13 Ekim 2012 Cumartesi

Grandma's Apple Crisp Pie {CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE}

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Welcome to the all NEW and IMPROVED - CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE
October Challenge - APPLE PIE

We are in our second month of our second year of the CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE, you can read all about it and join in next month (it may be too late to make an Apple Pie for today, but you never know, some people are crazy cooks like me and can whip one out in no time at all.) But, for those of you who read about the challenge last month and are prepared to share your Apple Pie with us today, we are SO excited to see what you made.

For those of you who have already participated this past year, you know how this is done, check out the NEW & IMPROVED information here. If you are new here come on over and check out how to jump on board this wild and crazy, CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE. You can read all the details and get all the codes for you to link up, join in and get this great linky party added to your CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE post.

Last month we made Ranch Dressing and next month we will be doing Stuffing Recipes (like Turkey Stuffing or some call it Dressing), ya know that stuff we all have on Thanksgiving day. But today it's all about apples and Apple Pie.

So, after another great day of fresh Apple Picking with a couple of friends (actually one of them are my twins girl friends, but since their away at college, I just steal their friends and call them my own). Nikki, Kristina and I had an awesome day picking apples, raspberries and then came home to bake all day.

Everyone who wishes to join in on this challenge, all you need to do is add the CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE BUTTON (grab the code above) and make sure your Apple Pie includes the BLOG HOP Linky Party (code is below the linky party, click on BLOG HOP CODE) or you wont be able to link up. We hope you join us in this CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE....

Just an FYI - CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE is always on the 7th of every month and will post at MIDNIGHT. Here is a SNEAK PEAK for the next couple of months, so everyone can think ahead and be prepared for the themes.

November 7, 2012 - STUFFING Recipes (dressing)
December 7, 2012 - PERFECT SUGAR COOKIE
January 7, 2013 - FRENCH TOAST

I have been practicing all week with Apple Pies (the first one we made was this Dutch Apple Pie, it was SO GOOD I am not sure I can top it, but it was for the SRC and is already posted on my blog), so I keep trying to come up with an even bigger and better Apple Pie recipe. With one failed attempt, my husband suggested I call his mom (ya, don't ya love that). It's okay, I actually don't mind, she is a great cook and is more like a grandmother to me then my mother-in-law.

I called my mother-in-law and said her son said she made apple pie all the time when he was little and could I have her recipe. She had no idea what he was talking about (funny!). She is almost 80 years old but her memory is perfect and my husband is 51 years old, so between the both of them, who knows, she did say that she use to make apple crisp all the time. She found the recipe and now I've got it. YEAH for me, another family recipe passed down. The challenge though was for Apple Pie, so my brain went to work and the creation began, apple crisp turned into a beautiful Apple Crisp Pie.

Apple Crisp Pie
adapted by me, given to me by my mother-in-law Charlotte

Pastry Crust (from the Dutch Apple Pie)
1-1/4 cups plain flour
pinch of salt
1 tbsp sugar
6 tbsp butter, chilled and diced
5 tbsp ice water
1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp sugar (mix together)

Apple Pie Filling & Crumb Topping
4 cups sliced apples
1/4 cup hot water (or fresh apple cider)
1/2 cup butter (extra butter for bottom of crust)
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar

vanilla ice cream
caramel syrup, drizzle

For the crust, in a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar and salt. Add the cold diced butter over the dry ingredients, mix with a pantry knife, working the butter into the mixture, until it resembles breadcrumbs. Add in 5 tbsp water (more if needed) using the pastry knife or a fork incorporate it until the dough will hold together, without being too sticky. Flatten the dough into a round disk, and sandwich in between two pieces of wax paper, roll out into the desired shape (round) that will fit into your baking pie dish. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight.

