So I've made a couple of decisions the past few days.
Decision number one - I am setting up a stand at the New Columbia Apple Butter Festival. I'm not doing anything productive with my time, so why not crochet and bake to earn a little extra cash? I'm going to be selling...
Crocheted goods:
Scarves - $5
Hats - $4
Kitchen Towels - $3
Dishcloths - $1
Snowflakes - $3
Christmas Wall Decorations - $2
Baked goods:
Peanut Butter Banana Bread - $5
Chai Tea Bread - $5
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies - $1
S'mores Rice Krispie Treats - $1
I'm also toying with the idea of getting some waterfall, beach, and/or lake pics printed and matted to sell for $10. We'll see.... But the Festival is October 15th at the community center in New Columbia. You should all come buy things from me!
Decision number two is that I am going to Chicago. Since I started thinking about it, my unemployment kicked in, and now I'll hopefully make some cash from selling stuff, so I totally have the bank to go on an adventure. It's probably going to be for three nights, the third week of October. I'm going to stay in an awesome-looking but dirt-cheap hostel, see some shows, see the sights, and have a Chicago-style hot dog, and some Chicago deep dish pizza.
Another exciting thing in my life is that I may have a job! It's only a few hours a week, but it's in a theatre, 15 minutes from my house, and something to put on my resume. So going to Chicago is dependent on what my potential new boss says, but I don't think it will be a problem. It's actually in a movie theatre that does live shows sometimes, so I would be helping with lights/tech whenever they have a show. Sometimes I would work 10 hours a week, sometimes I'd work an hour a week. That's fine for me, though. It gives me flexibility for "real job" interviews and to do fun things, but it'll keep me from getting rusty and bored.
All-in-all, things are looking up, and I have a purpose in life again! You can look forward to a Chai Tea Bread recipe post, cuz I haven't made it yet, and I have to try it before trying to sell it to strangers!
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Fall Recipes
So I've actually had the opportunity to make quite a bit of food recently. It's very exciting! Now I'm thinking about having a stand at the New Columbia Apple Butter Festival. I would have some crocheted stuff, as well as baked goods. We'll see how much crocheting I get done in the next couple of weeks.
This last week, I made two things for which people seem to want the recipes. Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Maple-Cinnamon Filling, and S'more Rice Krispie Treats. I decided that a blog post is the best way to circulate these recipes, while getting some extra views! (For those reading my blog just for these recipes, there are more if you look though my older posts - including my last post about Apple Slab Pie!)
With no further ado... Pumpkin Whoopie Pies, and S'mores Rice Krispie Treats!
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Maple-Cinnamon Filling
makes about 14
Ingredients
Cakes:
2 C. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1 C. light brown sugar
1/2 C. vegetable oil
1 large egg - beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 C. canned pumpkin puree
Filling:
8oz. cream cheese - softened
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter - softened
2 Tbsp. real maple syrup
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 C. powdered sugar - sifted
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2-3 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. Sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, cinnamon, and salt.
2. Place the brown sugar and oil in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer for one minute. Beat in the egg and vanilla, then the pumpkin. Stir in the sifted flour mixture and beat until thoroughly incorporated.
3. Spoon 28 mounds of batter onto the prepared cookie sheets, spaced a little apart to allow room for spreading. Bake, one sheet at a time, in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, or until risen and set. Cool for about 5 minutes on the cookie sheets, then transfer to cooling racks.
For the filling, place the cream cheese and butter in a bowl and beat together until well blended. Beat in the maple syrup, cinnamon, and powdered sugar until smooth.
To assemble, pipe or spread the filling on the flat side of half the cakes. Top with the other half to make whoopie pies!
(Sorry for the unappetizing photo... I hadn't planned on blogging about these, so there was only one left to get a picture of!)
And...
S'mores Rice Krispie Treats
(Recipe from Glorious Treats)
makes 12 large treats
Ingredients
3 Tbsp. butter
40 regular marshmallows
5 C. Rice Krispies cereal
1 C. Golden Grahams cereal
1/2 C. mini chocolate chips
10 oz. semi-sweet chocolate (or about 1 C. chocolate chips)
6 full-sized graham crackers, broken in half
24 regular marshmallows
Directions
1. Butter (or spray lightly with cooking spray) a 9"x13" pan.
2. In a large microwave safe bowl, place 3 tablespoons of butter (cut into pieces), and 40 marshmallows. Microwave about 3 minutes (stirring after 2 minutes). Watch the microwave, cooking times may vary. Cook in microwave until butter and marshmallows are melted. Stir smooth.
3. Add the Rice Krispies and Golden Grahams cereals to melted marshmallows and stir to combine. Add mini chocolate chips, stir quickly, and immediately pour mixture into prepared 9"x13" pan. Press down into pan with spatula.
