Pages, Pucks and Pantry

Apple Pie Baked In Apples

This is one of the first recipes I saw on Pinterest and thought "awesome idea"!  So it ended up being one of the first dishes I made during my "must create stuff from Pinterest" phase I went through last month (and, ahem, am still going through).

I did cheat a bit though. This also fulfilled my Operation Pantry Project as my Mom's niece had sent us some wonderful jarred homemade apple pie filling. To say it went perfectly in this dish was an understatement. The filling was so flavorful and it made putting this creation together quick and easy.

I did have a bit of trouble with the pie dough staying at the top of the apple while cooking (you can see how some of it slide down the side to the bottom). I think next time I need to make the dough strips smaller?

This was a fun dish to make and also made quite a nice impression for dessert. And I'd suggest showing folks your "before" cooking apple as that really does look impressive!

Not sure where the original idea came from as there seem to be pins from many different sources.

APPLE PIE BAKED IN APPLES

4 Baking Apples
Apple Pie Filling (your own or premade)
Pie Crust (Homemade or Pre-Made)

Pre-heat over to 375 degrees.

Cut off the top of the apples and discard. Cut slivers off the bottom of the apple (be careful not to cut too much) so that the apple sits squarely. Carefully remove the inside of each of the four apples with a spoon or melon baller so that you don't puncture the peel (you want to make a bowl for the filling to reside in).

Spoon your apple pie filling into the apple bowls.

Roll out pie crust and cut into strips. Cover top of the apple in a lattice pattern with the pie crust strips.

Place apples in an 8x8 pan. Add just enough water to cover the bottom of the pan.

Cover with foil and bake for 15-20 minutes. Remove foil and bake for another 15-20 minutes until the apples are soft. Serves 4

Note: I used granny smith apples. I set them on the counter at the grocery store to make sure that they were almost flat. People gave me looks. They were just a "bit" tough, so I may experiment with other types of apples or longer cooking times.

Note: Some of the recipes talk about using the innards from the apples you've scooped out and cutting up additional apples to make your own pie filling. Since I already had pie filling, I didn't use the inards of the apples. I threw that away. I know, wasteful. You are a better person than I if you can use it.

Note: I actually had a bit of leftover pie filling after filling the two apples so I took the leftover dough, pieced it together and made a free form tart. I'm thinking you could do the reverse...make these if you find you've made too much pie filling for your apple pie.

Note: I used pre-made pie dough. I bought a "natural" brand instead of my regular Pillsbury brand. It was dry and immediately cracked when I unrolled it. Next time I'll  either make my own dough or use Pillsbury.

Note: I made the lattice a bit thick and the ones on the end actually slide down the side of the apple. On one of the apples, I had used a bit of the sticky apple pie filling, smeared it around the top of the apple thinking this would hold the pie dough in place but no deal. Not sure what I can do to keep the dough from sliding down?

Note: Though I saw longer cooking times for the recipe, my pie crust was done way before these longer times. I think the apple would have benefited from a longer cooking time but I also didn't want the apple to be mush.

We really enjoy these and I suspect a good deal of that was the awesome apple pie filling from my Mom's niece. I need to make these again. Which mean someone needs to send me some more pie filling (hint hint :)

 

 

Saucy Mama's Lime Chipotle Pulled Pork Sandwiches

Still continuing my Operation Pantry Project, I came across a bottle of Saucy Mama's Lime Chipotle Marinade. I checked on the Saucy Mama's website where they have a ton of recipes using their products, but didn't find anything that tickled my taste buds. I then searched online and found this pulled pork recipe from A La Carte Kitchen. The fact that it could be made in the slow cooker made the recipe sound even better.

Super simple to make, you throw everything in the crock pot and let it do it's thing for 8-10 hours (makes this a nice slow cooker dish if you're not sure you'll be home on time). I served it between some wheat sandwich rolls, with some packaged cole slaw.