Transfer the dough to the round pie dish and press into the base and over the top of the edges of the dish. Trim the edges to extend 1/2 an inch over the lip of the dish. Mix together the 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1 tsp of sugar and then sprinkle on pie crust. Place the dish into the freezer for 30 minutes until very firm and cold. Place the oven rack on the lower middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Arrange the apple slices into the cinnamon pie crust. Pour water (or apple cider) over the apples. Cream together with a pastry knife the butter, flour and sugar to form crumbs.

Bake in a hot oven at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes, then raise oven to 400 degrees and bake for an additional 25 minutes, until top is brown and apples begin to crisp. Serve with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of caramel syrup.

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Peanut Butter Cupcakes {THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS LINKY PARTY #102}

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THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS has changed, you can now link up ANY recipe you'd like. Come one, Come all. NO rules, NO requirements, just link up any recipe (or food related craft items) and hop around to visit all the great recipes.

This is a SIMPLE and easy Peanut Butter Cupcake, that doesn't even require a recipe (well almost). I love making cupcakes, they aren't fancy and I am still working on my frosting skills, but I do love making them, store bought cupcakes are non-existent in my home, NEVER EVER EVER will I buy those again (that hasn't always been the case), but since my blog began in 2010, I've haven't bought another store cupcake, and I hope to keep it that way.

Peanut Butter Cupcakesno recipe needed

Make a batch of your favoite homemade or from a box chocolate cupcakes.
Add in about 3/4 of a bag of Peanut Butter M&M's before baking.

Bake as directed and then frost and added 3 colorful M&M's to the top for decoration. Our favorite buttercream frosting works great with these cupcakes.

Buttercream Frostingfrom Your Homebased Mom

3 sticks butter, softened2 lbs. powdered sugar (approx. 7 cups)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
whipping cream or 1/2 and 1/2 – enough to thin frosting to desired consistency

Beat butter in mixer on medium high for 2-3 minutes or until pale and creamy. Reduce speed to medium and add sugar, 1/2 cup at a time. Beat well after each addition increasing speed to high after all sugar is added. Add vanilla and food coloring if desired. Beat until buttercream is smooth. Can be refrigerated for several days if covered. If refrigerating, bring to room temperature before using and beat on low until smooth.

THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS has changed, you can now link up ANY recipe you'd like. Come one, Come all. NO rules, NO requirements, just link up any recipes (or food related craft items) and hop around to visit all the great recipes. If you are a regular to THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS Linky party, then link-up we're excited to see what you made this week. We are no longer sticking with ONE theme, so just link up any of your favorite recipes.
Please Grab Our Button!!!

Your hostess for this linky arty are: Tina from MOMS CRAZY COOKING, Nicole from The Daily Dish and Kristi from Veggie Converter.

THE LINKY PARTY is opened ALL Week, come back and link up as many times as you wish, we can't wait to see all your fun and new recipes you made this week!

Rock's T-Bone Steaks

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Grill Recipes for Steak: Rock's T-Bone Steaks
Grill Recipe for Steak Ingredients

4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
2 teaspoons paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon onion powder
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder, or to taste
3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
3/4 teaspoon ground coriander, or to taste
3/4 teaspoon ground turmeric, or to taste
4 (16 ounce) t-bone steaks, at room temperature

Grill Recipes for Steak Instructions

Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat, and lightly oil the grate. Stir the salt, paprika, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, coriander, and turmeric together in a small bowl; set aside.
Rub the steaks on all sides with the seasoning mixture. Cook on the preheated grill to your desired degree of doneness, 3 to 3 1/2 minutes per side for medium-rare. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read 130 degrees F (54 degrees C). Enjoy the steak !
Grill recipes for steak: honey-glazed-grilled-salmon-steaks

It's Summer Time - Let's Barbecue!!

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Yep, it's that time of year when most people think of cookouts and barbecue. I saw a statistic recently that 71% of all households have some type of grill to prepare barbecue, and half of those use their grills all year long. We don't do it as much, but then we have been working hard at cutting down on our meat consumption anyway. Still, 'tis the season, so here I re-post my most favorite sauce of all - Mutha Sauce. It beats that stuff in the glass (or plastic) jars everyday, and twice on Sunday!

