Easy Apple Pie

What's better than an easy dish - especially when you have a newborn at home?

That's exactly why I chose to use this recipe for my guest post at The Keenan Cookbook!  Click here to  read more, and be sure to give the Keenans a big congrats on their new addition!

Linked to:  Sweets for a Saturday

Snickers Pie

FACT:  Snickers is one of my absolute favorite candy bars.

FACT:  This pie was a HUGE hit among family/friends.

FACT:  I'm going to have to make 4 or 5 of these next time!


Snickers Pie
slightly adapted from Confessions of a Wannabe Baker

8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
5 regular size Snickers bars, or a bag of mini sized ones
1 tub light frozen whipped topping
2 ready made pie crusts (I used graham cracker since that's what I had, but I'm sure chocolate would be even better!)...or, just one, and freeze half the filling for future use
caramel topping

In a large mixing bowl, mix cream cheese, peanut butter and sugar until creamy.  Stir in chopped candy bars.  Gently fold in frozen whipped topping.

Pour into crusts and top with more chopped bars.  Drizzle with caramel topping.  Refrigerate overnight.

You can also freeze one pie in the crust...or, make your own crust, press into a springform pan, and pour all the filling in for one large pie.

Linked to:  Sweets for a Saturday
                  Sweet Treats

Banana Cream Pie with Vanilla Wafer Crust

My niece Maddie celebrated her 11th birthday a few weeks ago.  As per our family tradition since my blog started, I asked her what kind of cake she wanted me to make.

Last year I made her a delicious strawberry shortcake and this year, she followed along with more fruity goodness.  Unlike just about every other 11 year old on the planet, little miss Maddie doesn't like chocolate...and it definitely makes me question the fact that we're related :)

So, because no gathering with my family is small, I had to make the pie into more of a cake size dessert (I doubled the recipe below in order to adapt it to a 9x13 pan).  Still, the words couldn't fit using whipped cream, so initials had to suffice.

This is one delicious dessert.  The custard is phenomenal.  The crust is to die for.  All in all, it was a big hit!

Unfortunately though, it isn't very pretty...

I have to admit, I wasn't very excited about Maddie's choice when she first gave it to me, but this was a pleasant surprise.  Really, really good!  I'll definitely be making it again soon.

Happy Birthday, Maddie!

Banana Cream Pie with Vanilla Wafer Crust
adapted from Prepared Pantry

for the crust:
2 cups crushed vanilla wafers (use a plastic bag and rolling pin for best results)
1 tablespoon sugar
6 tablespoons butter, melted

for the filling:
3 bananas, sliced
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup AP flour
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups milk (I used 1%)
4 egg yolks
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter

Place crushed wafers in a 9 inch deep dish pie pan.  Add sugar and stir to combine.  Add melted butter and mix to distribute evenly.  Press mixture evenly throughout pan.  Place in freezer while preparing filling.

Place dry filling ingredients in a saucepan.  Add milk and whisk together, followed by egg yolks.  Cook over low heat, stirring regularly, until mixture is thick and just begins to bubble.  Add butter and vanilla and stir.

Let cool for 15 minutes.  Spread banana slices along crust then pour filling over it.  Let chill for several hours.

Linked to:  Sweets for a Saturday

Sicilian Artichoke Pie (Tortino di Carciofini)

These are a few of my favorite things...

Artichokes.
Cheese.
Sicilian food.

Combine them and what do you get?  Well, awesomeness is one word that comes to mind...

My dad found an old cookbook that we've been sifting through and finding some pretty incredible recipes.  This is one of them.  And it brings me right back to the homeland.

Lunch, dinner, snack, appetizer...you decide.  Enjoy this little slice of heaven, no matter when you have it!

Sicilian Artichoke Pie (Tortino di Carciofini)
from The Art of Sicilian Cooking (the version we have is WAY older than this one!)

for the crust:
2 cups sifted AP flour
pinch of salt
3/4 cup shortening (or 2/3 cup lard)
1/3 cup ice water

for the filling:
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 (10 ounce) packages frozen artichoke hearts, thawed
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup grated caciocavallo cheese
8 ounces mozzarella, chopped
salt and pepper

Place flour and salt in bowl, and cut in shortening with two knives or pastry blender.  Continue until mixture resembles small peas.  Sprinkle ice water, one tablespoon at a time, over mixture, adding to driest part each time.  Mix gently with fork until fully moistened.  Form into ball and divide in half.

