{SRC} Sustained by Stephanie

Today is the First Monday in February. That means it is time for Secret Recipe Club! Once a month we cook from our ‘assigned’ foodie blog and post out goodies. It is always the first Monday.

This month I was fortunate enough to meet STEPHANIE ofSustainable Cooking For One. She lives in Upstate New York and is gluten free and vegetarian. That made it interesting for me as I am not either and some kind of meat is always on our table. There are a lot of tasty recipes on her site made for gluten free so I picked a couple that I could easily adapt. Lots of good veggies, too.

For Breakfast we had…

…Pumpkin Waffles

{Yes, I know, there is no waffle. I know I took pics but they are not to be found – sorry!!}
Sunday is usually our day for pancakes or waffles so this was a good time to try out these pumpkin waffles. With all the spice in the waffles they were packed with flavor and didn’t need very much else, but we did use a little Maple Syrup on top. I added pecans to mine and loved the extra crunch they added (in addition to the flax seed)

This makes a lot, but they are well worth freezing. Expect 12-14 full sized waffles, fewer Belgian waffles.

1 c pumpkin, mashed or canned
6 eggs, separated
2 T sugar or maple syrup
3 c milk or your fake milk of choice
1/4 c oil (use a light olive oil or canola oil)
1 cup AP flour
1/2 cup Whole Wheat Flour
1/4 c ground flaxseed
2 t baking powder
1 TBL Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 TBL chopped pecans

{RED is my subs}

Stir together the egg yolks, pumpkin, sugar, oil, and milk. In a small bowl, mix together the flour, spices, pecans,and flaxseed. Start whisking the egg whites. Whisk (or beat with a mixer) until they are stiff. Meanwhile, heat the waffles iron.

Stir the dry ingredient into the pumpkin mixture. When the dry ingredients are dampened, fold 1/4 of the egg whites into the batter. When mixed, gently fold the remaining egg white in.

Bake according to the directions of your waffle iron. Don’t try to remove them too soon! One key is to watch the steam coming from the iron. When it decreases significantly, that’s a sign they are close to done.

To freeze, cool completely on cooling racks and pack into freezer bags. Reheat in a hot oven (~400 F) for 5-10 minutes.

Here is Stephanie’s Original Recipe

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Dessert was simple. Simple doesn’t mean something not so good. In this case it was

Maple Crusted Baked Apples.

Stephanie said that baked apples are underappreciated. She’s right. But here they make fairly regular appearances. They are so easy to put together and so good to eat. Hers are ‘stuffed’ with raisins and pecans. I added a dried fruit mix of cranberries, dried cherries, pineapple, raisins, etc.

1 medium apple
Pinch of any or all: cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves
4 Tbl Dried Fruit Mix
2 T chopped raw pecans
1 T maple syrup (real, preferably grade B)

Peel one circle around the middle of the apple, and a little off the top of the apple. Remove the core. Peel all or part of the apple.{While Stephanie typically cuts deep circles into the apple from top and bottom with a paring knife I peeled most of the apple.} Place the apple in a small baking dish or oven-safe bowl. Mix together the spices and roll the apple in them. Mix any remaining spices with the raisins, and add about 1/3 of the pecans. Stuff that mixture into the center of the apple. Pour the maple syrup over the apple, and top with the remaining pecans. Bake until soft. Spoon the syrup/juice blend over the apple before serving.

Sorry to say that these two treats were all I had time for this month. It has been crazy around here lately. But I pinned a few other recipes of Stephanie’s I want to try – Corn Gratin, Spinach-Mushroom Quesidilla, not to mention a new recipe on a new post – Chocolate Hazelnut Butter Cookies. And if you visit with Stephanie be sure and read some of her articles which are very informative – like the one on Food Variety. Thanks, Stephanie, for the recipes and the wonderful articles. I will be visiting again!

