Mom's Pecan Pie

I don't really like nuts. I never have. My husband doesn't like them either which just kind of vindicated me. I've already adapted quite a few recipes to exclude them...banana nut bread becomes banana bread, cranberry nut muffins becomes cranberry muffin, etc. So why, you ask, would I even try making pecan pie? I don't know; it seemed like a good idea at the time.

My Mom has a really good recipe for pecan pie. Ironically she doesn't eat pecan pie either (although she does like nuts in general). Everyone she makes it for just raves over it though. I made it a while ago and I managed to mess it up. I misread her recipe. Well, that's not 100% accurate (and Tyler would be hugely offended if I wasn't accurate). This is actually what happened. The recipe calls for 1/4 cup butter but in parentheses it said 1 stick. I glossed over the 1/4 cup and just went with the 1 stick. After I had mixed everything up, I occurred to me that the average stick of butter is 1/2 cup and not 1/4 cup. I came up with 2 possible options for the discrepancy. Either my Mom put the wrong measurement down or she buys half sticks. While the pie was already in the oven, I called my Mom to see which it was (because I could do absolutely nothing about it then anyway). Unfortunately, it was the second option. So I stared at the pie and let it bake an extra 15 minutes and it turned out great! Really though, can you go wrong with too much butter in a dessert? So here is the adapted recipe.

Mom's Pecan Pie
with an accidental adaptation by Erin

4 beaten eggs
1 cup sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1/2 Tbsp flour
1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
2 1/2 cup pecans
pinch of salt

1. Mix eggs, sugar, syrup, flour, and salt. Add melted butter. Stir in pecans and pour into an unbaked pie crust. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes (start checking on it at 1 hour).
   

The final product: sweet, buttery and delicious. As this was my first taste of pecan pie, I don't have anything to compare it to but I thought it was ooey, gooey and wonderful. I took it to a potluck dinner and it got rave reviews from all the pecan pie connoisseurs there. And look how pretty it is! I'm a sucker for pretty and sweet so I'll probably make this frequently.

Elias' Birthday Cupcakes

It's a month and a half later and I'm finally posting about Elias' birthday cupcakes. Some might say that I should just have forgotten about them but they were so good that I can't.

I'll be honest...I don't really like cake. It's usually dry and covered in overly sweet frosting. I'd much prefer something ooey and gooey. I wanted to keep with tradition for Elias' birthday though. How can you not have cake on your first birthday?!! So I went in search of something yummy to make for him. I hit a spot of inspiration when I saw apple cake. Elias loves apples!! Although the apple cake I've had before was also dry and a bit lack luster in flavor as well. I decided to combine a couple different recipes I found to see if I could solve the too dry/too mellow problem of apple cake.

Double Apple Cupcakes

3/4 cup sugar
6 Tbsp butter
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/2 cup applesauce, unsweetened (1 jar of baby food works perfect for this)
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 apple, finely diced

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees and prepare a muffin tin with paper liners.
2. Beat the sugar and butter with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs and beat to combine. Add applesauce and combine well. Set aside.
3. In a separate bowl add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices and whisk together.
4. Add half of the flour mixture to the batter and then add half of the buttermilk (or soured milk: stir together 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice and 1/2 cup regular milk and let sit for 5 minutes). Combine completely and repeat.
5. Add apple chunks and scoop batter into liners until they are each 2/3 full. Bake them for 22-25 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.

Makes 12 cupcakes.

This most certainly goes best with a cinnamon buttercream frosting. Here's my own recipe for that as well.

Cinnamon Buttercream

2 sticks butter, salted, room temperature
4 cups powdered sugar
3 Tbsp heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon

1. Beat butter with mixer until fluffy
2. Add powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until completely mixed.
3. Add cream and mix well. (Add a splash of milk if needed to reach desired consistency).
4. Mix in vanilla and cinnamon until completely combined.

Makes enough to frost 24 cupcakes.

The final product: Elias certainly liked it. Granted he's one and that was his first taste of cake. I really liked it as well (as did the rest of the guests). The cake had good apple flavor (from the diced apples) and wasn't dry at all (from the applesauce). The frosting was really divine as well. The combination was all around good and is certainly something I'll pull out each fall when apples are especially delicious. It's a super simple recipe but add a drizzle of caramel sauce or a cute caramel candy and this is ready for even the swankiest party or dessert shop display case. Try it!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

Chocolate chip cookies are classic. Everybody loves them. How can you go wrong putting all that yummy goodness in pie form? You can't, that's how.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie
From HowSweetEats

2 whole eggs
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
1 cup chocolate chips
1 whole unbaked pie shell

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, beat eggs until foamy. Beat in flour, sugar, and brown sugar until well blended. Blend in melted butter. Stir in chocolate chips. Pour into pie shell and bake for 60 minutes. Serve warm with ice cream.