This turned out okay. The pulled pork did have a nice taste and it made a ton of sauce (maybe too much for the sandwich) which made it great to serve over mashed potatoes later. I think my problem was with the coleslaw and bread. The coleslaw was store bought and had no flavor which made a nice crunch in the sandwich but I think I wanted something a bit tangier to go with the pulled pork. The wheat bread buns I used completely fell apart when you tried to eat the sandwich. I'd use a sturdier roll next time. Bread that's a bit chewier. But I did like the Saucy Mama's Lime Chipotle Marinade and would use it again.

You can find the recipe for the Pulled Pork on A La Carte Kitchen's blog here:

SAUCY MAMA'S LIME CHIPOTLE PULLED PORK SANDWICHES

Note: I used pork butt. I used whole wheat sandwich buns. I used packaged coleslaw. I used KC Masterpiece BBQ Sauce.

Again, though the pulled pork made with the Saucy Mama marinade was fine, the dish as a whole didn't turn out so great. I was trying to be healthy and save calories buy using the whole wheat buns and cheap coleslaw. I did love the Saucy Mama's Lime Chipotle Pulled Pork over mashed potatoes and think it would work over rice or polenta too.

Note: Though I was sent this sauce from another blogger in a giveaway, I have not been compensated for this post nor was I asked or requested to blog about this marinade.

Crunchy Oven-Fried Drumsticks

In my quest to use up stuff in my pantry I was pleased to see that the guys at The Bitten Word had their own pantry challenge. Their Clean Out the Cupboard challenge though was a bit different than mine...For one week, all three meals they made each day, were only made from stuff they had in their freezer or pantry. They only spent $15 at the store for milk and produce for that week. They came up with some really great sounding meals only using stuff they had on hand. I'm soooo not that talented a cook yet. My talent is to pick one item, then spend hours looking through all my cookbooks to see what I can make with that one item. Then I go buy tons of ingredients to use up that one pantry item. Pathetic I know, but believe it or not, my freezer and pantry are slowly getting less crowded.

This dish was perfect for me to start off my Operation Pantry Project a few weeks ago as it used up three items I had on hand...some chicken drumsticks that were in the freezer; some of the Rice Krispies cereal I had in the cabinet; and an envelope of Ranch Dressing Mix that was in the pantry.

This recipe also brought back a bit of nostalgia, because I don't know about you, but chicken cooked like this was pretty big while I was growing up. If I'm not mistaken the recipe used to be on the back of the Rice Krispies box at one point and most folks might remember the version made with cornflakes. The recipe I chose made a wonderful coating and the ranch dressing added just the right amount of flavor. I'm thinking I might need to make this again the next time I'm having a picnic.

When I went looking for the back of the box recipe I found many versions using all kinds of coatings and flavorings. This recipe comes from the Woman's Day website. What is cool about their recipe is that it gives many variations on the coating (think potato chips or wheat germ or pretzels!), one of which was using Cheese-It type crackers which I must try!

CRUNCHY OVEN-FRIED DRUMSTICKS
(Womans Day)

8 (3 1/2 lb) drumsticks
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups crisp rice cereal,  crushed
1 envelope ranch dressing mix
Nonstick Spray

Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a jelly-roll pan or shallow roasting pan with foil. Coat with nonstick cooking spray.

Skin chicken by grasping skin with paper towels and pulling off. Or if you're like me and want to live a little dangerously calorie and fat wise, leave the skin on for flavor.

Place crisp rice cereal in a plastic ziploc bag. Add the packet of ranch dressing, close the bag and crush the krispies with the heel of your hand (some folks say to use a rolling pin, but that's an extra step that I think is a bit overkill. Those Rice Krispies will succumb to the force of your strong hand quite easily!).

In a pie plate or shallow bowl, slightly beat egg. Coat a few drumsticks at a time in the egg mixture.

Put 1 or 2 drumsticks in the bag with the cereal coating and shake to coat chicken evenly.

