Apple Berry Pie

I made this pie for Thanksgiving dinner and we ate it right up. It is a favorite but I had not made it for several years. It is tart and sweet at the same time and really delicious. Here is the recipe: Apple Berry Pie

Double Crust Pastry
2 cups sugar
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
3 cups cranberries, washed & stemmed
2 large apples, pared, quartered, cored, and sliced (3 cups)
2 TBSP butter or margarine
milk & sugar (topping)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare pastry and put half in pie plate. Combine sugar, flour, cinnamon, & nutmeg in a large bowl; add cranberries and apples; toss lightly to mix. Spoon into crust; dot butter over fruit. Roll out remaining pastry and cut slits to let steam escape; place over filling, pinch edge & flute. Brush cream or milk lightly over top and sprinkle with sugar. Bake 40 minutes or until pastry is golden. Yield: 1 9-inch pie.

Layered Pumpkin Dessert

I found this recipe AFTER Thanksgiving and it looks really good. It should be called Chris' Layered Pumpkin Dessert because he LOVES Twinkies and Whipped Cream. He will eat both in one sitting! I'm going to try it sometime soon. Maybe for Christmas because we still have plenty of leftovers to eat!

LAYERED PUMPKIN DESSERT

1 package (10 count) Twinkies
1 – 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 – 8 oz. container Cool Whip, thawed & divided
2 – 3.4 oz. pkgs. instant vanilla pudding
1 – 15 oz. can pumpkin
1 cup milk
1½ tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Slice Twinkies in half, lengthwise, and place, cream-side-up, single layer, in bottom of 9x13 baking dish. Blend together cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, and half of the Cool Whip until smooth. Spread over Twinkies.

Combine pudding, pumpkin, spice, and milk. Whisk until well blended and spread over cream cheese mixture. Refrigerate a couple hours and serve with remaining Cool Whip and a sprinkle of pumpkin pie spice.

Thanksgiving Dinner

The Table decorated by MarissaFamily!
Laurie and Apple Berry Pie!

Bird Rolls

I made some "Bird Rolls" today. They actually look like soft pretzels and taste like the Challah Bread that I make. The rolls call for some extra work to make them look like birds with unblanched almonds and making tail feathers with a knife but I skipped that part. People around here eat food no matter what it looks like! Here's the recipe:

BIRD ROLLS
1 package (1/4 oz) active dry yeast
1 cup warm milk (110 - 115 degrees)
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. salt
3-1/2 to 4 cups all purpose flour

(Additional ingredients: 1 egg, 1 TBSP water, 16 whole unblanched almonds)

In a mixing bowl, dissolve yeast in warm milk. Add the butter, brown sugar, 2 eggs, salt and 2 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide into 16 pieces. Roll each into a 12 inch rope; tie each into a knot. To form bird's head, tuck one end back into knot. With a sharp knife or scissors cut two slits on opposite end to form tail feathers. Place 2 inches apart on greased baking sheets. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Beat 1 egg with 1 TSBP water; brush over dough. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown. Insert an almond into each for beak. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Yield: 16 rolls

MY NOTE: I used the dough setting on the bread machine and skipped the hard work. Just follow the breadmaker instructions for loading the ingredients.

Mashed Potatoes and Noodles

I needed some comfort food today and made mashed potatoes and noodles. Almost as good as Grandma's but not quite. If you want to try it sometime, here's what I did:

Place in crockpot, 3-4 boneless chicken breasts
2 cans chicken broth (I ended up adding a third later)
2 cans cream of chicken soup.

Cook on low all day. Take out chicken and shred - set aside.
In crockpot, add 8 oz egg noodles - the thinner the better. (I tried to find Reames Egg Noodles but ended up using regular ones). Let simmer in crock pot for 30-40 minutes. Add chicken.
I also added a couple spoonfuls of sour cream, salt and pepper. Serve over mashed potatoes! Yum!

Mom's Sticky Buns

My mother used to make these buns for church every Sunday morning for Sunday school. The men would always comment to my dad how much they liked her buns!

Mom's Sticky Buns

Prepare the night before.

