All American Apple Pie

June is here which means sweltering heat, icy treats and a countdown to 4th of July. I don't know why, but I LOVE 4th of July. Every year, my family gets together at my parents house where we cook out and shoot fireworks. Of course, my responsibility is always the dessert. But what makes for a good 4th of July dessert? Through June, I hope I can give you guys several ideas for delicious, easy desserts that go great for the 4th. A classic that never fails is apple pie. This is my dad's favorite dessert and it's so easy to make!

What you need:
Basic double pie crust
4 lbs (8-10) apples (I use a mix of Granny Smith and Gala)
Juice from 1 lemon
1/4 cup flour, plus additional flour for rolling out crust
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
Dash of nutmeg
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

Prepare your crusts. I made a simple homemade recipe, but you can use your own recipe or a store bought crust. Roll out the first crust to about 12 inches and line a 9 inch pie plate. Leave about an inch of overhang around the edge.

 Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Squeeze lemon juice into a large bowl. Peel, core and slice apples into 1/4 inch wide slices. Cut slices in half and place in bowl. Toss apples in lemon juice as you go along to prevent browning.

Add flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg to apples. Stir until apples are evenly coated. Heap into the pie plate, mounding apples toward the center. Dot with butter.

Roll out second pie crust to 12 inches. Gently brush the rim of the bottom pie crust with water. Place second crust on top of pie and pinch the edges together to seal. Tuck overhang under itself. Using your thumb and index finger, press the dough against the knuckle of your other hand to form fluted edges. Using a floured knife, cut about 5 to 6 slits radiating from the center to form vents.

Place pie on a rimmed cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes; reduce heat to 375 degrees and bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until crust is golden brown and the juices are bubbling. I like to cover the edges of the crust in foil while it's baking to prevent them from burning.

Make sure to let your pie cool before you dig into it! This pie smelled so good while it was baking that we were all drooling by the time it finally got out of the oven.

Personally, I find that using all Granny Smith apples makes my pie too tart. That's why I use a mix of Granny Smith and Gala. It gives it a sweeter and fuller flavor to have both. Top with some vanilla ice cream and you've got the perfect summer treat!

Good luck and happy baking!
Rosie

Cinco de Mayo Sopapilla Cheesecake

Happy Cinco de Mayo! I don't know about you guys, but I'm looking forward to tacos tonight. I have to tell you a secret though... I may have cheated and started on dessert last night. What can I say? I made this sopapilla cheesecake last night, expecting to eat it tomorrow, and I just couldn't resist!

What you need:
2 cans (8 oz) refrigerated crescent rolls, butter flavor
2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Honey

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 baking pan with cooking spray. Take one can of crescent rolls and gently roll out until they cover the bottom of the pan.

In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Spread over the crescent roll layer.

Roll out the second can of crescent rolls and lay on top of the cream cheese layer.

In a small bowl, stir together the butter, 3/4 cup sugar and cinnamon. Place dollops of butter mixture over the top crescent roll "crust". Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the crescent roll layer is golden brown and flaky. Drizzle with honey and let cool completely. Makes 12 bars.

Now tell me, if you saw this coming out of the oven, would you be able to resist? Not only does it look good, it SMELLS like heaven!

This recipe is super easy to make and requires very little time. This cheesecake is delicious as a dessert, but also makes a tasty brunch treat!

Good luck and happy baking!
Rosie

Source: allrecipes.com

Grandma Rose's Praline Pumpkin Pie

Well, Thanksgiving has come and passed and now it's time for Christmas. I love the Christmas season. I enjoy giving gifts and I always put a lot of thought into every single gift. Yesterday we put up the Christmas tree and the stockings so it's really starting to feel like that time of year. It was even below 70 degrees here in Texas!

Tomorrow morning I go back to Boston. I love my friends and my life at school, but it's hard to tear myself away from my family and loved ones. Thankfully, I only have about two and a half weeks before I come back home for an entire month. But until then, I have a lot of work to do-- not to mention baking!

 

Yesterday, in the midst of our decorating frenzy, I made this praline pumpkin pie from the Grandma Rose cookbook. After making several of her recipes, I learned to take her instructions with a grain of salt and I think this actually worked out well for me. As I suspected, the written baking time was too long and the heat a bit higher than necessary. I'll tell you how long I baked it and at what temp, but your welcome to play with it a bit if it doesn't work for you.

What you need for the crust:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup cold sweet butter
6 tablespoons sour cream

For the praline shell:
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons sweet butter, softened

 Sift together the flour and salt. Cut in the butter, leaving the mixture in coarse lumps.

Cut in the sour cream, a little at a time, using no more than is necessary to hold the dough together. Add no water. I actually used about 7-8 tablespoons of sour cream because mine was just far too dry.

Roll out the dough into a rectangle and fold it in thirds. Chill the folded dough wrapped in waxed paper for at least 30 minutes before using.

Roll out the dough and line a nine inch pie plate with it. Cut excess dough off of the edges.

Blend pecans with sugar and butter. Press gently with the back of a spoon into bottom of pie shell.

What you need for the filling:
3 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup rum
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon mace

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Blend together the pumpkin and the eggs.

Add in the cream, rum, sugar and spices. Blend gently. If using a mixer, be very careful as the whipping cream will whip up if you are too vigorous. Pour into the shell.

Bake for about 40 minutes. Pie is done when a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. If you wish, you can top with a meringue and stick back in the oven for a few minutes to brown.

 

I actually was not a huge fan of this pie. The filling does not taste like a traditional pumpkin pie and the texture is a lot lighter. For some reason, I actually had too much filling and ended up making a little trifle as well.

