Fall Desserts: Apple Goodie

If you like apple pie but aren't crazy about the crust (like me) then this post/recipe is for you.....

After we went apple picking, I thought I wanted to make an apple pie.  I went over to my godmother's house and asked her if I could borrow her Apple Slicer/corer.  I knew it would make my life easier for sure.  I don't have time for by- hand anymore.   I live my life by the whole...."Work smarter, not harder" alot lately.

She asked me if I really liked the crust in apple pie and Iwas like ..eh... not as much as the filling. She then asked if I had ever had or made something called Apple Goodie. It was basically as the numminess of the filling without all that pesky crust.  Since I was not looking forward to that part anyway I was sold.  She said her mom would make it all the time back when she was little . I went home that night and looked it up on Google. Gotta love Google.  Of course there are 18 billion recipes ( ok, I exaggerate but there could be) for Apple Goodie. I searched through a bunch of them a nd landed on this one from Experience Ohio Amish Country . I didn't have any ingredients I didn't like or didn't already have. Sweet.

I was headed over to my parents house the next day I decided to make it there and have my mom to answer any baking questions I may have.

Apple Ingredients:

1/2 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 qt. sliced apples ( I think next time I would add more.  I love the apple part as much as the crumble)

We picked out the best Jonathans we had and then got to work peeling and slicing them using the Pampered Chef slicer/corer.  The girls got to help out with Grandma's supervision.

 You can see S  HAD to come see what we were doing...

 and then do it TOO!

                    

 I would have actually added even more apples because I thought there wasn't enough but I guess it all depends on how much you like your apple to crumbles ratio.

Mix together sugar, flour, salt, cinnamon and apples. Press into a cake pan.

The recipes didn't call for any particular type of pan so I used my Pampered Chef Stone  8x8 pan.  I just like how evenly everything cooks in the stoneware.

Topping:
1 c. oatmeal
1 c. brown sugar
1 c. flour
1/4 tsp. soda
1/3 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c. butter
Mix dry ingredients and cut in butter. Put on top. Bake at 350° until nice and brown.

cutting in the butter with a pastry cutter

 Dry mix added to top of Apple mix

The original recipe had no time given for how long to cook. For my  attempt, I first did 30 minutes  and looked at it and then did 10 more  because it didn't look  brown enough on top.  And then another 5 so... I ended with 45 minutes and at 350 degrees, that's not too surprising that it took that long. BUt I think  the time could be diffrerent for everyone based on your oven  how it cookes things.

I really liked it and I can't wait to make it again.  FYI..... It  was still very good and crispy warmed up in the microwave later :)

Monday
What is the Gunny Sack -Making the world Cuter -Debbie Doo -DIY Show Off
-I should be mopping the Floor
Great Fun 4 Kids

Tuesday
 Tip Junkie - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia -The Kurtz Corner
Sugar Bee - Romance On A Dime -The Winthrop Chronicles

Wednesday
 Someday Crafts - Sew Much Ado
 -SNAP

Thursday
Beyond the Picket Fence - Somewhat Simple - Live Laugh Rowe
- The Shabby Cottage The Taylor House- House of Hepworths 
Two In Diapers-Mommy Brain Mixer


Friday
Naptime Crafters - Stay At Home Nation
Young and Crafty -  My Turn(ForUs)
Delicate Construction
Serenity Now
Here Comes the Sun

Saturday

Six Sister's Stuff
Cheerios and Lattes
Natasha in Oz -Say G'Day

Three Bean Salad {My St.Louis Style}

Summer is coming to a close but we are still going to lots of BBQs and parties.  One of my favorite make and take things to bring is Three Bean Salad. And it makes so much that normally ,since my kids are small, my husband and I would be eating it for days if I even made a normal batch.  For most parties , I make a double batch because it goes very fast for the same reason..... Who is going to make it at home for just themselves ? Just double up everything the recipe calls for and there ya go.


Three Bean Salad ( serves 6-7 people,  double batch: 12-16)


1 can wax beans
1 can cut green beans
1 can  sweet corn
1 can red kidney beans
1/4 cup pimentos
1/2 cup sweet onion ( chopped small or large depending on how you like it)
1/2 cup celery ( chopped small or large depending on how you like it)

1/4 cup chopped peppers ( optional-I don't usually do this)

2 TBSP olive oil
3/4 cup  white sugar
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
1 tsp salt


1.) Mix together: Olive oil, sugar, vinegar, and salt in bowl and microwave  1 minute or until dissolved
 ( when I did the double batch it took 4 minutes with stirring in between)

This is what it looks like after it has all dissolved. Clear, not cloudy and grainy.

2.) While that is cooking,  pour all of your canned vegetables in the bowl(drain all cans first), chop and add your fresh onion and celery.  Mix.