You'll be pretty excited to know that I've finally found my pie crust recipe. I can credit its origins to Tyler's cousin, Denita (who can credit it to a chef friend). I'm pretty stoked because I've tried quite a few and was getting pretty frustrated. What makes this THE recipe is its forgiving nature. While I still add a bit of liquid compared with the original liquid (and I'm still tweeking a bit), it is still pretty dry. That might sound like a bad thing but in this situation it isn't. It may not be the easiest thing to roll out into a pretty sheet but it pinches back together so well that it doesn't really matter. It's pinchability (yeah, that's not a word) means no more holes and cracks that pull apart when you prebake a crust. Oh and the taste, it's far superior to all the others I've tried. Seriously good and flaky.

Pie Crust

2 cups flour
7 Tbsp shortening, cold
4 Tbsp butter, cold
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
1/2 baking powder
1/4 cup milk
10 drops vinegar

1. Put the flour in a large bowl and cut in the COLD shortening and butter with a pastry blender. It should look like coarse crumbs (a little smaller than pea-sized) when you're down.
2. Mix in the salt, sugar, and baking powder. Mix in milk and vinegar and form a ball. It should be dry and crumbly. If you absolutely can't get the ball to stay together, add a few more drops vinegar and milk, 1 tsp at a time, until you can just get it to stay together (it normally takes at least 1 or 2 tsp to get the desired consistency).
   
3. Roll it out on a well floured surface and transfer to a pie pan. Chill for 15-20 minutes before prebaking or filling (to allow butter and shortening to cool and to help it keep it's shape).
   

The final product: decadent. I couldn't get this to bake up as much as the original recipe showed (even though I baked it longer than the recipe touts) but it was still SO good. The center was ooey, gooey and oh so chocolaty. This would be wonderful with a scoop of ice cream for sure.

Butternut Squash, Apples and Pasta

This is another Rachael Ray recipe. I actually pulled it from her 20 make-ahead meal plan and just adapted it a bit to fit my purposes. I looked at the ingredient list and thought, "I love all of those things, but will I love them together?" With all that fall flavor, I thought I should certainly find out.

Pasta with Apple and Squash
adapted from Rachael Ray

3 cups butternut squash, peeled, seeded and chopped into 3/4-inch cubes (about 1/2 a large squash)
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1 lb pasta (rigatoni, rotini, penne, etc)
8 oz bacon, thinly sliced
1/2 tsp dried thyme
2 shallots, minced
1 tart apple, sliced
1/2 cup grated parmesan

1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Put the chopped squash on a large rimmed baking sheet and drizzle with oil. Add salt and pepper and toss to coat. Spread evenly in the pan and bake for until fork-tender, about 15 minutes.
   
2. While the squash is baking, cook pasta al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup cooking water.
   
3. In the same pot, cook bacon until just crisp; transfer to paper towels. Add shallots and apple and cook for 5 minutes. Add pasta, squash, cooking water, bacon and parmesan; season with additional salt and pepper and toss.
   

Serves 4.
The final product: homey and comforting. I'm a big fan of cooked squash (zucchini is a favorite but butternut is a close second). I'm also a big fan of bacon...and of cooked apples of any sort. Honestly, I'm a big fan of this meal. All of the ingredients, while delicious in and of themselves (except parmesan...it's really not good by itself), are even more delicious paired together. It might sound a little scary (especially if you're Tyler) but it really is good (even Tyler agreed).

MTAL #9

This is a Rachael Ray recipe that I've adapted to be an Asher-friendly meal. Her original recipe calls for beer to be the braising liquid (which you could still use if you buy wheat-free beer) but I swapped that out because, as I have mentioned before, I'm scared of the liquor section of the grocery store.

Braised Chicken Thighs with veggies
adapted from Rachael Ray

2 Tbsp flour (oat, barley, gluten-free all purpose, etc)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp ground allspice
8 bone-in chicken thighs (about 3 lbs)
4 Tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, half finely chopped and half thinly sliced
1 cup beef broth (Kitchen Basics brand is Asher-safe)
2 carrots, cut into 2-inch matchsticks
1/2 lb green beans, cut into 2-inch pieces

1. In a small bowl, combine the flour, salt, pepper, and allspice. Coat the chicken in the flour mixture. In a large skillet, heat 1 Tbsp oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken skin side down and cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook until browned on the other side, 3 to 5 minutes; transfer to a plate. Discard all but 1 Tbsp fat from the skillet. Add the chopped onion to the skillet and cook until softened, 3 minutes. Stir in the broth, scraping up any browned bits.
   
2. Return the chicken to the pan, lower the heat, cover and simmer until cooked through, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a platter; tent with foil. Boil the liquid in the liquid in the skillet for 2 minutes to reduce slightly. Whisk 2 Tbsp oil (or a combination of soy milk and oil whisked together if you have soy milk available).
3. Meanwhile, in a pot heat the remaining 1 Tbsp oil over medium heat. Add the sliced onion and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the carrots, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Add the green beans and 3 Tbsp water, cover and cook until crisp-tender, about 5 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Serve the vegetables topped with chicken and sauce.

Serves 4.