Place coated drumsticks on prepared pan; lightly coat drumsticks with cooking spray. Bake 20 to 35 minutes until chicken is cooked through and coating is browned. Serves 4.

Note: I used Rice Krispies and Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix

Note: I didn't pulverize the Rice Krispies...instead I left bigger pieces. Some of the coating turned out great on the chicken while some pieces had a much finer coating. All tasted the same though the look was different.

Note: Yes, I did leave on the skin.

Alas, the recipe does not include any nutritional information. I estimated that the drumsticks were about 200 calories each and that the carb count would be about 12 per drumstick. But don't quote me on that.

Blueberry Mousse from Sandra's Easy Cooking

Valentines Day found Mr. L and I getting home late and having a late dinner. We had decided to stay home and cook not only because it was less expensive and less of a hassle, but because we could watch our diets and not over do. Mr. L fixed me a wonderful dinner of sauteed scallops and his spicy string beans, a dish he first made for me when we started dating.

And then we both collapsed on the couch to watch some tv completely forgetting about dessert. There might have been some champagne involved in this forgetfulness.

So I didn't do my part of our Valentines dinner until several days later when I made this little Blueberry Mousse I found on Pinterest. When I saw this I figured it would be the perfect dessert for Valentines Day (or an anniversary, special occasion, etc). Because I knew I'd have limited time that evening to make something fancy this seemed like a quick and easy dessert to put on the table. The fact that it wasn't full of calories and wouldn't interfere with some pieces of dark chocolate that might have been received on said Valentines Day was also a plus. Oh and I figured it would go well with champagne.

I had found these small, heart, spring-form pans at Target which I used for the mold. The original recipe from Sandra's Easy Cooking blog just had hollow heart molds. Though my mold turned out perfect, it did have that spring-form pan at the bottom which was impossible to get the mousse off of without destroying the shape. No matter, we just ate off that!

The ingredients for this were pretty simple...heavy cream, blueberries, a bit of vanilla flavored yogurt and some stevia. You can find the recipe here:

BLUEBERRY MOUSSE

This was so simple that I'm sure it's going to become a regular dessert and not just be brought out on special occasions. Thanks to Sandra's Easy Cooking for this wonderful idea (and many more, check out her blog for some great recipes).

Photo from Mr. L's iPhone.

 

Amaretto-Baked French Toast with Pecans

We don't get too fancy on weekend breakfasts. Fried eggs and bacon; omelets; English muffins with jam and, on rare occasions, French toast or waffles. Normally if I'm making French Toast I have to make them in batches...the first batch Mr. L starts eating while I'm making the second batch for me (yes, you can put the first batch in the oven to keep warm while you make subsequent batches but it's just not the same to me). I'd much rather sit down to the table at the same time and have a wonderful breakfast with my husband.

This recipe fit the bill. I loved the convenience of just serving this hot out of the oven and both Mr. L and I digging in together. It was simple to put together, had great flavor and would even be nice enough to serve to guests.

I did make the mistake of putting some of the bread into the bowl as I was cutting it up. Which meant that the first pieces of bread really soaked up the batter and once I started to "mix" the ingredients there wasn't a lot of batter to mix in. Some of the bread was then dryer than others. I'd put the bread in all at once to get the bread more evenly battered.

Though I usually eat my french toast with no syrup (just butter and sugar) this really needed syrup to bring everything together. It was a bit dry (I think that's because some of the bread crumbs got no love from the batter) but that could also be I cooked it too long (I was using a gas oven in the mountains and things didn't brown like I thought they would).

This recipe came from a wonderful blog called Sweet Paul. He puts out an online seasonal magazine and this recipe came from the Sweet Paul Magazine Spring 2010 edition (you can buy printed copies...they are so beautiful you'll want to!). The photos on the blog are amazing and not only are wonderful recipes featured but great decorating ideas for the home are included.

