, make your brownie.
put the butter and chocolate in a double boiler.
after the chocolate is melted,stir in both of your sugars, vanilla and salt.
add the eggs and beat vigorously to make a thick and glossy batter.
add the flour and stir until just incorporated.

pour batter over crust,bake until the top is crispy and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out mostly clean, with a few crumbs, about 40 to 45 minutes.

after they come out of the oven, turn your boiler on..
pack the marshmallows on top of the brownies. place under your broiler, this goes super fast, maybe a minute and a half at tops. keep an eye on the marshmallows or they will burn.

pecan please??

wow, it sure has been awhile. sorry for the slacking on the posts.
i had made these pecan squares for this huge party we had for my parents anniversary. personally, i enjoyed them, however i would of used a different crust if i were to make these again. if you like pecan pie, you will really like these!

here's the crust recipe i followed:

1 1/4 pounds butter, room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
3 x-large eggs
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
4 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

and the filling:

1 pound butter
1 cup good honey
3 cups packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 pounds coarsely chopped pecans

** now i admit the honey and the zests really threw me off when looking at this recipe. traditionally pecan pie/squares are made with karo syrup. you really couldn't tell too much of a difference, it was sweet and delicious, and the zests made it super flavorful.


pre-heat oven to 350 degrees

beat your butter and sugar in your electric mixer with the paddle attachment, until light,for about three minutes.
add the eggs and vanilla and mix well.
mix the dry ingredients into the batter with the mixer on low speed until just combined.
press the dough evenly into an ungreased 18 by 12 by 1-inch baking sheet,making an edge around the outside.
the dough is very sticky,so i floured my hands and the dough while pressing it into the sheet.
bake for 15 minutes, until the crust is set but not browned.

for the filling, combine the butter, honey, brown sugar, and zests in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan.
cook on low heat until the butter is melted, using a wooden spoon to stir.
raise the heat and boil for 3 minutes.
remove from the heat and stir in the heavy cream and pecans.

pour the filling over the crust,and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the filling is set.

allow to cool and then refrigerate until cold.