"Mutha" Sauce

This sauce requires a lot of ingredients and can be served chunky style or you can puree it and make it smooth should you desire, but it just might be the only BBQ sauce that you will use this summer! It will make about six or seven cups. It is rich! You can reduce or eliminate the oil if you are looking to reduce your fat intake (I usually cut the oil back to a tablespoon).

1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup minced onion
1/2 cup minced green pepper
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
pinch kosher salt
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 can (28 oz.) tomato sauce
2 cups ketchup
1 cup water
3/4 cup worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup cayenne pepper or Tabasco sauce
1/4 cup spicy brown mustard
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 tbsp chili powder
2 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
1/2 tsp ground allspice
1 tbsp Liquid Smoke

In a large saucepan, pour in the oil. Set over medium high heat. Toss in the onions, green peppers and jalapeno and give them a stir. Season with a pinch of salt and cook until soft, but do not burn. Add the garlic and cook one minute.

Add the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT the Liquid Smoke. Bring to a boil, then lower heat so the sauce simmers. Simmer for 10 minutes. Swirl in the Liquid Smoke and let the sauce cool. It will be chunky at this point. If you desire a smooth sauce, run the sauce in batches through a blender. Pour into glass Mason jars or other glass container and cover tightly. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use. Makes 6-7 cups of excellent sauce. It also makes great gifts and will keep for weeks!

Michael Jordan's 23 Delmonico Steak Recipe

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Michael Jordan's 23 Delmonico Steak Recipe
Steak Recipe Ingredients:

4 14 ounce rib-eye steak
2 portabello mushrooms, stems and gills removed
12 sun-dried tomatoes
4 fresh rosemary sprigs
salt and pepper to taste
Steak Sauce:
1 cup beef stock
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup fresh ginger, finely chopped
1/4 cup shallots, finely chopped
1/4 cup carrots, finely chopped
1/4 cup celery, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Steak Recipe Instructions:
Combine ginger, shallots, carrots and celery in a saucepan over a medium high heat. Caramelize (that means sautÃ© until browned slightly). Slowly pour in balsamic vinegar, stirring. Reduce by 1/2 and add beef broth. Bring to a boil. Season to taste.

Meanwhile, preheat your grill. Grill steak. Season mushrooms with salt and pepper and place on grill. Grill steak to desired doneness and mushrooms until they are tender. Remove everything from the grill. Cut mushrooms into small triangles. Skewer mushrooms pieces with sun-dried tomatoes on to rosemary sprigs.

Place grilled steak on plate. Top with rosemary skewers and sauce. Serve.

12 Ekim 2012 Cuma

White Chocolate Snickerdoodle Cookies {THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS LINKY PARTY #101}

Cookies are hardly ever store bought around here (maybe with the exception of Oreo's for the little boy). I am always finding new cookie recipes to make (I freeze whatever is not eaten the first day) and therefore we have fresh homemade cookies almost year-round. This was another one of those recipes, found online and couldn't resist.

White Chocolate Snickerdoodle Cookiesrecipe found at Averie Cooks
1/2 cup butter, softened1/2 cup white sugar1/2 cup brown sugar, packed1 large egg1 tsp vanilla extract1 tsp cinnamon1/2 tsp baking soda1-1/4 cups flour1/2 cup white chocolate chips
Plus: 1 tbsp cinnamon & 1/4 c white sugar, mixed in a small bowl for dipping/rolling the dough (to retain a true “sugar cookie” rather than snickerdoodle, omit the cinnamon and just roll in sugar)
Preheat oven to 350. Cream together in a mixer the softened butter and sugars until very smooth and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until well combined. Stir in the cinnamon, baking soda, and flour and mix until just combined. Do not overmix.
Stir in the white chocolate chips and place the whole mixing bowl into the freezer for about 10 minutes so that it chills a bit. You can also chill the dough for an hour or longer in the refrigerator.While the dough is chilling, prepare the cinnamon sugar mixture for rolling.
After approximately 10 minutes, remove the chilled dough from the freezer and form 1 inch balls. I use a cookie scoop and it's awesome for any kind of cookie dough. Roll the balls through the cinnamon sugar mixture and place on prepared cookie sheet (sprayed with cooking spray). Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until just barely set. Allow the cookies to cool, well, on the cookie sheets before attempting to remove them.

