Mini Apple Pies

So I altered a regular sized apple pie recipe for these small pies. I didn't use all of the mixture for the small pies, so I made another "bigger" pie that I folded over using the rest of the mixture and apples. So this could probably be cut in half except the apples, which I already reduced.

1 pie crust recipe

1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 Tbsp. flour
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 Granny Smith apples, chopped into small pieces (can be peeled, but optional)

1 egg white

Make crust and set aside, covered so as not to dry out.
Melt butter in a saucepan and stir in flour to make a paste. Add water and sugars and bring to a boil. Reduce temperature and let simmer. Meanwhile, (peel if you want) chop apples into about 1/4 inch pieces. Roll out dough into two pieces (one will be the tops and one will be the bottoms) on floured surface. I used an apple pastry maker to mark on the bottom dough where I should put the apples and mixture. I put the apples down first and then spooned a little of the caramel type mixture on top of the apples. Then I laid a part of the second pie crust piece over the apples and mixture and stamped down hard to cut and seal the dough with the pastry maker tool.  Mine is shaped like an apple, but you can use any shape.

After apple pies are sealed, place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and brush each pie with egg white using a basting brush. With a fork, poke holes in each pie to let out steam. I forgot to do this in one batch I made and the filling came out the sides! See below.

I cleaned them up a little so it was less obvious, but you can see on some that the sides are split open. There are no such things as mistakes, just learning opportunities! I had made these pies at least twice before this picture, so we can all get distracted sometimes and forget!

Bake in 375* oven for about 15-20 minutes, or until they brown up on top. Honestly, I don't remember how long I baked them, so just watch and smell when they are done. When I make them again, I may edit this to write a more accurate time for baking.  

Inside-Out Ravioli

My mom got this recipe from friends when we lived in Colorado when I was about a year and half old. It is one of the "oldest" family recipes I can remember. This, along with game roast, is one of the tastes of home for me. 

1 lb. ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

1 clove garlic, minced

1 10 oz. package frozen spinach (liquid reserved)

1 16 oz. can spaghetti sauce

      with mushrooms (you can use sauce without mushrooms if you can't find it with mushrooms)

1 8 oz. can tomato sauce

1 6 oz. can tomato paste

1/2 t. salt

dash pepper

2 cups macaroni, cooked, drained

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 cup soft bread crumbs

2 beaten eggs

1/4 cup vegetable oil

Brown first 3 ingredients.  Cook macaroni according to package directions.  Cook spinach in a saucepan until all heated through and pour the spinach liquid in a liquid measuring cup. Add some water to the spinach liquid to make one cup.  Add spinach water and next 5 ingredients (tomato products, salt and pepper) to meat mixture.  Simmer 10 minutes.  Combine spinach and macaroni with remaining four ingredients (cheese, bread crumbs, eggs and oil) and spread in 13 x 9 x 2 inch pan.  Top with meat sauce.  Bake at 350* for 30 minutes.  Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Double Crust Pot Pie

2 pie crust recipes (a recipe is below or you can use refrigerated store bought)
1 pound skinless boneless chicken breast, cubed
1 cup carrots, sliced
1/2 cup sliced celery (about one stalk)
1/3 cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1 3/4 cup chicken broth
2/3 cups half-and-half
1 cup peas
1 large egg, beaten

Prepare the pie crust (make from scratch or use refrigerated pie crust) and chill for 2 hours if making from scratch.
In a large saucepan, combine the chicken, carrots and celery. Add water to boil for 12 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside. In a large skillet, cook butter, onions, and garlic over medium heat, stirring occasionally until butter is slightly brown and onions are clear. Whisk in the flour, salt, black pepper, thyme, chicken broth and half-and-half. Cook and whisk until all flour lumps are gone, then simmer over medium-low until thick, about 10 minutes. It needs to be very thick gravy. Remove from heat and set aside.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Roll out half the dough (one crust) on a floured surface until 12 inches in diameter. Place dough into a 9 inch pie crust and fit it (trim edges, smooth down into the bottom, etc.) Place chicken mixture on the crust. Place peas on top of the chicken mixture. Pour gravy on top of peas. Roll out second pie crust and cover the pie with it, sealing the edges with a fork or pinching with fingers. Slice a few small slits in the tops of the top crust for steam to escape. With a pastry brush, brush top crust and edges with the beaten egg.
Bake 32-38 minutes or until crust is golden brown. You may use a pie crust shield to keep the crusts from browning too soon. Cool for 10 minutes before serving. Leftovers are awesome and can be stored in the fridge for about 5 days.

I got this recipe from sallysbakingaddiction.com
There are some really good recipes on her blog!


Pie Crust Recipe: (makes one crust, so double for this recipe is in parenthesis)
1 1/2 cups sifted flour (3 cups)
1/2 tsp. salt (1 tsp.)
1/2 cup shortening or cold butter (1 cup)
4-5 Tbsp. cold water (8-10 Tbsp.)

Mix flour and salt together. Cut in the butter or shortening with a pastry blender until looks like coarse crumbs. Mix in cold water one tablespoon at a time until the dough comes together. Then wrap  tightly with plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours for this recipe. 

Spicy Potato Curry

I like to pilfer recipes from other websites. I got this from allrecipes.com and altered it, of course. For one thing, I HATE tomatoes...I know, some of you will likely no longer look at another recipe of mine, but I am sticking to this! I really, really, really, don't like them. Ironically, I love ketchup and salsa. Weird. There's something about the chemical process of cooking them that makes the tomatoes not "of the devil" any more. I still avoid them, however, so this recipe says the tomatoes are optional, even if they are "cooked."  Enjoy!

4 medium potatoes
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves minced garlic
4 tsp. garam masala
2 tsp. cumin
3/4 tsp.-1 1/2 tsp. ground cayenne pepper (obviously 3/4 tsp. will be more mild)
4 tsp. curry powder
1 inch ginger root, minced (I used about 1 Tbsp.)
2 tsp. salt
1 (14.5 oz.) can on diced tomatoes (OPTIONAL--it's great without them!)
1 (15 oz.) can garbanzo beans/chick peas
1 (15 oz.) can peas
1 (14 oz.) can coconut milk

Okay, so I altered this part too! I cut up the potatoes into chunks and put them in my pressure cooker to cook.  You can also boil them until almost tender. Original recipe says to keep them whole.

In large skillet, heat vegetable oil on medium heat and add onions and garlic. (I usually add the garlic a little after the onions as garlic seems to cook faster.) Cook until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Season with the garam masala, cumin, cayenne pepper, curry, ginger and salt. (I put these all in a prep bowl before starting the recipe.) Cook about 2 more minutes. Add garbanzo beans, peas and potatoes (and tomatoes if using them). Pour coconut milk in and simmer for 5-10 minutes on low. Can be served plain, over rice, or inside roti. Could also be eaten with naan. Makes probably about 6-8 servings, depending on what you are serving with it. Delicious!!

Golden Peanut Bars

This recipe came from an Eagle Brand Holiday Magic in Minutes recipe booklet. It's not as sweet as I anticipated, but it was still delicious! I mean, I can tolerate super sweet! Some people can't eat straight spoonfuls of brown sugar, though. This is for those people. :) Enjoy! (Mine were slightly over-done so I altered the recipe to reduce baking time.)

2 c. flour
3/4 c. brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c. (one stick) cold butter
1 cup finely chopped peanuts
1 (14 oz.) can of sweetened condensed milk
1/2 c. peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, brown sugar, and beaten egg in a bowl. Cut in the cold butter with a pastry blender until crumbly. Reserve 2 cups of the crumble mixture and press the remaining crumbles into the bottom of a 9" X 13" pan. Bake 15 minutes or until slightly browned. Meanwhile, beat peanut butter, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla in a bowl. Spread over the baked crust when it comes out of the oven. Top with reserved 2 cups of crumbles. Bake 20-25 minutes or until slightly browned. Cool and cut into bars.

Cast Iron Skillet Brownies

Baking brownies in a cast iron skillet? Yup. Cast iron goes nicely in the oven too!

1/2 c. butter
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1-2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. flour
3/4 c. cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8" diameter skillet and set aside. Melt butter in a saucepan on the stove top or in the microwave in a glass bowl. Pour melted butter into a mixing bowl. Add sugar, eggs and vanilla to the bowl. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Pour dry ingredients into wet mixture and combine well as to have no lumps. Spread into the greased cast iron skillet. Bake 25 minutes; brownies should be soft when removed from the oven. Do not over-bake. I used a 10" skillet and should have reduced the time as they were slightly over-done in the picture. Enjoy!

Fettuccine Alfredo II

I got this recipe from my brother who makes the best food! 

¾ lb. dried fettuccine

7 Tbsp. butter, divided

½-1 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

2/3 cups heavy cream

¼ tsp. salt

¼ tsp. pepper

Cook fettuccine according to package directions with salt, reserving ¼ cup of liquid when finished cooking. Drain pasta. Thinly slice 3 Tbsp. of butter and set aside. When pasta is cooked, melt 4 Tbsp. butter in a frying pan over low heat. Add pasta and toss to coat, lifting strands with tongs. Add cheese, reserved pasta water, cream, the 3 Tbsp. of set-aside butter, salt and pepper. Toss to combine well. Sprinkle with cheese and serve immediately.

I love adding crumbled bacon to this, or broccoli. Yum!