Perfect Pie Crust

I've been wanting to make chicken pot pie from scratch for a long time but I was always intimidated by the crust. Such a flaky thing to be afraid of :) Then I found the perfect easy recipe!! I stole this from Tomato Lady. She has wonderful instructions and perfect pictures to go with them. My next post will be a recipe for chicken pot pie using this crust recipe.

Perfect Pie Crust

2 cups flour, lightly spooned into measuring cup
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup milk

1. Mix together flour and salt.

2. Combine oil and milk in a small bowl. Do not stir.

3. Add oil and milk to flour.

4. Stir it up.

5. Form it into a ball.

6. Divide the ball into two, one slightly larger than the other. The larger (for the bottom crust) is about 8 oz., the smaller (for the top crust) is a little more than 6 oz.

7. Form the dough into 2 hockey pucks.

8. Sandwich the larger puck between two sheets of waxed paper, about 12 inches square.

9. Using a rolling pin, roll from the center up, gently, taking care not to roll off at the ends (this flattens the edges down to infinity–not good. You want uniform width.)

10. Again starting from the center, roll toward yourself.

11. Roll to the left and the right of center.

12. Then roll from the center to 2 o’clock and 8 o’clock, center to 10 o’clock and 4 o’clock, and repeat, gently expanding the circle.

13. Continue to roll out pastry in this way until it is about a 12-inch circle.

14. Peel off the top layer of waxed paper.

15. Pick up the pastry with the waxed paper still stuck to it and invert the pastry over the empty pie pan, paper side up, centering it over the pan.

16. Carefully peel away the waxed paper.

17. Ease the pastry down into the pan.

18. Add the pie filling and roll out the top crust as the first. Drape it over the filling and remove the waxed paper.

19. Fold the top crust over the bottom crust, tucking them both into the pan.

20. Flute the edge of the crust, angling one finger against the tips of the finger and thumb of the other hand, forming the pastry in between. Repeat all around the edge.

Chocolate Waffles

mmmm.... I read this post last night and I dreamed of these chocolate waffles. I made them this morning. The picture doesn't look too appealing but they were pretty darn good. Definitely a keeper.

Chocolate Waffles

2 cups buttermilk (or milk with a little lemon)
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup flour
1/4 cup cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Mix buttermilk and oats in a medium bowl; let stand for 15 minutes.

Whisk flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl.

Stir eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla into the oat mixture. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients; mix with a rubber spatula just until moistened. Do not over-stir!

Enjoy with butter, syrup, powdered sugar or even ice cream :)

~ adapted from Jenna

Glazed Cinnamon Apple Cake

This looked to yummy not to make plus I got to use my new kitchen gadget :) The original recipe called for nuts but I was baking this to take to a party so I left the nuts out and added a yummy glaze. This was the only piece that made it back with me to take a picture.

Cinnamon Apple Cake

4 cups chopped apples (about 4-6 apples)
1-1/4 cups sugar
2 cups flour
3 large eggs
3/4 cups oil
1-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt

3-4 tablespoons water

Preheat oven to 350*F. Mix sugar, oil, vanilla in a large bowl. Sift in flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. My mix seemed really thick so I added in about 3-4 tablespoons of water to thin it out a little to get it to kind of a dipping consistency. Take a moment to taste the mix by dipping a piece of apple in it. Then mix about 3 cups of the apples into the mix. Pour into a greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle the rest of the apples on top and gently press into the mix. Bake for about 40 minutes. Check done-ness with a toothpick.

While the cake is cooling make the glaze. Mix in just enough milk to achieve drizzling consistency. For me it took about 3 tablespoons.

1-1/4 cup powdered sugar

3 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

After the cake has cooled just a little bit, pour the glaze on top and enjoy. I spooned the glaze into a ziplock bag and cut off a corner to be able to drizzle it nicely. Or you could leave off the glaze and serve with vanilla ice cream :)

Enjoy!

~ adapted from Drew's recipe. Check out his site. I LOVE it!

Apple Peeler/Corer/Slicer

I absolutely LOVE my latest kitchen gadget. This apple peeler is such a great deal for $20 off of Amazon. The suction cup at the bottom holds it onto the counter very nicely and I can move it around in my tiny kitchen which is great. Also the fact that it peels, cores, and slices the apples in one movement is outstanding.

I'm totally going to go apple picking this month. I'm planning on making apple sauce, apple jelly (from the peels and cores) and maybe apple butter :) This little baby will peel, core, and slice in about 20 seconds or less. I can wait to go apple picking ^_^

Paradise Breakfast Buns

I get bored with breakfast easily and most days I need something that I can munch on while walking out the door. I saw these beautiful things and decided I had to try them.

Paradise Breakfast Buns

3 1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. sugar

2 t. baking powder

1/2 t. salt

3 T. lemon juice

1 c. butter, cut into pieces

4 eggs, divided

3/4 c. milk

1 c. raisins

1 7 oz. package shredded coconut

2 T. sugar

1. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the butter until crumbly.

2. In a small bowl, beat together 2 whole eggs and 2 egg yolks (reserve the whites) with the milk and lemon juice. Pour into mixing bowl and mix just until combined. Stir in the raisins and coconut just until incorporated. Be careful to not over stir.

