Classic Apple Pie, revisited

Apple pie is the quintessential all-American dessert; in my eyes it is anyways. Pumpkin pie just doesn't do it for me, even after an amazing Thanksgiving dinner. This year what was I elected to bring? Pumpkin pie. *shudder*

What am I bringing in addition to (yes, I follow directions) the pumpkin pie? THIS! It's my mom's recipe handed down from generations who've made this amazing dish before. I made it last year for the Fourth of July and my husband's friends were amazed it was completely homemade. Needless to say, it was eaten quickly and next time I'll have to make three pies. If you're looking for a classic and delicious pie for Thanksgiving or any occasion (ah hem, week night cravings), this is it!!

Classic Apple Pie
Kelly's Kitch original
Yields: 8 slices; 1 9-inch pie

3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
7 medium to large apples, peeled and sliced (or chopped)
3 tbsp butter or margarine
3 tsp lime or lemon juice
2 nine-inch pie crusts

Grease a 9-inch pie plate and place an unbaked pie crust  into it. Stir together sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg in large bowl. Mix in apples until mixture is paste-like. Place mixture into greased pie pan lined with pie crust.

Cut the butter into pea-sized portions and lay on top of the apple filling. Squeeze a little lime juice on top. Cover with the second pie crust and fold edges over and make into zig-zag (crust) pattern. Cut 6-8 slits in the top of the pie crust about an inch long. Sprinkle top crust with cinnamon.

Cover the edges of the crust with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 425°F. Remove foil and bake another 15-20 minutes, until crust is golden brown.

Apple Cream Cheese Danish

By far this was the sweetest food item that I’ve ever made, to date. Usually sweet is not a bad thing either with me or my husband. This time, however, it was a bad thing. This Danish was absolutely fantastic, except that it had way too much icing on top. Next time (I’ve reflected the change in the directions below to save some of you from several dentist trips), I will not do the glaze but just the drizzle and use only a half recipe at that. I guarantee it will taste a hundred times better that way. The way it was, we couldn’t even finish eating them and normally I love pastries. The filling though was the best part, by far, of this entire recipe. It tasted absolutely amazing! This is a recipe that is time consuming, but it’s so very much worth it in the end.

Apple Cream Cheese Danish
Adapted from: Annie’s Eats, originally Baking Illustrated
Serves: 6-8

For the dough:
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, extra for rolling
1 ½ tsp instant yeast
¼ cup sugar
¾ tsp salt
1/3 cup whole milk
1 large egg, slightly beaten

For the butter square:
12 Tbsp cold unsalted butter cut into 1-tablespoon pieces
1 Tbsp all-purpose flour

For the cream cheese filling:
4 oz cream cheese, softened
¼ tsp lemon zest, fine
2 Tbsp sugar

For the apple filling:
1 Tbsp butter
2 medium apples, peeled and sliced thin
2 Tbsp sugar
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
pinch grated nutmeg

For the drzzle:
1 cup powdered sugar
1 Tbsp milk, plus more if needed

To make the dough, combine 1 ¼ cups of the flour, yeast, sugar and salt in a mixing bowl. Place the milk and eggs in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat with the dough hook. With the mixer on low, slowly add the flour mixture and continue to knead until a smooth dough ball forms, about 8 minutes. Check to make sure the dough is sticky but doesn’t stick to the bowl. If needed, add more flour 1 tablespoon at a time. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.

To make the butter square, combine the flour and butter on a clean work surface. Mix together with a bench scraper (or similar tool) until uniform. Wrap the combined butter mixture loosely into plastic wrap and form into a 5-inch square. Place in the fridge until firm, at least 30 minutes.

Place the dough onto a well-floured work surface and roll into a 9-inch square. Remove the plastic wrap and place the butter square diagonally on top of the dough, with each of the four corners of the butter square pointing towards the corners of the dough. Fold all four corners of the dough into the middle and pinch together all the seams. Take a rolling pin and tap the dough horizontally from the center out to make the butter soft and more malleable. Gently roll the dough into an 11-inch square, re-flouring the surface as needed.