The final product: homey and delicious. As Asher-friendly meals go, this is surprisingly close to the real thing, even with all the swap-outs. The sauce, while it originally called for lots of butter, is still quite good. The coating on the chicken is a tad mushier than it's wheat-flour counterparts but is still quite tasty and satisfying. The vegetables are what I really adored with this meal. They are simple but highly addictive. What Asher (and Tyler) didn't finish, I scooped right up and devoured myself. Enjoy!

Ladyfingers

Ladyfingers sound fancy to me. I had heard of them a time or two before I started making Tyler's tiramisu but had never tried one. Even after using the store bought variety for tiramisu, I still had never eaten one by itself. I thought I should change that.

Ladyfingers
from Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child

1 Tb butter, softened
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, in a shaker or sieve
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 egg whites
pinch of salt
1 Tb granulated sugar
1/2 cup flour (plus more for dusting)

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees
2. Prepare baking sheets: butter lightly, dust with flour and knock off excess flour.
   
3. Gradually beat the sugar into the egg yolks, add the vanilla and continue beating for several minutes until the mixture is thick, pale yellow and forms ribbons when the beaters are removed.
4. Beat the egg whites and salt together in a separate bowl until soft peaks are formed. Sprinkle on the sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.
5. Scoop 1/4 of the egg whites over the top of the egg yolk mixture. Sift 1/4 of the flour and delicately fold in until partially blended. Repeat 3 more times until all is combined and partially blended. Do not attempt to blend the mixture too thoroughly or you will deflate the batter.
6. Scoop batter into a pastry bag and squeeze out even lines onto the prepared baking sheets, making finger shapes 4 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide, spaced 1 inch apart. Sprinkle with 1/16-inch layer of powdered sugar.
7. Bake in preheated oven for about 20 minutes. They should be pale brown under the sugar layer and slightly crusty on the outside. They should be tender but dry on the inside. As soon as they are done, remove from baking sheets with a spatula and cool on wire racks.

Makes 24 to 30 cookies.The final product: light and airy. These look nothing like the foamy things I bought at the store. They are crispy on the outside but still tender on the inside with just a touch of sweetness. These are great dunked in coffee or tea and would be even better sandwiched together with jam or some sort of butter cream.
FYI: They are really great in tiramisu too as they hold their shape slightly better than the store bought variety. This recipe makes just about the perfect amount for one recipe of tiramisu. Break out the pastry bags and give it a try for yourself. It's worth the effort!

Peanut Butter Pie

I love chocolate and peanut butter. I like pie. Therefore, I should like a peanut butter pie. So should you.

Vintage Peanut Butter Pie
from Tasty Kitchen

1 whole prebaked pie crust
8 oz cream cheese, softened
3/4 cups granulated sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup whipping cream
8 oz semi-sweet chocolate
4 Tbsp hot brewed coffee
2 Tbsp heavy cream

1. Prepare the prebaked pie crust.
   
2. Combine the cream cheese, sugar, peanut butter, and vanilla. Beat until smooth and fully incorporated. Whip the whipping cream and fold it into the peanut butter mixture. By adding 1/4 of the whipping cream to begin with, the ingredients will be easier to combine Take care not to deflate the whipping cream. Pour the filling into the cooled pie crust, smooth the top and chill in the fridge for about an hour.
3. Break up the semi-sweet chocolate and pour in the hot coffee. Let the coffee melt the chocolate before adding the heavy cream. Stir until smooth and pour evenly over the entire pie. Chill the pie for an additional 3 hours. Serve cold.

The peanut butter layer in the pie crust. I used a regular pie crust so that I could practice making pie crust. This would be just as good with a chocolate graham cracker or Oreo crust.
The chocolate layer. It's so pretty and smells delicious!
The final product: decadent and wonderful. As you can see from the picture, it doesn't cut into nice, pretty slices, but it tastes so good that it doesn't matter. I say that even after going to all the effort of making the pie crust too. This pie is really, really good. The peanut butter layer is smooth and delicious (although with peanut butter and cream cheese, how could it not be?) and the top layer adds just enough chocolate to finish it off.

Sloppy Joes, Slop, Sloppy Joes

What kid doesn't love sloppy joes? I was hoping that Asher would be as enthusiastic about them too.

Sloppy Joes
adapted from The Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook

1 medium onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium green bell pepper, diced
1 1/2 lb ground beef
2 Tbsp cider vinegar
1 (6-oz) can tomato paste
1 cup water
1 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp salt
pepper

1. Cook onion, garlic, bell pepper, and ground beef in a large pan over medium-high heat using a wooden spoon to break up the meat. Cook about 5 minutes until meat is no longer pink.
2. Add the cider vinegar and stir a couple of times. Add the rest of the ingredients. Reduce heat to low and simmer, loosely covered, for about 30 minutes more, stirring occasionally. Serve over rice or allergen-free biscuits (for Asher) or on buns.

