Peeling Apples

I really like apple crisp, probably my very favorite non-chocolate dessert (I think, at least for right now). But I don't like peels on the apples so I must peel all the apples before making this super yummy dessert.

But I don't like to peel apples :(

It's really hard work...until today!

I was watching Good Eats on the Food Network last week and Alton Brown was making apple pie. He said using a peeler was the way to go for small amouts of apples. Of course, I only use mine for potatoes...had never even thought to use it for apples.

IT WORKED!!

Peeled the apples in less than half the time!! YAY!!!

Pumpkin Creme Pies

WARNING: These cookies are addictive!


I saw this recipe a few weeks ago and knew I HAD to make these. I think one of the reasons I love this time of year is that pumpkin is one of my favorite flavors!

I made a few modifications to the recipe as I went along so my changes are in brackets.

Cookies:
•1 cup Brown Sugar
•1 cup Sugar
•1 cup Vegetable Oil
•1 can Pumpkin (15 Oz.)
•2 whole Eggs
•1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
•3 cups All-purpose Flour
•1 teaspoon Baking Soda
•1 teaspoon Baking Powder
[I just added up all of the amounts for Cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves and put in that much Pumpkin Pie Spice]
•1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
•1 teaspoon Ground Ginger
•½ teaspoons Salt
•½ teaspoons Ground Nutmeg
•¼ teaspoons Ground Cloves


FILLING:
•1 package Cream Cheese Softened (8 Oz.)
•1 stick Unsalted Butter, Room Temperature
•1 package Powdered Sugar (16 Oz.)
•3 drops Vanilla Extract
•2 dashes Cinnamon [about 1/2 tsp of Pumpkin Pie Spice instead of cinnamon]


Preparation Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Pumpkin Creme Pies: Beat together brown sugar, sugar, oil and pumpkin. Add eggs one at time, mixing well after each addition, followed by the vanilla.

In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients.

Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined.

Using a pastry bag with a round tip, or a big zip top plastic bag with one corner snipped, squeeze out concentric circles of batter, starting from the middle and working outward until the circles are about 2 inches in diameter. [I made them a little smaller to make them easier to eat]

Transfer each square to a baking sheet. Bake for 11 minutes, or until firm, and cool on a rack.

Cream Cheese Filling: Beat together cream cheese and butter. Add powdered sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. Frost flat side of half the pies and top with another piece.

Enjoy right away, or chill overnight. These keep very nicely in the fridge for at least a few days.

And in the end you get....



So Yummy!!!

Cupcakes for everyone!

Have you ever had this conversation with yourself?

"Hmm, there is a cake mix in the pantry."

"Yes, but you don't need cake right now."

"I KNOW, but that doesn't stop me from WANTING cake right now."

"Well, yes, but are you going to eat the ENTIRE cake?"

"Umm, I could make cupcakes, you know, for portion control!"

"You will STILL have the same amount of cake even if it is cupcakes."

"But I WANT cupcakes and obviously if I can have this long of a conversation with myself about the cupcakes I am crazy and NEED the cupcakes!!"

I really have had that exact conversation (and be glad you missed the one about ice cream from Tuesday night!).

Here is the PERFECT solution! Did you know you can freeze cupcake batter???? I had no idea until I read it on the Homebased Mom. So I am giving you all the link directly for how to freeze cupcake batter HERE.

Because how awesome would it be to be able to tell myself I will eat one cupcake (give one to Mark because I do know how to share) and then freeze the rest for some other day???? I WIN and me in the future wins too by getting fresh from the oven cupcakes on some other night as well.

I think I am going to go make some cupcakes now...and my first freezing attempt will be to freeze the batter in the little cups so that I can easily make them up for a quick treat on another day.

Strudel Coffee Cake

It is no secret that I LOVE chocolate and cookies of almost all kinds. But even I sometimes need something different. So lately I have had a coffee cake craving. This week I had a little afternoon tea party and decided to make a coffee cake.