Fold the dough into thirds, vertically like a brochure or business letter. Repeat the folding but in the other direction so you end up with a square again. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for 2 hours. Roll dough out into an 11-inch square and repeat the folding process and wrap and refrigerate. Keep in the fridge overnight or for at least 4 hours.

To make the cream cheese filling, combine the cream cheese, lemon zest and sugar in a small bowl. Mix well until blended together and smooth. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
To make the apple filling, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Combine and add the apple slices, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg and mix well. Cook until most liquid has evaporated and apples are tender, about 15-18 minutes, stirring occasionally. Let cool before using.

Roll the refrigerated dough into a 14-inch square on well-floured parchment paper. Spread the cream cheese filling down the middle third of the dough. Lay the apple mixture on top of the cream cheese filling. Using a pizza cutter, slice the outer thirds of the dough into ¾-inch strips diagonally downward. When looking at the dough, the strips should be pointing down and to the left and right sides. Then, carefully fold the strips, alternating sides, across the middle third of the Danish. This will make a braided pattern.

Transfer braid and parchment paper to a baking sheet. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400˚F. Bake 22-26 minutes, rotating halfway, until the braid is golden brown. Allow to cool on a wire cooling rack.

To make drizzle, combine ingredients in a small mixing bowl until smooth. Add 1 tablespoon of milk at a time as needed to make it a drizzly consistency. Drizzle the Danish with the drizzle mixture, only using as much as you see fit. I think half would work perfectly.

Baked Oatmeal

Oatmeal is something I never really liked as a child but like many of my dislikes, I have grown to like it as an adult. I still cannot eat plain, tasteless oatmeal though. This is a great way to get your fiber and other nutrients in in the morning with wonderful taste. I made this for a pitch-in and I got some good comments on it. It wasn’t the sweetest oatmeal in the world, but I think the extra apples really helped to pull it together. This would be a fantastic breakfast for Christmas morning with the family since there is very little prep and you can just leave it in the oven while you open gifts!

Baked Oatmeal
Adapted from: Proceed with Caution
Serves: 8-10

2-3 apples, cored and chopped
1 cup fresh or dried cranberries
½ cup unsweetened applesauce
3 cups quick cooking oats
4 ¼ cups milk
1 egg
½ cup pure maple syrup or agave nectar
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3.4 cup chopped nuts
1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine all ingredients in a casserole dish and be sure to mix will. Mixture will be very thin but as it bakes, it will thicken. Bake uncovered at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

If you are strapped for time in the morning, you can make this dish the night before and store it in the fridge until you bake it in the morning.

Cider-Braised Pork Chops with Apples

Now that October is finally here, my house is full of pumpkins, apples and apple cider. Apple cider is one thing I missed as a child. I never liked it much but now I absolutely love it; especially warm apple cider on a crisp, chilly and snowy night. If you live in a cold-weather state, you know exactly what I'm talking about! Hot cocoa and apple cider help us get through the snow shoveling and black ice days. Well if you have onion and pork chops, then you've got an amazing dinner!

This is the third time I've made these chops and they are absolutely amazing and get rave reviews each time. I actually might just use the sauce and soak a bunch of apples in them because it was that good. The onions bring a lot to the flavor of the meal so don't omit them or anything else. Now I normally don't like pork chops (I'm a chicken kind of gal, myself), but in this sauce and with these toppings it's amazingly delicious! Try it and you won't be disappointed, especially since you will be using up all that cider you've stocked up on.