The final product: delicious! These are kid and adult friendly. The taste is familiar but also a bit more mature than your average sloppy joe. I might cut the mustard down just a little to please my mustard-hating husband but really it is fairly hidden in amongst the rest of the flavors. The sauce is tangy and complex and overall delicious. This is allergen-free but good enough to be anyone's favorite sloppy joe recipe.

Apple Pie

Apple pie. It's an American classic. There are a million different recipes so how does one know where to begin? Look at the recipe with the word "Best" in the title. (That actually rarely works but I tried this time anyway.)

Best Apple Pie
from Tasty Kitchen

3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
6 cups Granny Smith apples, peeled and chopped
2 Tbsp butter
2 pie crusts
1 tsp cinnamon sugar
milk for brushing

1. Mix flour, sugars, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Add apples and mix well.
2. Line you pie pan with one crust. Add all of the covered apples to the pie pan. Pour the remaining dry mix over the apples.
   
3. Cut up butter and place around the top of the apples.
   
4. Cut vent holes in the remaining pie crust. Place crust over pie and seal the edges. Brush entire crust with milk and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
   
5. Bake at 375 degrees for 45-55 minutes until apples are soft.

With this much cinnamon-sugar and butter, the filling has to be good, right?
This was my very first double crust pie. I used Sylvia's Perfect Pie Crust. It actually went fairly well. I forgot to cut the vent holes until after putting the crust on the pie, but it didn't seem too difficult to do that afterward. I had one rouge apple puncture my crust but that also didn't seem that bad.
The finished product: pretty and delicious. The filling is what sets this pie apart. It's soooo good. It might actually be the best (it's definitely the best I've ever had). Try it.

Lime!!

I love lime. A lot. Especially since I was pregnant with Elias...I craved lime like crazy and it still makes me pretty happy. Enter Key lime pie.

Key Lime Pie
from Better Homes and Gardens

1 baked pie crust
3 eggs
1 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup lime juice or bottled Key lime juice
3 Tbsp water
few drops green food coloring (optional)
1 recipe whipped cream

1. Separate egg yolks from whites; set whites aside for meringue or another use.
2. For filling, in a medium bowl beat egg yolks with wire whisk or fork. Gradually whisk or stir in sweetened condensed milk; add lime juice, water and food coloring (if desired). Mix well (mixture will thicken).
3. Spoon thickened filling into pie shell. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 1 hour. Cover and chill pie for 3 to 4 hours. Meanwhile prepare whipped cream. Spread over chilled pie and serve.

The finished product: tangy and satisfying. I'm not a huge fan of meringue so I skipped that, but the result was still super delicious. Try it when you're looking for something tropical.

Strawberry Pie

Strawberry pie. It's so good and another one of Tyler's favorites. I've tried to make it at least a couple of times before. It didn't go well. Alright, it went horribly. I remember an undercooked crust filled with (and somewhat floating in) a runny mess of sweet, red goo. Bleck! This time I tried a Cooks Illustrated recipe and it went much better. I love their recipes because they make it almost fool proof. There might be a few extra steps along the way but those steps always avert a culinary catastrophe. I also tried a different pie crust recipe this time around. So let's get going!!

Pie Crust
from Tasty Kitchen

1/4 cup water
1/2 cup shortening (or butter)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 pinch salt

1. Add water and shortening to a small saucepan and heat just until shortening is melted. Set aside.
2. Put flour and salt into a 9-inch pie pan. With a fork, stir in the water/shortening mixture just until all the flour is moistened.
3. With your hands, form the dough into a fall and then pat into the bottom and up the sides of the pie plate. Finish the top edge and bake as desired.
   

I tried another pie crust recipe. I just wanted to check out my options. I also wanted to explore the world of butter pie crusts so I used the butter option instead of shortening. Since this is a prebaked crust, I tried a bunch of tricks to keep it from bubbling and generally turning into mess. All my tricks were found in the same edition of Cooks Illustrated as my filling. I put the shaped pie crust in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes to cool the butter and then stuck it in the freezer for about 10 minutes to set the pie crust's shape. I also tried the pie weights method (actually I used beans because I have a lot of dried beans). It involves lining your pie crust with some greased layers of foil, filling it with 2 cups of pie weights, and baking until 15 minutes before the end of your cook time. At that point you carefully remove you foil and weights and stick it back in to brown up to that pretty golden brown.
On the whole, the pie crust went well. I don't know if all the hoops I jumped through really helped but it made me feel better that I was trying. It also tasted really good. Butter in a crust is just awesome. I noticed that butter tastes better in a crust but shortening gives you that awesome flaky texture.
You might notice the strawberries included in the picture. They are strategically placed to cover up some minor holes. I remembered my last attempt to make strawberry pie where the filling escaped through some holes and partially filled the bottom of the pie pan. Sticky and gross! The strawberries actually did a good job filling the holes and preventing that issue. Yay!