3. Using a rounded tablespoon of dough (I used a heaping medium cookie scoop), place on cookie sheets. Slightly beat the reserved egg whites and brush over the dough. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.

I was sad because my didn't get golden brown. I was afraid to leave them in longer because I didn't want the bottoms to burn. They still turned out really yummy though. I had to taste test one before breakfast obviously. The lemony flavor went really well with the coconut and raisins :)

~ adapted from Kate's recipe at Cooking During Stolen Moments

Cheesecake Cookies

I saw these and knew I had to make them. I LOVE cheesecake. Now it's in cookie form!!

Sorry my picture sucks but they are soooo much yummier than they look :)

Cheesecake Cookies

3/4 cup butter, softened

3 ounces cream cheese, softened

3/4 cup sugar

2 teaspoons grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup crushed graham crackers

In a medium-size mixing bowl, beat butter and cream cheese. Add sugar, lemon peel, lemon juice, and vanilla; beat again. Mix in flour with a spoon or spatula. Refrigerate cookie dough for 30 minutes to make it easier to work with.

Prepare graham crackers. I put about 4 graham crackers in a sandwich baggie and killed them with my rolling pin and had more than enough.

Spread half of the graham cracker crumbs on a piece of wax paper. Lay out half the chilled dough on top of it. Shape and roll cookie log, coating in crushed graham cracker crumbs. Repeat with second half of dough.

Transfer rolled, coated logs to fresh sheets of waxed paper and wrap. Chill for about two hours in the fridge, or about 30 minutes in the freezer then slice into lovely little cheesecake rounds. Place cookies on lightly greased cookie sheets. Bake at 375-degrees for 8-10 minutes. You only want to barely brown the bottoms. Don’t over-bake.

Honestly I could have eaten the whole bowl without baking these little beauties. DELICIOUS!!!

Check out Suzanne's blog for better pictures.

~ adapted from Suzanne's recipe

I'm back!

Wow, life really caught up with me these past 2 weeks. Anywho, here's what I've been up to...

Helped the BF's mom at a mega yard sale and scored the ginormous Ball Ideal Jar you see in the pic ($2 - for comparison: the green one next to is is a 3-quart jar),

this beautiful set of stainless steel measuring cups ($2), a 1-cup sifter ($1) and a set of 3 pyrex dishes ($5).

Also after a rough Monday at work, I came home to open my mail to find these beautiful bowl covers from Val!! They totally made my day. I absolutely love them and they match my kitchen with the little cherries on them ^_^ Thanks so much! Check her blog out ~ she's lovely :)

Also I'm starting to get into coupons ^_^ I managed to save over $20 at Walmart on stuff for my stockpile. Hopefully by the end of this month, my car accident issue will be resolved, I'll be hunting for a house, and I'll still have my wits about me enough for when school starts back up (hooray for getting my Masters!!). Anywho, wish me luck ^_^

Cheers!

Oven Roasted Potatoes

This is just a quickie post. I tried these roasted potatoes. Modified recipe from AllRecipes. DELICIOUS!!

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 tablespoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon dried parsley

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 large potatoes, peeled and cubed

Preheat oven to 450*F. Mix everything in a large bowl. Place on a baking sheet or roasting pan (I used a Pyrex dish). Roast for 20-30 mins, turning occasionally to brown on all sides.

I could eat these by themselves, they were that good. So good that they didn't last long enough for me to take a picture... :)

Slice & Bake Chocolate Chip Cookies

My BFs mom lent me a book called Make-A-Mix. It's got tons of recipes for homemade mixes that you can store for later use. In their chapter Freezer Refrigerator Mixes, I found these chocolate chip cookies that you just roll into logs and freeze for later use. Here's my slightly modified recipe. This makes about 5 batches of cookies.

2 cups butter or margarine

1-1/3 cups sugar

1-2/3 cups brown sugar, packed

2 Tbsp vanilla extract

4 eggs

5-1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp salt

2 tsp baking soda

2-1/2 cups chocolate chips

In a bowl cream butter/margarine, sugar and brown sugar. Beat in vanilla and eggs until light a fluffy. In another bowl, combine flour, salt and baking soda. stir flour mixture into egg mixture until combined. Add chocolate chips.

The original recipe said that this made 4 batches but I baked a batch and had enough dough leftover to make 4 rolls of freezer-dough.

If you wet your hands first, it's easier to make the rolls. Divide dough into 5 equal pieces and place on plastic wrap or wax paper. Roll into 8 to 10 inch log rolls. Date and place into freezer in a freezer safe bag. Use within 6 months.

To bake after freezing:

Thaw slightly. Preheat oven to 350*F. Cut into 1/4-inch slices. Place on cookie sheet and bake for about 10 minutes or until browned around the edges.

Coupon for Gluten Free Mixes

Hi all! I know a bunch of people wanted to win the gluten free prize pack I was giving away. Here's kind of a consolation prize for everyone :)

I stole this from Jane...

Betty Crocker is offering a FREE coupon for their new Gluten-Free dessert mixes. You need to call 1-800-446-1898 and select option 4 and talk with a live operator. They will ask you a few questions along with your mailing address and you should have the coupon in a few weeks.