 

AMARETTO-BAKED FRENCH TOAST WITH PECANS
(Sweet Paul Magazine Spring 2010)

3 eggs
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons amaretto
1 loaf brioche bread, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 tablespoon butter (for greasing baking dish)
1/2 cup pecans
Maple syrup, to serve

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl beat eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla and amaretto. Add brioche cubes and let mixture stand (soak) for five minutes.

Spoon into a 9" x 12" well-greased baking dish; sprinkle with pecans.

Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden.

Pour maple syrup over bread and serve. Makes four servings.

Note: The recipe also states that you could use challah bread instead of the brioche.

Note: I was able to find a fresh loaf of brioche bread at my local Lunardi's.

Note: Cut up the bread and add it to the batter all at once so the bread evenly soaks up the mixture.

Note: A little amaretto in your coffee while you eat this French Toast is heaven.

Definitely will make this again and I'll serve it for breakfast the next time I have overnight visitors.

Zucchini Pizza

I admit, when I first saw this on Pinterest I passed right on by. I just didn't think it would taste that good. But as everyone and their Mother's Uncle seemed to be pinning it, I took a closer look. Seems the original recipe came from one of my favorite bloggers...Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen so I pinned it thinking I'd probably never use it.

Fast forward about a week to a co-worker giving me some extra zucchini that had been growing in his yard. One of them was those nice round, ball like zucchini that I've actually never cooked with before. The Pizza Zucchini recipe was still stuck in my mind so I decided to give it a try.

I was actually very surprised by how good this turned out. The zucchini didn't turn mushy as I had feared and even though it was pretty simple to put together it had great flavor. I didn't exactly follow Kayln's directions (she grilled hers, I used my broiler) but this will definitely be something I make again.

ZUCCHINI PIZZA
(Kalyn's Kitchen)

For Kalyn's recipe go here.

You will need the following:

Globe zucchini
Pizza Sauce (or doctored tomato sauce)
Cheese
Pepperoni
Olive Oil

Note: My zucchini was larger than the one shown on Kalyns blog. I cut a bit off the top and bottom of the globe zucchini and then sliced it making four rounds. I brushed both sides with olive oil and then broiled the slices until tender (I did turn them over once).

Note: I didn't have any pizza sauce but I did have a bit of leftover tomato sauce. I added some oregano and a bit of this and that to make my own pizza type sauce. I just spooned some on top of the broiled zucchini.

Note: I used some pre-shredded four cheese mix that I had in the fridge. I probably added more than normal on top of the sauce as I like things cheesy. I also added a bit of cheese on top of the pepperoni.

Note: I used presliced rounds of pepperoni (Hormel brand). You can also use turkey pepperoni to make this a "meatless" meal.

Note: Once I'd added the toppings, I broiled for only a few minutes to melt the cheese and heat up the toppings.

Since we had a big zucchini, we had this as dinner with a salad. I can see using smaller rounds of zucchini and making this as an appetizer.

For a detailed recipe go to Kalyn's blog here. As she states in her post, this is one of those recipes that once you have the basic idea you can just wing it. Loved that it helped me use some leftover tomato sauce I had no idea what to do with!

Creamy Bacon, Tomato, and Avocado Pasta Salad

I've come across many different recipes and versions of this salad on the net over the years, but never got around to trying any of them out. It's basically a BLT with avocado in salad form (and I almost always add avocado to my BLT's!!). There's even a version out there that includes hard boiled eggs (I may have to try that in my BLT one of these days). While perusing my newest obsession (yes Pinterest) I came across another version of the BLT With Avocado Salad and thought it was high time to make it. I figured it was a perfect dish to serve on a warm summer night and since it came from the Life's Ambroisa blog (a favorite of mine) I knew that I'd like the final results.