Icebox Strawberry Pie
from Cook's Illustrated

Filling
2 lb frozen strawberries
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp unflavored gelatin
1 cup sugar
pinch salt
1 lb fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced thin
1 pie shell, baked and cooled

Topping
4 oz cream cheese, softened
3 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup heavy cream

1. Cook frozen berries in large saucepan over medium-low heat until berries begin to release juice, about 3 minutes. Increase heat to medium high heat and cook, stirring frequently, until thick and jamlike, about 25 minutes (mixture should measure 2 cups).
2. Combine lemon juice, water and gelatin in small bowl. Let stand until gelatin is softened and mixture has thickened, about 5 minutes. Stir gelatin mixture, sugar and salt into cooked berry mixture and return to simmer, about 2 minutes. Transfer to bowl and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
3. Fold fresh berries into filling. Spread evenly in pie shell and refrigerate until set, about 4 hours.
4. With hand mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth, about 30 seconds. With mixer running, add cream and whip until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes. Serve pie with whipped cream topping.

Notes about the process: cooking the strawberries is messy. I had splatters of strawberry goo all over my kitchen. I'm not sure what to do to prevent this next time around aside from very diligent stirring but even then I'm not sure it's avoidable. Be prepared for some post pie cleanup.
The fresh strawberries being mixed with the cooked berries. So yummy smelling. I'm certain I could have been happy eating this straight.
The finished product: so good!! The filling set up really well but wasn't too hard either. It was sweet and smooth and delicious. What really made the whole thing was the topping that went with it. The cream cheese whipped cream was incredible! Yay for conquering the beast!

Summer of the Pies

This summer I decided it was time to conquer my fear of pie crust. It has been my nemesis for quite some time. I'm not sure why but every time I've tried to make pie crust, it's resulted in either tears or expletives (or some combination of equally frustration-reliving actions). There have been multiple pie crusts that have just ended up in a ball in the trash.
We were giving Addilyn a lecture about the importance of practicing new skills (riding a bike) to learn how to do something better and it clicked. The only way I was ever going to conquer the pie was to practice...a lot. Since then, I have made 10 pies (counting the one I made today). Here is the first in my series.
The first pie crust recipe I tried was Sylvia's Perfect Pie Crust. It's got perfect in the name so that's got to be good, right?

Sylvia's Perfect Pie Crust
tastykitchen.com

1 1/2 cup Crisco
3 cups all purpose flour
1 whole egg
5 Tbsp cold water
1 Tbsp white vinegar
1 tsp salt

1. In a large bowl, with a pastry cutter, gradually work the Crisco into the flour for about 3 to 4 minutes until it resembles a coarse meal. In a small bowl, beat an egg with a fork and then pour it into the flour/shortening mixture. Add 5 Tbsp of cold water, 1 Tbsp of white vinegar, and 1 tsp of salt. Stir together gently until all of the ingredients are incorporated.
2. Separate the dough into thirds. Form 3 even sized balls of dough and place each dough into a large freezer bag. Using a rolling pin, slightly flatten each ball of dough (about 1/2 inch thick) to make rolling easier later. Seal the bags and place them in the freezer until you need them. (If you are using them immediately, freeze for 15 to 20 minutes to chill.)
3. When you are ready to use the dough to make a crust, remove from the freezer and allow to thaw for 15 minutes. On a floured surface roll the dough, starting at the center and working you way out. If the dough is sticking to the countertop use a metal spatula and carefully scrape it up and flip it over and continue rolling until it's about 1/2 inch larger in diameter than your pie pan.
4. With a spatula, lift the dough carefully form the surface of the counter into the pie pan. Gently press the dough against the corner of the pan. Go around the pie pan pinching and tucking the dough to make a clean edge.

Makes 3 crusts.

The filling I chose for the first pie was inspired from a pie Tyler adored when we lived in Manhattan. He's been asking me to make it since we left but I could never find a recipe. This isn't exactly it but it works just as well.

Easy Peach Cream Pie
tastykitchen.com

1 1/2 lb fresh peaches, peeled and sliced (about 4 peaches)
1 unbaked pie shell
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
dash salt
1 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla

1. Place peaches in pie shell
2. Beat eggs slightly in a bowl; blend in sugar, flour and salt.
3. Stir in cream and vanilla; blend well. Pour over peaches.
4. Bake at 375 degrees for 40-50 minutes or until center shakes slightly when moved. Serve warm or for a firmer pie, chill before serving. Refrigerate any leftovers. (It also freezes well.)
   

As you can tell, my first attempt wasn't gorgeous. I didn't have the cute fluted-edge I would have liked but there wasn't any holes and that was the important part. It baked up really flaky which was nice. It's a really good texture and the extra frozen pie crusts are really nice to have around. As for the filling, it was really, really good. This filling was actually used for pie #1 and #4. It cuts nicer when it's cold but it tastes heavenly when warm. So good.
Two down, eight to go.

Chocolate Mousse

This is my first recipe from the Julia Child's cookbook that Tyler got me for my birthday. Yay!

