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...

In Which I Discuss Zelda and Grandma Rose's Sad Pumpkin Cheesecake

I did it guys. I was able to put down the wii remote and leave the room long enough to make a new post. Actually, I haven't had the opportunity to play the game as much as I wish. It turns out that I actually have responsibilities while home. Gross.

I'm about to wax poetic about Zelda. Feel free to skip to actual the baking if you're not interested. I won't be offended.

Anyway, if there's one thing I can say about the game, it's absolutely beautiful. When I hear people criticize the Zelda games for not utilizing the hyper realistic graphics found in most games today I get so angry. There is just something so fantastical and over the top about the Zelda games that realistic graphics would simply can't capture it. I love the dark stylization of Twilight Princess but Skyward Sword really found something beautiful for itself. For the first time, the characters seem real and tangible. Players really get a sense of the proportional difference between characters when they're looking up at Groose and his friends for the first time. There's great humor in the dialogue and game play is invigorating. Like I said, I haven't gotten as far as I would have liked, but so far this game has really blown me away.

But now to the actual point of the blog. Cheesecake. PUMPKIN cheesecake.

What you need:

For the crust
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons melted sweet butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons brown sugar

For the filling:
2 lbs cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
5 whole eggs
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 1 lb can of pumpkin puree
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
2 tablespoons rum
1 cup heavy cream, whipped

Preheat oven to 350. Thoroughly grease a 9 inch springform pan. Combine all crust ingredients and line the bottom and sides of the pan.

Cream the cream cheese until fluffy. Gradually add 1 1/2 cups sugar and the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.

Gradually add flour, mixed with spice, and pumpkin. Add rum.

Pour into the crust. Now this is where things need to be modified. The recipe calls for the cheesecake to be baked for 1 hour and 45 minutes. However, I checked the cake 20 minutes before it was time and it was already overcooked. I would suggest checking this at an hour and judging the remaining baking time from there. You'll know it's done when the center is firm to the touch.

My sad burnt cheesecake. I had to trim off the really heinous parts.

 When the cheesecake is completely cool, you can make the whipped topping. Whip the cream, sweetening with 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 teaspoon rum if you would like. Pipe with a star-tipped pastry bag. Sprinkle with toasted chopped almonds or pecans.

Despite being overbaked, this cheesecake was still pretty tasty. I'm sure that if it had been baked for the right amount of time, it would have been heavenly.

As it was, the filling was not quite as creamy as I would have preferred. However, the taste was good and the cheesecake as a whole was wonderfully rich.

Good luck and have a happy Thanksgiving!
Rosie

Source: Grandma Rose's...

Pumpkin Cupcakes with Caramel Buttercream Icing

It's that time of year when college gives me headaches and severe nausea. As the semester is drawing to a close, I have a lot of big projects coming due and I'm definitely wearing out. Today was class registration for spring semester and, while I always enjoy looking forward to new classes, I'm not overly enthused by the fact that I ended up in an 8 AM where I'll listen to jazz music for two hours. But hey, maybe it will surprise me and I'll be cool cat by the end of it.

I have to put of a disclaimer about next week. There might be a lack of a post next week because, not only am I going home for the holiday on Saturday, but also because....

Yes, Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is coming out on Sunday which means that I will lose all contact with the outside world until I have beaten the game. If I do manage to drag myself from my gaming cave, I may be unshowered with a crazy look in my eye. I apologize for any neuroses that may occur from this point forward.

But on to the baking. For the third installment in our pumpkin saga, I made pumpkin cupcakes with caramel buttercream.

Anyone who knows me knows that cupcakes are pretty much my favorite thing. The only thing better than cupcakes? Pumpkin cupcakes. These turned out deliciously moist and the frosting was sweet without being overbearing.

What you need for the cupcakes:
1/2 cup shortening, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
2 1/2 cups sifted flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/2 cup milk

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream shortening and sugars until fluffy; add eggs, beating well.

Blend in pumpkin.

Sift dry ingredients; add to pumpkin mixture alternately with milk.

Beat until smooth but make sure not to overbeat. Fill muffin cups or cupcake tins 1/2 full.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cupcakes comes out clean. Let cool in pan about ten minutes before removing them from pan and setting on wire racks. Cool completely.

What you need for the frosting:
1/2 cup butter
1 cup brown sugar, not packed
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup butter or shortening
About 2 lbs powdered sugar

Melt 1/2 cup butter with 1 cup brown sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat.

Bring to a boil and cook (while stirring constantly) for 1 minute.

Remove from heat and whisk in milk and vanilla extract.

 Mix the other 1/2 cup butter or shortening with 2 cups of powdered sugar. Alternate adding the brown sugar mixture and remaining powder sugar.

This is a very thin frosting so I would not advise trying to decorate the cupcakes with it. However, it's quite delicious and it really compliments the flavor of the pumpkin.

 

These cupcakes came out perfect! They are so good that it's pretty much impossible to only eat one. 

I have a lot of friends who don't care for pumpkin pie because of the texture. If you're looking for a Thanksgiving dessert that has the traditional pumpkin flavor but a texture that everyone can enjoy, I seriously suggest you give these cupcakes a try.

Good luck and happy baking!
Rosie

Source: Cupcakes- favorite Eastern Star Recipes Holiday Cookbook 1970
             Frosting- BakeBakeBake community of LJ (I'm so sorry! I can't remember the poster or original source!)