Roll one half between two pieces of waxed paper to 1/8 inch thickness and 1 inch larger than 9 inch pie pan.  Fold in half and place loosely in pan, working carefully.  Set aside.  Do the same for other half for top crust; set aside.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Saute garlic in hot oil.  Add artichokes and brown lightly on both sides.  Transfer to bowl and stir in eggs and cheeses.  Season with salt and pepper to taste, then pour into pie pan.

Cover with top crust and trim off all but 1/2 inch of excess dough.  Turn under, sealing two crusts together.  Flute crust gently and cut air holes on top with a knife.  Bake for about 15 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake another 30 minutes, until golden brown.

Serves 6-8.

Classic Diner-Style Chocolate Pie for Pi Day!

Happy Pi Day! (and incase you have no idea what I'm talking about, today's date is 3/14...get it?)  What better way to celebrate than with, of course, pie.

And let me tell you...THIS is the one to pick.  Run to the store NOW, get what you need, fly home and make it.  You will love me for it, without question.

Have you seen, or read, The Help?  If so, you'll know exactly why I chose this as the dish to represent that movie at my 24x24 party.  Naturally, I left the "special" ingredient out, and headed over to Baked: Explorations for the real deal.

O.M.G.

Not much else to say except you may feel like nothing will ever top this pie...besides some whipped cream :)



Classic Diner-Style Chocolate Pie
from Baked: Explorations

for the chocolate cookie crust:
30 chocolate wafer cookies
1 tablespoon sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

for the chocolate filling:
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons chocolate malt (like Ovaltine)
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cornstarch
5 egg yolks
2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
5 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 ounces milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons whiskey
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

whipped cream

for the crust:  Grind cookies in food processor until consistency is of fine powder (about 1 1/2 cups).  Put crumbs in bowl and mix in sugar.

Pour butter in and mix well until combined.  Mixture will be wet.  Turn onto 9 inch pie plate and press into bottom and sides.  Freeze while making filling.

for the filling:  Whisk sugar, malt, salt and cornstarch in pot.  Add yolks and whisk until combined.  Mixture will look like thick paste.  Slowly pour milk and cream in, whisking constantly.  Bring to boil over medium heat while whisking to prevent bottom from burning.  Boil for 30 seconds then remove from heat.

Add chocolates, whiskey and vanilla.  Whisk until combined.  Continue whisking for a few minutes to cool mixture slightly.  Let stand for 15 minutes.  If skin forms, whisk before pouring into pie shell.

Refrigerate at least 4 hours before serving.  Top with whipped cream.

Linked to: Tastetastic Thursday
                  Sweet Tooth Friday

Foodbuzz 24x24: A Tribute to the Best Picture Oscar Nominees of 2012!

I was so excited when I received the email from Foodbuzz that my 24x24 proposal had been accepted this month!  Planning a menu and party around a theme is always fun, and I had a blast with this concept.

For those of you not familiar with 24x24, it's a virtual party sponsored by Foodbuzz each month, where 24 bloggers' proposals are chosen to be executed in the same day.  Since the assigned party date was the day before the Academy Awards, I thought it would be fun to come up with an event based on it.  Then I thought, why not devote one dish to each movie nominated for Best Picture?  Awesome.  Except, I hadn't seen any of the movies...

Frank and I have never been big movie goers...and now our trips to the theater are to see whatever Disney film is playing.  But, we love watching movies at home, and I LOVE watching the Oscars...especially the Red Carpet portion :)  So, I did a little research on each film and came up with rough ideas for each of them, finalized the menu, went shopping, and got to work.

My family got together and enjoyed the feast (like we do most weekends anyway!) while listening to tunes from our favorite movie soundtracks.  The dishes were mostly of the picky/finger food variety, which was what I wanted, since there were 9 of them.  I wanted everyone to enjoy a little portion of each.