Grandma's Apple Crisp Pie {CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE}

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Welcome to the all NEW and IMPROVED - CRAZY COOKING CHALLENGE
October Challenge - APPLE PIE

Peanut Butter Cupcakes {THIS WEEK'S CRAVINGS LINKY PARTY #102}

Fire Roasted Sausage Pizza {Hodgson Mill} & {GIVEAWAY}

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It's a GIVEAWAY and it starts today!

Today, I am here to share with you a "Build a Better Pizza" Facebook Recipe Contest for Hodgson Mill. I am so excited to have gotten the opportunity to create a HEALTHIER pizza crust. The crust was made with 50% Hodgson Mill Whole Wheat Flour and I can tell you that with out a doubt this pizza was delicious in every way. You couldn't even tell it was whole wheat. I don't know why we don't make pizza crust like this every time? Please read below how you can VOTE for me... and enter in the $25 prize package from Hodgson.

We started with the homemade crust and besides the little bit of time needed for rising, the recipe is a cinch to make (I even cleaned out the attic and made the homemade pizza at the same time, just multi-tasking at it's finest). I also included a Homemade Fire Roasted Pizza Sauce, which I was able to sneak in some meat into for my picky son who is a "cheese only pizza" kind'of guy, (score, and extra point for mom). We then topped it off with my favorite Sausage and Black Olives for my half and my sons half was topped with plain ole' cheese (and he loved it too and had no idea I snuck in some protein in the sauce UNDER the cheese).

(Voting will begin soon.. I will keep you POSTED) Please head on over to the Facebook Fan Page for Hodgson and VOTE FOR MY PIZZA! Anyone who votes will be automatically entered to win a $25 prize package of your very own. GOOD LUCK and THANK YOU in advance for your vote.

The more votes I receive from all of you (MY AWESOME READERS), the better chance I have of winning this VERY COOL contest! (Voting ends at 5pm CST on October 30, 2012)

Now, let's get on with this delicious recipe. We started with the easy whole wheat crust...

Fire Roasted Sausage Pizza
created by me, Tina Hudgens

garlic butter pizza crust
1-1/8 cups warm water
1 pkg (8.75 gram) Hodgson Mill Active Dry Yeast
1 tbsp Honey
1-1/2 tbsp olive oil
1-1/2 cups Hodgson Mill Whole Wheat Flour
1 cup Hodgson Mill Organic Naturally White All Purpose Flour
1 tsp Kosher Salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp of each Basil, Oregano and Italian Seasoning

5 tbsp butter
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

2 tbsp Parmesan cheese

In a large bowl combine warm water, package of yeast, honey and olive oil. Whisk and then let it sit until a foamy top forms. Set your timer for 10 minutes, and wait. When you see the foam, add in the flour, kosher salt, garlic powder and the three spices, stirring with a wooden spoon, then kneading with your hands until dough is formed and not sticky (you can add in an extra 1/4 cup flour if needed). Take a tbsp of olive oil and rub into a clean bowl and stick your kneaded dough into this rolling it around a few times. Cover with a towel and place in a warm place to raise for 1-1/2 hours. (this is when you get to go clean out the attic, like I did)

As soon as you start your timer on the dough rising, it's best to place your COLD pizza stone into a COLD oven. Yes, place it in a cold oven, then turn on the oven to 500 degrees and let it sit in there until you are ready to cook your pizza.