3.) Pour the liquid mixture over the vegetables and stir.  Let it sit in the refrigerator  for at least 2 hours before serving so it all has a chance to really marinate and soak in the sauce.

It's so good and so easy to make. It always reminds me of BBQs, parties in the backyard, family and friends.


Monday
What is the Gunny Sack -Making the world Cuter -Debbie Doo -DIY Show Off
DIY Shop - Lines Across My Face -I should be mopping the Floor
Great Fun 4 Kids

Tuesday
How to Nest For Less - Tip Junkie - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia -The Kurtz Corner
Sugar Bee - Romance On A Dime - Debbie Does Creations - Funky Polka Dot Giraffe
The Winthrop Chronicles

Wednesday
 Thrifty Home - Someday Crafts - Sew Much Ado
- Junk in Their Trunk  - Southern Lovely  -SNAP

Thursday
My rePurposed Life - Beyond the Picket Fence - Somewhat Simple - Live Laugh Rowe
Loving this Crazy Life - Fireflies and Jellybeans - The Shabby Cottage
The Taylor House- House of Hepworths

Friday
Naptime Crafters - Stay At Home Nation
Young and Crafty -  My Turn(ForUs)
Delicate Construction
Serenity Now
Here Comes the Sun

Saturday

Six Sister's Stuff
Be Different Act Normal
Cheerios and Lattes
Natasha in Oz -Say G'Day

Wacky Cake (Copy Cat)

When  I saw Debbie over at Debbie Doos was having a copy cat party, I wanted to copy so many things that I sadly don't have the resources to do ( sigh).  But I happened ,just the other day, get an email feed  from Mal over at  The Chic Geek . She had just made this "Wacky Cake" from America's Test Kitchen .  It looked great and with ingredients that everyone usually has. And I did, woo hoo!

They are cooking through the decades and this cake happens to be from around the 1940s during the war when certain ingredients were rationed at different times. It contains no milk products ( yea for us lactose intolerant), no egg sand no nuts. They called it wacky because it was made without those ingredients and right in the baking pan.  I call that awesome cake because I only had one pan/bowl to clean after I was done.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup natural cocoa powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup water
•   Confectioners' sugar for dusting

Instructions

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat 8-inch-square baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Whisk flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt together in pan.

 3.Make 1 large and 2 small craters in dry ingredients. Add oil to large crater and vinegar and vanilla separately to remaining small craters.

I used my measuring cups for the craters. They were already dirty, so why not?

4.Pour water into pan , and mix until just a few streaks of flour remain. Immediately put pan in oven.

 3. Bake until toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, about 30 minutes. Cool in pan, then dust with confectioners’ sugar. (If tightly wrapped, cake will keep for 3 days at room temperature.)

Right out of the oven. The pan is not pretty but who cares.

Thanks for sharing, Mal.

 I will say it tasted great.  Next time I make it I might make some kind of icing because I have the world's biggest sweet tooth.  But my hubby even went back for seconds and if he doesn't have a sweet tooth, that's saying something.

Monday
What is the Gunny Sack -Making the world Cuter -Debbie Doo -DIY How Off
DIY Shop - Lines Across My Face -I should be mopping the Floor
Great Fun 4 Kids

Tuesday
How to Nest For Less - Tip Junkie - My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia -The Kurtz Corner
Sugar Bee - Romance On A Dime - Debbie Does Creations - Funky Polka Dot Giraffe
The Winthrop Chronicles


Wednesday
 Thrifty Home - Someday Crafts - Sew Much Ado
- Junk in Their Trunk  - Southern Lovely  -SNAP

Thursday
My rePurposed Life - Beyond the Picket Fence - Somewhat Simple - Live Laugh Rowe
Loving this Crazy Life - Fireflies and Jellybeans - The Shabby Cottage
The Taylor House- House of Hepworths


Friday
Naptime Crafters - Stay At Home Nation
Young and Crafty -  My Turn(ForUs)
Delicate Construction
Serenity Now
Here Comes the Sun

Saturday
Six Sister's Stuff
Be Different Act Normal
Cheerios and Lattes
Natasha in Oz -Say G'Day

Sunday
Nifty Thrifty Things

Adventures in Papaya

I've been reading a lot about Papaya and it's digestive help so I thought...cool... I'll try one. It's not something we ever had when I was growing up. I went to Trader Joe's and bought one for $2.99.  It's about a foot long and weighs 3 lbs-ish.  I read online that you had to wait until it was mostly yellow because that meant it was ripe. I bough it green and waited almost a week for that magic to happen.

I sliced it in half and scooped out the inside which I have to say looks like caviar....eeww.  You can kinda see in in the bottom left of the picture below.

 I threw that away and started to cut the papaya into little half circles. After that I took my knife and kinda skinned it to get to the good part. 