Grease or butter a bundt cake pan.
Add 1/2 cup nuts or pecans and put in bottom of pan if desired. (Optional)

18 balls frozen dinner roll dough (Rhodes is the best) Note: I let them thaw slightly and cut them in half. Sprinkle rolls with one small box dry cook and serve butterscotch or vanilla pudding (NOT INSTANT)

Heat together until bubbly:
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Pour over rolls and pudding.

Cover with towel and let rise overnight.

Bake in the morning at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes until done.

Turn on to plate and serve warm. These will disappear FAST!

I had to buy a second pan and make two at a time with my husband, four kids and their friends!

Grape Salad

This recipe was given to me by my coworker, June. It has an unusual combination of ingredients but it is delicious. I cannot get enough of this salad when I make it!

Grape Salad

Grape mixture:
2 lbs. red grapes
2 lbs. white or green grapes
1 cup pecans
1 cup grated cheese (cheddar)

Combine and mix well following:
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
8 oz. sour cream
1 cup brown sugar

Pour over grape mixture. Refrigerate. Enjoy!

Apple Crisp

2 or 3 cups sliced apples. Put in flat pan and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Mix together and sprinkle on top:
1 cup flour
1 stick butter or margarine
1 cup sugar
may add some oatmeal and/or nuts

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or so. Serve warm. Put scoop of vanilla ice cream on top if desired!

Easy Chili Dip

This is a great lowfat recipe (the chips are not always lowfat) and is good for those who are watching their calories.

Easy Chili Dip

2 pkgs cream cheese (can be lowfat), softened
2 cans Hormel Turkey Chili 99% fat free
1 small jar of salsa
Shredded Mexican or four cheese blend (or any kind of cheese)

Spread softened cream cheese on bottom of 9 x 12 pan. Pour chili over top of cream cheese. Spread salsa over chili. Sprinkle with shredded cheese to your liking. Bake in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes until cheese is melted/bubbly. Serve with tortilla chips. Enjoy!!!!!

Grasshopper Pie

This recipe came from a restaurant in Mystic, Connecticut when Steve and I lived in Connecticut years ago. Our kids request this pie instead of a birthday cake on their birthdays! (Except Marissa)


GRASSHOPPER PIE

CRUST:
24 Oreo cookies, finely crushed (or use a ready made chocolate crust)
1/4 c. butter, melted

FILLING:
2 c. heavy or whipping cream, whipped
5 TBSP crème de menthe
5 TBSP crème de cacao
1 large jar (8 oz.) marshmallow crème

Combine cookie crumbs and butter. Press into 9" spring pan or regular pie pan. Reserve 1/2 cup to sprinkle on top of finished pie.

Whip the cream. Add crème de menthe and crème de cacao to marshmallow creme in a separate bowl. Mix gently until blended. Fold in whipped cream. Pour into cookie pie crust. Sprinkle with crumbs. Freeze for several hours.

Note: You can use 1 ½ cups heavy cream/whipping cream, instead of 2 cups.)

WW Notes: 1/8th of a pie is approximately 6 points! (268 calories, 12 g fat, 0 dietary fiber)

Oatmeal Cake

My mother used to make this cake and it is a family favorite. My brother, Doug, substitutes applesauce for the butter to make it healthier and less fattening.

Mom's Oatmeal Cake (Betty Royer)

Pour 1 ¼ cups boiling water over 1 cup quick cooking oats and let stand for 20 minutes.

Add:
½ cup butter or margarine
2 eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar

Stir. Then Add:
1 1/3 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla
½ tsp. salt

Pour into greased and floured 8 x12 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 - 40 minutes until done. While cake is in the oven, get the topping ready:

Topping:
7 TBSP melted butter or margarine
1 cup brown sugar
¼ cup canned milk or cream (evaporated milk)
1 cup coconut
1 tsp. vanilla

Remove cake from hot oven and turn on the broiler. Spread topping on hot cake in small spoonfuls and spread evenly and gently. Broil 2-3 minutes or bake a few minutes until topping bubbles and is lightly browned. Enjoy!
Serves 12.