Cider-Braised Pork Chops with Apples

Adapted from: Essentials of Healthful Cooking (Williams-Sonoma)

Serves: 3-4

1 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp allspice (any brand will do)

1/2 tsp sweet paprika

salt and pepper, to taste

4 thin, boneless pork chops (1 lb)

4 tsp canola oil

1 yellow onion, thinly sliced

1/3 cup sweet apple cider (3 oz)

2 Tbsp red wine vinegar

1 fuji apple, peeled, cored and sliced into 12 wedges

1 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup evaporated milk

To make the spice rub, in a small bowl, mix together: oregano, allspice, paprika, salt and pepper. Coat the uncooked pork chops evenly on both sides with the rub mixture. Set meat on a plate for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, heat 2 Tbsp of oil in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté until lightly browned, 4-5 minutes. Transfer onion to a plate.

Add the remaining 2 Tbsp oil into the skillet and keep on medium to medium-high heat. Add the pork chops and sear until lightly browned on the bottom, about 3-4 minutes. Flip and brown the meat on the other side, 3-4 minutes. Transfer meat to plate with the onion.

Return the pan to medium heat and pour in the cider and vinegar. Using a wooden spoon, scrape up bits from the bottom of the pan. Return the meat and onion to the pan and place the apple wedges on top of the meat. Pour in the chicken broth, cover, and simmer until the chops are opaque throughout, about 8-10 minutes. Reduce the heat if the liquid begins to boil.

Transfer the chops, apple wedges and onion (strained) to a warmed platter. Pour the evaporated milk into the pan, raise heat to high, and boil until the liquid is reduced by one-third, about 5 minutes. Pour that sauce on top of the pork chops and serve warm.

Homemade Applesauce

I scoured the internet and some of my favorite blogs for an applesauce recipe that I could do in the crock pot, but there were none that I could find. Luckily I felt confident enough to make my own recipe based off of the recipes I did find. All the recipes used cinnamon and I knew I wanted that in it. A lot of them also used extra water to allow for a certain consistency. Some of the recipes called for cloves but I omitted just to keep this recipe simple and easy.

The hardest part of this recipe (and most time-consuming) is peeling, coring and chopping up the apples. I actually used a Pampered Chef Apple Peeler/Corer/Slicer so that made the process a hundred times easier. I'm not trying to sell the product but I almost chopped the apples by hand because so many people had negative reviews on the product. I have heard that it doesn't work well unless the apples are rock hard, or that it doesn't work well if the apples aren't perfectly round. Despite all the negativity surrounding the product, I still hadn't used it before so I didn't want to misjudge it. Trust me when I say that the size, shape or consistency of the apple DO NOT MATTER! I absolutely loved the product and although at times it can be a little monotonous, it really helped with this recipe (and I will now use it for when I make my Apple Pie).

Homemade Applesauce

Kelly's Kitch Original
Yields: 4 cups

6 large Braeburn (or sweet) apples, peeled, cored and diced

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup water

3/4 tsp cinnamon

Mix all ingredients in a crock pot on low for at least 5 hours. Place contents in a blender or food processor and mix, pulsing until desired consistency. I chose to pulse mine briefly so it's a little smooth and a little chunky, too. Serve warm or cold as a snack or dessert.

Classic Apple Pie

Apple Pie and Independence Day go together like .. Santa Clause and Christmas! This is the first completely homemade pie I have ever made! I absolutely loved it and my husband's friends were in shock I think, since they don't eat anything that can't be nuked. (Side note: they all work for Whirlpool so they get all kinds of Kitchen Aid gadgets on a weekly basis but don't use them. Don't cry about this like I did. Haha). At any rate, this was a huge success. I did make the homemade crust and that recipe will be posted later this week. For now, I will re-highlight my mother's (and grandmother's) amazing Apple Pie!

Classic Apple Pie

Adapted from: Kelly's Kitch original

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
7 medium to large apples (I used 3 granny smith and 4 fuji), peeled and sliced
3 tbsp butter or margarine
3 tsp lime juice (or lemon juice is a great substitute)
2 nine-inch pie crusts

Stir together sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg in large bowl. Mix in apples until mixture is paste-like.

