Apple-Cranberry Pie

I remember when I was growing up my Mom would make a lot of cobblers. I'm not complaining since I love cobblers. During the holidays, we would have several pies. When I was in high school, I remember making an apple pie. It was delicious.

I really wanted to make an apple pie for Thanksgiving but I decided to make my daughter's request for cherry and strawberry pies. My Mom brought a pumpkin and peanut butter pie. So, the apple had to wait.

I had left over fresh cranberries which I wanted to use up. The package of cranberries has an apple cranberry pie listed. I used the apple pie recipe I usually make and just added the cranberries. It is a great combination.

Apple-Cranberry Pie
Two 9 inch pie crust
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tsp ground cinnamon
Dash of salt
7 cups apples, peeled and sliced
1 cup fresh cranberries
2 Tbsp butter
1 egg and 1 tsp milk to brush the top of the pie crust

Directions:
Heat oven to 425 degrees.
In a bowl, combine the sugar, flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt.
Slowly, fold in the apples until well coated with the sugar mixture. Set aside.
Line the pie pan with one of the pie crust.
Layer 1/2 cup of the cranberries on top pie crust.
Add the apple mixture on top of the cranberries.
Top the apple mixture with the remaining cranberries.
Dot the top of the mixture with the butter.
Cover the apple mixture with the second pie crust in desired design just need slits in the top of the pie crust.
Whisk the egg with the milk in a small bowl and brush the mixture onto the top pie crust.
Cover the edge with aluminum foil if desired to prevent excessive browning just remove during the last 20 minutes of baking.
Bake the pie for 40-50 minutes or until the crust is brown and the juices are bubbling on top of the pie.

Recipe adapted from Betty Crocker's 40th Anniversary Edition Cookbook.

Do you like my little apple cut outs?

Did you already know....................
-Pie pastry is thought to originated from the Greeks.
-Medieval England, preferred their pies (or as they called them pyes) filled with meat.
-Apple pie is originally from England.

Rotel Dip

Do you have any recipes you have been making forever? I say forever because I have been making this recipe dip for longer than my oldest daughter has been welcomed to this world. I have been making this recipe before there was the internet. If you are wondering my age, I will say I'm 29. Just remember, I am 29 right now and I was 29 last year. Next year, I will be 29 again.

I received this recipe from an Air Force friend. I did some research and I could not find this recipe on the Rotel website. I did find it posted on several other sites. This is my oldest daughter's favorite dip recipe.

 Rotel sausage dip

1 (10 oz.) can of Rotel
1 1/2 (12 oz.) package of cream cheese
1 package of Jimmy Dean or pork sausage
chips, crackers, vegetables, or other items for dipping

Directions:

1. Drain the can of Rotel.
2. In a microwave safe bowl, microwave the cream cheese and Rotel for one minute.
3. In a skillet, cook the sausage thoroughly.
4. Add the cream cheese and Rotel to the skillet. 
5. Cook the mixture for about 5 minutes.
6. Let cool for a few minutes and serve.

Recipe adapted from Kelly but unknown original source.

 Did you already know..................
-Rotel is diced tomatoes with green chili peppers.
-In 1943, Carl Roettele with his wife opened his canning factory in Texas.
-Mr. Roettele named his product Ro-tel because he didn't think no one would be able to pronounce his name.
-ConAgra Foods now own Rotel.

Cheesy Potato Gratin

I have an evasive teenager. I bring out the camera and she disappears. My mother is the same way so I am unsure if it a learned behavior or an inherited one. There are probably more photos of Bigfoot than my daughter as a teenager. I guess I could hide and wait for her to go by. A lot of the photos of my teenager, she thinks she is a movie star and holds up her hand so the photo can not be used or sold. 

My children especially my teenager likes to help in the kitchen. For some reason, my phone seems to ring when I'm cooking. I hear a lot of "Mom, it is important. The person on the phone wants to talk to you." When I pick up the phone, the call could have waited. You are probably wondering why we don't have a cordless phone. We do but it is always missing. Bigfoot probably is using it somewhere.

I saw this recipe and wanted to try it before Thanksgiving. It didn't happen but I am glad I made it this weekend. It is very, good especially with leftover Turkey.

