apple turnovers

It's not that I didn't enjoy eating these turnovers, or that they didn't taste and smell amazingly, I just wasn't happy with them.

I think the puff pastry got too warm from the husband leaving the heat and fireplace running 24/7, so the shapes weren't right and they weren't pretty. I like pretty things. I also like tasty things. These were tasty, not pretty.

The filling was everything I wanted it to be, it made my house smell like a really good scented candle. It was also crazy easy to make. I'm almost thinking you could roll some of the cooled filling into a whole wheat tortilla that's been spread with a thin layer of cream cheese. That would be an awesome and pretty snack.

Even though I don't think they are pretty, you should still make them. Out of the14 turnovers this batch made, I ate 2 and the husband ate 12. In a 16 hour period.

Apple turnovers
[  adapted from the kitchn ]

crust:
1 box puff pastry, thawed overnight in the fridge
1 egg, beaten
sugar for dusting (optional)

filling:
2 large baking apples, peeled and cored (I used gala)
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch salt


Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside.

For the filling, grate the apples on the large side of the box grater, set aside. In a medium saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat, add the grated apples, toss until well coated. Add the brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until mixture is thick and syrupy. Remove from heat and stir in the remaining tablespoon of butter, let sit until mixture is room temperature.

Meanwhile, roll out puff pastry on a heavily floured surface to a 12x12-inch square. Using a sharp knife or a pizza cutter, cut into 12 - 14 equal-sized squares.

Place a dollop-full of apple filling in the corner of each square, making sure to leave a 1/2-inch border. Pull the opposing side of the dough over, making sure the corners touch to make a triangle. Crimp the open end closed with a fork, transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Make sure each triangle is about an inch apart. Brush tops of triangle with egg and sprinkle with sugar, if using.

Bake for 15 - 18 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack and let rest for a few minutes before serving. Best served the day of, but can be reheated in the oven for a few minutes.

cream of tomato soup

The husband calls me a baking snob. Granted, I know not everyone has the patience for baking that I do, but I don't think I'm a snob.

I think it's because I have a few non-negotiables when it comes to baking and cooking.

- If the recipe involves cake mix, I ain't going near it. I loathe cake mix, with a passion. I know some people like it, they like the simplicity of it, but I'm sorry, everyone should know how to make a cake.

- Don't even get me started with the "skinny" cake recipes. Cake mix + diet pop is not baking.

- I will never use margarine as a butter substitute. Same goes with apple sauce.

- Artificial vanilla is not the same as vanilla extract.

- Always make a recipe once, exactly as written. Subsequent times, it's okay to make changes.

- Cool whip is not real food. Neither is Splenda.

Sure, maybe it sounds unreasonable to some, but to me, these "rules" are what I believe in.

I like whole foods. Like this soup. Who doesn't love cream of tomato soup on a cold day ? I always used the canned stuff, but when I came across this recipe. I needed to make it.

It doesn't use any crazy ingredients, I think the hardest part was blending the soup. Creamy, warm, perfectly spiced with basil, the perfect accompaniment with a grilled cheese.

Cream of tomato soup
[ from the kitchn ]

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
pinch of ground cloves
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
One 15 oz can diced tomatoes in puree
pinch of baking soda
2 cups chicken stock, vegetable stock, or water
1 cup milk, or up to 1/2 cup more as needed
tomato paste, if needed


In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onion and celery, cook for a few minutes, until veggies are soft. Add the dried basil and cloves, cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes, then add the flour. Stir the flour well, cooking for another 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, baking soda, and stock.

Bring mixture to a boil and then turn down to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove soup from heat and puree using a stick blender, or in batches in a traditional blender. Once pureed to your liking, return to the heat and stir in the milk. Add more milk if the soup seems too thick, and add tomato paste if it needs more tomato flavour.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

the realization

As fall becomes winter, the air gets a little bit colder, the rain is a lot more frequent, I try and still enjoy the weather.

Before I become a house monster, I want to enjoy the nice-ish weather.

I like the cold finger tips and the rosy cheeks. The bronze leaves scattered everywhere. The crisp, cool air that you breathe as you take that first step outside.

Armed in my wardrobe of Lululemon, hand warmers, and scarf, the bump and I hit the pavement.

The view is spectacular. A winding trail, in amongst the trees, all golden with fall colours.

I can't move as quickly as I think I can, I have to remind myself to slooooow down. If I don't remind myself, someone does a giant roll to remind me, oh yeah, I'm large and in charge now, maybe power walking is a bad idea.

I'm going to miss this. These fall walks. Not only because I'm no longer going to be able to take a minute to sit and enjoy this view, because of course we will be moving away from the area in a few short weeks. But that it no longer be as easy to pop my headphones in, listen to the latest homefries podcast, and just escape into the fall surroundings.

I just won't be alone. I'll have a tiny person with me.

I think it's finally starting to sink in.

apple crumble pie

True facts about life.