I really like the praline layer, but the crust was really tough. This is possibly my fault as I kept second guessing the crust and may have overworked it. My parents loved it and though it was delicious but I'm not sure that this is something I would want to make again.

I hope you'll give it a try yourself and tell me what you think of it. Good luck!
Rosie

Source: Grandma Rose...

Herp Derp Alert: The Seemingly Impossible Chocolate Pie

When I was a little girl, one of my favorite things in the world was my granny's chocolate pie. There was something special about that chocolate custard filling, topped by a generous dollop of Cool Whip, that I just have never really been able to recreate.

Granny always made things seem easy. She owned a local "gently used" consignment shop which kept me in the prettiest dresses during my entire childhood. I felt like a princess at every holiday in the dresses she gave to me and it made not one bit of difference if they were second hand or not. Thanksgivings and Christmases were held in her beautiful formal dining room where she made a table full of delicious foods. But the most delicious of all was that chocolate pie.

I attempted to make a chocolate custard pie several years ago and failed miserably. What I got was little more than chocolate syrup in a crust. But now, I attempted once more and though not nearly as pathetic as the last try, I still just couldn't seem to get it right.

Below is the recipe and the pictures of my work, but I hope you have much more success than I did.

Ingredients:

For the crust:
2 cups of crushed graham crackers
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup sugar

For the filling:
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup cocoa
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 cups milk
3 egg yolks
3 tablespoons margarine

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

The process begins easily enough. Start by mixing together all of your crust ingredients until they are well combined.

Press into the bottom and sides of a nine inch pie plate. Bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes or until it is lightly browned.

Now begins the hard part. In a heavy saucepan, combine the sugar, cocoa, cornstarch, and salt. Mix well to remove any lumps. 

Gradually add milk, stirring until blended.

 Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and comes to a boil; boil one minute, stirring constantly. Remove mixture from heat.

NOTE: Be patient on this step! It takes a long time for a custard to thicken and you may be tempted to rush the process. Don't give in and just keep stirring. When it thickens, it will happen all of a sudden.

 Beat egg yolks until thick and lemon colored. Gradually stir about one-fourth of hot mixture into yolks.

Add yolk mixture to the remaining hot chocolate, stirring constantly. Cook over medium heat 2 minutes, stirring constantly (you'll soon be tired of hearing that phrase).

ALERT ALERT!! I'm pretty sure this is where I messed up. I cooked my chocolate for two minutes like the recipe said, but in retrospect I really believe it could have cooked longer. I have nothing that you can judge your mixture by, but make sure it is good and super thick before removing it from the heat.

Remove the pan from the heat; stir in margarine and vanilla. Immediately pour into the pie crust.

Looks pretty good, doesn't it? At this point, the recipe says to put meringue on top and put it in the oven to brown the meringue. But... yuck. I am not a fan of meringue and Granny never ruined a delicious chocolate pie with that eggy concoction. I'm not sure if that contributed to what happened next. My mom swears it shouldn't have but I may never know.

Let the pie cool before serving. I prefer to chill mine. That night, my parents, my boyfriend and I cut into the pie, chocolate lust in our eyes. I lifted a piece out and...

Voila?

Uh oh. That baby did not set nearly well enough. As soon as I tried scooping out a piece, it fell apart. Though definitely better that my original attempt, it seems that I have yet to master the art of getting a chocolate pie to set.

As you can probably tell, the center just oozed out like pudding. Not that I have anything against that-- I love pudding. And this tasted delicious. I just wish that I could produce one beautiful pie like my Granny used to make.

Granny now lives all the way in Lubbock. I haven't talked to her in years and I'm afraid I'll never be able to get her exact recipe for chocolate pie. It's crazy how time can fly by without you ever realizing that you're losing touch with the ones you love.

I hope you can learn from my mistakes and make a wonderful chocolate pie. If you do, share it with your grandkids one day. They'll thank you for it.

Good luck!
Rosie

Recipe source: Southern Living 1983 Annual Recipes

Easy as Lemon Icebox Pie

Several months ago, my boyfriend's mother asked me if I could make her a lemon icebox pie. Even though I had never made one before, I was happy to oblige, especially after I found this delicious sounding recipe.

Well, my mom got a craving for lemon pie the other day and I knew just the recipe to use. This is an incredibly quick and easy pie to make which means its a great choice when baking for luncheons or parties.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup crushed graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 14 oz cans sweetened condensed milk
4 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
2 cups heavy cream
6 tablespoons confectioners sugar

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a medium sized bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and cinnamon. Mix in the melted butter. Using a spoon or your fingers, gently pat into the bottom of a 9 inch pie plate.

Place crust in oven and bake for 6 to 8 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Place on a wire rack and cool.

In a large bowl, combine the condensed milk, egg yolks, lemon zest and juice with a wire whisk. Pour into the cooled crust.

Bake pie for ten minutes or until set. Cool on a wire rack before chilling pie in the fridge for 30 minutes.

When pie has cooled, whip the heavy cream and confectioners sugar until stiff peaks form. Attempt not eating the entire bowl of delicious homemade whipped cream before getting it on the pie.

Dump the whipped cream on top and spread to the edges. Be generous as you will want more rather than less. I might actually make extra cream the next time I make this recipe.

Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour. Devour.

Yum! Admittedly, this is not the best picture of the pie. This was the first piece cut and it doesn't nearly do justice to just how pretty the layers are. The cinnamon really makes the pie crust stand out and the overall pie is just delicious. A warning, though: This pie is RICH. Be careful or you just might have to be rolled away from the table.

Original recipe is here.

Good luck!

Rosie