Chocolate Mousse
adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking

4 egg yolks
3/4 cup sugar (extra fine if available)
1 tsp vanilla
6 oz semisweet baking chocolate
4 Tb strong coffee
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
4 egg whites
pinch of salt
1 Tb granulated sugar

1. Beat egg yolks and sugar together until mixture is thick, pale yellow, and falls back upon itself forming a slowly dissolving ribbon. Beat in vanilla. Place the mixing bowl over a pan of not-quite-simmer water and continue beating for 3 to 4 minutes until mixture is foamy and too hot for your finger. Then beat over cold water for 3 to 4 minutes until the mixture is cool.
   
2. Melt chocolate with coffee over hot water. Remove from heat and beat in butter a bit at a time, to make a smooth cream. Beat the chocolate into the egg yolks and sugar.
   
3. Beat egg whites and salt until soft peak s are formed; sprinkle on the sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed. Stir one fourth of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Fold in the rest.
4. Pour into serving dish or individual dessert cups. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
   

Makes 6 to 8 servings.


The final product: chocolaty and delicious. This so good. It's creamy with just a hint of graininess (which if you don't like, could be fixed by using the extra fine or instant sugar); Tyler and I both love our chocolate dark and grainy so this is perfect. The chocolate is rich and intense. If you are susceptible to caffeine though, use decaf coffee or espresso. And definitely serve this with a healthy scoop of whipped cream. So good!!

Meals that I Like #2

While this is an Asher-friendly meal (that he likes), this is a meal that I daydream about. Therefore, it gets put in with my meals.

Chicken Marsala
from Cybele Pascal's The Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook

1/3 cup oat flour
salt and pepper
1/3 cup olive oil
1 lb thin chicken breast cutlets
1/4 cup diced nitrite-free prosciutto(I just use bacon because I have bacon...lots of bacon)
8 oz sliced mushrooms
1 cup sweet Marsala

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
2. Put oat flour on plate and season with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet until really hot. Meanwhile, dredge chicken in flour, shaking off any extra. Put in pan once really hot and cook until golden, a couple of minutes per side. Don't overcrowd the pan; you will probably have to cook in two batches. Transfer to a baking dish and keep warm in oven.
   
3. Add mushrooms and prosciutto (bacon) to pan. Reduce heat to medium and cook until mushrooms are softened and meat has crisped up a bit. Add Marsala to pan and deglaze by using a spatula to scrape up any bits that have stuck to the side, stirring to reconstitute them. Reduce liquid at a steady simmer, stirring frequently about 7 minutes until sauce has thickened. Add chicken back to pan and turn in sauce.

Serves 2-4.This is another picture from back in May but, like the cacciatore, it has become a regular in this house.
The final product: incredible! The chicken is good and relatively simple. It's the mushrooms and bacon that I adore beyond reason. They're sweet, rich and highly addictive. It can be served so many ways too. With potatoes, like I've shown, is good or you can use noodles or rice to sop up the extra sauce and be extra happy.

MTAL #8

It's time. My summer hiatus is over and now it is time to start posting all the things I tried this summer. There's actually quite a bit of ground to cover, including my quest to conquer the pie. We better get started.

Chicken Cacciatore
from Cybele Pascal's Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook

3 1/2-4 1/2 lbs chicken pieces
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp poultry seasoning (which I never have so I use thyme instead; Pascal recommends equal parts thyme and sage if you have those)
1/2 cup white wine
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 onion, cut into about 10 wedges
12 mushrooms, cut in half (I use a whole cup)
8 black olives (which I omit)
2 cups red sauce (bought or homemade)
2 cups canned tomatoes
salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash and pat dry chicken pieces. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil over medium-high heat in oven safe casserole (such equipment would be great but since I don't have that, I use my largest skillet and then the largest baking pan I have). Brown chicken pieces skin side down, about 4 to 5 minutes. Sprinkle with 1/2 the poultry seasoning, reserving the rest for later. Flip chicken and cook the other side until slightly browned. Sprinkle with rest of seasoning. Remove from pan. You may have to cook the chicken in several batches, adding more oil as necessary.
   
2. Drain off all but 1 Tbsp oil and pour in the wine. Using a wooden spoon, scrape up browned bits that have stuck to the bottom. Put carrots, onions, and mushrooms (and olives if using) in the pan and stir slightly. If using a separate baking dish, transfer vegetables and sauce to dish. Cover with chicken pieces. Combine the red sauce with canned tomatoes. Spoon over the chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and cover pan or dish.
3. Cook cover for about 1 1/2 hours. Serve over rice (for Asher) or over hot noodles (such as linguine).

Serves 4-6.

This is actually a picture from clear back in May but as this recipe has become a staple in our household, it remains relevant.
The finished product: delicious! This is actually my second recipe for cacciatore but it's also my favorite. The sauce is good but the vegetables are what really sell it for me. I'm kind of a sucker for cooked carrots. This is great comfort food and yet it's so colorful and pretty that it's great for entertaining too. As I mentioned, it has definitely made its way onto our list of staple family meals.

Extra Chocolate, Please!