And visit the other members of SRC

 

{FFwD} long and slow apples

Tonite I needed a simple, somewhat healthy way to end the evening. Dorie’s baked apples fit the bill.

This is not your typical baked apple which is cored, filled with goodies and popped in the oven for oven. Dorie has us slicing the apples thinly and then layering the slices with spiced sugar, orange zest, and butter. One Gala apple filled one cup just right. And then they cooked down quite a bit…

which means I ended up with only about 1/2 a cup full of apple. Good thing I could fill up the emptyness with some lightly sweetened whipped cream.

This one is definitely a keeper and so easy to put together it would be a crime NOT to fix it again, and again, and…

You can find the recipe on page 390 of Dorie’s around my french table. Please click on over to French Fridays with Dorie and drool over the other members’ apples.

{Dorie also said these could be baked for 10 hours in a low oven. I think I might try the ramekins in a slow cooker.}

 

{FFwD} crispy, crackly apple-almond tart

The thing about apple tarts is that they usually aren’t as sweet as some desserts. And that’s a good thing. I love apple desserts. And if they include custard and filo dough, well… ’nuff said.

This was basically a simple dessert. Layers of buttered filo dough topped with a thick (very thick) almond cream and covered in sliced Gala apples. Now top that with some almond flavored whipped cream…

….and you have a finger lickin’ tasty treat.

And I do mean finger-lickin’ because you can pick this up and ‘eat it out of hand’ as Dorie says.

This was supposed to be made with almond flour but I didn’t have any. I used regular four and a good deal of almond extract. This gave me an admirable almond cream. But it was very thick and difficult to spread on the fragile filo dough. Not to worry, careful and slow did the job. Dorie glazed her tart with a jelly glaze but I sprinkled mine with a cinnamon sugar instead. It was good.

I am sure there were others out there who made a few changes in Dorie’s apple tart. Go on over to and check out the apple tarts. You can find the recipe on page 458 in Dorie’s around my french table.

 

{TWD2}Chocolate Armagnac Cake/Apple Pie Cake

From the outside this looks like just another chocolate cake.

But cut into it and you find an intense chocolate fudgy cake.

Then serve it with a small scoop of Dorie’s Vanilla Ice Cream (page 428 of BFMHTY)

and you have a decadent dessert that is not hard and doesn’t take a long time to make. The cake includes chopped prunes soaked in Armagnac {Dorie said we could use Brandy, which I did} and then flamed. THAT WAS FUN!! Incorporated into the cake they add a richness and a small waft of Brandy flavor to this already intense chocolate delight.

The glaze was so so good. I was tempted to eat it with a spoon and NOT put it on the cake, but reason prevailed and I only ate 1/2 of it….. melted chocolate with butter and powdered sugar. What’s not to love!!!

Definitely a favorite chocolate dessert now. I missed making this in 3 March 2009 when it was chosen by LyB of Then I do the Dishes where you can find the recipe.

Thanks, Dorie, for losing your job over this one because it is delicious!! {The story is on LyB’s page!}

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So is it a pie or is it a cake. Well, because of the crust dough it could be both.

It LOOKS like a pie. Two crusts, yummy apple/cinnamon/sugar filling. Topped with sugar {I used turbinado.} and baked. PIE!!

But the dough for the crust bakes into a cake-y crust top and bottom. CAKE!! I cannot decide. What I did decide was that it was GOOD!!

Russian Grandmother’s Apple Pie Cake was chosen by Natalie over at Burned Bits for the March 11, 2008, TWD.
It was a tasty choice.

This was supposed to be made in a 9″ x 12″ baking pan, but there are just two of us and I knew we would never finish the whole thing so I made a mini pie using 1/3 of the recipe. That being said, I made the whole crust recipe so I could use it for something else. Everyone said how good it was so it never hurts to have extra of a good thing.

You can find the recipe on Natalie’s blog.