All of the recipes will be featured in the next few weeks, but the dishes were as follows (alphabetized by movie title):

For "The Artist" - Crostini with Goat Cheese and Olive Tapenade.  I went with something black and white since, well, that's what the movie is :)

For "The Descendants" - Pineapple Coconut Ice Cream.  It brought us right back to Hawaii.

For "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close" - Juice Box Wings, based on the juice boxes that Thomas Horn's character is seen drinking throughout the movie.

For "The Help" - Chocolate Pie.  If you read the book or saw the movie, you definitely know why this dish was a no-brainer.

For "Hugo" - Herb Mushroom Quiche with Puff Pastry, shaped as hearts to match the key ring that is significant in the film.

For "Midnight in Paris" - Mini Croques Monsieur.  When in Paris...

For "Moneyball" - Salty Sweet Candied Peanuts.  A fun spin on ballpark food!

For "The Tree of Life" - Death By Chili.  I thought a comfort food dish was fitting based on the movie, and made an extra batch of my chili that won FOUR awards at a competition I was in the week before the party!  Much more to come on this...

And finally, for "War Horse" - Raw Kale Salad with Walnuts, Pecorino & Lemon, a farm to table dish which is appropriate for this movie's theme.

We had a great time - it really was a lot of fun!  I can't wait to share all of the recipes with you.  Enjoy the Oscars!

Time to improvise

I was excited to make caramel apples for Halloween!  Frank went out and bought a dozen apples, caramels and candies, but couldn't find sticks.  The next day I went to the only other store that was open during our crazy Nor'easter aftermath and power outage.  And of course, no sticks.

Let's do the math.  No sticks = no caramel apples.

Sigh.  I really wanted to make something "cutesy" and finger friendly, and still be able to use what was already bought.  This is where the improvising comes in.

I'd say it worked out well.

These little pies are adorable and delicious.  Next time, when I'm better prepared, I'll make them a little bigger...I had to keep them on the small side because I only had 2 pie crusts (had no time to make any more) and had a set amount of people to feed.

Definitely keep these in mind when you need a quick dessert - they were very easy to assemble and take no time at all to bake.  You could even make them ahead and freeze them for later.  Plenty of time left in the fall to enjoy them - even if it looks like winter outside!

Mini Caramel Apple Pies
slightly adapted from Miz Gina's Front Porch

2 refrigerated pie crusts (or homemade)
3 apples, cored, peeled and chopped very small (I used honeycrisp...anything would work)
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 teaspoons sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
caramel candies

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly flour workspace and roll out dough.  Using a small circular cutter (I used the top of a cooking spray can!), cut rounds out of crust.  Ball up and roll crust out again to cut more rounds, until you've used all the dough.

Place rounds on cookie sheets that have been lightly sprayed.  Put apple pieces in middle of each round, then top with caramel (depending on the size of the candies you get, you may want to cut them).  Place another round on top and press around edge with a fork to make little pies.

*If your rounds are larger, you can fold them over and seal the one side*

Brush tops with a little butter.  Mix sugar and cinnamon together and sprinkle on top of each pie.  Bake until golden brown, about 10-15 minutes.

Linked to: Tastetastic Thursday
                  Sweet Tooth Friday

Friends who are family

Everyone should be lucky enough to have friends they consider family.  If so, you know what I'm talking about - the ones who are there through thick and thin (a.k.a your "rocks")...who you can just be yourself with and not be judged...who actually LISTEN...who you appreciate more than anything (and vice versa) - you get my drift.

I'm eternally grateful to have been blessed with some of these people.  One of them came over last night to do what we do best - eat, drink and chill out :)  There were other items on the menu that ended up not making an appearance - maybe the wine (or even the laughter) took up too much room in our bellies, as usual.

Instead of a sit-down meal I went with apps and desserts for a more casual night.  We'll enjoy the quesadillas I had planned to make later today (plus leftovers of what you see here)...everything is football-friendly, so why not try some yourselves?  Goooo JETS!

Ina's Pan-Fried Onion Dip was awesome - especially if you're a ridiculous onion lover like me.  Doesn't look like much in the picture but believe me, it's GOOD.  It makes a good amount, too.