Add mixture into greased pie pan lined with one pie crust. Cover with the second pie crust and fold edges over and make into zig-zag (crust) pattern. Cut 6-8 slits in the top of the pie crust about an inch long. Sprinkle crust with cinnamon.

Cover edges of crust with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 425 degrees (conventional). Remove foil and bake another 15-20 minutes until crust is golden brown.

Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffins

I went to the store today to get some white chocolate chips to make some white chocolate macadamia nut cookies later. While there, I happen to look over at the canned pumpkin area and noticed the big empty shelf with canned pumpkin puree was not empty. I got curious and walked over to see what the big difference was between the pumpkin pie mix and the canned pumpkin. I have heard so much about this and how there is a huge shortage of the puree. Yeah, I snagged 4 cans. Might go back later to get 4 more.

So when I got home, I wanted to find the perfect recipe. I had just purchased two huge bags of apples planning on doing several different kinds of recipes. I found an amazing muffin recipe online and just had to make it. I miffed it a bit but it still turned out amazing! So here is "my" version of the muffins.

Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffins

2 1/2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp baking soda
2 eggs, beaten
1 can pumpkin puree
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups apples, peeled, cored and chopped

2 tbsp flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
3-4 tsp butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease muffin tray.

In a large bowl, sift together 2 1/2 cups flour, 2 cups sugar, pumpkin pie spice and baking soda. In separate bowl, mix together eggs, pumpkin and oil. Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture until moist and fold in apples. Spoon batter into muffin cups.

In a small bowl, mix together last 4 ingredients, adding butter 1 tsp at a time. Spread over Muffins before baking.

Bake in oven for 25-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

Perfect Apple Pie

Everyone has one. An old family recipe that is just perfect. Well, this is mine. Totally perfect and impossible to mess up. Trust me, if it could be done .. I would have somehow done it by now. I made this pie for my friend at work who was leaving. On her last day I brought this in and every single person that had a piece told me how amazing it tasted. One guy even said that it tasted like grandma's apple pie after Thanksgiving dinner.

Trust me, it is exactly that.

Perfect Apple Pie

3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
7 medium to large apples (I used 5 granny smith and 2 gala), peeled and sliced
3 tbsp butter or margarine
3 tsp real lemon
2 nine-inch pie crusts

Stir together sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg in large bowl. Mix in apples until mixture is paste-like.

Add mixture into greased pie pan lined with one pie crust. Cover with the second pie crust and fold edges over and make into zig-zag (crust) pattern. Cut 6-8 slits in the top of the pie crust about an inch long. Sprinkle crust with cinnamon.

Cover edges of crust with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 425 degrees (conventional). Remove foil and bake another 15-20 minutes until crust is golden brown.

Homemade Caramel Apples

I tried this caramel at-home recipe. I used the caramel candies against my better judgement only because I couldn't justify purchasing a candy thermometer to use once a year. Silly.

Tip #1: Rinse the apples after sticking them with the skewers under hot running water and dry thoroughly. The website didn't mention anything about that but I read on almost all other websites that it helps to get rid of the waxy film.

Tip #2: Use big plates for toppings. It gets pretty messy!

Tip #3: It says to let the caramel drip off the apples and then hold them upright to even it out. DO THIS FOR A LONG TIME! I did it for ohhh say 5 seconds each way and I ran out of caramel and the caramel on the first few apples I did ended up falling off anyways on the parchment paper. But they still look and taste delicious!!

Homemade Caramel Apples:

700 g. (24 oz.) caramels, unwrapped
4 tbsp. whole milk
10-12 medium-sized apples
sticks inserted in tops

1. Melt caramels and milk in double boiler or in microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments (stirring in between) until melted and smooth.

2. Dip apples in caramel at an angle and roll to get a nice, smooth coating.

3. Hold apples upside down until the caramel stops dripping. Flip upside down and hold until caramel is evenly coated.

4. Roll apple in desired toppings.

5. Place on wax paper and place in fridge to harden caramel.