4. Melt semi-sweet chocolate (or chocolate chips) in a double boiler over medium heat. Heat until just melted. Spread chocolate on top of Rice Kripies mixture in pan. While the chocolate is still warm, lay graham cracker squares on top, leaving a bit of space between each cracker.
5. Put entire pan in the fridge or freezer (or a cool location) until the chocolate has set (about 20 minutes). Cut into squares with a sharp knife, using the lines between the graham crackers as a guide. Place treats on a large baking sheet, separated slightly.
6. Cut the 24 marshmallows in half and place cut side down onto graham crackers, 4 halves per treat. When all the graham crackers are topped with marshmallows, use a kitchen torch to toast the marshmallow. OR, you can toast the marshmallows in the oven - preheat your oven to broil, place baking sheet of treats in the oven, leaving the oven door slightly ajar. Broil about 30 seconds - watch them, they can burn quickly! Pop them back in the fridge or cool location to re-harden after marshmallows are toasted. Enjoy!
(If you don't want huge treats, halve the graham crackers again before putting them on the chocolate, to make them half-sized.)
Since I don't have handy print-formatted recipes, just copy and paste into Word, or print the whole post. :-P Go forth and spread the deliciousness!
This last week, I made two things for which people seem to want the recipes. Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Maple-Cinnamon Filling, and S'more Rice Krispie Treats. I decided that a blog post is the best way to circulate these recipes, while getting some extra views! (For those reading my blog just for these recipes, there are more if you look though my older posts - including my last post about Apple Slab Pie!)
With no further ado... Pumpkin Whoopie Pies, and S'mores Rice Krispie Treats!
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Maple-Cinnamon Filling
makes about 14
Ingredients
Cakes:
2 C. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1 C. light brown sugar
1/2 C. vegetable oil
1 large egg - beaten
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 C. canned pumpkin puree
Filling:
8oz. cream cheese - softened
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter - softened
2 Tbsp. real maple syrup
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 C. powdered sugar - sifted
Method
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2-3 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. Sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, cinnamon, and salt.
2. Place the brown sugar and oil in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer for one minute. Beat in the egg and vanilla, then the pumpkin. Stir in the sifted flour mixture and beat until thoroughly incorporated.
3. Spoon 28 mounds of batter onto the prepared cookie sheets, spaced a little apart to allow room for spreading. Bake, one sheet at a time, in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, or until risen and set. Cool for about 5 minutes on the cookie sheets, then transfer to cooling racks.
For the filling, place the cream cheese and butter in a bowl and beat together until well blended. Beat in the maple syrup, cinnamon, and powdered sugar until smooth.
To assemble, pipe or spread the filling on the flat side of half the cakes. Top with the other half to make whoopie pies!
(Sorry for the unappetizing photo... I hadn't planned on blogging about these, so there was only one left to get a picture of!)
And...
S'mores Rice Krispie Treats
(Recipe from Glorious Treats)
makes 12 large treats
Ingredients
3 Tbsp. butter
40 regular marshmallows
5 C. Rice Krispies cereal
1 C. Golden Grahams cereal
1/2 C. mini chocolate chips
10 oz. semi-sweet chocolate (or about 1 C. chocolate chips)
6 full-sized graham crackers, broken in half
24 regular marshmallows
Directions
1. Butter (or spray lightly with cooking spray) a 9"x13" pan.
2. In a large microwave safe bowl, place 3 tablespoons of butter (cut into pieces), and 40 marshmallows. Microwave about 3 minutes (stirring after 2 minutes). Watch the microwave, cooking times may vary. Cook in microwave until butter and marshmallows are melted. Stir smooth.
3. Add the Rice Krispies and Golden Grahams cereals to melted marshmallows and stir to combine. Add mini chocolate chips, stir quickly, and immediately pour mixture into prepared 9"x13" pan. Press down into pan with spatula.
4. Melt semi-sweet chocolate (or chocolate chips) in a double boiler over medium heat. Heat until just melted. Spread chocolate on top of Rice Kripies mixture in pan. While the chocolate is still warm, lay graham cracker squares on top, leaving a bit of space between each cracker.
5. Put entire pan in the fridge or freezer (or a cool location) until the chocolate has set (about 20 minutes). Cut into squares with a sharp knife, using the lines between the graham crackers as a guide. Place treats on a large baking sheet, separated slightly.
6. Cut the 24 marshmallows in half and place cut side down onto graham crackers, 4 halves per treat. When all the graham crackers are topped with marshmallows, use a kitchen torch to toast the marshmallow. OR, you can toast the marshmallows in the oven - preheat your oven to broil, place baking sheet of treats in the oven, leaving the oven door slightly ajar. Broil about 30 seconds - watch them, they can burn quickly! Pop them back in the fridge or cool location to re-harden after marshmallows are toasted. Enjoy!
(If you don't want huge treats, halve the graham crackers again before putting them on the chocolate, to make them half-sized.)