I wanted to try a baked buffalo wings recipe for future use - any way that I can make one of our favorite dishes healthier is always a bonus.  These didn't disappoint (see recipe below).  Once they were finished, I realized I probably didn't dry the wings off well enough after washing, because some of the coating didn't stick.  So, that didn't make for the best looking wings, but they definitely were some of the best tasting we've had.  The blue cheese dressing I made for dipping wasn't too shabby, either...and probably made up for the calories lost from baking the wings.  Hey, nobody's perfect ;)

And of course, the ever-popular spinach balls made an appearance (see my recipe below)...

...along with this delicious cake batter bark from a fellow food blogger from NJ, Stephanie.  To say I'm thrilled that we have leftovers of this is an understatement  :)

And finally, Chach's favorite (that's Jason, to those of you who don't know him) that I've been making him for 20+ years...key lime pie.  The "famous" recipe that I've been wowing him and many other friends with all this time can very easily be found on the back of Nellie & Joe's Key Lime Juice bottle.

And yes, I've made a "from scratch" version before...it doesn't compare.  Don't mess with this one.  Trust me.     See below for over 20 years of proof.

Baked Buffalo Wings
from Allrecipes

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 20 chicken wings
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1/2 cup hot pepper sauce
• 
  
• Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, and lightly grease with cooking spray. Place flour, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and salt into a resealable plastic bag.  Shake to mix. 
• 
  
• Add the chicken wings, seal, and toss until well coated with flour mixture. Place the wings onto the prepared baking sheet and refrigerate at least 1 hour.
• 
  
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Whisk together the melted butter and hot sauce in a small bowl. Dip wings into butter mixture, and place back on baking sheet. Bake until chicken is no longer pink in the center, and crispy on the outside, about 45 minutes. Turn the wings over halfway during cooking so they cook evenly.

Spinach Balls
1 10 oz. package of frozen chopped spinach, cooked and drained VERY WELL of all liquid (use a paper towel to press excess water out)
1/2 cup grated cheese (I use pecorino romano...parmesan is fine)
1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs (if you use plain, add whatever seasonings you like)
1 onion, finely chopped
3 eggs, beaten
4 tablespoons butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix.  Roll mixture into small balls and place on baking sheets lined with foil.  Bake for 30 minutes.

These can easily be frozen and reheated.

WW Points+ for Spinach Balls = 4 (about 4 balls per serving)
WW Points+ for Baked Buffalo Wings = 4

Wouldn't it be nice if...

...cooking and baking burned off all the calories you consume?  Or at least half of them?

It figures that my favorite pie has to be the most fattening one known to mankind.  So, why not make it even more decadent by adding chocolate?  Makes sense.  I've made this for the past two years for Thanksgiving (this picture is actually from 2009)...since we split the day between our families I bake 2 so we have one for each house.

My sister and I baked our annual holiday cookies last weekend (I'll blog about it soon) and she showed me a trick I never knew, and it would come in handy with this recipe.  Dust the chocolate chips with a little flour before adding them in...it'll prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the pan.  She did it for the cookies we were making by tossing both into a ziploc bag.  Shake for a few seconds so the flour covers all the chips.  I'll remember that for next year!

This is another one that falls under the "ridiculously easy" category.  We actually discussed it at my sister's this year - her brother-in-law was convinced I slaved in the kitchen over it.  Not even close!

Just noticed the lopsided crust...oops!  Good thing it doesn't affect the way it tastes! :)

Chocolate Pecan Pie
(I don't remember where I first saw this recipe - it was a long time ago and I've made some changes)


1 (9 inch) pie shell
3 eggs
1 cup light corn syrup
2/3 cup white sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips 


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In medium mixing bowl beat eggs lightly with a rotary beater or fork. Stir in corn syrup, sugar, and butter; mix well. Stir in pecan and chocolate pieces (remember the dusting trick!).


To prevent overbrowning, cover edges of pie shell with aluminum foil. Place pie shell on oven rack and pour filling into it.


Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil from crust edges and bake an additional 25 minutes, or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Chill before serving.


Serves 8.