I found a recipe on the internet and followed it perfectly. We will leave off here with it was a total disaster. I won't even link to it, it was BAD.


So, I looked at a few other recipes and created my own...and it was yummy!!! (And it looked pretty...bonus)



April's Very Own Coffee Cake

3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup shortening
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup milk
1 and 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons melted butter
4 teaspoons cinnamon

Mix sugar, shortening, egg, vanilla, and milk. Add flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix well and set aside. Mix together the brown sugar, flour, melted butter, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Pour 1/2 batter into a greased 8x8 inch square pan, then half the brown sugar mix. Pour in remaining batter and top with remaining sugar mixture. Bake at 325 for 30 minutes or until done in the middle.

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake

This recipe is one of the most requested around the Bennett household. It is a modified version of the recipe by the same name in the Nestle Tollhouse Best Loved Recipes book.

Crust:
2 cups (12 ounces) mini chocolate chips
Premade Oreo crust. To me this is easier than making a cheesecake crust (and I don't own a spring form pan so it gets me around that issue as well).



Filling:
2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 300 F.

Sprinkle chocolate chips in the bottom of the crust, enough to cover with an even layer.

Beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in large mixer bowl until smooth. Beat in eggs and flour. Gradually beat in evaporated milk and sour cream. Pour over crust ( fill to close to the top, there will be left over filling). Sprinkle with more chocolate chips, enough to cover all the filling.

Bake for 25 minutes. Cover loosely with aluminum foil. Bake for additional 30 minutes or until edge is set by center still moves slightly. Place in refrigerator immediately; refrigerate for 2 hours or until firm.

Makes 8-10 servings.

Christmas Candy - part 2

Today's Christmas candy making involved more of the yummy white chocolate I used yesterday. This time it was for white chocolate covered pretzels which were specifically requested by Husband. I had no idea how to make these, but I managed to fake it pretty good (at least I think so!).

First take pretzels, white chocolate, and sprinkles.
Melt chocolate for about a minute and a half in the microwave, stir until melted.

Put in a handful of pretzels, not to many or they are hard to stir up.

Pull them out with tongs, this allows some of the chocolate to drip off into the bowl.

Put the covered pretzels onto a wax paper covered cookie sheet.
Sprinkle with festive Christmas sprinkles.

Put cookie sheet in the fridge until chocolate is set.

Eat and enjoy!

Christmas Candy - Part 1

I love this time of year....buying and wrapping presents for my family, decorating the house, and all the fun Christmas baking. This year I have already made my go-to Christmas candy, Peppermint Bark, twice. Candy bark may be the easiest Christmas baking project possible, just a tiny bit more complicated than stopping at the store on the way to the party :)

Let's begin...

That is chocolate chips, white chocolate, and peppermints. I have always used Nestle white chocolate chips, but this year because I am doing so many candy projects (stay tuned for the next few days) I bought a block of Ghirardelli white chocolate and OH MY GOODNESS it has so much more flavor. I wanted to eat it all right out of the package. YUMMY!!!


Why, yes, that is a meat tenderizer, and yes, this is the only purpose I use it for. Seriously, I don't even know what to really do with it, but it works magic on hard candy.

There are several steps missing because one must work quickly with melted chocolate, but this is what you get after a while...
The chocolate is alternated and then swirled with a knife.

A few hours in the fridge, an appointment with a knife and into the cute little jar it goes.
This one is going to the in-laws!

And now for the recipe you have all been waiting for...

Peppermint Marble Bark

12 oz Chocolate chips
12 oz White Chocolate (I will be using the squares from now on)
50 peppermint candies smashed up

Melt each chocolate seperately in microwave for 1.5 minute, then stir until melted. Add 1/2 the peppermint to each bowl of chocolate. While the chocolate is still warm, spoon it onto a wax paper covered cookie sheet. Alternate the two colors of chocolate in small mounds. Then take a knife and drag it through the different chocolates so it looks marblized. Let cool (best done in the fridge). Cute with a sharp knife.