The recipe was a bit salty (but I'm not complaining), but that just meant I didn't have to add any additional salt. I think the bacon I used was salty enough (I used some gourmet thick cut) and of course I added 8 slices not 6 (and since it was thick cut, that was probably more bacon than really called for, but when has that ever stopped me?). I liked the creaminess of the dressing. Not necessarily low cal, but since we divided this into four, that's only an eigth of a cup of mayo :)

Very nice simple pasta salad recipe to have on hand. The pasta and the bacon and even the dressing can all be made ahead of time to just throw together with the tomatoes and avocados when you get home from work. We put this over some lettuce to stretch it out a bit, to make it a bit healthier, and to make it more of a main dish than a side salad.

CREAMY BACON, TOMATO, AND AVOCADO PASTA SALAD
(Life's Ambrosia)

(Recipe calls for Bacon, Rotini Pasta, Mayonnaise, Fresh Lemon Juice, Garlic Powder, White Pepper, Dried Dill, Cherry Tomatoes and Avocados).

Serves 4

Note: I used fresh dill because I had some on hand

Note: I used a bit more than one avocado.

Note: I think maybe I'll add some shredded parmesan next time I make this.

A nice salad to put in rotation. You can check out the recipe from Life's Ambrosia here.

 

Avocado Deviled Eggs

So I have a confession to make. I'm addicted to Pinterest...which is where I found this recipe.  And if you know anything about Pinterest, you know that you can Pin and Pin and Pin but it really doesn't mean anything unless you actually use your Pins. But more on Pinterest later (you can check out my Pins here)...for now, we start with these deviled eggs.

Why on earth haven't I ever thought of adding avocado to my deviled eggs before? Such a simple and great idea, which I'm sure I've run across before, but never thought to actually do. These were great though they did turn out a bit darker than I wanted. Linda at Eating Well...Living Thin (where the recipe comes from) says to make these close to serving as they can turn dark. I had hoped for a nice bright green from the avocados but that didn't happen, even with adding the lemon juice and serving right away.

I had a nice ripe avocado so there was a definite avocado taste to these. I did think they needed something more, you know, maybe something like a bit of....wait for it...bacon? Yeah, some chopped up bacon bits in this would be perfect!

Still prefer my Grandpa Cooley's Angry Deviled Eggs but I think a plate that alternated these Avocado Deviled Eggs with regular deviled eggs would make a great presentation.

For the recipe:

AVOCADO DEVILED EGGS
(from Eating Well...Living Thin)

(recipe calls for 6 eggs, avocado, lemon juice, mayonnaise, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, salt)

Makes 12 servings, 90 calories per serving (a serving would be half an egg).

Note: Whenever I mash egg yolks I never seem to get the creamy texture I'm looking for. I now always put the yolks through a fine sieve.

Note: Depending on your preference, I'd add a bit of hot sauce and some bacon bits.

Linda at Eating Well...Living Thin made a lovely presentation of this with a bit of paprika sprinkled on top and a small slice of avocado (you can check out her photo and recipe here).

 

10-Second Sangria from The Bitten Word

My summers can be defined by either songs, boyfriends or drinks...I still remember the summer that Foreigners "Urgent" was number one on my list. And there was that summer of that guy from Yale. And oh, I do remember the summer of Kamikazes at The Black Watch but maybe I should just forget about that.

This summer I thought that my favorite drink would be a Mango Sour. It had all the makings of what I love about a good summer drink. Easy to make. Works well in the heat. Has a bit of fruitiness that I love in summer drinks (hey, I'm a chick, I may like shots of tequila, but I like a nice chick drink every now and then too). Or I thought the drink of the summer of 2010 was going to be a traditional Sangria. Some friends of ours had us over in the Spring and served us the best Sangria. Since I have a cookbook entirely devoted to Sangria's, I thought I'd give them a try.

But then I came across this recipe on The Bitten Words blog. I stopped in my tracks. Really? Just a bottle of Shiraz and some sparkling lemonade? Could it taste that good? Could it be that simple? The answers were yes and yes. A quick summer drink, perfect for hot days with that bit of fruity that seems to work so well in the summer. The Bitten Word guys were obsessed with this drink. I am too.