Who can go wrong with three kinds of chocolate in a crisp, dunkable form? No one, that's who.

Triple Chocolate Biscotti
from The Ultimate Cookie Book by Better Homes and Gardens

1/2 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white baking pieces
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate pieces

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a large cookie sheet; set aside. In a large mixing bowl beat butter on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, cocoa, and baking powder. Beat until combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Beat in eggs until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour, the white baking pieces, and semisweet chocolate pieces.
2. Divide dough in half. Shape each half of dough into a 9-inch-long loaf. Place loaves on the prepared cookie sheet; flatten each loaf until about 2 inches wide.
3. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near centers comes out clean. Cool completely on cookie sheet on a wire rack. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees.
4. Transfer loaves to a cutting board. Using a serrated knife, cut loaves diagonally into 1/2-inch slices. Place slices, cut sides down, on cookie sheet. Bake for 8 minutes. Turn slices over and bake for 7 to 9 minutes more. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 25-30 cookies (although the original recipe touts 36).Sadly enough, this is the only picture I have of this recipe. I could make all sorts of excuses about how I was so busy while making these...blah, blah, blah. The funny thing is I had two chances to take pictures because after making Tyler one batch, I made him another not two days later. On a positive note, I made two batches of these because they were that good and that well received by all who tried them. Just to warn you: they can be a bit difficult to slice. I lost quite a bit of cookie in the slicing process. I think I may have only had 1 or 2 completely perfect slices from each batch. But you can use the extra crumbles as an incredible, chocolaty, crunchy ice cream topper, so I think that redeems them. Basically, as long as you aren't trying to sell these, they'll be super yummy and well worth the effort.

MTAL #7

We found another winner! It came more from desperation at having nothing to eat than from real inspiration. I was putting off my monthly shopping trip one more day and started scrounging in the pantry for just one more meal.

Fried Polenta

1. Make some polenta according to package directions. Pour into a greased loaf pan or narrow container. Let cool completely in refrigerator.
2. Remove polenta from container and slice into 1/2-inch slices. Fry up some bacon in a skillet. Fry polenta slices in the bacon grease (supplemented with canola oil as needed) until crispy and golden brown.
3. Serve with maple syrup, jelly, or honey (or whatever else might float your boat).

The final product: really good. It reminded me of something my grandmother used to make me when I was growing up: fried mush. I have since found out that it is essentially the same thing (fried mush uses ground corn meal with a bit of sugar added and cooked in much the same fashion). I thought her's was different because it was white but I have since seen white corn meal at Target so that explains that. Asher adored this even without the syrup and the rest of us really liked it too. It's simple and delicious and a very good Asher-friendly substitute for pancakes.

Meals that I Like

I am slowly finding plenty of meals that Asher likes. This is a meal that he tolerated but that I ADORED. Tyler wasn't so much on board (although when I suggested making it for company, he didn't object so he doesn't hate it) but I truly loved it.

Slow Cooker Coconut Curry Chicken
originally from tasty kitchen

2.2 lbs chicken, cubed
1 onion, peeled & halved
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 green bell pepper, seeded & quartered
1 can tomato paste
1 can coconut milk (400 mL)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 Tbsp curry powder
1 Tbsp garam masala
2 Tbsp water
1 1/2 Tbsp cornstarch

1. Put chicken in crockpot.
2. Put everything else (except for water and cornstarch) in food processor and blend until smooth. Pour over chicken and cook on low for 6 hours.
3. One hour before serving, mix water and cornstarch and add to chicken curry. Mix well.
4. Serve over steaming white rice (Jasmine or Basmati are awesome with this!).

Serves 4-5.
The final product: seriously delicious! It is super easy and comfort food at it's finest. I will make this as often as Tyler lets me because it is awesome. Awesome, I tell you, awesome!!

MTAL #6

This was my very first Asher-friendly meal and my very first attempt at making up a recipe (sort of). We call them Asher meatballs.

Asher Meatballs

1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground pork
1 cup rice
1/4 cup onion, grated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp basil
2 Tbsp rice milk
salt and pepper
olive oil
store bought or homemade tomato sauce (Prego fresh mushrooms is Asher friendly)

1. Combine all the ingredients except for the oil. Roll into 1 1/2-inch meatballs. Heat the olive oil over medium to medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs on all sides in the hot oil (I usually need 2 batches to get them all browned).
   
2. Transfer the meatballs to a slow cooker. Cover in tomato sauce and cook on low heat for 4-6 hours.
3. Just before serving, stir in another 1-2 cups of tomato sauce. Serve over hot rice (or noodles for the non-allergic crowd).

Serves 6-8.

This is the first meal I made that Asher truly loved. We all really like it too. It might sound weird to serve tomato sauce over rice but it's actually really good and much easier than cutting up noodles for little ones. Enjoy!

