Caramel Apple Pie

Caramel Apple Pie is a nice variation on the Classic Apple Pie.

Make a double crust and divide.  Roll out one of the halves and place it in a pie pan.

Peal and cut 5 -7 crisp apples and place in pie shell.  Mix together sugar and flour and pour over apples evenly.  Dot with butter.

Cut caramels into chunks (these were homemade but you can buy them and do the same).

Add and mix caramels to the apple mixture.

A little or a lot of caramel... its up to you.

Roll out top crust.  Use a plate to trim edges.  

You will use the trimmings to make some pretty roses.

Place your top crust onto the pie and crimp together with the bottom crust.  Make an X in the top of your crust and peel it open.  They will become leaves.   Once they are turned back, put leaf lines in them with a knife.  You can see this below... although  I didn't get a close up of me doing this step... sorry; next pie I might add it in.

Take your trimmings and roll them up to make roses.  You don't have to do much with them; you can pinch and smooth them here and there until they look right, but it works pretty well with very little effort.

You can see they are not perfect, and I didn't take too much time on them; but they add a creative touch that is attractive.

Bake at 375 degrees for approximately 1 hour; details below.

Cut - Serve - Enjoy.

Carmel Apple Pie

5 - 7   Apples

3/4   Cup Sugar (I use Sucanat)

2 Tb Unbleached flour

1 tsp Salt (I use Celtic or Himalayan Salt)

1/2  Cup Butter

1 Cup Caramels.... more or less is fine.

1 Double Pie Crust  (See recipe below)

Preheat oven to 375  degrees. Peel and slice apples.  Place the slices into a pie shell.  Mix sugar, flour and salt.  Sprinkle evenly over apples. Dot with butter and caramel chunks.  Top with crust.  Cover with foil and bake for 50 minutes.  Remove foil and cook another 10-15 minutes until inside is bubbly.

Note:  You could also make homemade caramel and pour it over the apples instead of the caramel chunks.  Pour about a cup over the apples and cover with the top crust.  Click here for a slightly healthy version of caramel.  If you do it this way, you can leave out the 1/2 cup of butter.

Perfect Pie Crust
For the full Pie Crust Post, click here

This is my favorite white flour crust.  It is tender and flaky and perfectly wonderful.  It is a recipe given to me many years ago by a friend who made pies for our small town, local restaurant.  I can see why her pies were very popular.

In a small bowl, mix together:
1/4 Cup Milk

2 Tb White Vinegar

Mix these together and place in the freezer until it is lightly frothy.

In  medium bowl,  add:
2 Cups Unbleached flour or half whole wheat flour and half unbleached

1/2 tsp Salt

Mix together and then cut in:

1 Cup Shortening (I use natural/organic palm shortening

Pour the milk mixture into the flour mixture and stir until all holds together.  You may need to add a couple of extra tablespoons of cold water to make all cling together nicely, just add a spoonful at a time until it holds together as you are stirring.  Don't knead; you want to mix and handle as little as possible. Divide and roll out on a floured surface.

NOTE:  I have noticed that when using the natural palm shortening instead of Crisco, that it is softer, and meltier, I have started reducing the shortening to 3/4 of a cup , and find that it is a bit easier to work with, and tastes just right.

Click here for other Fall ideas

Dinner in a Pumpkin

Here's a fun and delicious dinner idea for the season.  The main dish is baked in the pumpkin shell and can be scooped out with a little pumpkin  when served.  It is a very festive family meal that combines chicken, rice, spinach, ricotta cheese and pumpkin.  The flavors meld together reminiscent of a Chicken Florentine dish, with a creamy "comfort food" satisfaction.

Dinner in a Pumpkin

Serves 8

Ingredients:

1 medium pumpkin; top cut off and seeds removed

3 cups Cooked Chicken meat, chopped.

4 cups rice (brown or white) : already cooked

1 stick of organic butter

1 cup chopped mushrooms

1 small onion chopped

2 small cloves garlic crushed and chopped

1/2 cup flour (whole wheat or white is okay)

2   cups chicken broth

1  1/2 cups ricotta cheese

1 1/2 cups frozen spinach (thawed and the liquid squeezed out)

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

2  teaspoons salt 

1 1/2 cups Mozzarella, Provolone, Monterey Jack, or Parmesan Cheese; or combine any of these.

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350

Cut off top of pumpkin and remove fiber and seeds,  Rinse and pat dry

Mix chicken and rice and set aside.

In a large sauce pan or skillet melt butter over medium heat;  add mushrooms, onion and garlic. Saute until all are slightly tender.  Add flour and stir until well mixed and bubbly.  Add broth and continue stirring until well mixed.  Add spinach, nutmeg, salt, pepper and ricotta cheese.  Stir until well mixed. Add rice and chicken and combine all the ingredients gently.  Put all into the pumpkin shell, top with Mozzarella cheese and place the lid back on top.   Place on a baking sheet that has been covered in parchment paper.  Bake in oven about 2 hours.

Note:  This does take some time for the pumpkin to actually bake: if you just want to serve the meal from the pumpkin, but don't really want to eat any of the pumpkin itself, it will be done in about an hour.  Also, I took the lid off and put foil over the whole pumpkin after about an hour, to keep the pumpkin shell from getting too brown.  I cooked it with the foil on for the next hour.  I also turned on the broiler and took the foil off the last ten minutes to give the cheese a nice brown look.  When you cook the pumpkin until it is tender, you can easily spoon some out of the side as you dish up the meal.  Be sure to pat some butter on it and salt and pepper as well.

Another option, is to put this into 2 medium/small pumpkins or four small pumpkins, or cover the empty pumpkin shell, and cook it ahead; once its cooked, pat with a paper towel, and fill with casserole then bake 45 minutes to an hour.

Have fun.


For more Fall activities click here

Make A Fall Centerpiece

I posted last week how I like to go foraging.... especially in the Fall.  I love to bring in my plunder and decorate with it.  You can make a Fall center piece quickly and easily by just foraging in your back yard, an empty lot, or out on a nature walk.  This centerpiece is made up of  wild sage, and some pretty red wild flowers which I don't know the name of, and  a few "picks" from Hobby Lobby that were on sale.  The Sunflowers are made of burlap, and fit in with my colors this year; I couldn't resist them at 40% off.  This is a very casual centerpiece but has a little elegance, I think.  It was very inexpensive to make, since I had the white tureen on hand and gathered all but a few of the components.  You can collect almost anything that looks pretty, spray it with a little cheap hairspray to keep the flowers intact and put it in a bowl, vase or urn.  You don't even need a glue gun.  When Fall is past, pull out the store bought picks and the rest can be recycled in the fireplace.

Do you like those little birds?  My friend Roxy gave them to me a couple of years ago.  I
love them.  They are my  sweet reminder of the verse: "Not one sparrow falls to the ground apart from your Father."  They remind me that He sees me, He knows me and even the very hairs on my head are numbered.... and so are yours.
  

Happy Decorating Everyone.

Matthew 10:29-31

 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.  And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.  So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.




For More Fall Activities Click here

25 Cozy Ways to Enjoy Fall

 I was thinking of the cozy things we like to do in our family, that make Fall one of my favorite seasons and decided to make a list of them.  Some of them I've posted about recently, and some I will post about shortly, and some are thoughts, ideas or posts from other fall seasons or other peoples fun that I'd like to try.  Maybe they will inspire some cozy days for you.

1.    Make some Cinnamon Pinecones

2.    Go on a Fall Picnic and look at the beautiful colors of the leaves.

3.    Make a Fall Tea Cozy

4.    Make a Pumpkin cake.  My daughter Marie made the one I linked... I can't wait to give it a try

5.    Drink Hot Chocolate out under the stars: ( try this recipe, also from my daughter Marie's blog.)

6.    Go on a Nature Walk  and Forage for  Fall Decorations 

7.    Make a Fall Snack Mix

8.    Enjoy a Craft Day with the "Little ones" click here, here and here for 3 different craft ideas; the last two from my daughter Elizabeth's blog

9.    Make a Fall Wreath

10.  Light  Cinnamon, Apple and Pumpkin Pie Candles

11.  Crochet some Fall Hot Pads

12.  Make an Apple Pie

13.  Cut out Paper Leaves: 

14.  Have a  Homemade Fall Spa Day: 

15.  Enjoy a Peaceful Day of Thanksgiving and Meditation... just you and God 

16.  Preserve  Some Autumn Leaves

17.  Make dinner in a Pumpkin Shell

18.  Make a Fall Gift for someone special. 

19.  Make a Fall Banner: 

20.  Make a Thankful Tree:  I saw this one on Pinterest, and want to do it this year for Thanksgiving.

21.  Make a batch of Animal Crackers for the Little Ones.

22.  Make a Fall Centerpiece

23.  Snuggle up to the fire with blankies and favorite books

24.  Have a Fall Tea Party and make these wonderful scones from my daughter Elizabeth's blog 

25.  Make a pot of Chili; Green or Red

  What are some things you like to do for Fall?

Enjoy and be cozy everyone.

   

Fall Foraging

Acorns and leaves, dried flowers and herbs, rose hips and plums, pinecones and sticks, seed pods and gourds... all are a beautiful part of Fall.  Those pretty things are a part of the ordinary,  but lovely blessings we can enjoy every year at this time.

I love to go on walks and forage in the Fall.  I like to find pretty things to decorate the  house with, rose hips to make tea, pinecones to use as fire starters, and decorations, wild plums to make jam, and what ever else comes across my path.  I have happy memories of the kids when they were young, going out with me to pick wild plums for jam, or gourds for crafts, or all kinds of odds and ends to decorate with.  Those memories are treasures to me, and I go on doing some of the same sorts of things every year, because it is a delightful, peaceful and cozy Fall thing to do, and kindles those sweet memories and feelings of contentment.

We got about six inches of snow yesterday, can you believe that?  It is definitely a little early to be having snow; It was very pretty.  Snow is so pretty, but I am not ready for the snow yet; how about you?  Thankfully,  it has been melting very quickly and by later to day, it ought to back to what these pictures look like.  I hope you all have a long, lovely peaceful fall, and that the snow of Winter will be put off just a little longer.

Coming soon:
A centerpiece  made with the "findings" of Fall


Click here for more ways to enjoy Fall