(NOTE: begin making your pizza sauce now, if you haven't already so that it can simmer on the stove for 45 minutes along with your rising of your crust - I love to multi-task!)

Once your dough is ready, lay out flour on a flat surface and begin kneading some more. It's best if you have a pizza board to place this on, because it's almost impossible to move it to the hot pizza stone in the oven without one. Using a rolling pin or your hands form your desired crust, we like it traditional round. Once you have your desired shape, place a towel over crust and let rise in a warm place for 10 additional minutes. (This dough could easily make two smaller thinner crust pizzas just by dividing the dough in half. We choose to make one super duper thick pizza crust and I can tell you we LOVE LOVE LOVED the thick crust.)

Now it's ready for the garlic butter sauce. Melt 5 tbsp butter and mix the 1 tsp or minced garlic into the melted butter. Apply to the pizza dough, once complete sprinkle on the red pepper flakes and the Parmesan cheese before spreading on the pizza sauce.

Fire Roasted Pizza Sauce
created by me, Tina Hudgens

1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 cup crushed tomatoes (we used Tomatoes and Green Chilies combined)
1 cup Fire Roasted Tomato Sauce
1/2 tbsp sugar
1/2 tbsp honey
1/4 tsp of each Oregano, Basil, Garlic Powder, Kosher Salt, Pepper and Italian Seasoning
1 whole bay leaf
1 cup cooked sausage, crumbled very fine (to sneak past the little boy)

1 small can tomato paste (use to your liking & thickness)

Throw all of the above ingredients (except tomato paste) into a sauce pan and cook until it boils. Lower to simmer and cook for 45 minutes on simmer. Once your crust is ready to go, then take your pizza sauce and mix with the desired about of tomato paste to your liking (I used the whole can for all of my sauce, I don't like running sauce). The sauce recipes make enough for about 2 to 3 pizza crusts depending on how little or how much sauce you like.

FREEZER TIP: When I make this sauce, I like that it makes extra and I can freeze for another pizza day. Here is what I do, take a wide mouth cup and fold over a ziploc bag (this saves you from a mess), then take 1 cup of sauce and pour into the baggie, then it's ready to freeze into individual servings. (I love having extra homemade pizza sauce on hand).

And now this wonderful delicious pizza is complete, ready to go into the oven. Change the oven degrees to 350 and then place the pizza on the hot pizza stone in the oven. Cook for about 25 - 30 minutes and you will have delicious pipping hot pizza, that you made from scratch. ENJOY!

(VOTING will begin soon) Please come vote for me on the "Build a Better Pizza" Facebook Recipe Contest for Hodgson Mill.

Giveaway Rules: No rules, no requirements. Just leave a comment and you are entered to win a $25 prize package from Hodgson Mill.
It's an EASY giveaway to win! Good Luck!
Winner will be picked on Monday 10/15/12 Hodgson Mill is providing the products for this post at no cost to me for review, the opinions in this post are entirely mine.

Rock's T-Bone Steaks

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Grill Recipes for Steak: Rock's T-Bone Steaks
Grill Recipe for Steak Ingredients

4 teaspoons salt, or to taste
2 teaspoons paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon onion powder
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder, or to taste
3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
3/4 teaspoon ground coriander, or to taste
3/4 teaspoon ground turmeric, or to taste
4 (16 ounce) t-bone steaks, at room temperature

11 Ekim 2012 Perşembe

Buttered Egg Noodles

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So many times, when we prepare a meat dish we find ourselves at a loss for a good side dish - and we turned to those over-salted boxed messes that, while quick to prepare, are not all that great tasting. The long list of chemicals added to that white packet inside - AKA Mystery Envelope - makes a bad situation worse!

From time to time I have eschewed such gastronomic platitudes for something better. We have tried making our own buttered egg noodles, with limited success, until we came upon this gem from a contributor to the FoodTV website, David Ball. It's tweeked here a bit to make it a little less fat-laden (the original recipe called for a stick of butter, plus a finishing pat. I kept the finishing pat in).

