Mini apple pies

Is your mouth watering yet?

When Matt and I were dating, we made an apple pie almost every Sunday.  He would make the filling, and I would make the crust. Then, we would feed it to his hungry parents and siblings who oohed and ahhed over it all night.  Today,  I can whip up a pie crust without even thinking about it, but I have to have him there to make the filling. 

We still love to make apple pie together and, on our last date, we decided to make mini apple pies in ramekins.  I love ramekins!  They are so cute, they make perfect individual portions, and it's like it a dollop of ice cream was just meant to sit right on top.   Have I mentioned that I love ramekins?!

Amaze yourself and make them right now

Start with 3-4 granny smith apples

Peel the apples (see if you can do it in one piece- it's just fun). 

Core and slice the apples, then place them in a saucepan.  Add 1/2 cup white sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1 tsp lemon juice, pinch of salt, 1 tsp cinnamon, 2 Tbsp butter and 2 Tbsp flour.  Stir constantly over medium heat until thickened (5-7 minutes).  Set aside while you make the crust.

 smile- pie crust isn't hard, it's fun. This is my pie crust extraordinaire in training.  She is mixing 2/3 cup shortening into 2 cups all purpose flour and 1 tsp salt.  Use a fork or pastry cutter.  When it looks like coarse meal, add 6-7 Tbsp cold water one Tbsp at a time.  Form into a ball with your hands.  Now, divide that ball into 8 equally sized balls.  With a rolling pin, roll each ball into a 7" circle.  Put 4 crusts into the ramekins and set the other 4 aside.



Ladle the filling into the crusts.  Make sure to take a whiff of the delicious apples.

Next, place the top crust on each pie and crimp the edges. 

Make a few slits in the top with a knife.  

Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until browned and bubbly.

 Top with ice cream and enjoy!

 

      Valentine's Day is one of those holidays where the gift can make or break the day. My sweetheart made the day great with this homemade edible fruit arrangement.   It became a date when he brought the supplies home and made it right there for me while I watched in shock and awe.  Who knew a man could make something so cute and thoughtful?

 

Here is how he did it:

1. Start by making each of the "flowers"

• The grape "flowers" are made by placing 3 grapes on a bamboo skewer.
• The strawberry "flowers" are also made by placing a strawberry on a skewer (wouldn't it be great to dip the strawberries in chocolate first?  I'll suggest that for next year.)
• The pineapple "flowers" are made by cutting a pineapple into round rings and cutting out a flower shape with a cookie cutter like this one:

 

 

 

• Poke the pineapple flower onto a skewer and use a melon baller to cut a ball out of a cantelope.  Place the melon ball in the center to form a flower. 

 

 

2. Now, stuff a few pieces of green tissue paper into the glass vase.

3. Follow that by placing parsley in the vase for a filler.

4. Next, place your "flowers" where you want them in the arrangement. 

 5. Last, tie a bow, and viola- a beautiful, homemade edible flower arrangement!

 

Ladies, you may want to start dropping hints now for next year.

Note: we enjoyed the arrangement for a couple of days and then ate the fruit dipped in sour cream and brown sugar. 

The start of a tradition

The Start of a Tradition

     My husband finds cooking relaxing after a long, hard day at work, and we both find much joy in eating delicious food together. 

     In an attempt to combine the two, I planned a cooking date for the two of us as a surprise for him several years ago.  This was not a date where we would be taught by professional chefs and have a night on the town (although we hope to be able to do that someday).  This was a much simpler version of us putting the kids to bed, creating a food masterpiece, and then eating it together all the while talking about our days, hopes and dreams for our family and the future. 


     I selected homemade tortellini as our experiment for our first date. It was fun, messy, delicious and bonding for both of us. Our pasta cooking date was the first of many more. I want to share them here with you, and I hope you will try it out for yourself.

                                     Here is Matt making the bacon scallop cream sauce.

 Here I am rolling the pasta into tortellini.

Finished product...tada.

This is what time we ate.



     Here is the recipe we used from The Food Network's Alton Brown.  We shaped it into tortellini, stuffed it with cheese and made up a sauce from bacon, scallops and cream. 

Fresh Pasta:

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 large eggs
• 3 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

By Hand: On a clean surface make a well with the flour. In a measuring cup mix the eggs, water and oil and salt. Pour the wet mixture slowly into the flour and mix with your 2 fingers until all of the wet is incorporated. Do not force the dough to take all of the flour. If you are going to use a pasta machine to roll out the dough you may at this point form the dough into a disk and cover with plastic wrap. Place in the refrigerator for 1 hour to rest. If you going to roll this by hand you should knead the dough on a floured work surface for 8 to 10 minutes.

By Food Processor:
In the bowl of your food processor combine the flour and salt and pulse 2 to 3 times. In a liquid measuring cup whisk the eggs, water and oil. While pulsing the machine pour this mixture in a continuous stream and continue running the machine until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Follow directions above for hand rolling or machine.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 3 to 5 minutes in boiling water
Ease of Preparation: easy