Now mind you, summer IS over...but I'm still hoping for that Indian Summer weather, and quite frankly I'll be drinking this until I start to wrap my cold hands around a cup of hot chocolate.

This is also a PERFECT drink to serve to unexpected guests. You can keep bottles of the lemonade and wine on hand and if someone pops over with some fried chicken or steaks for you to grill (I keep hoping....) you can whip this drink up in no time.

You may need to experiment with the ratio. Though it says equal amounts wine and lemonade, some of the wines we used needed more lemonade in the mix. I usually start with half and half and add more lemonade to taste.

10-SECOND SANGRIA

Bottle of Cheap Red Wine
Bottle of Sparkling Lemonade

Pour equal parts over ice. Yep. That's it.

Note: I tend to use a Shiraz that costs anywhere from $5 to $8. The Bitten Word says that any cheap red wine will do so feel free to experiment.

Note: The lemonade I use is Lorina Sparkling Pink Lemonade. It comes in a wine shaped glass bottle with a swing stopper. 

Simple. Easy as could be. Perfect for last minute guests. Really nice for sitting out on the porch while hubby is slaving over a hot barbecue and you're kicking back, enjoying the view, reading a good trashy novel and you have that glass of 10-Second Sangria in your hand. Just sayin...

Peanut Butter Cup Cake

  You need to make this cake. No really, I know it's hot outside, but you need to make this cake. If you like peanut butter and chocolate together at all.  Make. This. Cake. If you're the kind of person who tricks little kids out of their Reese's Peanut Butter Cups at Halloween? Yep. Make. This. Cake. 

If you don't like peanut butter and chocolate I don't want to know you, make this cake for someone who does. And make extra frosting. Frost Cupcakes. Frost bacon. Eat it with a spoon. You won't be sorry. And don't forget the milk. This cake is really rich and milk goes nicely with it. Decadent. Oh yeah. Make this cake.

When my cousin was out here with his wife for her birthday, I looked around for a nice "party cake". Something that was a bit more than a box cake but simple to make since we were making a ton of other food. I came across this cake at The Idea Room and just about stopped in my tracks. I'm a huge fan of peanut butter cups and yes, I've been known to bribe children at Halloween with money in order to score their Reese's.

This was fairly easy to make since it starts with a box mix. Have your children (or in my case husband) unwrap all the mini peanut butter cups, as that's pretty much the only real time consuming part of the recipe. The day I made this cake we were frantically cooking in the kitchen, it was hot outside and the cake never made it into the fridge to set. Other than the frosting kinda melting down the side, the lack of fridge time didn't effect the scarfing down of the cake one bit. You guys are just lucky I was able to grab a photo before the entire cake disappeared!

If you do make this cake just be sure to have those gym shoes handy because if you're not careful, you'll eat the whole damn cake yourself. I'm just sayin'...

To get the recipe, click on the title and you'll be taken to The Idea Room's blog post:

PEANUT BUTTER CUP CAKE

NOTE: I bought two bags of mini Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. One bag even had a "bonus" amount. I can't tell you exactly how many I used because those sneaky little cups sprouted wings and kept flying into my mouth. I figured it they wanted to be eaten that bad, I needed to comply. There were no mini peanut butter cups left after making this cake.

NOTE: I used Skippy Peanut Butter

NOTE: The frosting was really good but I'd prefer a bit more next time so I'd make a double batch. I'd add more than a cup in between layers...but I'm a frosting freak so the original recipe amount might work for you.

NOTE: Though I like dark chocolate, I'm thinking milk chocolate or bittersweet might be better in the frosting next time too. I think those flavors would meld better with the peanut butter cups (unless you find dark chocolate peanut butter cups of course).

NOTE: In the recipe, it states to crumble the peanut butter cups on top. I liked the look of the mini cups just cut in half so that's what I did. And yes, I took them one at a time and pressed them into the cake.

The cake looked amazing. It also tasted pretty dang good (though again, it's pretty rich...don't forget to offer some milk!). Definitely a cake I'd make again.