MTAL #5

Swedish Meatballs
from The Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook

Meatballs
1/2 cup oat or corn flakes, ground to a meal in a food processor (I just used the Glutino bread crumbs instead)
1/2 cup rice or oat milk
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp allspice
1/2 cup minced onion
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 lb ground beef
3 tsp Ener-G Egg replacer mixed with 2 Tbsp rice milk

Sauce
2 Tbsp canola oil
2 Tbsp oat flour
2 cups beef broth
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1/4 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp salt
pepper
1/4 cup rice milk

1. Combine ground corn flakes, rice milk, salt, pepper, and allspice and let swell about 10 minutes. Saute minced onion in canola oil until soft. Add ground beef, egg replacer, and sauteed onion to corn flake mixture and combine thoroughly. Refrigerate 1-2 hours.
2. When ready to cook, preheat over to 400 degrees. Form small meatballs, 1-1 1/2 inches in diameter (I used my cookie scoop). Place meatballs on a lightly greased baking sheet and cook about 20 minutes until brown. Meanwhile, to make sauce, heat canola oil over medium-high heat. Add flour and cook, stirring about 2 minutes. You want the flour to sizzle and brown up a bit so that the sauce will become brown. Add the beef broth, mix thoroughly and then add tomato paste and seasonings. Reduce heat and simmer about 5 minutes to thicken, stirring frequently. Add rice milk. Taste and adjust salt and pepper to your liking. Serve meatballs with sauce on the side or place meatballs in sauce and warm thoroughly.

Serves 4.These were surprisingly good. They look a little funky, with the orange-red sauce but taste a lot like the regular swedish meatballs I've had. Asher liked them and everyone else did too.

Whoopie Pies

Taking a break from the Asher-friendly fare, here are a couple of recipes for whoopie pies. For those unfamiliar with the whoopie pie concept, they are Southern sandwich cookies. They are usually huge and always delicious. Enjoy!

Classic Whoopie Pies
from Whoopie Pies (via Bakerella)

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
4 Tbsp vegetable shortening
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup milk

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
3. In another bowl, beat butter, shortening and sugar with a mixer on low until just combined. Increase speed to medium and beat for 3 minutes.
4. Add egg and vanilla and beat for 2 more minutes.
5. Add half of the flour mixture and half of the milk and beat on low until incorporated. Repeat with remaining flour and milk and beat until combined.
6. Using a tablespoon, drop batter on baking sheet two inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes each or until pies spring back when pressed gently.
7. Remove from oven and cool for about 5 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.
   

Salty Peanut Butter Filling

3/4 cup creamy peanut butter (or crunchy)
3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 tsp salt

1. Beat peanut butter and butter on low until creamy using a mixer.
2. Add sugar and salt and beat on low to incorporate. Increase speed to medium and beat for 4 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.
3. Spread filling on flat side of one cooled cake. Top with a second cake and press gently.

Makes 24 two-inch pies (if using 1 Tbsp of batter) or 15 four-inch pies (if using 2 Tbsp of batter).

The prepped batter. It smells delightfully chocolatey.
Cooling cookies.
The finished product: all reviews were good. Honestly, I didn't get to try them since I'm currently on the Asher diet but Tyler loved them. All others who tried them were positive as well. I was just happy to discover that I'm just as happy making cookies as I am eating them. I always thought that I was a stress-eater. In this case, I got all the enjoyment of making the cookies and none of the guilt of eating them. Perfect!

Moving on...a second whoopie pie recipe.

Lemon Whoopie Pies
from the Big Fat Cookie book (via Joy the Baker)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
1 large egg
1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk

1. Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and butter the paper.
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and lemon zest together on the medium speed of an electric mixer for about 3 minutes. Stop the mixer to scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during the mixing. Add the egg, lemon juice, and vanilla, mixing until blended, about 1 minute. The batter may look curdled. On low speed, add half of the flour mixture just to incorporate it. Mix in the buttermilk (put 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice in a measuring cup and fill up to 1/2 cup level with regular milk; let set for 5 minutes and use as buttermilk). Mix in remaining flour mixture just until it is incorporated and the batter looks smooth again.
3. Drop heaping tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake the cookies until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops feel firm, about 12 minutes. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for 10 minutes, then use a wide metal spatula to transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Lemon Cream Cheese Filling

6 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
6 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 3/4 cup powdered sugar

1. In a large bowl, beat butter, cream cheese, vanilla, lemon zest, and lemon juice on low speed until thoroughly blended and smooth, about 1 minute. Add powdered sugar and mix until smooth. If the filling is too soft to hold its shape, chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes.
2. Turn half the cookies bottom side up. Leaving 1/4-inch plain edge, use a thin metal spatula to spread each one with about 1/4 cup of filling. Gently press the flat bottoms of the remaining cookies onto the fillings.
3. Wrap each cooking in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Serve cold.
   

I don't have any process shots of this one so we'll skip to the final product. I honestly didn't get to try these either. Tyler's not a huge lemon fan so he didn't eat them (he stuck with the chocolate and peanut butter ones). They smelled incredible and looked so cute. I'll make them again sometime (maybe when I can actually try them).