I will say it's a different taste. I think everyone should try one once. It's alot different than getting it in a smoothie or blended with something else. Every time I took a bite I couldn't help but think it tasted like coffee. I know, weird, but that's what I tasted. It didn't have any immediate tummy help but  it's still really good for me. K and S even tried some and didn't hate it which was amazing. Maybe some time you'll decide to have your own adventures with papaya.

Things I Love about St.Louis: Ted Drewes Custard

( This is the first in the new series...Things I love about Saint Louis. I've heard a bunch of people that live here complain about Saint Louis but I love living here and want to tell you why.)

It's very warm for April  here in Saint Louis...like 80 degrees warm. So we packed up the kids last Friday night and headed into the city to go to my favorite ice cream place of all time....Ted Drewes. I grew up five minutes from this place and must have gone there a million times every summer. And even though now I live 30 minutes away, have two kids, and am lactose intolerant (sigh).  I still make it a point to go once a month when it's above 50 degrees. Yes, it's THAT worth it.

It's heavenly custard which is smoother and richer than regular ice cream. You can get it as a cone, a sundae, or a concrete. A concrete, for those that don't know, is a really thick shake with stuff mixed in it.  It's so think in fact that the folks down at Ted Drewes will hold it upside down when they give it to you.  If you can name it, you can put in on or in your custard. My new favorite is a sundae with caramel and chocolate. I use to get the Dutchman alot too. That is a sundae or concrete with butterscotch, pecans, and chocolate sauce. It's so rich and decadent.

You should have seen the rest of her. That's why she has the bib.

The girls are finally getting into the Ted Drewes experience. They dive right in now. Before I couldn't even get K to eat it. It was hard because I'm such a sweet tooth kinda gal. But S has been eating in since the first time we took her. They both only get the plain custard which is super good all by itself as you can tell....

In the summer, the place is so crowded that the line almost goes into the street and off duty cops come to direct traffic and help you find a parking place. They also offer Ted's by Fed-Ex with dry ice. It's pricey but if we ever had to move, you bet your Sweet Aunt Betsy that I would be getting it delivered.

Beans Beans..the musical fruit

Sorry.. I couldn't help myself.

Back on the 13th, It was snowing and  a great day to make a warm comforting Crock pot meal.

J had said he really liked to eat Ham and Beans and I thought... I can do this. And better yet I can do this in a crock pot. So I googled "Ham and Beans and crock pot". I found this recipe and saw that it didn't contain anything that I know for sure that I'm not supposed to eat. Sweet. Game On.

The ingredients were not hard to find and definitely not hard to prepare. Better yet, I didn't have to soak any beans over night.

Recipe used from Food.com

I will have to say that I have a 4qt Crock pot and I think this recipe would have been better in a 5 1/2 or 6 quart. I couldn't fit all the ham hocks in the crock pot. It still tasted  good but more ham would always be better.

Servings : we got  about 8-9

• 1 meaty ham bone or 4 -6 ham hocks
• 1 large yellow onion , chopped ( both of us thought there was TOO much onion  so I am going to add less next time or cut larger pieces to take them out after cooking)
• 2 stalks celery, minced
• 1 carrot , shredded (optional- I did)
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 lb bag of  great northern beans , rinsed and picked over
• 6 -8 cups low sodium chicken broth
• ½ teaspoon pepper (or to taste)

1. Add onion and celery to crock pot.
2. Place ham bone or hocks on top of onion and celery.
3. Pour rinsed beans around ham and sprinkle with pepper.
4. Add bay leaves and garlic.
5. Add chicken stock and stir to combine all ingredients cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
6. When ham is tender (6-7 hours) Remove meat from bones (discarding fat and bones) and return meat to the pot. Stir to combine and break up ham pieces.
7. To thicken smash some of the beans on the side of crock pot.
8. Skim off fat and discard bay leaves.
   
   

   

   
   

   

   
   

   

   
   

   

   
   
   

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

I've  been on the lookout for nummy things to eat that maybe won't upset my stomach and that 's hard to accomplish right now. I found this out on Pinterest. The most amazing site that will suck you in for hours.  But it's a wealth of knowledge  that on my own I would never find. That's how I justify it to myself and my husband.

I found this recipe for  Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies ( flourless) from Amira at Divine Baking. She says she got it from Epicurious but I couldn't find it there.

  

1 cup super chunky peanut butter (She used Smooth)
1/2 cup (packed) brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (about 6 ounces)
 

Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix first 6 ingredients in medium bowl. Mix in chocolate chips. Using moistened hands, form generous 1 tablespoon dough for each cookie into ball. Arrange on 2 ungreased baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart.
Bake cookies until puffed, golden on bottom and still soft to touch in center, about 10 - 12 minutes. Cool on sheets 5 minutes. Transfer to racks; cool completely.

Makes 20 cookies.



They tasted so good. I couldn't even tell they didn't have  flour or MILK! Even J liked them. Probably because I used chunky peanut butter and he loves the chunks.