I have a half soccer ball attached to me. It's kinda feeling weird to bend over.

I'm addicted to making pies.

Our car ran out of gas at 10pm last night when the husband had a craving for ice cream.

traditional pumpkin pie

Hi.

I'm lonely.

The husband went on a boy's trip this weekend. He's probably half-drunk, yelling obscenities at Oilers fans right now.

I'm probably going to eat popcorn for dinner, watch the hockey game, and make a pie to keep myself occupied.

surprise oatmeal cookies

At Thanksgiving dinner this year, one of my family members brought up that while reading my blog, she noticed I used cinnamon a lot.

I never noticed that before.

Maybe I just naturally gravitate towards recipes with cinnamon?

Maybe it's the time of year?

apple blackberry crisp

As much as I love the sunshine and heat of summer, I really love fall.

Crisp, cool air.

Crunchy leaves to step on.

The return of hockey.

Pumpkin things.

Plus all things baked that come ushering back into season. Crisps, crumbles, pies, cookies, doughnuts, turkeys. 

With some hand-picked blackberries stored away in my freezer (thanks mom!), I made an apple blackberry crisp, at the nagging  request of the husband. 

It's was the perfect blend of late summer sweetness from the blackberries, with the tartness of fall, granny smith apples. Topped with what tasted like a giant oatmeal cookies, with tons of brown sugar.

This topping can be used with any sort of filling, raspberry and nectarine, just plain ol' apples, triple berry, anything you want to put a topping on basically, just adjust the flour accordingly depending on the juiciness of the fruit. 

Apple blackberry crisp

3 large granny smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1/4-inch slices

2 cups blackberries, fresh or frozen. If frozen, do not thaw.

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons flour

topping:

1/2 cup butter, cool and cubed into 1/2-inch cubes

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/2 large flake oats, not quick oats

1/2 cup white sugar

1/4 cup flour

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

In a large bowl, toss together the apples, blackberries, cinnamon, sugar, and flour. Stir until no dry clumps remain. Pour into a 9x13-inch dish, or a deep, round ceramic dish (like me!). Set aside. 

In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the brown sugar, oats, white sugar, and the flour, stir to combine thoroughly. Add the cubes of butter and turn your mixer onto medium speed and it should start to form crumbles in about 2 - 3 minutes. Once you see all the butter has been combined into the flour-sugar mixture, turn off mixer. Alternatively, you can use your hands and crumble the butter into the dry ingredients until you get the same result. 

hey it's me!

Using your hands, scoop handfuls of the topping onto the fruit, making sure to press down and cover the entire top. You should see no fruit poking through the topping, press the topping gently to make sure it adheres to the fruit. 

Bake for an hour to 75 minutes, or until fruit is bubbling and topping is golden brown. Remove from oven and let rest for at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm with ice cream or whipped cream.

baked potato soup

Earlier in the week, went for dinner, with some ladies and their babies.  Some of those ladies and I, went to a movie.

Crazy stupid love. You seen it?

There is only one thing that stands out in my mind from that movie.

Ryan Gosling's abs.

Holy mother of freaking jesus, that is amazing. I love the husband dearly with all of my heart, but that ladies (and gents) is, a work of art. God bless Canada.

I needed to share, let's continue with food now.....

Baked potato soup. Easy, quick, delicious, low fat, comforting, husband friendly, loaded with cheese bacon and onions.

I made mine with a handful of ingredients I had at home, nothing weird or out of the ordinary. I used nugget potatoes, but you'd be fine using a red-skinned potato or a russet potato.

Baked potato soup
[ loosely adapted from Cooking Light via Handle the heat]

10 small to medium-sized nugget potatoes, scrubbed clean
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups non-fat milk, divided
1 1/4 cups warm water
salt & pepper to taste

Accompaniments:


4 slices bacon, cooked and chopped
shredded cheddar cheese
sliced green onions

 Place potatoes on several layers of paper towel and microwave, on high, for 10 minutes or until the are tender when pierced with a fork. Note: if you use larger potatoes, pierce them with a fork before microwaving and adjust time accordingly.

Once potatoes are cooked, cut into quarters and let cool. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, add onions and garlic and cook until onion is translucent, about 5 - 7 minutes. Stir together the flour and 1/2 cup of milk, until the flour has dissolved into the milk. Add milk/flour mix to the pan, along with the remaining milk and water. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Once boiling cook for one minute, turn heat down to low. Add the potatoes and mash them with a fork or a potato masher. Pull out any excess skins, I personally like the skins in the soup, but feel free to take them out. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Ladle into bowls and top with bacon, cheese and green onions.

Serve with Ryan Gosling's abs crusty bread to your loving husband.

pumpkin spice muffins

I'm about halfway through my pregnancy, but I've learned a few things that no book seems to tell you.

Ladies, be prepared. Moms, you probably already know this.

Your nose is stuffed up. Constantly.