 

{Donna Hay Wednesday} Easy Apple Tart

Did you notice the title. EASY Apple Tart. That is an understatement. It should be Super Duper Esy Apple Tart because tht is exactly what it is. If you have an apple and some puff pastry you can whip this baby up in about 15 minutes including the baking.

You can have all that deliciousness in a snap. Seriously!! A Snap!! Slice your apples. Toss with cinnamon, sugar and melted butter, place on a square of Puff Pastry and BAKE!! That’s IT!!!

And if you want it really over the top, put a small large scoop of vanilla ice cream on top!!!
And if you really want decadence, sprinkle some cinnamon sugar on top. Or would that be TOO much?? NOT!! (I thought of that AFTER we had eaten the tart!)

You can find Donna’s Easy Apple Tart on her webpage.

And check over with Kayte, Chaya {our newest participant}, and Gaye and see what they did with their Super Duper Easy Apple Tart!

 

{TWD2} Black and White Chocolate Cake AND Brown Sugar-Apple Cheesecake

Cake!

We love cake!

Especially with ice cream!

And this cake was perfect for ice cream. Why? You need a reason besides the fact it is CAKE??

What you are looking at is a little mini taste of yum!! A white sponge cake with four layers of cake and three layers of filling.

There are two layers of Chocolate Mousee filling and one of White Chocolate Whipped Cream. The same whipped cream that frosts the cake.

The Chocolate Mousse was TDF – To Die For!!! I have, eh, had some left over and it was great just by itself. The white chocolate was barely discernable but was there. {Which was fine with NANCY!!}. Nancy and I started this together about 10 days ago, but life got in the way so I had to put the cake layers in the freezer. I made 1/2 of the cake recipe, 1/2 of the chocolate mousse, and the complete white chocolate filling. Past experience has taught me to make more frosing than you think you need. The cake was made in Wilton’s oval pans (8″ x 5 1/2″)so 1/2 of the cake gave me two small layers which I cut into two pieces and had 1/2 of a 1/2 of a cake!!

This pick was originally from February 5, 208 and was chosen by April of Abby’s Sweets. You can find the recipe on April’s blog or on page 258 of Dorie’s Baking from My Home to Yours.

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AND on February 12, 2008, the Bakers made…..

…hosted by Jaime of Good Eats and Sweet Treats . This is the creamiest cheesecake I have ever had. And lightly flavored with apple cider it is a definite keeper.

What you have is a Gingersnap crust {I used Le Petit Beurre because that is the only cookie I had in the house.}with a layer of cheesecake covered with a layer of caramelized apples and topped with another layer of cheesecake. **SIGH** Thank goodness I only made a small 5″ cheesecake because I know I would just sit and eat the whole thing!!!

Yes, it IS that good!! And THEN I decided it needed something else so I added a small amount of caramelized cinnamon apples on the top!!

You can find the recipe on Jaime’s blog. Go there! NOW!!

Check out Nancy’s and Leslie’s CheesseCakes. They are also doing the catch-up on TWD.

 

{TWD} (Re)Winding Down theTime with Dorie

Yes, folks, we are nearing the end time with Dorie. Sad but true. The group itself has been going on since January 2008 and I joined in the fun in August 5th of that year. Since that time there have been a few recipes I have missed as well as the ones the group made since the beginning. So I have a lot of catching up to do. No, it won’t be this year, but I do wnat to do as many as I can. So let’s start with this rewind – from just last week.

Alsatian Apple Tart

According to Dorie this tart was created in the Alsace region of France. Apples in custard in a Sweet Tart Dough. The custard is not very sweet, just enough to enhance the sweetness of the Golden Delicious Apples.

I made 1/2 of the recipe and made two mini tarts.

ACtually I had a little custard left over but not enough to make 3 minis. And since they were small it was difficult to ‘circle the apples’ so one of them just has chopped pieces.

But it was still REALLY TASTY!!! I sprinkled a little cinnamon sugar on one istead of glazing with jelly. Just right!