Cheesy Potato Gratin


1 Tbsp butter, unsalted
1 shallot, finely chopped
2 Tbsp flour, all purpose
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup Gruyere cheese, grated
2 tsp thyme
salt and pepper, to taste
3 lbs. Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup Parmigiano cheese, grated


Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a nonstick skillet, melt butter over medium heat.
3. Add the chopped shallot and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Add the flour and stir. Cook for about 1 minute.
5. Slowly, stir in the chicken stock and cream.
6. Add the Gruyere cheese and thyme. Stir until the cheese has melted.
7. Season with salt and pepper.
8. Add the potatoes and gently stir to coat the potatoes with the cheese mixture.
9. Cover the pan and cook over medium heat for 15 minutes.
10. Remove the lid and transfer the potatoes to a oven safe dish.
11. Sprinkle the Parmigiano cheese on top.
12. Cook uncovered for about 30 to 35 minutes until the edges are bubbling.
13. Let cool for 15 minutes

Recipe adapted from Williams-Sonoma.  

 Did you already know.................
-There are Bigfoot Field Researchers.
-Another name for Bigfoot is sasquatch which means "wild man".
-Bigfoot is purportedly to be native to the Pacific Northwest of North
America.
-The scientific community have no evidence of the existence of Bigfoot, sasquatch, or Yeti sightings.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

My youngest sister loves chocolate. When I was a child, we would receive chocolate for the holidays. My sister would eat all of her chocolate and then wait. Why was she waiting? She knew I would eat a few pieces of my chocolate and hide the rest for later. After a couple of weeks, my sister would always find my hidden stash. I would normally catch her in my closet with the evidence. I never got mad at her. She was just to cute.

Today, I decided to bake up some cookies. Within the hour, my youngest sister happen to visit me. She didn't know I was making cookies and I wasn't expecting her. I wasn't surprised since my family would joke and say if there was chocolate around, my sister would find it.

My sister and I agree these cookies are good. Aren't all chocolate chip cookies good? I have previously told you how my youngest sister will eat dessert instead of her meals. These cookies were my sister's breakfast. These cookies do have my sisters stamp of approval.These cookies are a nice start to kick off the holiday season.

Warning: These cookies need to be chilled for at least 24 hours.

Chocolate Chip Cookies from Jacques Torres
2 cups cake flour, measure and take out 2 Tbsp of the cake flour
1 2/3 cups bread flour
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup (2 1/2 sticks) butter, unsalted
1 1/4 cups light brown sugar
1 cup and 2 Tbsp sugar
2 eggs
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 lbs. bittersweet chocolate disks or chips
sea salt for the top of the cookies

Directions:
Whisk the cake flour, bread flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
Cream the butter and the sugars in another bowl.
Add the eggs, one at a time and mix.
Stir in the vanilla and mix well.
Add the flour mixture and mix well.
Fold in the chocolate pieces and mix until the chocolate is incorporated.
Press plastic wrap against the dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours.
Next day, scoop the dough onto a baking sheet about the size of a golf ball.
Sprinkle the top of the dough with sea salt.
Bake between 16 minutes or until the cookies are golden brown and still soft.
Wait about a minute and then transfer the cookies onto a wire rack to cool.

Recipe adapted from New York Times website.

Did you already know....................
-Jacques Torres was raised in France but now makes his home in New York City.
-In 2000, Jacques Torres opened his first chocolate factory in Brooklyn, New York.
-Mr. Torres makes his own chocolate by starting from the cocoa bean.
-Mr. Torres is referred as Mr. Chocolate. He is married to a fellow chocolatier.

Poultry Seasoning

 Happy Thanksgiving!

I have so many seasonings in my cabinet. I know I have to use them so when I ran out of poultry seasoning last year. I read the container and did some research online. The recipes online didn't look like the ingredients listed on the container. I guessed the measurements and did the sniff test. I sure wasn't going to taste it. I even recruited my children to smell. They thought this was a lot of fun. I had everyone compare my concoction to the poultry seasoning bottle. Finally, I had something that appear to smell very similar. I use poultry seasoning in my meatloaf so I go through it often. Everyone told me the meatloaf tasted like before. 

Since it is Thanksgiving, no stores are open in my area. I wanted to post my poultry seasoning concoction just in case you need it.

Poultry Seasoning
1 1/2 Tbsp thyme
1 Tbsp sage
1 tsp marjoram
1/2 tsp rosemary
1/2 tsp parsley
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp pepper
small, tiny pinch nutmeg

Directions:

1. Mix all the seasonings and grind if desired for a more ground texture.

Recipe from Jen of Sweet Morris

Love the snow!

I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving!