Mini Apple Pies

theres basically nothing better than warm apple pie on a chilly fall weekend!!!  this is probably one of the cutest and easiest (read: SO easy that my 16yr old baby brother could do it - just think off all the girls he'd get if he could cook something other than grilled cheese and over-easy eggs!) recipes I've done yet! mmm.

You will need

• 1 box pie crusts (each box has 2 crusts)
• 3 – 4 granny smith apples, medium
• 1/8 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice blend
• the recipe calls for "apple pie spice blend, and I think thats cheating, I used 1/4tsp cinnamon, some fresh nutmeg, and a smidgen of salt, but you do what you want
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• ice cream (optional required...whats apple pie without ice cream!?)

Directions

1. Peel, core and thinly slice apple wedges
2. Toss apples with sugar and spices in a small bowl

3. Cut pie crusts with a large circle cookie cutter or glass (12 circles total). Use something larger than the muffin up size, duh.  I did this wrong at first and had to go pick up more pie crusts

4. Press pie crust dough into 6 of the muffin pan cups.

5. Fill each crust with equal parts of the sliced apple mixture.

6. Use the extra pie dough circles to cover each pie. Press around edges to seal.

7. Use a knife to cut slits in the top of each pie crust.

8. Brush the top of each pie crust with melted butter.

9.  Bake at 425 for 25 – 30 minutes.

10. share with your family! Or eat 3 by yourself and say that you're taste testing for safety.  whichever

Oh sweet challah of mine

Sweet Egg Challah Bread


So I understand that this is a Jewish bread, and I just love it because its so sweet and delicious, so I had to try it!  This bread almost makes me want to convert! ha!

the amount of pride I feel for this loaf of bread I made is almost insurmountable...making Mason was probably the 1st best thing..this amazing-looking loaf of bread is the 2nd. No lie.




You will need:


1 1/2 packages active dry yeast (1 1/2 tablespoons)
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup olive or vegetable oil, plus more for greasing the bowl
5 large eggs
1 tablespoon salt
4 to 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 1/2 to 4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup raisins per challah, if using


Directions


1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in 1 3/4 cups lukewarm water.


2. Whisk oil into yeast, then beat in 4 eggs, one at a time, with remaining sugar and salt. Gradually add flour. When dough holds together, it is ready for kneading. (the directions said you can also use a mixer with a dough hook, but I didnt)


3. Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead until smooth. Clean out bowl and grease it, then return dough to bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 1 houri did it in an oven that has been warmed to 150 degrees then turned off. Punch down dough, cover and let rise again in a warm place for another half-hour.

4. At this point, you're ready to braid- and trust me, there is NO better way I couldve written this... so these are the instructions I found online, its not that hard, it just looks difficult! To make a 6-braid challah, either straight or circular, take half the dough and form it into 6 balls. With your hands, roll each ball into a strand about 12 inches long and 1 1/2 inches wide. Place the 6 in a row, parallel to one another. Pinch the tops of the strands together. Move the outside right strand over 2 strands. Then take the second strand from the left and move it to the far right. Take the outside left strand and move it over 2. Move second strand from the right over to the far left. Start over with the outside right strand. Continue this until all strands are braided. For a straight loaf, tuck ends underneath. For a circular loaf, twist into a circle, pinching ends together. Make a second loaf the same way. Place braided loaves on a greased cookie sheet with at least 2 inches in between.


5. Beat remaining egg and brush it on loaves. Either freeze breads or let rise another hour.


6. If baking immediately, preheat oven to 375 degrees and brush loaves again. Sprinkle bread with seeds, if using. If freezing, remove from freezer 5 hours before baking.

7. Bake in middle of oven for 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden. (If you have an instant read thermometer, you can take it out when it hits an internal temperature of 190 degrees.) Cool loaves on a rack.


Note: I read that Any of the three risings can be done in the fridge for a few hours, for more deeply-developed flavor. When you’re ready to work with it again, bring it back to room temperature before moving onto the next step.

Sweet Nothings

Okay so as my cravings have intensified, I have found that my biggest weakness is baked sweets! These are some sweet recipes that are WAAAAAAAY more healthy than processed cupcakes/cookies/etc.  More healthy = less guilt!


Moist DELISH Banana Bread:

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
½ cup) packed light brown sugar
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups  mashed ripe banana (3-4 medium to large bananas...these should be waaay super ripe, like speckled and black)
¼ cup (3 ounces) honey (I use local honey instead of sugar a lot now, there are TONS of places to get good Missouri honey, and its full of antioxidants and immuno-boosters! woo!)
2 large eggs
2 cups (8 ounces) whole wheat flour- a bazillion times better than plain white all-purpose
½ cups chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.
-Beat together the butter, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla in a medium bowl until smooth. 
-Add the banana, honey and eggs, beating until smooth.
-Add the flour and nuts, stirring until smooth.
-Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and let it rest at room temperature, uncovered for 10 minutes. (not sure why it has to rest, but it turned out amazing!)
-Bake the bread for 40 minutes. 
-Lay a piece of foil gently across the top and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 10 to 15 minutes more. 
-Remove the bread from the oven and allow it to cool for 10 minutes before turning it out of the pan onto a rack to cool completely.

Super-Fantastic Breakfast Bars
I made this to use up leftover cereal that I got bored of eating with milk (yes I get bored with cereal and milk).  You can use Cheerio's, Golden Grahams, Chex, etc.

1 cup local Honey                                                                                                                                    
1 cup sugar                                                                                                                                                
1 ¼ cups creamy peanut butter                                                                                                                 
5 cups Cheerios cereal                                                                                                                              
1 half bag dark chocolate chips (yeah chocolate! dark chocolate is surprisingly good for you!)

heat sugar and honey in a saucepan until the sugar has dissolved (right around boiling - make sure not to scorch it!), add peanut butter, then stir in cheerios, and spoon into a greased pan (I line mine with foil to make clean-up non-existent)
Melt the chocolate chips - I just put them in the microwave with a tablespoon of butter and about 3 tablespoons of milk for 20 seconds at a time until its creamy, then spoon it over the breakfast bars - DONE!
No baking, no crazy fat content (the sugar isnt so great, but cereal is good for you, right?), plus, its a quick chocolatey snack instead of eating cookies. yay!

As soon as I get a good camera, I'll be taking pictures of all my creations.  Enjoy! :)