You can find the recipe on Jessica’s Blog – Cookbook Habit. Her tart is lovely.

I am sure there will be quite a variety of goodies today. So visit the other TWD Bakers and see what they decided to make, or remake!!

 

{TWD} Less is More….

There is a belief that less is more. I believe it. The less you have to do the more you enjoy it. The less you put into it the more you get out of it. Now, maybe that’s not really true, but in the case of this little 8″ x 8″ cake it is very true.

This weeks pick, from Katrina of Baking and Boys, was simple, quick, and had less work than a lot of the recipes we have done with TWD yet it was delightfully delicious. Apples, Oatmeal, Walnuts, Cinnamon, Cider. Oh, yeah, I knew I was making this one.

Apple Nut Muffin Cake

If this cake was any fuller of apples and nuts there would not be any room in the pan for it all. And it is so moist!! This is definitely one to keep handy. It is, as Dorie put it, rough and rustic.

And did I say it was really, really tasty?

Dorie said this came about thru’ Haste Makes Waste, and I understand that completely. In my haste to put this together last night before the clock struck midnight I completely forgot the butter until I was putting ingredients back in the fridge. And there was the butter. I quickly pulled the cake from the oven. Threw it back in the bowl and carefully stirred the butter into the cake. It. Came. Out. Perfectly!!! **Whew**

If you want the recipe it is on Katrina’s blog and on page 37 of Dorie’s Baking From My Home to Yours.

And more cakes can be found on the TWD site as more than 200 bakers tried out the cake. You should too.

 

{TWD} Cornmeal and Crumble

Odd title you say. Yes, it is. But what it is leading to is a Two-Fer for TWD. This week’s tasty treat and one from earlier this month that just didn’t get posted, or made for that matter.

This weeks’ pick from Caitlin of Engineer Baker is…

Cornmeal and Fruit Loaf

When one of my Twitter Buddies asked me about this loaf I described it as an apple cake, but Nancy hit it right when she called it a sweet cornbread with apples. Exactly!! So if you like cornbread and you like apples then this loaf is just right for you. It contains both fresh and dried apples spiced up with cinnamon (optional. NO!!) and nutmeg. There is just enough cornmeal included to take it out of the regular quick bread category. Great Pick, Caitlin. This is soo good. It is good toasted, too.

You can find the recipe on Caitlin’s blog and on pate 43 of Dorie’s Baking From My Home to Yours.

Now this is a Two-Fer, remember.

Back on 8/16 the pick for TWD was Tropical Crumble.

Made in a pie pan square casserole dish it is a combination of cooked mango and banana (and thus NOT very photogenic) which is mixed with fresh and ground ginger and brown sugar and then covered with a brown sugar, butter, pecan streusel.

The streusel is put on before the crumble is baked so it melts into the mangos and bananas for a rich tasty treat.

Thanks, Gaye, for a delightful dessert. You can find the recipe on her blog, Laws of the Kitchen or on page 418 of Dorie’s BFMHTY.

 

{Bake!} Playing Catch-up: Pinwheels

There were a few months at the first of the year that I was not in the kitchen. Four months actually. During that time I missed several ‘assignments’ from Bake!. Now it’s time to play catch-up.

danish apricot apple pinwheels

Using Malgieri’s Quick Danish Pastry Dough I had made a batch of earlier in the week I took 1/4 of the 1/2 recipe and made 4 pinwheels. The recipe had several variations including plums, pineapple, and apples in addition to the apricot. I used the apple filling from the strudel

Pinwheels are fun to make. Cut 4″ squares of dough. Cut them from the corner toward the center leaving a small platform of dough, fill, turn one corner of the dough square into the filling (from each corner) and bake. Easy Peasy. YES!!!! Easy!! ANd VERY good!

You can find the recipe on page 114 of Nick Malgieri’s Bake!

NOW!! Go pick up Malgieri’s Bake! and join in the fun. And vist the FB page for Bake!