Since I don't have handy print-formatted recipes, just copy and paste into Word, or print the whole post. :-P Go forth and spread the deliciousness!
Friday, September 23, 2011
Amazing Apple Slab Pie
So every fall, I start to get the 100 Days of Holidays e-newsletter from Better Homes & Gardens. It starts at the beginning of fall and goes through Christmas. They have recipes, decorating ideas, crafts, etc. One recipe this year so far was Crumb-Topped Apple Slab Pie. It's basically an apple pie, but made in a jellyroll pan, so it can feed a crowd.
It was so much fun to make. I'm usually bad at crust, but this one was super easy.
I also hate prepping apples, but my mom and I got a new toy:
It's pretty much magic. Everyone in the world should have a peeler/corer/slicer.
I had to share this recipe. It was lots of fun to put together, and it looks amazing. I can't try it because it's for Mom to take to school, but it's basically a huge apple pie. It can't be anything but awesome.
Crumb-Topped Apple Slab Pie
(From Better Homes & Gardens)
Ingredients
2 1/4 C. flour
3/4 tsp. salt
2/3 C. butter-flavored shortening
8 Tbsp. cold water
2/3 C. sugar
1/3 C. flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 1/2 lbs. baking apples - cored, peeled, and sliced
Crumb Topping:
1 C. quick oats
1 C. packed brown sugar
1/2 C. flour
1/2 C. butter
1/2 C. chopped pecans (optional)
Method
Line a 15x10x1-inch baking pan with foil, extending the foil up over the edges of the pan. Spray lightly with non-stick spray and set aside.
For dough: In a large bowl, stir together the 2-1/4 C. flour and the salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the cold water over the flour mixture; gently toss with a fork. Repeat, using 1 tablespoon cold water at a time, until all of the flour mixture is moistened. Using your fingers, gently knead the dough just until a ball forms.
Preheat oven to 375F. On a floured surface, roll the dough into a rectangle large enough to fill the pan. Wrap it around the rolling pin, and unroll it into the prepared baking pan. Ease dough into the pan and up the sides, being careful not to stretch it. Trim dough to fit the pan, where needed.
In a large bowl, combine the sugar, the 1/3 C. flour, and the cinnamon; add apples. Toss lightly until apples are coated. Spoon apple mixture into dough-lined pan; spread evenly.
To make the crumb topping, stir together the quick oats, packed brown sugar, and 1/2 C. all-purpose flour. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until topping mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in chopped pecans. Sprinkle topping over the apple mixture in the pan.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until apples are tender. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Serve warm or cool completely. Cut into rectangles. Makes about 25 servings.
Enjoy! Feel free to leave comments about anything I should add to my fall baking agenda!
It was so much fun to make. I'm usually bad at crust, but this one was super easy.
I also hate prepping apples, but my mom and I got a new toy:
It's pretty much magic. Everyone in the world should have a peeler/corer/slicer.
I had to share this recipe. It was lots of fun to put together, and it looks amazing. I can't try it because it's for Mom to take to school, but it's basically a huge apple pie. It can't be anything but awesome.
Crumb-Topped Apple Slab Pie
(From Better Homes & Gardens)
Ingredients
2 1/4 C. flour
3/4 tsp. salt
2/3 C. butter-flavored shortening
8 Tbsp. cold water
2/3 C. sugar
1/3 C. flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
3 1/2 lbs. baking apples - cored, peeled, and sliced
Crumb Topping:
1 C. quick oats
1 C. packed brown sugar
1/2 C. flour
1/2 C. butter
1/2 C. chopped pecans (optional)
Method
Line a 15x10x1-inch baking pan with foil, extending the foil up over the edges of the pan. Spray lightly with non-stick spray and set aside.
For dough: In a large bowl, stir together the 2-1/4 C. flour and the salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the cold water over the flour mixture; gently toss with a fork. Repeat, using 1 tablespoon cold water at a time, until all of the flour mixture is moistened. Using your fingers, gently knead the dough just until a ball forms.
Preheat oven to 375F. On a floured surface, roll the dough into a rectangle large enough to fill the pan. Wrap it around the rolling pin, and unroll it into the prepared baking pan. Ease dough into the pan and up the sides, being careful not to stretch it. Trim dough to fit the pan, where needed.
In a large bowl, combine the sugar, the 1/3 C. flour, and the cinnamon; add apples. Toss lightly until apples are coated. Spoon apple mixture into dough-lined pan; spread evenly.
To make the crumb topping, stir together the quick oats, packed brown sugar, and 1/2 C. all-purpose flour. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until topping mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in chopped pecans. Sprinkle topping over the apple mixture in the pan.
Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until apples are tender. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Serve warm or cool completely. Cut into rectangles. Makes about 25 servings.
Enjoy! Feel free to leave comments about anything I should add to my fall baking agenda!
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