Ingredients

1-1/2 cups of water
8 oz. dried egg noodles
2 chicken bouillon cubes (I use a tsp of Better Than Bouillon)
1/4 stick of unsalted butter plus 1 pat)
1 tbsp of dried parsley or 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
dash of salt and fresh cracked pepper

Directions

Bring the water, bouillon, salt, pepper and butter to boil over medium heat. Add the egg noodles and stir. Allow the liquid to reduce but do not dry out. Remove from heat and melt the pat of butter in the noodles. Stir in the parsley and serve immediately with your beef, pork or poultry entree and a fresh salad.

Christmas Memories

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What's your fondest memories of the season? My memories are all great ones, but my most treasured have to be growing on Maxwell Street in Chicago. Now of course I have written about my family's experiences in that fabled Chicago neighborhood before, so I don't want to rehash old ground here. But basically it's good to remember that my mom and dad were poor working musicians, just barely making a living and providing for their young family.

We did without most of the year; old clothes, simple meals, cold, drafty apartments (lots of colds and flu), no extras and no luxuries, such as medical care. My parents definitely qualified for government programs, food stamps and the like, but they were too proud to accept handouts - and never did.

What they did do was scrimp and save all year long, to make sure that my sister and I always always had a good Christmas, and that the family had bountiful (for us) food on the table during the holiday season. I don't know where they found the money, but we always had roast turkey, ham and plenty of sides at Thanksgiving and Christmas; there was always a tree (remember those old aluminum trees?) and plenty of presents.

Santa always came and left us new toys and dolls which my sister and I cherished, and played with the rest of the year. In one case at least, we have preserved our oldest gifts. I wrote about our stuffed dolls Bun Bun and Tisa last year. They have been through wars, but they still survive, even after 50 years!

But it's not about the gifts and toys, which we all shared gratefully, that still warms my heart. It's about the love and companionship shared by our small, insular family against the ravages of weather and the environment of the neighborhood in which we had live because of our low income status. Inside our homes we had books, music, conversation and family meals together almost every night. During the holidays these meals were feasts. Outside, in the dreadful winters of Chicago, there was cold, snow and slush, sub-zero temps, and mayhem in the streets every night. Even in the 1960's, when I grew up, there were drugs, prostitution, murder and maiming going on every day. But not in our home!

It wasn't idyllic by any means. But as a young child I never really knew what was going on outside our doors until I was in my teens. It was only then that I began to appreciate what my parents had done to protect us from the harm that was surely present in those neighborhoods. We had not been totally protected though; I did witness a man die violently from a stabbing through his neck on a shoe shine stand over a few pennies one summer. I still dream about it today.

In 1969, when I was thirteen, our grandfather passed and left us a little money. My parents and my dad's sister pooled their inheritance and purchased a two-flat fixer-upper in Pilsen, a couple miles north of of Maxwell street. It was a marginally better neighborhood and the home was much better, even in it's run down state, than the rat and roach infested apartment that we had moved from. My parents got right to work fixing up the place, making it a real home. My mom lived there till she died in 1981, and my dad and my aunt stayed on in their flats into the 90's when she died and my dad could no longer keep the place up by himself.

But every holiday we had there together was just as great; and as teens we were able capture so many of those memories on our color cameras! I feel so blessed to have had such experiences such as these. Kids always seem to want to get away from parents as soon as possible; while that was true for me, there was always something welcoming going home from school. It was simply called home.

So what tradition do I still keep to remember the old times at Christmas? Well it starts with the ornaments. Our tree has lots of old ornaments, given to me by students over the years, made by my son, or carrying inscriptions remembering our parents. Putting up that tree is a time to recall all those warm feelings and memories, and to remember our roots.

And I still do one thing eve today that I did as a kid - before the presents are put down; I get under the tree and look up at all the bright lights and tinsel. I have my wife eagerly doing the same thing now - a new, old tradition still alive today!